The ISP, or Independent Study Project, is written by students from the undergraduate programs of SIT Study Abroad and relates to a program theme. Using primary sources students choose topics with a manageable focus that can be carried out in a variety of settings, such as schools, nongovernmental organizations or field research stations. During the independent study period students work closely with a project advisor and other key contacts in the field. The ISP is typically a 20- to 40-page paper presented to student colleagues, the academic director and, often, the advisor and other interested host-country individuals.
Copyright permissions have been obtained by all contributors to this collection.
Submissions from 2018
Frank Thoughts: Investigating the Construction of Anne Frank as a Site of Heritage and Identity Formation in a Globalized PostHolocaust Society, Sarah Silverstein, Franklin and Marshall College
Thangka Painting: An Exploration of Tibetan Buddhism Through Art, Hannah Slocumb, Harvey Mudd College
Mind Control in the Post-Colonial State: The Impact of Foreign Direct Investment in tertiary education in Senegal and Jamaica, Janiel Chantae Slowly, Bucknell University
A Glimpse into Amazighophone Technology Usage An example of the results of short-term ethnography, Garrison Smith, Connecticut College
"Waste Is Not Just Waste Anymore": Deconstructing the Relationship between Sustainable Waste Prevention and Individual Socio-Demographic Characteristics (The Juxtaposition of Ushongo Mtoni Village and Moshi Urban, Tanzania), Mahalia Smith, The George Washington University
A Comparative Tree Survey of Disturbed and Primary Forest Areas: Ngezi-Vumawimbi Nature Forest Reserve, Pemba Island, Skyler Smith, Colorado State University
LGBTI+ Language and Understandings in Nepal: Creating Spaces and Forging Identities, Patrick Sonnenberg, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville
The Changing Tide of Corporate Social Responsibility, Conor Soucy, Stonehill College
Trust, Access, and Adaptation to Needs: The Role of Community-Based Promoters in Health Insurance Delivery in Gujarat, India, Lauryn Stafford, University of Washington
Perceptions and physical realities of flood risk in Cerro Punta, Chiriquí, Panamá, Julia Stanganelli, University of Virginia
Over a Cup of Tea and Koko Sāmoa, Elizabeth Stanis
Examining the factors shaping the population structure of Thalassoma bifasciatum in the Lemon keys, Guna Yala, Panama, Nicole Stevens, Johns Hopkins University
The Challenges of India’s Rising Breast Cancer Epidemic, Brigette Stickney, Dickinson College
“Because This Land is Free” A Historical Perspective on Poverty, Settlement, and Conservation in the Lubigi Swamp, Adele Stock, Mount Holyoke College
Land Rights of African Indigenous Groups: International Instruments and Main Issues, Anastasia Strouboulis, University of Maryland
Church and State: The Impact of Christianity on South African Politics during and Post-Apartheid, Calista Struby, Trinity University
Tribal Law at the Crossroads of Modernity: A Study on Jordanian Attitudes towards Jalwa, Danielle Sutton
The Impact of Foreign Involvement on Political Reform Organizations in Jordan, Sravya Tadepalli, University of Oregon
Land-use and Land-ownership changes in Usoma Village, Kenya, Ernest Tan, Yale-NUS College
The Women of Dho Tarap: Gender Roles, Challenges, and Change in Dolpo, Nepal, Luke Testa, Saint Anselm College
Imagining Intimacy Beyond Boundaries: 'Born-Frees' Conceptions of Race and Relationships in South Africa, Reilly Torres, Occidental College
Spirituality and Conservation in Tujiin Nars, Lisa Torstenson, Carleton College
Stagnant Corruption in Bosnia-Herzegovina: Then, Now, and What is to Come, Megan Uren, Trinity University
El empoderamiento de la mujer migrante: una historia de vida que ilustra este aprendizaje en la Asociación de Mujeres Unidas, Migrantes y Refugiadas en Argentina (AMUMRA) / The empowerment of migrant women: a life story that illustrates this learning in the Association of United Women, Migrants and Refugees in Argentina (AMUMRA), Jonathan Urrea-Espinoza, Kenyon College
