The Gifts of Studying Abroad

Posted on February 22, 2012 by Amy

Jeannie Tai attended the American Language & Culture program in 2009 from National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan. Three years later, she is back in California. Below, she shares her thoughts on the impact of ALC and what study abroad has taught her.

Looking back, what did you experience on the program that influenced your life direction?

Jeannie at an SF Giant's game during ALC 2009

I attended the American Language & Culture (ALC2) program in 2009. At the beginning of the program, our director, Kazutoh Ishida, said, “Although it’s only one month here, it may be turning point in your life.” Although nothing big changed in my life right after the program, the one month at Stanford influenced me gradually and brought me a more colorful life than I’ve ever expected.

The most precious gift that I got from ALC is becoming an open-minded person. It’s an important step to help me make more friends and accept every single challenge with an optimistic mind in my life. As Kazutoh told me before the program, ALC provides us with a safe environment to learn what we want to be and find how to get what we want.

Jeannie and her roommate trying In 'n Out

During that one month in Stanford, I started to love English. My Japanese roommate, Miho, and I shared our daily lives every night and talked about our thoughts toward different topics. Sometimes we were serious, but usually we laughed a lot.  Many friends I met in ALC have become my life-long friends. They shared their experience, opinions,  and suggestions when I met difficulties. I realize that if I couldn’t speak English, we would have never become such good friends.

What are you doing now?

Jeanne volunteering at the museum

I’m working in California at Newport Medical Instruments as an intern. I came to University of California Irvine for a 10-week English program last June. After 10 weeks, I decided to take an Accelerated Business Administration Certificate and join an internship program. I also realized that I needed to step outside of the school to experience and take part in American life, culture, and values, so I volunteered in Laguna Art museum and Pretend City Children Museum; I practiced my English and got what others cannot get in school.

Like in ALC, my friends here are very important to me. We take care of each other, play and study together, and keep sharing our lives. Once again, I realized the importance of English, and I love it more.

There are a lot of challenges and difficulties studying abroad, but by facing things bravely, we become more than we had thought possible, and the memories we make are among the most precious in our lives.

Jeanne with her life-long friends

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Finding stride in a bustling Indonesian NGO

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Patrick

Maura Lillis currently volunteers at Yayasan Dian Desa in Yogyakarta, Indonesia.

Maura works on gender and energy initiatives for YDD

I initially had trouble mentally mapping out YDD because, with a large staff across three Indonesian offices operating across many specialties of community development, its dynamic activities almost refuse to be pinned down. Peoples’ roles change over time, job titles are never set in stone, and YDD’s founding philosophy is that the target population is to be credited for any positive developments, not YDD or its staff. It seems easy to ascribe this to disorganization, but on the ground, it feels more like fluidity.

Yogyakarta, Indonesia

I’ve found my current daily niche helping to translate, update, draft, and edit all kinds of reports, archives, and communication in support of our project operations, particularly focused on YDD’s gender and energy initiatives. I love what I’m doing right now because I can learn about these theories and project design justifications through the translation work I’m doing, while also going out to the field for site visits.

Navigating the hectic world of an Indonesian NGO

Recently, an Expression of Interest I helped draft for a project with a major international development organization was short-listed for consideration (fingers crossed for acceptance!). And soon I might be working on a Best Practices book for incorporating gender theory into Indonesian energy-related project design. I’d better keep studying my Bahasa Indonesia!

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My 100 Greatest Teachers

Posted on January 30, 2012 by Patrick

Rachel Wisthuff currently volunteers as an English Teacher at Universitas Muhamadiyah Solo in Surakarta, Indonesia.

Rachel's classroom at UMS in Surakarta

When I walk into class on Wednesday mornings, this is what faces me. Dun…Dun…Dun…

My first day with my Speaking III students, I had no idea how I was going to get this many teenagers to pay attention, let alone speak up.  But, over these past 6 weeks, they have both surprised me and surprised themselves.

Rachel with 24 of her best teachers

What I didn’t know before arriving at my post is that Speaking III is a debate class and nothing gets a class talking more than challenging and arguing with their fellow classmates. So far, they’ve debated about the legality of torture, nuclear proliferation, and mandatory sex education. Every week I observe as my students’ nerves and shyness subside. Not only am I proud to teach them, but I am proud to learn from them. Need well-researched information on current events, political, and social issues? Look no further than these individuals.

