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 2009
Outside the Black Box: “Found-Transformed” Czech Theatres, Michele O'Brien, Vassar College
‘They Have to Know That They Are Moroccan’: A Sending Country’s Perspective on the Second Generation of Emigrants Abroad, Olivia Paquette, Harvard University
Tuberculosis por los Ojos de La Vida Aymara: La Correlación Entre Estilo de Vida y Tuberculosis en los Aymara del Norte de Chile, Sam Percy, University of Colorado at Boulder
The Price of Water: Assessment of the Current Water Situation and Recommendation of Technical Methodology for the Community of Shirati, Tanzania, Max Perel-Slater, Wesleyan University
Putting Trees Back in the Hands of Malians: L’Association Malienne Pour La Conservation de la Faune et de L’Environnement and the Balance between Using and Protecting Local Forests, Cara Peterson, niversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The Elusiveness of Light: The Difficulty With Harnessing the Omnipresent Solar Energy in Africa, Hai-Vu Phan, Yale University
“Mangra”- Exploring the Organization of an Environmental Education Curriculum in a Village Equipped for Sustainable Development, Abigail Phillips, University of Puget Sound
Colorful Nothing: Mind & Matter in the Madhyamaka, Jimmy Pianka, Tufts University
Conocimientos, Percepciones, y Prácticas de Mujeres Jóvenes Acerca del Papiloma Virus Humano, Michelle Marie Picón Ruiz, Duke University
Grita. Erga-se : Colonial Cycles of Violence in Domestic Labour in Salvador, Bahia, Jessica Nina Pine, Occidental College
Gendered Perspectives on Holland’s Prison Programs: Statistics and Practices, Amanda Pisetzner, Lafayette College
Ending Violence…Creating Peace? Rediscovering the Connections Between The Women´s Movement and a Culture of Peace in Nicaragua, Sami Poindexter, University of Redlands
The Phoenix, Catherine Jean Pond, Skidmore College
Weathering a Different Kind of Storm: Vietnam's Reaction to Financial Disaster, Rebecca Price, University of the South
Kibera Community Unconscious of the Silent Disease: STI, Sindhya Rajeev, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Tibetan Carpets…Or Are They? An Analysis of the Carpet Industry in Kathmandu, Nepal, Swetha Ramaswamy, The George Washington University
Black & Red The Impacts of Development on Culture: A Case study of Dogon People of Sangha, Mali, Kathleen Remington, Middlebury College
Spiny Forest Heterogeneity: Implications for Regeneration and its Detection, Catherine Reuter, Macalester College
Chinese Painting: Philosophy, Theory, and the Pursuit of Cultivation Through the Dao, Elizabeth Reynolds, Barnard College
Testing the Baobab’s Mettle: An Evaluation of the Sustainability and Economic Potential of Harvesting Adansonia digitata, Benjamin Rhodes, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill
History of Tibetan and Exile Radio, Irene Richardson, Tufts University
“Toliki taa ub’ookin.” “Tell Them Everything.” The Changing Sexual Practices of the Maasai Women of Engare Sero, Adrienne Rosenberg, Harvard University
Democracy and the Tribal System in Jordan: Tribalism as a Vehicle for Social Change, Jennifer Rowland, Duke University
Cool Head, Warm Heart: Governance and the Mission of Microfinance in the Case of MC2 Micro-Banks, Cameroon, Claire Ruffing, Boston College
Mandatory Measles Vaccination Program: Is There a Place for one in Switzerland?, Anne Rushman, Washington University in St. Louis
Responsibility for Disease Management on Rusinga Island: Reconciling the Limitations of External Aid and the Role of Community-Based Initiatives, Allyson Russell, Brown University
Implications of the Monck Head Boat Launching Facility on Adjacent Intertidal Sessile Assemblages (Coral Bay, Western Australia), Megan Sabal, Miami University of Ohio
A Study of the East African Slave Trade in Bagamoyo, Jake Salyers, Wake Forest University
Global Discourse, Local Context: Counter-Terrorism and Human Rights in Morocco, Christine Sargent, Pomona College
Seeing is Believing: How the U.S. Government and American News Networks Spun the Iraq War, Sarah Schenter, Brandeis University
The Modernization of Fiji ’s Food System and the Resulting Implications on Fijian Society: A Synthesis, Brian Schultz, Lewis and Clark College
“Leur Rêve et Leur Vie Sont Ailleurs:” University Student Attitudes Towards Migration and Domestic Opportunity in Morocco, Annie Seibert, Washington University in St. Louis
Naši Narodi? Moji Identiteti: Four Youth Perspectives on National Identity in Post-Dayton Bosnia and Herzegovina, Jacob Seigel-Boettner, University of California at Berkeley