Tourism in Iceland: Individual Carbon Footprint and the Potential to be Carbon Neutral, Ange-Elise Venet, California State University San Marcos
The Cape Town Free Walking Tours: Whose History Is It Anyway? The shaping of place and space in a tourist city, Allegra Von Hirschberg, Vassar College
Differences in temporal and territorial feeding patterns of various tropical Trochilidae species as observed at two different ecosystems in Soberanía National Park, Delaney Vorwick, Boston College
Informally Shaping a Child's Mind Around Genocide Within Rwandan Families, Cameron Voss, Albion College
PERCEPTIONS AS A BARRIER TO EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES UTILIZATION AMONG SYRIAN REFUGEES IN JORDAN, Elizabeth Shan Wang, George Washington University
Perception and Prejudice: Sino-Ghanaian Relations within the Service Sector and the Wavering Perception of China on the Global Stage, Jodi-Ann (Juexuan) Wang, Kenyon College
Imagining Intersectional Anti-Rape Messaging at an Organization in Cape Town, South Africa: Visible and Invisible Subjects, Maslen Bode Ward, Yale University
Selection Perception: Views on the Theory of Evolution Among Residents of Moshi, Tanzania, Robin Waterman, Wesleyan University
Mortality rate trends of Australian fur seal pups, Arctocephalus pusillus doriferus, and possible factors affecting pup mortality in the Bass Strait of Australia, Theresa Waters, Vassar College
An Inordinate Fondness for Beetles: A Study of Insect Species Diversity and Abundance in Mazumbai Forest Reserve Versus Nearby Agricultural Areas, Emma Weisner, Tulane University
Think Outside: Exploring the Influence of Nature on the Individual and of the Individual on Society, Brielle Wells, University of Oregon
Métodos y tratamientos para el control de la epidemia de VIH en Arica en jóvenes / Methods and treatments for the control of the HIV epidemic in Arica in young people, Elizabeth Whidden, Vassar College
La asociación entre la contaminación del agua y la salud en los niños menores de cinco años en Villa Garrote, partido de Tigre / The association between water pollution and health in children under five in Villa Garrote, Tigre party, Morgan Whyte, Carleton University
Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome in India: A Socio-cultural Perspective, Hannah Wickham, The University of Alabama
Hijos de la Dictadura: Posmemoria, Trauma y Resistencia en Chile Actual / Children of the Dictatorship: Postmemory, Trauma and Resistance in Chile Current, Dana Williams, Bowdoin College
Challenges to Democratic Inclusion and Contestation of Space: Contemporary Student Activists in Transforming South Africa, Momo Wilms-Crowe, University of Oregon
Tunisia’s Inaugural Municipal Elections: A Comparative Analysis of Independent Lists in La Marsa, Danielle Ziegelheim, Washington University in St. Louis
“Arica tiene VIH, ¿y tú?” El rol del test rápido de VIH en el diagnóstico oportuno para jóvenes de la comuna de Arica, Chile / "Arica has HIV, and you?" The role of the rapid HIV test in the timely diagnosis for young people in the district of Arica, Chile, Julia Zigman, Washington University in St. Louis
Submissions from 2017
Rehabilitation and Reintegration of Genocide Ex-Prisoners: Understanding the Correctional Role of Prisons in Rwanda, Lulu Abdun, Miami University
'You become a rock': Conceptions of motherhood and lessons of race as told and photographed by four mothers from Cape Town, South Africa, Kaitlin Abrams, Colgate University
Tourism and the Vrankrijk as a Safe(r) Space, Megan Adams, American University
Music as the Guide on the Pathway to Empowerment and Wellbeing. A Narrative on an arts-based Holistic Health Solution., Sabine Adler, Ithaca College
What, where, why: a survey of Felidae populations at Enashiva Nature Refuge, Tanzania, Lucrecia Aguilar, Rice University
Homefulness: The Cultural Safety Net in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, Joshua Ahearn, Gordon College
