Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

When In The Maghreb: The Western Tourist’S Quest For Meaningful Experiences In Post-Colonial Morocco, Erin Willahan

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The goal of this paper is to shed light on why Western tourists come to Morocco and to analyze how cultural tourism developed here as an institution. In doing so, the research hopes to explore the implications of cultural tourism in Morocco with respect to modernization and imagined geographies inherited from a colonial past. Through analysis of official tourism strategies, trip packages, online reviews, interviews, and personal experiences the research will examine tourists through a sociological lens and attempt to characterize the relationship between tourist and attraction. It will find that the tourists observed tend to place a great deal …

Eating Disorders: Prevalence, Perceptions, And Treatments In Jordan, Brenda Gable

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study examines the perceptions that young women in Jordan have regarding their bodies and eating disorders, in addition to their opinion regarding media and familial pressures to fit societal norms. The study further examines eating disorders as a mental disorder and the obstacles that individuals face when seeking treatment. This study was implemented by 95 surveys distributed to women in a first aid course at Jordan University and by interviewing professionals in the nutritional, mental health, and educational field. It was found that 86% of surveyed students believed that young women in Jordan struggled with body image and 72% …

Traveling Through Space: A Look At The Evolution Of Transportation In Vietnam And Its Implications, Joe Crook

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

As a country that has only started rapidly developing in the last thirty years or so, Vietnam’s cities are still in throes of instating a comprehensive public transport infrastructure. During the French Colonial era in the early 20^th century, Vietnam got a taste of its first mechanized form of transportation, the bicycle. These pedal-powered vehicles largely dominated the streets of Hanoi and Saigon until Doi Moi in 1986. Here, the motorbike came along and its rapid rise in popularity quickly pushed bicycles off the street. In the last twenty years or so, the motorbike population in Vietnam went from …

Organic Agriculture In Bhutan: Barriers Going To 100%, Mark Mccrae-Hokenson

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study seeks to provide an overview of organic agriculture in Bhutan. In an effort to promote sustainability and achieve the goals set by a Gross National Happiness inspired government, Bhutan has pledged to go 100% organic by 2020. This pledge is at odds with the country’s goal to increase self sufficiency and food security. I look at the barriers to going organic, the programs and initiatives in place to overcome or mitigate those barriers, and the path of least resistance in the future. I asked farmers, scholars, researchers, and members of the government for their opinions on the prospects …

Livelihood Strategies Of People In The Himalayan Region Of Nepal: A Study In The Villages Of Eastern Manang, Prashanta Chhetri

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This is a study on the changing livelihood strategies of people in Manang -a district that lies on the northern side of Annapurna Himals. I have focused my study on the villages in the eastern part of lower Manang. Primarily, my study has been done in these villages: Besisahar, Khotro, Nachai, Tachai, Tilche, Dharapani, Yak Kharka, Surki Khola and Bhimthang. As defined locally, these villages fall under the region of Nyishang and Gyasumdo in the Manang district. In this paper I talk about the shifts made by the people in their livestock keeping/raising from yaks to dzhopas to mules, depending …

Los Conocimientos, La Conciencia Y Consumo, Y Las Elecciones De Alimentos Organicos Y No Organicos, Falon Sweeney

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Research Question: To what extent are the people of Valle de Azapa, in Arica, Chile familiar with what is an organic agricultural product?

Objectives: The general objective of this study is to determine the level of knowledge of organic products of the people who reside in the Valle de Azapa, and to understand their preferences of cultivation and buying agricultural goods to determine the difference and the choice between organic and non-organic alimentation. The specific objectives of this study are to identify farms in the Valle de Azapa that plant and harvest organic produce; to find out the …

Rhetoric Or Results?: Tourism, The Aquarium, And The People Of Fortaleza, Molly Silvia

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

When one thinks of tourism, he or she conjures images of travel, exotic locations, and spending money. Yet rarely do people stop and think about where exactly their money is going. Nowadays, tourism is a booming industry that many countries believe contributes significantly to their GDP. But while tourism may contribute significantly to a country’s economy, it may not provide the people of that nation with any substantial improvements in their quality of life. This monograph questions why Brazil has chosen to invest its GDP in the tourism industry, while the nation has 21.4% of its population in poverty (The …

“Bëggel Sa Réew :” Negotiating Contestation And Citizenship Through Hip Hop Production In Guédiawaye, Dakar, Dylan Mcdonnell

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Hip hop cultural production has flourished in Senegal since the early-1980s, especially in Dakar, the administrative and economic capital, since the early 1980s as both a medium of engagement with “global” flows of musical influence and a localized platform for socio-political and contestation and organization. In the past ten years, high-profile rap and hip hop personalities based in communities centered in the banlieues (the disfavored, often impoverished neighborhoods surrounding Dakar) have begun to realize formal structures of professionalization and education in the elements of “urban culture.” This paper focuses on research done at Guédiawaye Hip Hop Center and Association, an …