VIH y Alcohol en Arica, Chile: Percepciones de Portadores y Profesionales, Lena Sessions, Macalester College
La Crisis Financiera de 1982-1983 en Chile: Orígenes, Intervención, Efectos y Implicancias Para el Modelo Neoliberal, Luke Shoemaker, Connecticut College
Bromeliads as a Breeding Site for the Dengue Vector Aedes aegypti, Eva B. Shultis, Brown University
Conflicting Loyalties: Changing Roles and Relations of Labor Unions in Vietnam, Jan Slezak, University of New England
“Samoanizing” Human Rights: A Generational Comparative of Views on Human Rights in Contemporary Samoa, Margaret R. Smith, Hamilton College
“Edutainment”: The Role of Mass Media in the Development of an Effective HIV/AIDS Youth Awareness Campaign in Viet Nam, Carmin Smoot, University of Puget Sound
A Multidimensional International Examination of the Impact of GMOs: A Biological, Economic, International Trade, Intellectual Property, and Geopolitical View, Kevin E. Soubly, Hope College
Guardians of the Grassland: A Qualitative Assessment of the Success of Community-Based Wildlife Conservation in Mongolia’s Eastern Steppe, Alexandra Sprague, University of Massachusetts - Amherst
Supplying Clean Water to Jaipur: A Study of Two Current Government Projects, Jenna Stearns, Whitman College
“But Who Can I Talk to?” Psychological Services for the Parents and Children of APDK, Jessica Steinke, Wesleyan University
Lamu Sensitive Aid: Barriers to Distribution, Acceptance, and Use of Malaria Prevention in Lamu District, Kelan Stoy, University of Denver
Behind Your Beach Vacation: A Review and Evaluation of EIAs as a Legal Framework to Regulate the Environmental Impacts of Tourism in Zanzibar, Mahima Sukhdev and Ayelet Singer, Yale University, Oberlin College
Children on the Margins: A Case Study of I Care's Hope Centre for Street Children in Durban, South Africa, Morgan Sullivan, St. Michael's College
Breaking the Silence: Professionals of Hera Speak Out About Lesbian Battering, Janelle Thompson, Lafayette College
Changing Chalk and Talk: The Reform of Teaching Methods in Vietnamese Higher Education, Jessica Thompson, George Washington University
Breastfeeding: A Landmark in Global Public Health, Melissa Tinling, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Miti Iko Wapi II ?, Taylor Tully, Colby College
Environmental Conscience and Comportment of Youth in Dakar, Elizabeth Van Brocklin, Duke University
The Heart of Forgiveness, in Light of Unforgettable Hurt: A Multi-Faceted Perspective on Reconciliation in Northern Uganda, Barbara Vi Thien Ho, University of Notre Dame
Guide Accreditation in the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area: A Study of the Practices, Attitudes, and Concerns of Small Tourism Operators, Nora Vogel, Wesleyan University
‘These Things Are Simply Very Difficult’: An Exploration of the Existence of and the Relationship Between Sectarianism and Racism in Present-Day Northern Ireland, Coreen Walsh, Point Loma Nazarene University
The Legend of the Almas: A Comparative and Critical Analysis, Nathan Wenzel, George Washington University
Relájate y Disfruta: Lecciones de una Vida Musical y Temporal en el Zaidín = Relax and Enjoy: Lessons about a Temporal Musical Life in Zaidin, Granada, Laura Westman, George Washington University
A New Kind of Middle Man: Looking at Fair Trade in Nepal, Julia Wilber, Hamilton College
Doctors and Imams: Investigating the Integrated Schools of Mombasa, Kenya, Beth Ann Williams, Wake Forest University
The Ties That Bind: Urban Migration, Family Networks, and Cultural Change in Modern Mongolia, Christopher R. Williams, Indiana University
Vietnamese Resistence Mentality, Michael Williams, Hamilton College
The Significance of Music Education in the Primary Curriculum, Mina Won, George Washington University
El Desarrollo Sostenible: Las Aplicaciones de un Sendero Ecológico y una Farmacia Verde al Progreso Ambiental de Pucará, Ecuador, Matthew Woods, Kenyon College
Creating a Category V: Conservation Perceptions and Cultural Changes in the Anjozorobe-Angavo Forest Corridor, Kate Wright, DePauw University
El Carácter Militar de los Carabineros y Cómo Influye su Relación con el País, Joseph Francis Wyer, Occidental College
The Material Remains of World War II on Viti Levu: A Historical Archaeological Inventory, Allison Young, The College of Wooster
Submissions from 2008
Les Modes de Gardes et les Mères Modernes : La Conciliation de Vie Professionnelle et de Vie Familiale à Toulouse, France = Day Care Centers, Baby-Sitters and the Modern Mother: The Equilibrium Between One’s Professional and Family Life in Toulouse, France, Millan AbiNader, Bowdoin College
