On April 13th from 6:00 to 7:00pm  there was an International Affairs community meeting with Dr. Gregorio Gonzales who specializes in comparative studies with a focus on indigenous studies and knowledges. During this meeting Dr. Gonzales discussed several interesting points regarding indigenous existences within their community and the lack thereof representation that exists despite the land acknowledgement. Overall, this meeting was incredibly interesting in discussing indigenous issues and matters of representation within the local community. In essence, this relates to International Affairs because representation of communities and cultures is a matter that should be approached from a global perspective because it is imperative that we preserve and promote cultures and the representation of them both globally and locally throughout our societal structure. It is important to look at how the indigenous people interact with their environment both at a local and governmental scale and the impacts that each level has on the representation of indigenous people that we see currently. During this event I found most interesting the point that Dr. Gonzales brought up about how the land acknowledgement dispels indigenous ties to the land currently and especially because there are no formal local organizations it can lead to issues of current representation of origin for the indigenous people. I found this meeting to be incredibly interesting and informative given that I am not familiar entirely with the plight of indigenous peoples and the struggles that they face even with things like the land acknowledgement especially with the issues of the indigenous representation in the school curriculum. Overall, I found this event to be an incredible asset to establishing a more comprehensive view of indigenous representation and acknowledging the struggles that come with the modern day within the context of indigenous people and I found it a great way to round out my experience with international affairs for this year. Although it did not necessarily relate with my major or minor directly it was incredibly valuable to me personally and as a history major it is invaluable to be made aware of these perspectives in the contemporary settings.

On the evening of April the 8th I attended the Diversity and Inclusion Book Club, to discuss the final half of Dread Nation by Justina Ireland, which was hosted by Fatoumata Bah. Overall, the final half of this book deals with themes of racism as well as sociopolitical instability within the infrastructure within the society that the main character lives and the ideology that it is inherently built on. In terms of how it relates to International Affairs both generally and within the context of this program lies largely in dealing with issues that affect individuals globally with special regard to discriminatory structures that exist within society and how it impacts the individuals that fit outside of the narrative ideal that society places upon them. In essence, I think throughout the book there are repeated themes of racism and inequity that exists within this society while also dealing with outside threats. In terms of the event itself, I particularly enjoy the book club and the content that it discusses, it forces the members to discuss these imperative globally important issues and attempt to relate it to our reality in a way that furthers both personal and academic growth in a unique way. The questions posed were very well thought out and a summary was provided prior to refresh our memory prior to the discussion, which I found to be very helpful and conducive to a productive and fruitful discussion. However, the turnout was smaller than I would have anticipated which may have led to a less fruitful discussion due to a lack of perspectives regarding these issues, but I find that it was fruitful nonetheless. In terms of my academic major or minor it does not necessarily relate to my academic coursework, but i have done internship work with Picturing Black History and it was incredibly impactful to see issues that many people of color face in our world represented in a work of fiction and yet still speak on the modern day issues that people of color face. Overall, I found it to be an event worth attending and look forward to similar events in the future!

I attended the Diversity and Inclusion Book Club that took place from 7:00pm to 8:00pm on Friday the 25th of March put on by the Diversity and Inclusion Chair, Fatoumata B. During this meeting we discussed the book Dread Nation by Justina Ireland, which details a young black woman dealing racism and colorism in and outside of her community while training to fight the undead. In reading this book, I found that it was dealing with themes that people experience globally and that are problems within our own country as well as internationally is what relates it to international affairs. I think it is imperative as International Affairs Scholars that we consider global issues that exist both in and outside of our own country and what we can do with the platforms that we have whether it be donating, spreading valuable information or uplifting the voices of those who are marginalized it is something that we must be aware of and proactive about. Although this event did not inherently align with my coursework academically, I found that it offered a wealth of information regarding racism and colorism that I do not experience in my own life. In short, this event contributed more to my personal growth rather than directly to my academic coursework. In terms of the organization of the event, I think it was well informed and organized very well. In particular, I enjoyed the discussion questions that were designed to allow us to think deeply about what we read as well as events and experiences in our society that could relate to these themes.  I would absolutely attend another event like this in the future and fully plan on it because it was an enriching and eye-opening experience and I look forward to attending future book clubs and growing both as a scholar and a person!