Slachtofferhulp: An Analysis Of The Amsterdam Police Department’S Response To Lesbian Domestic Violence, Taylor Sczymecki

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This independent study project examines the role that the Amsterdam Police Department plays in the context of lesbian domestic violence. Amsterdam is a city well-known for its tolerant culture and large LGBT community, yet there is little to no discussion between the government, the police, and the citizens of Amsterdam. This article examines the taboos surrounding lesbian domestic violence, perceptions of how the police are handling such cases, and asks who should be initiating discussions. Although the research looks at lesbian domestic violence as a general topic, it looks specifically at the way the Amsterdam Police Department networks Roze in …

Energizing Europe: The Geopolitics Of Energy Security And Energy Diversification In The European Union, Gabriel Alfredo Uribe

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Europe has always had an interesting relationship with Russia, be it social, political, or economic. From the days of the Cold War, when there was the ideological battle of communism versus capitalism, with the alliance of NATO representing a front against the Iron Curtain, certain remnants of this dynamic have still survived. Russia has not always had the best of relations with the European Union (EU), which has not made it easy for the EU to have fully functioning foreign relations with them. This is problematic specifically because of the importance that Russia has on EU energy security, as it …

Identidades Sociales En Situación De Pobreza: La Construcción De Identidad Y Comunidad En La Villa 31, Sam Gips

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The villas of Buenos Aires began to form in the 1940’s as immigrants poured into the city from Argentina’s interior and from neighboring countries like Paraguay and Bolivia. These villas formed in precarious conditions without adequate government assistance, which has led to difficulties with public services such as running water and electricity. Estimates say that over 300,000 of the 3 million residents in Buenos Aires live in villas today. Unlike most villas located in the southern outskirts of the city, Villa 31, which was the first villa in the city, is a community of 30,000 residents located in the center …

Externalities Of The Transatlantic Trade And Investment Partnership: Effects On Emerging Economies And The Developing World, Eric Stroiman

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The process of globalization and the liberalization of the global trade regime has become an integral part of the modern political and economic landscape. The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) currently being negotiated between the United States and the European Union has the potential to be the most impactful free trade agreement of the 21^st century as these blocks represent the two largest economies in the world. This paper analyzes the conceivable effects of this agreement on the uninvolved emerging economies and developing countries of the world. The two main theories on the outcome heavily involve the fate …

Sustainable Kangaroo Harvesting: Perceptions And Consumption Of Kangaroo Meat Among University Students In New South Wales, Elisabeth Grant

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Kangaroos have been cherished as a source of meat for over 40,000 years by Aboriginal Australians and for many years by Europeans once they invaded the continent, but somewhere along the way kangaroos lost their status as an important resource and came to be regarded as a pest, and then a national icon which was considered taboo to hunt (Jackson et al., 2010; Mulvaney et al., 1999). It wasn't until the 1950's that a kangaroo meat industry began, and in the past few decades Australians have re-realized the great potential of kangaroo meat, and conservationists have begun promoting the sustainability …

Young Women’S Perceptions And Narratives Of Intergenerational And Transactional Sexual Relationships In Durban, Kwazulu-Natal, Mckenzie Leier

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Transactional sexual relationships are argued to be a potent driver of the HIV epidemic among young women in South Africa. KwaZulu-Natal bears the heaviest burden of the epidemic. The practice has roots in South Africa’s social and political history of oppression, as well as the tides of post-apartheid globalization. Through a combination of individual interviews and focus groups discussions (FGDs), this study explores 21 young women’s perceptions and narratives of transactional sex from an ‘othered’ perspective. Individual interviews were conducted in the township community of Cato Manor; FGDs were conducted with the assistance of OneVoice South Africa (OVSA) in KwaMashu …

Daily Bread And The Normative Ascription Of Cultural Value In Ahistorical Morocco, Patrick Kurth

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In his celebrated autobiographical narrative, For Bread Alone, Moroccan author Mohamed Choukri utilizes khubz, an Arabic term referring generically to bread, as a primary point of reference in describing his youthful experience of impoverishment, political marginalization, and emotive frustration in independent Morocco. Paired with anthropology’s universal and localized understandings of staple foods as embodiments of culturally constructed meaning, the populist accessibility and empathetic efficacy of Choukri’s literary idiom suggests that khubz functions as a powerful symbol of normative Moroccan social values. This composition makes an initial overture towards exploring that possibility, sketching out generalized correlations between khubzand …

