Perspective from the END...

Hello! I’m part of the SIS bloggers crew, but have been a bit MIA, trying to take advantage of my LAST spring break, probably forever... So, I went to Spain, he!

I’m graduating in May, finishing up my two-year term here at AU, but in a program a bit different from my colleagues. My program, Natural Resources and Sustainable Development, is a dual degree program with the University for Peace in Costa Rica. What does that mean exactly? I attended school for two years, one of those years in Costa Rica and I will receive two Master’s degrees for my time; sweet, no?! My program provides students’ exposure to Northern development and environmental theory and conversely immerses them in the Global South, to examine how that differs. Many of the students in my program have served for the Peace Corps or similar programs, have an immense amount of real-world experience and are hoping to broaden their ‘skills tool-box’ by understanding the theories behind most development. It’s a generalist degree that covers a broad gamut of topics—environmental science, environment and development theory and policy, conservation, economics, social and community relationships, trade and agriculture, etc…

I’m in my last few months.. to be quite honest, it’s no picnic. There are times when I think I really just can’t read anymore and regurgitate it back into a concise, analyzed form. But, then there are those moments when you talk to someone who has thought twice about the paper they are throwing away and their own carbon foot-print… and it just brings you right back up again to what this was all about in the first place…. Saving the world! Well… saving any small part of it, at least. Not that the North or I will always have the answers, like we might like to think… and I’m very appreciative of my experience. I feel I have really gained an insight unbeknownst to most… the other side.

It’s hard to remember how it was in those first few semesters, especially in my program that is uncharacteristically transient. This is the perspective from the end, when it’s all practically over (but yet, there is so much more work still left to do, auughh!!)… It’s a great ride- enjoy it, relish in it. You will, in the end, be very glad you went for it.

Heather :)