Global citizenship and the Purpose of Study Away, MN, Lancaster

City of Pentedattilo in Calabria

After traveling across Ireland an Italy for the past 3 weeks I have thought about the root purpose of studying abroud. To gain a cultural understanding? To feed your confidence? Or to take so many pictures you'll have a different #tbt picture to post to Instagram for the next ten years? The readings focused on the idea of global citizenship as a main priority of studying abroud. Bryers point about the current trend to for everyone to "acknowledge their obligations as global citizens" stood out to me. I thought this was interesting, and really alludes to a state of mind where one considers how their actions will impact the global community. While that seems a little daunting, after traveling and meeting so many people it is an easier idea to grasp. I think studying abroud takes a student out of their element and hurls them into a new jumble of foreign problems and allows us to evolve and find new solutions. While the idea of global citizenship is a beautiful concept and I believe I have developed new perspectives, most of my growth has been internal.

Street in Sant'Ilario where my Grandmother was born and raised

I have spent the last 2 weeks in Italy, and during this time I spent a long time in the region of Calabria, which is where my grandmother was born. I got to go to her village, Sant'Ilario, which was a very emotional and eye-opening trip. The town was small and only had a couple hundred inhabitants. I just expected to walk through the town to try to get a feel for my roots, however I found much more. Walking through the streets, I interacted with some older locals who remembered my great-grandmother, the town seamstress, and my great-great-grandfather, the train operator. It turned out the locals remembered the house where my family was from and was able to show me the way. I was almost unable to fathom that less than 100 years ago my family lived in a concrete rectangle in southern Italy, and now I am looking for a town house in Pittsburgh to pursue a career in data science. Crazy, huh? Sorry for the tangent, but I thought it was relevant. If this isn't self discovery, then I don't know what is. You have to appreciate yourself and your roots before you can ever look wider. I have to have a grasp of my own personal citizenship before I can ever achieve a global one.

Signing the Peace Walls in Belfast

Another large part of global citizenship is mutual respect and cooperation across nations. This is a growing issue in today's world. We have a lot of problems in our world. We have a lot of pains. Some have spewed in the past few decades, others have been festering for 100's of years. One example of global citizenship and national respect occurred while I was touring the peace walls of Belfast. For those of you who don't know, the Protestants (Northern Ireland) and the Catholics (Southern Ireland) in the area have had tension for centuries. In the 60's a series of militias were formed and violence erupted in Belfast for decades. This violence shook all of the UK, until tensions faded in the early 2000's. Since then there has been minimal violence and many less murders. Our local tour guide told us that what change the attitudes towards peace was 9/11. He said after the attack, everyone saw the situation in a new light and they found peace. Many of the residents of Belfast believe the sacrifices of 9/11 are to thank for the peace established in Belfast. This shows how events and ideas across nations can impact each other. Respect for one nation could result in respect for another community as well.

Walking in the Boboli Gardens in Florence

So what am I going to tell people when I go back? It's a little early to think about that. I still have a tour of Eastern Europe, The Highlands, Spain, and Amsterdam to complete. The last thing on my mind is returning home. But I guess I won't be indulging in wanderlust forever. Sigh. When I return home, I will tell tails of my travels and the descriptions of the wonderful people I have met. I will speak of my new found independence and love of discovery. There will be never ending slideshows of pictures and too much focus on the food I ate while abroud. The stories won't come out all at once, but come up when they are relevant and needed.

For me, the purpose of study away is to developed my perspectives and character. I have learned many lessons on my journeys, and I know they will be helpful to reference later in life. Studying abroud has shown me that direction is more important than speed. There seems to be too many people these days going nowhere fast. I want to come out of studying abroud knowing how to navigate through life.