I attended the Game Planning for Stress Event put on by Buckeye Wellness with Josh Winn as the speaker on Wednesday the 23rd of February from 7:00pm to 8:00pm on Zoom.  I think this event relates to IA and international affairs especially now more than ever, as we study the relations and are exposed to international news it can be difficult to cope with media and how it portrays events, and this even helps to circumvent the stress and help us game plan to deal with our stress. Also, mental health and wellness is something that should be a discussion globally, it is an issue that exists regardless of borders and can be tied to events and experiences cross-culturally. Overall, I enjoyed this event and I found it to be decently organized. However, it should be noted that this event does not relate to my major or academic course directly in any sense. Although, I think my minor in Anthropology could be applied in a sense given that mental health and the treatment of it along with stress is treated in a cultural regard, how we experience mental health, stress and the world around us is based primarily in our culture and our experiences. In truth, this event while it had good content, I would not attend it again due to the fact that some of the exercises do not translate well into the virtual format. For example, in the beginning of the event our speaker had us do exercises that required us to have cameras and microphones off which was not possible for some people so therefore part of the impact of the exercise was lost to them and I just found it to have a lack of engagement that it likely would have had in person even though it was offered to a wider audience. All in all, it was a good and informationally rich event, but not something I could see myself doing again.

The event I went to this month is the International Affairs Scholars Diversity and Inclusion Book Club, it was on November 10th at 7:00pm and it was put on by the Diversity and Inclusion Chair, Fatoumata B. In this meeting we finished up discussing The Disaster Tourist by Yo kun-eun. Prior to this, we had a presentation discussing human trafficking and the warning signs as well as things we can do to prevent it. In short, human trafficking is often hand-in-hand with disaster tourism and it is a globalized issue which establishes the importance of it. In the scholars program we seek to understand the implications of actions such as disaster tourism and how they tie in with other globalized problems like human trafficking. I found this event to be incredibly informational and valuable. Quite frankly, I hope that a lot of the other book clubs next semester have ties in with other campus organizations because the books we have read this far have been a cultural and global insight for me personally. Although, this event did not tie in with my major coursework, it definitely tied into my cultural anthropology minor and I found it to be incredibly interesting when comparing my own culture with that of the characters in the book. Despite it being a fictional scenario, I find that it speaks to experiences of the author in a sense especially in this case with the thematic influences regarding sexual harassment because it is a common issue for women on the international level. I found this event to be valuable in both a personal and academic context, as well as incredibly apt to the modern problems that many individuals face and can relate to. I feel that human trafficking is not as readily discussed especially in the preventative context rather it is discussed in hesitant manners that argue strictly for avoidance rather than addressing it and aiming to raise awareness in order to help prevent human trafficking. Overall, this event was beyond expectations and I look forward to future ones!

On the 26th of October at 6pm I went to the International Affairs Diversity and Inclusion Book Club meeting to discuss the first four chapters of The Disaster Tourist by Yun Ko-eun. The event was put on by the Diversity and Inclusion Chair, Fatoumata Bah and was incredibly insightful and well structured. The book club related the book to International Affairs by discussing the themes of sexual violence and assaults against women and the culture surrounding that and power dynamics in our society in comparison to the book, as well as the ethics of disaster tourism. I think it is also imperative to international affairs to engage in diverse perspectives when consuming media and discussing issues across cultures. The people at the event came from an incredibly diverse background and were incredibly well spoken especially regarding sensitive topics. Quite frankly, I found myself learning so much about issues such as disaster tourism and the culture shock that comes with that. For example in the novel, the main character realizes that everything that she had assumed about a culture and area had long since been far removed from the reality, she was experiencing. I personally enjoyed the book club and found myself discussing topics and hearing perspectives that I had not initially thought of while reading the book. Overall, I think the event was well put together and streamlined with not much that could be done better in that regard. In terms of how it relates to my academic interests as a History major, it puts in perspective the differences of cultures and perspectives across time which directly relates to the study of History. Also, by going to the book club it allowed me to see from different perspectives and gain so many interpretations of scenes that I had seen in a different way initially. I look forward to attending more of these in the future!