Politics Of Health: The 2013 Integration Policy’S Effect On Immigrant Access To Care, Amy Chang

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In September of 2013, King Mohammed VI announced a regularization campaign, implementing a new policy of integration with respect to undocumented immigrants in the country. Deviating from former official discourse, the new measure allowed in principle for—among provision of residence cards and lifted criminalization of undocumented immigrants—greater immigrant access to healthcare services. The purpose of the following research was to assess whether the effects of this new provision are being positively felt on the ground in ensuring inclusivity of health services.Individual interviews on personal experiences with the Moroccan healthcare system were held with members of various immigrant sub-populations: refugees, asylum …

The Sacred Practice Of Patra, Rob Granfelt

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study was conducted at the National Institute for Zorig Chusum in Thimphu, Bhutan in April, 2014. The majority of the study was a full-time enrollment in the school’s carving program, meeting 6 days per week and taking classes with the second year carving students. Along with learning the techniques and methods of Bhutanese woodcarving, I sought to understand the socio-cultural importance of woodcarving in Bhutan both historically and contemporarily. In addition to a cultural analysis, this study attempts to locate the Institute within a rapidly developing Bhutan, seeking to understand the ways in which it is maintaining traditional means …

La Coexistencia De Dos Agriculturas En Argentina Una Mirada A La Vida De Una Granja Familiar: ¿Cómo Sobrevivir Al Lado De Las Grandes Empresas?, Camille Sanchez De La Vega

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Desde los primeros años del siglo XX, el desarrollo de Argentina como país estaba coincidió con el desarrollo de la industria agrícola. Hoy, Argentina es famosa por su papel en el mercado global como exportadora de bienes naturales. No solamente es un país con uno de los niveles más altos de alimentos transgénicos, sino que tiene el título del mayor exportador de producción orgánica en América Latina. Con los dos tipos de agricultura —exitosos pero contradictorios— con un enfoque hacia la exportación, quería entender como esta coexistencia está reflejada en el mercado interno para los bienes naturales.

A través de …

The Vicious Circle Of Data Gaps, Lack Of Prioritization And Low Capacity: A Study On Post-Conflict Education In Sierra Leone, Meixi Guo

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper is meant to present the findings and analysis of a one-month independent study project on the topic of post-conflict education in Sierra Leone. By using databases and institutional reports, the study examines the issue of data availability of Sierra Leone’s education sector and the data collection process. Through analysis of documents and interviews with experts, the study identified the importance of education reconstruction and the role of ministry of education. In the case of Sierra Leone, low capacity of ministry of education was shown as well the lack of prioritization from the government and international community. By analyzing …

Logrando Educación Democrática Para Un Chile Democrático: Una Mirada A La Formación De Ciudadanos A Través De La Educación De Historia, Samantha J. Stevens

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Este ensayo se base en una investigación que fue conducida con el objetivo de conocer la forma única que la democracia ha tomado en Chile como resulto de su historia y contexto social, cultural y político. Porque la democracia se defina en parte por la participación activa de todos los ciudadanos, este ensayo Intenta conocer la relación entre el sistema de educación y la sociedad para determinar la medida en que el sistema prepara estudiantes para esta participación. A través de las experiencias y opiniones personales de profesores de historia, este ensayo pretende presentar una vista de todos los factores …

Black, White And Rainbow All Over: The Segregation Present Among Cape Town’S Pride Festival, Lucy Stockdale

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

My ISP works to illuminate the racial segregation that is still present within Cape Town’s LGBT community, particularly during the celebration of gay and lesbian rights, known as the Pride festival that takes place annually in the end of February. I do this through discussing the privilege that comes with access to both information about Pride and the location of the events that take place. By looking at Pride as a parade for the white gay man to celebrate the rights he was granted twenty years ago, I work to openly discuss how a history of exclusion has lived on …

The Quota For Women’S Representation In Parliament: An Empty Gesture Or A Vehicle For Change? Analyzing The Effectiveness Of Women Members Of Parliament In Jordan, Mackenzie Kieborz

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Understanding the unique Parliamentary situation in Jordan and the potential possessed by the quota for women in Jordanian Parliament as a measure to empower women politically and introduce their presence in an otherwise male dominated sphere has enormous implications. Undoubtedly a feminist measure, it merits understanding if the quota has similarly feminist outcomes. This study seeks to evaluate the women elected through the quota, examining how effective the women members of Parliament (henceforth MPs) are, to see if they really are capable of initiating major societal change or if instead they simply perpetuate the patriarchal and tribalism based systems. Through …