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Following the Current of Traffic in Phnom Penh

Posted on January 27, 2012 by Patrick

Clare Ortblad volunteers at the Cambodian Center for Study and Development in Agriculture (CEDAC) in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

At first I found it to be intimidating to get around in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.  The traffic here is loud, dusty and at first impression, completely chaotic.  But as you get used to the flow of things here, you realize that there is, in fact, a method to the traffic madness.  Large vehicles, such as buses, get priority in determining who goes first and how the traffic flows.  Everyone else weaves around the larger vehicles.  I have found that getting around in Phnom Penh is like what I imagine swimming in a crowded ocean to be like – the whales (buses and other large cars) will push through the thick packs of sardines (motorbikes), and the rest are like guppies swimming alongside the sardines.  There’s a kind of natural order to the flow of traffic here.

Maneuvering the seemingly impossible traffic in Phnom Penh

Motorbikes, or “motos” as they are called here, are the preferred method of transportation.  It is amazing how much stuff Cambodians can strap onto the back of a moto.  I often see crates filled with fruit or even live chickens strapped to the back seats of motos.

I remember thinking, during the first few weeks of living here, that I would never be comfortable with riding my bicycle in traffic.  But I can proudly say that I am comfortable with bicycling anywhere in Phnom Penh now, even in the midst of a seemingly chaotic environment.

Every now and then I’ll get stuck in an intense gridlock at intersections.  I originally viewed these gridlocks as incredibly frustrating obstacles.  But with perseverance and patience, the seemingly impossible would become possible and I would get to the other side of the intersection.  I realize now that in Cambodia things have a way of working themselves out, which I think has a lot to do with this mentality of patience and perseverance.

Learn more about CEDAC and their work in sustainable agriculture.

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Reflections on Human Trafficking in Vietnam

Posted on January 24, 2012 by Patrick

Sarah Tran volunteers at the An Giang/Dong Thap Alliance for the Prevention of Trafficking (ADAPT) in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta.

When it rains on the roof of my house in Long Xuyen, Vietnam, sometimes it sounds like drowning and sometimes it sounds like peace. I have found that being a new volunteer doing anti-human trafficking work to be like this too.

Sarah conducts a human trafficking awareness seminar in Long Xuyen

Many people can not imagine what human trafficking looks like. We come up with pictures of far-off poor countries, young women kidnapped in the dead of night, raids on brothels. But more often, human trafficking looks like poor families rising before the sun to do back-breaking labor to feed their children, young girls dropping out of school to put food on the table, and trusted friends who hold the false promise of better lives.  Front-line anti-trafficking work looks like a small office located in a border province between Vietnam and Cambodia with a small dedicated team of women who – day in and day out for the last seven years – have spent each day talking to the families of our scholarship recipients, encouraging and joking with young girls and women in our shelters, and writing up proposals that strive to convey the tenacity of girls that have managed to survive experiences many of us will never have to endure.

Long Xuyen, Vietnam

And the life of a new Vietnamese American volunteer living in Vietnam is the trial and gift of being like a child and an adult simultaneously – halting speech, sponge-like learning, and growth. It is not glamorous or easy but something better. It is real and each day that I work to find the words to speak about what we do, I hear the ever-stronger voices of these girls. The voice that at times sounds like drowning and a voice that constantly overcomes drowning towards peace.

Check out ADAPT to learn more about and their work in human trafficking prevention.

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Read the SP Programs Newsletter

Posted on January 4, 2012 by Amy

VIA SP Newsletter features highlights from the 2011 programs including: the impacts of our programs  on alumni career choices, new and ongoing partnerships with Stanford and Bay Area organizations, and a report on an alumni-initiated program in Taiwan.

Please download a copy the SP Newsletter here!

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Business Trip to Hanoi with Tropenbos

Posted on December 19, 2011 by Patrick

Stephanie Lackey provides an update on her work at Tropenbos International.

A few weeks ago, my co-workers invited me to attend a couple very cool events in Hanoi.  My boss, Anh Nghi, and I attended the 50th anniversary celebration of FSIV, the Forest Science Institute of Viet Nam. After almost 2 hours of singing, speeches, and lots and lots and lots of flowers, Anh Nghi and I attended a joint press release with governmental environmental representatives from both the EU and Vietnam. This was definitely my favorite event of the trip.