Who Am I? The Relationship between Cultural Identity and Globalization within the Local and Global Intersections, Nir Aish, Bucknell University
Convivendo na Lagoa do Mineiro: An Education in Living and Loving With, Daniela Aldrich, Dickinson College
Panji's Present Predicament: the artistic prominence and tension of the Malat in painting and contemporary Balinese performance, Emily Austin, Washington and Lee University
Fish community assessment of the Bonyic and Teribe Rivers within the Naso-Teribe territory Bocas Del Toro, Panama: Possible implications of Bonyic Dam., Shaylyn Austin, University of Michigan
Tourism and Representation: Digital Expressions and Implications of Orientalism, Lily P. Ayau, Occidental College
Investigation de regeneración natural de plantas vasculares en la Reserva Madrigal del Podocarpus / Investigation of natural regeneration of vascular plants in the Madrigal Reserve of the Podocarpus, Sy Baker, University of Colorado
A Glimpse into Life on Avenida Caetano: An Auto-Ethnographical Study with Emphasis on Community Health and Social Determinants of Health within an Urban Context in Brotas, Salvador, Brazil, Harleen Bal, University of Richmond
Un vistazo interior al sistema educativo público de Managua: Las voces de estudiantes, padres y maestros, Karla Barron, University of Southern California
“Que rica...”: sexualización y exotificación de mujeres migrantes y sus experiencias y percepciones en el centro urbano de Santiago / "How rich ...": sexualization and exotification of migrant women and their experiences and perceptions in the urban center of Santiago, Alexandra Barton, Lafayette College
El acceso y uso de las pruebas genéticas para la detección precoz de enfermedades congénitas en mujeres embarazadas en la Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires en el año 2017 \ The access and use of genetic tests for early detection of congenital diseases in pregnant women in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires in the year 2017, Anna Anna Bauer, Franklin & Marshall
Luchadoras: Resistencias contra la violencia de género por las mujeres en la región de San Ramón, Olivia "Livey" Beha, University of Southern California
Olas de cambio: Violencia política y desplazamiento durante la Guerra Interna en el Perú (1980-2000), Sarah Benewith, University of San Francisco
Water, Sanitation and Hygiene in Rwamwanja Refugee Settlement, Katelyn Bergl, University of Colorado Boulder
The Impact of Program Structure on Language Acquisition and Intercultural Competence: A Comparative Study of Study Abroad Programs in Kunming, China, Samantha Bergman, Smith College
Pluralism and Religious Education In Bali: How lack of implementation of educational reform threatens Indonesian identity in the system used to construct it, Nikolai O. Birch, Occidental College
From Kipat to Kathmandu: A Failed Integration of Limbu People into the Nepali State in Biblate, Ilam, Andrew Blunt, Bowdoin College
The Environmental Paris-ite: The Current and Potential Impacts of the Paris Agreement on Sustainable Finance and the Global Market, Caitlin Boelsen, University of Minnesota
Foreign Business Entrepreneurship in Cape Town: How To Start A Business - Stories Of 6 Cape Town Based Immigrants, Aleksandra Bogoevska, Hamilton College
What’s Food Got to Do With It?: The Host Mother’s Role in the Cultural Education of Students Studying Abroad in the Rabat Medina, Isabel Bonhomme, The College of Wooster
Pololeo y Protección: Las barreras de acceso a métodos anticonceptivos para adolescentes vulnerables en la comuna de Macul, Santiago de Chile / Pololeo y Protección: Barriers to access contraceptive methods for vulnerable adolescents in the district of Macul, Santiago de Chile, Louisa Boswell, Davidson College
Whiteness Under Pressure: Race, Masculinities, and the Negotiation of Power in a Transforming South Africa, Sarah Bradach, Washington University in St. Louis
Supermarket savvy: An analysis of psychological exploitation within grocery stores, Calvin Brinkworth, Washington University
