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 2008
Sacred Work: Transforming Spirit and Community in Lucena, Paraíba, Jenny Schneider, Brown University
Alcoa in Juruti, Brazil: A Case of Environmental Injustice and Colonialism?, Caitlin Schroering, Denison University
“Ahora es Cuando”: La Lucha por el Derecho a la Ciudad en la Villa 31 = “Now is the Time”: The Fight for the Right to the City in Villa 31, Margaret Scott, Macalester College
A Domestic Pas de Deux: The Rise of the Muslim Brotherhood and Islamist-Regime Relations in Jordan, Simon Shogry, Claremont McKenna College
Faith and Freedom: A Profile of the Religious Environment in Mongolia’s Emerging Democracy, Jeffrey Sinick, Grinnell College
HIV/AIDS Treatment and Care in a Long-Term Conflict Setting: Observations From The AIDS Support Organization (TASO) in the Teso Region, Emma Smith, Yale University
The End of the Line: Understanding the Morocco-Algeria Border, Katherine Solberg, Boston College
The Union des Populations du Cameroun and Third World Internationalism: Solidarity, Cooperation, and Abandonment, 1955-1970, Jamie Stevenson, Vassar College
A Reassessment of Avian Assemblages Along the Lakes Corridor in the Atherton Tablelands, North Queensland, Shaina N. Stewart, Kenyon College
The Polar Thaw: An Analysis of the Impacts of Climate Change on the Environment and Geopolitics of the Arctic Polar Region, Alexandra Stoicof, George Washington University
La Fragilidad Persistente de las Transgresiones: Los Mundos Públicos y Privados de los Vladivideos, los Medios de Comunicación, y la Fantasma de Fujimori., Annie Strother, Oberlin College
The Influence of Medicinal Plants on the Spiritism, Religion, and Science of Tulear, Madagascar, Meghan Sweet, George Washington University
Fortaleza’s Feminisms: Searching for Feminist Theory in the Centro de Referência da Mulher and the Delegacia de Defesa da Mulher, Paige Sweet, Washington University in St Louis
La Mondialisation et les Croyants: Des Effets de la Mondialisation sur les Communautés Chrétiennes = Globalization and Believers: Globalization’s Effects on Christian Communities, Carrie Lee Tallichet, Texas A & M University
La Mondialisation et les Croyants: Des Effets de la Mondialisation sur les Communautés Chrétiennes = Globalization and Believers: Globalization’s Effects on Christian Communities, Carrie Lee Tallichet, Texas A & M University
What the Fish is Going on Here? Are Regulations Being Followed at the Ver-O-Peso Market in Belém, Para?, Neil Thompson, University of Vermont
Turkish – EU Relations: Let’s Just Say, It’s Complicated, Cora Allie Treske, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Factors Related to the Marital Satisfaction of Malian Women in Polygamous Marriages, Lauren E. Troy, Northwestern University
Post-Fire Demography of a Dry Eucalypt Forest in the Midlands, Tasmania: A Pilot Study, Christine Urbanowicz, Gettysburg College
The First Modern Diaspora Community in the Netherlands: Lessons From the Moluccan Experience, Jamie van Wagtendonk, Brandeis University
Los Alcanzes y Límites de Participación Ciudadana: la Conaie y la Plurinacionalidad en la Asamblea Constituyente de 2008, Sara Vogel, Columbia University
Glandular Secretions of Male Pteropus (Flying Foxes): Preliminary Chemical Comparisons Among Species, Jamie Wagner, Oberlin College
Spray-Painting the State, Stenciling the Self: Opening Commons of Art and Identity Though Asamblea, Jesse Waldman, Columbia University
Mivumba in Kampala: Tracking the History, Trade, and Perceptions of a Global Commodity in Local Culture, Claire Walsh, Vassar College
ARAUCO y sus Políticas de RSE en la VIII Región del Bío Bío (Una Comparación Entre sus Políticas Medio Ambientales y la Situación Real), Jamie Warner, Colby College
Ações Para uma Melhor Vida: A Situação de Prostituição no Novo Eldorado de Juruti, Megan Whelan, Brown University
Calidad Química y Microbiológica del Agua y Acceso al Recurso Agua en la Comunidad de Solöng, Territorio Naso-Teribe, Bocas del Toro, Shira Wrightman, George Washington University
Submissions from 2007
Sectarianism and Social Capital: Community Development in Northern Ireland, Becky Alhadeff, Western Washington University
Faith as a Means of Healing: Traditional Medicine and the Ethiopian Orthodox Church In and Around Lalibela, Lauren Anderson, Villanova University