The discussion was based on the conclusion of the second negotiation for a bilateral forest law enforcement, governance, and trade voluntary partnership agreement of the EU and Vietnam. The conclusion was the creation a definition of timber legality between the two parties. This definition is important in the forestry trade to assure the legality of timber and timber products entering the EU market, while maintaining and expanding Vietnamese timber and timber product exports. Extra bonus, I got to snack on some Western desserts and coffee after the release, which I have definitely been missing.

One of the other coolest parts about my visit was meeting up with the awesome Mary Pham, who volunteered last year at Can Tho University and is now working in Hanoi. Not only did she treat me to some delicious chicken wings and grilled sweet baguettes appetizers, but also invited me to join a late evening expat Thanksgiving feast with her and some of her work friends. I was ecstatic to be able to celebrate Thanksgiving in Vietnam!

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Myanmar (Burma) Alumni Tour

Posted on December 17, 2011 by Administrator

If you missed VIA’s 2009 Myanmar (Burma) trip, a second trip led by Founder Dwight Clark will be offered in June 2012. The trip will be a budget-friendly chance to see this rapidly changing nation. To learn more about the 2012 trip, visit VIA’s website here. A report on the 2009 trip follows.

2009 Myanmar Trip Group Photo

In November 2009, 16 alumni and friends of VIA visited Myanmar on a two-week study tour led by VIA’s founder, Dwight Clark. On arrival in Singapore, participants were met with experts on the history and culture of Myanmar, became acquainted with each other and connected with Mark Nelson, a VIA alumnus living there. Then it was off to Yangon.

The trip participants were met by local secondary students who would act as hosts and cultural guides while in Yangon. Prior to the start of the program, the participants received email addresses for the students and were able to begin building relationships. Meeting these students and learning about their lives was highlight for some of the participants. A briefing by UNICEF staff and a visit to a local NGO introduced some of the nation’s social challenges.

The group then flew to Mandalay, the historic capital and the country’s second-largest city. During the three days in Mandalay, the group visited one of the area’s largest monasteries, where thousands of young monk study Buddhism, and engaged in informal conversations with the monks and local students. They also met with a Buddhist priest who, in 1994, built a free school for children whose parents couldn’t afford a public school. The school now has 7,000 students and a medical clinic. Participants met with staff of an HIV-AIDS NGO located on the school grounds.

From Mandalay, the group floated down the Irrawaddy river on a nine-hour boat trip to the fabled plains of Bagan, once the world center of Theravada Buddhism. A local guide introduced the participants to some of the 800-year-old temples, pagodas and stupas in the area as well as a local marketplace and a village-based toddy-palm enterprise.

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VIA Taiwanese Alumni Host Program

Posted on December 7, 2011 by Amy

TBC Participants

Yuika Kubo was a participant in the 2010 Asia-U.S. Service-Learning (AUSL) program. She shares her experience joining the first Taiwan Business and Culture (TBC) program ran by members of VIA’s Taiwan Alumni Committee (TAC) in September.

Since meeting many friends from Taiwan in the 2010 AUSL program, I have been interested in Taiwanese society. The TBC program was a great opportunity to learn more about Taiwan. The program was very well prepared and I was very surprised that this was the first time for them to run it. Actually I have experienced coordinating some programs for foreign students, so I can imagine how hard they worked.

TBC Group at the Night Market

I also saw massive potential in the VIA community. Although I was the only AUSL program alumna to join TBC, I never felt alone. Rather, I could spend a great time with awesome friends who joined other VIA programs in the past. We had much time to chat, joke around, and have deep discussions during this program. Thank you for everyone who arranged TBC! I hope to support a similar program in Japan in the future.

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An AUSL Participant’s Reflection on Service

Posted on December 1, 2011 by Amy

Michelle Wang is currently a student at the Guangzhou English Training Center for the Handicapped, a school in China that VIA has partnered with for 12 years. In August 2011, she joined VIA’s Asia-U.S. Service-Learning Program in the San Francisco Bay Area.

During the program Michelle volunteered with two Bay Area nonprofits. Working with these inspiring nonprofits connected her with inspiring leaders and peers and broadened her perspective on service. Michelle reflected on her experience with one organization she connected to through the program, VIA West, in the following video clip.

After returning home she pursued new directions inspired by the AUSL program. From November, she began interning at the Guangdong Harmony Foundation, which supports local service and volunteering. Michelle’s work at the foundation will allow her to learn about organizations in Guangzhou and develop a network of friends who share her interest in service.

Read more about Michelle on MIUSA’s disability travel feature, her journal on the AUSL blog, and in the soon-to-be published SP newsletter.

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