Distribution, diversity, and den locations of Canidae and Hyaenidae species across habitat type at Enashiva Nature Refuge, Grace Bullington, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
El Comienzo de un Cuento: Los Desafíos de Promover la Lectura Infantil en Cochabamba / The Beginning of a Story: The Challenges of Promoting Children's Reading in Cochabamba, Cecilia Caro, Macalester College
Linguistic Imperialism in Jordan: The Impact of English Education Curriculum on Cultural Behaviors of Secondary Students in Amman, Haley Chatwin, Colorado State University
SYRIAN REFUGEES’ LIVED EXPERIENCES IN MOROCCO, Hannah Chenok, Colgate University
Assessing the Successes of and Challenges Facing Civil Society Organizations in South Africa, in Influencing Gender-Based Violence Policy, Sarah Connolly, Wesleyan University
The Roles of Activism and Citizen Science in the Area Covered by the East Gippsland Regional Forest Agreement, Ian Corbet, Washington University in St. Louis
When the Health System Fails You: Maternal Care Under Kenya’s 2017 Nurses' Strike, Tessa Coughtrey-Davenport, The George Washington University
Pasantía a la Oficina Comunal de Migrantes de la Municipalidad de Valparaíso / Internship to the Communal Office of Migrants of the Municipality of Valparaíso, Morgan Craig, Oregon State University
Getting Down to Cannabusiness: How to Proceed with Morocco’s Cannabis Industry & the Resulting Economic and Social Impacts, Laura David, Kenyon College
Pteropus voeltzkowi and the Understory: A Study of the Behavioral Impacts of the Pemba Flying Fox on the Vegetation and Soil Quality of Pemba Island, Lea Davidson, Macalester College
Language, Race, and Integration: A Comparative Exploration of the Sub-Saharan Migrant Experience in Morocco, Madeline Davison, Wellesley College
Ignorance is Bliss: The Impacts of International Travel and Education on Political Beliefs, Kyle Decker, Loyola University
Jabal al-weibdeh: a counter-memory of amman a case study in the resistance of memory, Gwendolyn Dilworth, University of Virginia
Decadal vegetation succession along a chronosequence within Eucalyptus obliqua wet forest, southern Tasmania, Christine Dobbin, Rice University
Tibetan Women’s Experiences with Childbirth: A Comparative Study of Present-Day Shangri-La and Previous Studies in Tibetan Communities, Billie Dunn-McMartin, Guilford College
a Danza de las Tijeras Continuidad Dinámica y Reivindicación de la Identidad Indígena Andina / Dance of the Scissors Dynamic Continuity and Reclamation of Andean Indigenous Identity, Cinthia Durán, Skidmore College
Betanzos: enfrentando el cambio climático \ Betanzos: Confronting Climate Change, Cody Eaton, Tufts University
Prevalence of Moniliophthora roreri in Theobroma cacao in relation to clone variety, community composition, environmental factors in an organic cacao farm in Charagre, Bocas del Toro, Panamá: A case study, Kara Eckberg, University of Minnesota
Una aproximación al proceso de construcción de la identidad cultural coreano-argentina en la Ciudad de Buenos Aires / An Approach to the Korean-Argentine Ethnic and Cultural Identity in the City of Buenos Aires, Hyeree Ellis, DePauw University
Women Who Surf in Morocco, Anna Esposito, Bates College
Environmental Education in Post-green Revolution Punjab, Qing Fan, Pomona College
A Companion to “Soulaliyate” Form Justification and Artistic Explanation, Rosalind Faulkner, Pamona College
A Comparative Case Study of American and Ugandan Refugee Policies, Anna Feins, Boston College
“Todavía nos falta”: Un análisis etnográfico del género y la clase social en un club deportivo barrial en el Sureste de la ciudad de Buenos Aires / "We still lack": An ethnographic analysis of gender and social class in a neighborhood sports club in the Southeast of the city of Buenos Aires, Alonso Fernández, Southwestern University
UNA INVESTIGACIÓN SOBRE LA PREVALENCIA DE LA LACTANCIA MATERNA / 62/5000 AN INVESTIGATION ON THE PREVALENCE OF BREASTFEEDING, Madeline Ferone, Emory University