The event occurred on the 9th of September at 11:00am and was put on by the Kirwan Institute and was titled, “Fiction and Fact About Critical Race Theory.” Overall, the webinar was facilitated by Kip Holley and Dr. Harvey Graff was the one largely presenting during the webinar. In essence, I think this event relates to the International Affairs in the sense that it deals with critical race theory which I was largely unfamiliar with prior to this event. In essence, I learned that it deals with the laws in the United States and the intersections with race. Overall, international affairs intersects with culture because in order to understand the affairs of a country it is very much dependent on the understanding of how a country acts and the political environment is also imperative to the understanding of international affairs. Quite frankly, I enjoyed this event and largely found myself learning a lot about Critical Race Theory. I found that the event was incredibly well put together and reasonable in length. I attended this event for personal interest rather than a largely academic incline to do so. In my opinion, it is imperative that we learn the most that we can regarding the facets of international affairs. Overall, I enjoyed this event, but I had an issue with the timing, especially considering it was right between my classes. Overall, I found that a good majority of the events did not work for my schedule. Although, it was much appreciated that the event was recorded for me to look back on. I learned a lot regarding this topic and I found the presenter to have an overall wealth of knowledge and a generally pleasant demeanor. I look forward to future events like this and will likely consider attending similar webinars because of this event.

I attended the event, “A Pale Blue Dot” History of our Environment on April 22nd at 4pm with the panelists Nicholas Breyfogle, Kip Curtis, Jennifer Eaglin and Bart Elmore. Overall, I think this event related to international affairs in the sense that understanding the environmental history of the Earth and Earth Day is important to preserving it and reducing our footprint on the Earth. I think the environment is directly tied to the resources that a given country has available and thus determines its place on the international stage from a trades and interactions standpoint. The event was incredibly interesting and the panelists were incredibly knowledgeable on the subject of discussion and incredibly respectful to one another allowing each panelist ample time to answer questions and expound on them. Also, I think they did a wonderful job of addressing COVID-19 and how that has impacted the environment as well. Although, this does not inherently tie to my course work I think this ties more so to a subject of personal interest, I am looking into possibly taking a course related to this subject just to become more versed and aware of the environment, the impacts we have on it and the implications that holds for countries around the world. I think the event was incredible and I came out knowing so much more and was incredibly better for it.

I attended the Climate Change Research Panel on the 15th of April at 6:30pm and the panelists included Dr. Joyce Chen, Dr.Robyn Wilson, Dr. Bryan Mark and Dr. Joel Wainwright. I think climate change research is incredibly integral to the study of International Affairs both as a scholar program and as a larger scale across the globe because of the fact that largely every country is affected or has been affected by something to do with climate change. Overall, this panel was an incredible experience and I came away from it knowing so much more about the issue in and of itself and the research being done on it. I think the event was well put together and organized and also ample time was given to each panelist to answer questions and all of the panelists were incredibly respectful of one another in terms of differing views on a certain matter or for the simple fact of bouncing off the other ideas presented and adding their own piece to it. I really enjoyed this event and although it doesn’t tie directly into my course work it ties in my career as an IA scholar due to the fact that climate change is going to affect how we navigate the international stage and go about preserving our planet and do so with national players in mind. In the end, this event prosed very interesting questions and answers to the problem that is climate change.

The event took place on March 25th 2021 at 4pm and was hosted by Dr. Cynthia Burack and it was very informative. I think this event relates to IA due to the fact that it is tackling the issue of LGBTI rights on the international scale and especially regarding leadership changes with the United States and how it affected things. Overall, this event didn’t really relate to anything for me academically but was more of an interest for me socially. I think the event was well structured and Burack left a lot of time for questions regarding the issues she covered. I think this event definitely provided an incredibly interesting perspective and I remember something from this discussion, Burack said something akin to the Trump administration never did out rightly say or promote anything anti-LGBT+, but a comment made by a fellow attendee couldn’t have summed up my thoughts better on the matter, Andrew Goodhart stated, “Trump has relatively few substantive commitments. I think he would just read the national room and use whatever appeals were politically useful.” Overall, I agreed with this take wholeheartedly, and found it to sum up quite well my ideology. I think it’s more about following the money especially whenever the Trump administration is concerned. In the end, this event was incredibly informative and I intend to look for more events like it in the future!