Challenges To Women In Political Leadership In Samoa, Kiki Martire

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Samoan women hold an integral and valued place within their families and communities. Despite this, Samoa continues to report some of the lowest representation of women in political office in the world. The newly instated Constitutional Amendment guaranteeing 10% of Parliamentary seats for women will bolster female political involvement in the upcoming 2016 elections. An investigation into the challenges that face women entering political leadership roles at the village and Parliamentary level will bring awareness to the struggles encountered by women and contribute to dismantling the barriers which stand against them. Fourteen female politicians and experts in the field were …

Renforcement Des Femmes: Wopa And Sustainable Empowerment Through Vocational Training, Anna Youngmann

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The Women’s Promotion and Assistance Association (WOPA) is a Non-Governmental Organization located in the tourist town of Kribi, Cameroon. This study examined whether WOPA’s vocational training program, The Center for Education and Training for Women, responded to the needs in participants’ lives and the needs of the local economy to effectively economically empower young women. Using 21 one interviews with current and graduated students of the program, as well as local government officials, I concluded that WOPA’s training does fit the needs of participants’ lives; and that the trainings offered in sewing, culinary arts, and community health adequately fit …

“Nous Souffrons” Examining The Problems Facing Urban Refugees In Yaoundé, Cameroon, Morgan Walbert

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper is the product of a study that examines the experiences of urban refugees in Yaoundé, Cameroon. Refugees around the world, often victims of unthinkable human rights abuses, are forced to rely fully on the hospitality and protection of the international community. This unique relationship between a refugee and his/her host state can present serious challenges to both parties. This research examined the resources available to refugees in Yaoundé, evaluated their effectiveness, and explored possibilities for improving the experience of these urban refugees. I utilized eighteen structured interviews with refugees and four follow-­‐up in depth interviews with three refugees …

Seven Women Speak: Perceptions Of Economic Empowerment Opportunities Among Diverse Women In Four Different Cape Town Communities Today, Shanna Cole

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The research study described in this paper examines different women’s perceptions of their economic opportunities and sense of empowerment in Cape Town today. Although post-apartheid South Africa boasts many more opportunities for women than under apartheid, there is still a large disparity in the treatment of women in the workforce compared to men – from the number of women employed to wage inequality to the levels and types of jobs to which women are constrained. This gender discrimination has reverberating effects on the poverty and development of South Africa the nation, as many argue that women’s economic empowerment is directly …

The Power Of China: An Analysis Of China’S Energy Sources And The Case For Clean Energy, Lauren Vunderink

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

China’s energy demands have been growing exponentially since the early 1980s, impacting the global environment and economy. China is already the world’s largest producer and consumer of energy, and as it continues to urbanize and develop its electricity demand is projected to more than double by 2040. China’s energy consumption will not continue its rapid growth forever; its population growth and energy demand are expected to level off by 2040. While mostly relying on the increasing amounts of coal, oil, and natural gas, the Chinese government aims for renewable resources to satisfy 15% of total energy consumption by 2020. That …

Cleft Lip And Palate In India: Determining The Socioeconomic Factors That Influence Quality Of Life And Treatment Received, With A Focus In Rural Nainital District, Uttarakhand State, Ellery Ward

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Cleft lip and cleft palate are birth defects that range in severity, and may cause serious physical and social challenges to those who are born with them. This project sought to determine the socioeconomic factors that influence the lives of people with cleft lip and or cleft palate in India, and the treatment, or lack thereof, which they receive. Specific focus was given to the rural and mountainous area of Nainital district in Uttarakhand state. This study was carried out with the assistance of the Aarohi organization located in the Satoli village in Nainital district. Interviews with one plastic surgeon …

Imagined Communities: Changing Markets And The Implications For 21st Century Mali China Migration, Mamasa Camara

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Over the last decade there has been a huge increase in engagement between China and Africa across all fronts of foreign relations especially in the realms of trade, finance and migration. As China continues to push into Africa in pursuit of economic resources and diplomatic relations, many Africans are migrating to China and specifically Guangzhou in search of economic opportunity backed by cheap labor markets and the prospects for “low end globalization.”As the contemporary African presence in China is a relatively new phenomenon, so are the discourses surrounding its presence, discourses often relegated to the spheres of economics, boasting China …

The Self-Supporting Women Of Wanita Hindu Dharma Indonesia (Whdi) Province Bali And Their Modern Way Of Thinking, Olivia Gregorius

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

During my independent study period, I spent four weeks with the members of WHDI Province Bali. During this time I was able to participate in their organization’s activities and events in order to gain first hand knowledge about what programs the women are involved in. Some of the events I attended include cultural activities such as seminars about traditional hair and makeup as well as marriage preparation, etiquette discussions, gamelan and traditional singing lessons and religious ceremonies such as weddings, cremations, a mediksa the blessing of new houses and shops and visits to different temples such as Batur temple and …