El Cobre Para Hoy y Siempre : Hacia un Futuro Menos Volátil, Más Sostenible y de Mayor Valor Agregado en el Sector Chileno del Cobre, Nicholas Anderson, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Development in Our Own Words: A Survey of Development Perspectives Between Cameroonians and Americans in Yaoundé, Cameroon, Frieda L. Arenos, University of Vermont
El Olvido Está Lleno de Memoria: El Proceso de Recuperación de la Memoria Histórica de la Dictadura de Pinochet, Sarah Arvey, Occidental College
Why Logging? A Value Assessment of Forestry Uses in the Huon Forest District, Ryan Bailey, Skidmore College
Kaya Hip-Hop in Coastal Kenya: The Urban Poetry of UKOO FLANI, Divinity LaShelle Barkley, University of Southern California
Along the River Soumsoum: Urban Agriculture in Ngaoundéré, Winnie Fay Bell, Northeastern University
Endangered ? Yambetta in its Speech Community, Carolyn Benbow, Pacific Lutheran University
Crédito y Confianza: Los Impactos Socioeconómicos de Fondo Esperanza en Temuco y Padre las Casas, Rebecca Berwick, Brown University
Leprosy: A Study of Identity Through a “Marginalized” Population, Aarti Bhatt, Marquette University
A Critical Assessment of the Impact of World Heritage Site Designation in Sub-Saharan Africa, Lauren Blacik, Carleton College
Caring and Treating Post – Traumatic Stress Disorder in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Colleen M. Boley, University of Redlands
Songs From Imerina: A Creative Study of the Evolving Craft of Merina Hainteny in Madagascar, Elly Bookman, Colby College
Evaluating the Medicinal Properties of Mandravasarotra (Cinnamosa sida) Through Chemical and Pharmacological Screening, Henry J. Bowden Jr., Morehouse College
Lambahoany: Une Utile de Communication, Joanna Bresee, Carnegie Mellon University
Between Bottom Up and Top Down: The Truth-Recovery Debate in Northern Ireland, Suzanne Brundage, Bennington College
V is for Voluntary: Uptake of HIV Testing and Counseling in Mombasa District, Kenya, Julie Caplow, Brown University
“Le Goût de Travail:” Work Value for Bamiléké Children, Diana Carlson, Northwestern University
Distribution of Ultraviolet-Absorbing Sunscreen Compounds Across the Body Surface of Two Species of Scaridae, Elizabeth Cerny-Chipman, Pomona College
Environment as Social and Literary Constructs: An Exploration of the Relationship between the Environment and Mahafaly Oral Literature, Eugenie Cha, Bard College
Tourism in Lugu Hu: Helpful or Harmful? Examining the Impact of Tourism on Lugu Lake’s People and Environment, Joana Chan, Vassar College
Ontogenetic Changes in Feeding Ecology and Habitat of the Damselfish Neoglyphidodon melas at Lizard Island, Great Barrier Reef, Sai-Wing Chan, Oberlin College
The Microcredit Impact: The Evaluation and Effects of Microloans on Caboclos Communities of the Tapajós River, Robert Chew, Oberlin College
Struggle, Revolution, and the MST: Reflections on the Meaning of Resistance, Andrew Cole, Bucknell University
El Royalty II y la Búsqueda de la Renta del Cobre Chileno: Un Análisis de la Política Económica del Impuesto Específico, el Royalty II, Sobre Cobre, Paul Collett, Pomona College
Los Afro-Descendientes de Buenos Aires: Mitos y Realidades, William Cowles, Hamilton College
Gaaro: Nepali Women Tell Their Stories, Sarah Cramer, Harvard University
Learning to Live with the Past: Cultural Heritage Preservation in Aksum, Ethiopia, Lara Cueni, Hamilton College
Les Actions et Motivations des Gens qui Transmettent et Maintiennent Encore la Langue d’Occitan, Rita Dainko, Miami University - Oxford
Understanding Mental Health From a Candomblé Perspective, Kerilyn Daniel, University of Virginia
Senegalese Family Values and SOS Village d’ Enfants, Shauna Davidson, Southwestern University
Effects of Standardization on Cultural Identity and Community Involvement: Transgender Clients at the Vrije Universiteit Gender Clinic, Benjamin Davis, CUNY Hunter College
The Music of Senegal: A Way of Life in West Africa, Lucien DeLaBruere, Ithaca College
Ecosystem-Based Fishery Management in South Australia and Victoria, Rebecca DeVries, Ithaca College
Los Esfuerzos de Desarrollo Sostenible en Pucará, Ecuador, Eric Dooley-Feldman, Connecticut College
“Con Paciencia” : El Proceso y los Desafíos de la Textilería Mapuche, Julie Dorian, Belmont University
Murales y Memoria: Un Estudio Comparativo de Tres Casos de Arte Memorial en la Ciudad de Buenos Aires, Mya Dosch, Carleton College