Conceptions of Wilderness in Tasmania, Sam Adels, Macalester College
Institution Building in the Non-Profit Sector Working as a Fundraising Consultant at a Rehabilitation Center for Children With Disabilities in Lira, Uganda, Crystal Alburger, Beloit College
Hinchinbrook Area Boater’s Opinions Of and Compliance With Dugong Conservation Initiatives, Matilda Andersson, Hamilton College
Bringing Peace Home: Experiences of Graduates of the Peace Camps Run by the Center for Peacebuilding in Sanski Most, Bosnia and Herzegovina., Becca Asaki, Long Island University
Paradigms and Perceptions: A Chronology and Analysis of the Events of the Chan-75 Hydroelectric Project and the Roles and Relationships of Participants, Bocas del Toro, Panama, Jessica Barber, Oberlin College
Second Generation, Not Second Class: How Role Models Can Help Second-Generation Muslim Youth Form Positive Hybrid Identities, Lindsay Bayham, Duke University
Ejijiky: Une Etude d’une Petite Communauté au Sud de Madagascar et sa Dépendance sur la Mer, Julia Beaty, Smith College
O Movimento dos Atingidos Pela Barragem de Tucuruí: Uma História Oral, Susan Beaty, Brown University
Finding Balance and Identity: Second and Third Generation Immigrants in the Netherlands, Alexis Beveridge, Lafayette College
Revitalizing the Human Spirit Together: A Case Study of Movimento de Saúde Mental Comunitária do Bom Jardim in Bom Jardim, Fortaleza, Ceará, Ana Bonilla, Occidental College
Yupanchis: La Matemática Inca y su Incorporación a la Clase, Yonit Bousany, Brandeis University
An Assessment of Housing Decisions Among Shabia Residents, Allison Bream, Northwestern University
Surviving the War, Surviving the Peace: Supporting Women Survivors of War-Rape and Domestic Violence in Medica Zenica, Zoë Brennan-Krohn, Brown University
Taming the Mind: Current Mental Health Treatments and Obstacles to Expanding the Western-Model in a Tibetan Exile Community, Dylan Brock, New York University
Visiones de Pertenencia: Comunidad Tras las Palabras de Personas Mapuche, Marissa Brodney, Columbia University
Vertical Distribution of Spiders (Araneae) on a Tropical Island, Eric Brown, Bates College
The Path of the Arrow: The Evolution of Mongolian National Archery, Eric X. Brownstein, Wheaton College - Norton
Addressing the Crisis of Orphaned and Abandoned Children in Bamako, Jennifer Campbell, Sarah Lawrence College
‘THE CORE RESOURCE’ The Role of Informal Caretakers of the Mentally Ill as Seen in Uganda, Dana Carroll, Northwestern University
Imported Religious Sartorial Markers and the Beard: Perceptions and Politics in Morocco, Rachel Charlesworth, Lehigh University
The 2008 Municipal Elections According to Nicaraguan Women: Nihilism, Hope, and Pragmatism, Teresa Cheng, University of Southern California
American Influence in Spain Through Television, Dominic Corsello, Loyola Marymount University
Study of a Self-Assessment System for the Ecotourism Group in Curuçá: Accounting for Tourist Opinions While Maintaining Initial Goals, Karina Hope Costa, Vassar College
Reviving Ancient Traditions: A New Approach to the Emancipation of Malian Women, Claire Crowley, University of San Francisco
Atravesando la Amazonía: Carreteras, Desarrollo, & el Camino del Desastre, Olivia De Lancie, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
A Concentrated Look at HIV/AIDS: Transmission to Low Risk Women Through Intravenous Drug Users and Female Sex Workers in Da Nang City, Vietnam, Danielle A. DePeau, Stonehill College
Hlavní Nádraží: Past, Present, and Future, Laura Dillon, University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
“Left in the Forest and Forgotten” Land Policy and the Plight of the Benet, Anne Dirkse, St. John's College
“Multi-Track Diplomacy” Through Enhancing Interreligious Understanding: A Case Study in Abrahamic Trialogue Between Jordanian and American Students, Nick Doctor, University of Tulsa
Beach Fales: Sustainable Eco-Tourism and Cultural Preservation in Samoa: A Case Study of Beach Fales in Manase, Savai’i, Rachel Dolgin, University of Vermont
Mangily : La Vie en Mieux Une Exploration des Effets du Développement et le Tourisme Communautaire sur le Village de Mangily, Madagascar, Breanna Draxler, Gustavus Adolphus College
Hambre Cero and its Impact on the Holistic Health of its Female Beneficiaries, Chelsea Duttweiler, Emory University
The International Market, Globalization and NAFTA: If Food Is Life, Why Have We Allowed It to Become So Dirty?, Abigail Dym, Mount Holyoke College
Past Meets Present: History Education in Northern Ireland, Will Ehrenfeld, Tufts University