How Do Women in Prek Toal Village (Tonle Sap Biosphere Reserve, Cambodia) Participate in and Benefit From Ecotourism?, Amy Dowley, Vassar College
Buscando la Luz: Changes in Partería and the Loss of Feminine Autonomy in Oaxaca, Mexico, Hannah Ewert-Krocker, Vassar College
Circumambulations, Prayers, and Meditations: A Journey to Kawagebo, Casey Flynn, University of Colorado at Boulder
Biomass Combustion and ARI in Kiwengwa, Unguja, Eric Fournier and Nicole Poepping, Bucknell University, Brown University
Where the Sky is High and the Hospital is Faraway: Strategies for Rural Public Health Education in Yunnan, China, Michael Frick, Kenyon College
Technology and the Classroom: Computer Education in Jordanian Public Schools, Ketan Gajria, Tufts University
The Politics of Engagement: The Influence of Identity on the Experiences of Activists Involved With the Roma Community in Serbia, Becca Gardner, Denison University
La Presencia de los Derechos Humanos en las Realidades Escolares de Buenos Aires y Santiago., Thea Garon, Carleton College
Responsibility, Reconciliation, and Remembrance: Serbian Youth Perspectives in Dealing with the Past, Erica Getto, Clark University
Accounting for Ecosystem Flows: Setting a Standard for Australian Industries to Make Sustainable Decisions, Emily Gilbert, Franklin and Marshall College
Community Forestry in Oaxaca: An Assessment of the Level of Autonomy in Forest Decision-Making and its Environmental and Economic Importance, Peter Gill, Carleton College
Implementing Uganda’s National Wetlands Policy: A Case Study of Kabale District, Sophie Glass, Colorado College
The Price of Gold: The Environmental Impacts of Toxic Chemicals in Gold Mining, Adam Goetz, Carleton College
The Story of Eej Khad: Mother Spirit of the Earth and Her Children, Ethan Gohen, Brandeis University
Living in the Margins: The Male Homosexual Experience in Salvador, Silvano Gonzalez, Pomona College
Causes & Perceptions: An Exploratory Study of Suicide in Indo-Fijian & Fijian Youth, Marcie L. Grambeau, Eastern Michigan University
You’ll Never Silence the Voice of the Voiceless: Critical Voices of Activists in Post-Apartheid South Africa, Kate Gunby, Kenyon College
La Construcción de Paz y Esperanza en Nicaragua Los procesos de paz y su legado hoy en día, Christopher Hammond, Bennington College
A Qualitative Study of Pregnancy and Maternal Mortality in Rural Senegal: An Examination of the Pregnant Woman’s Experience, Megan Frances Harlow, Amherst College
The Learning Organization in a Post-Development Era: A Case Study on Orgnizational Development at the Valley Trust, Justin Haruyama, University of Puget Sound
Predicting the Impacts of Serra Leste: a Case Study in Companhia Vale do Rio Doce’s Influence on Southern Pará, Jason Hayes, Colby College
Sin Vuelta Atrás: El Proceso de Cambio y las Amenazas Para el Futuro en una Comunidad Yuracaré, Joe Hejlek, Duke University
Una Vision General de los Problemas con la Enseñanza de las Matemáticas en Chile y Posibles Maneras de Mejorarla, Samuel Hickey, College of Wooster
Vecinos Indiferentes: Chile, Bolivia y la Gas Natural, Daniel Hodges-Copple, Rice University
Tornar-Se Negro & Thinking Beautiful, Ayana Hosten, Claremont McKenna College
Growing ‘Black Diamonds’: The Role of the Government in Small Business Development and Black Entrepreneurship, Will Houghteling, Harvard University
Permission to Change: The Role of Culture and Cultural Tourism in Development, Heather Houser, Rhodes College
Fueling Samoa’s Growing Transport Sector: The Impact of Rising Oil Prices and Imports on a Pacific Island Economy, Janis McDaid Ikeda, Lehigh University
An Ancient Practice: Scarification and Tribal Marking in Ghana, Alyssa Irving, Connecticut College
Unemployment, Women, and Taxis: A Study of the Taxi-Sister Program in its Test Phase, Mackenzie Israel-Trummel, Occidental College
A Survey of the Cockle A. antiquata, Chumbe Island, Kelsey Jacobsen and Lisl Esherick, Connecticut College, Vassar College
Creating Dreams, Fighting for Rights: A Study With Centro de Cultura Negra do Maranhão, Brazil, Laura Jenks, Brandeis University
La Recuperación de Ex-Centros Clandestinos de Detención Como Espacios de la Memoria: Un Estudio Acerca del Caso del Ex-Centro “Olimpo” en Buenos Aires, Katherine Jensen, Vassar College
Rescate sin Recursos: La Enseñaza Aymara en Codpa y Putre, Amy Johnson, Willamette University
Une Division Ambiguë: L’Immigration et la Société Civile en France, Kristen Johnson, Point Loma Nazarene University