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 2022
“For a Better Future”: The Impact of Labor Migration on Families in Samoa, Rebekah Underwood, Saint Michael's College
Factors Driving Changing Community Acceptance of Gays and Lesbians in Cato Manor, KwaZulu-Natal, Isabella van der Weide, Muhlenberg College
Using Remote Sensing Technologies in Relocating Lubrak Village and Visualizing Flood Damages, Ronan Wallace, Macalester College
Políticas Visuales y Acción Colectiva: Un investigación sobre las articulaciones estético-políticas en manifestaciones de arte público en Ushuaia y El Bolsón / Visual Politics and Collective Action: An investigation of aesthetic-political articulations in manifestations of public art in Ushuaia and El Bolsón, Laura Woodhouse, University of Puget Sound
Comparing the Scottish National Party (SNP) and the Basque Nationalist Party (EAJ-PNV)’s social policies towards refugees and asylum seekers, Emily Woodruff, Washington University in St. Louis
Medical Ethics: How Resource Distribution Affects the Decision Making of Doctors in Rural India: An Explorative and Comparative Study in Jamkhed, Maharashtra, Jared Yee, Washington University in St. Louis
Medical Ethics: How Resource Distribution Affects the Decision Making of Doctors in Rural India: An Explorative and Comparative Study in Jamkhed, Maharashtra, Jared Yee, Washington University in St. Louis
Using Sport as a Tool for Sustainable Development: International Organizations and Sustainability, Hank Young, University of Arkansas
Conservation and Variation in Agricultural Landscapes: A survey of insect populations across naranjilla cultivation methods in the eastern Andean cloud forest, Ian Zakelj, Macalester College
Declining Career Interest in Primary Care in Switzerland and the United States, William Zhang, Rice University
How Does Theater Critically Engage With Contemporary Socio-Political Tensions? A Case Study on Neil Coppen and Mpume Mthombeni’s Isidlamlilo, Kami Zimmer, The New School
Submissions from 2021
An evaluation of the organic carbon content found in Fucus vesiculosus and Ascophyllum nodosum from Skutulsfjörður and Eyjafjörður, Iceland, Sylvie Alexander, Scripps College
Discontinuity Between Religion, Law, and Society through Animal Treatment in Morocco, Michael Altman, Hamilton College
Constructed Memories: A Study of how the Arts and the National Museum Operate Within Power Structures and State Interests in Postcolonial Morocco, Evan Antonakes, Bates College
Through the Eyes of Lawyers and Advocates: Navigating the Court System for Women Impacted by Domestic Violence in Morocco, Emily Atieh, Brandeis University
An Analysis of the Role of Gender in Political News Media Coverage, Clare Atkinson, University of Virginia
Narrativas de la autoconstrucción: posicionalidades e identidades en migrantes venezolanos en Quito, Ecuador, Vicente Bickel, Hope College
Islam and Equality Through Symbolism, Nellie Bowers, Sewanee
The Odyssean Dilemma: Homelessness as Home and the Search for Ithaka, Francesca Casarella, University of Notre Dame
Abundance, foraging levels, and dietary preferences of Chaetodon capistratus on reefs surrounding Porvenir Island in the Guna Yala Comarca of Panamá, Eleanor Ann Casement, Tulane University
Helmintos transmitidos por el suelo en Ecuador; la respuesta comunitaria y las percepciones a ellos en Baños y Puyo, Audrey Chesney, Gettysburg College
A Socio-Ecological Perspective on Integrating Biodiversity Conservation and the Security-Development Nexus in Sub-Saharan Africa, Lilyon Conroy, Tulane University
The Memory of a Nation: How Spanish Political Parties and Their Electoral Manifestos Address Historical Memory, Aidan G. Coohill, University of Colorado Boulder
The Role of Public and Private Sectors: How to Promote National Cybersecurity Strategies and Critical Infrastructure Protection in Southeastern Europe, Larry Cruz, Bates College
Assessing the need for and access to migrant-sensitive rehabilitative healthcare: An analysis of current Swiss and German practices, Lauren Cuppy, University of South Carolina
RETRATO DE UNA ECONOMÍA EN MOVIMIENTO: Retos de la economía sustentable en San Francisco de Borja, Quijos, Napo, Meghan Mary Edwards, Ohio Wesleyan University
An Eventful Past Predicting a Bizarre Future: Assessing the Influence of Ocean Circulation on Key Fish Species in Icelandic Waters. An analysis of past circulation records in order to predict the state of demersal fish stocks in future climate scenarios, Matthew Engfer, The College of Wooster
Beach suitability for nesting Olive ridley sea turtles (Lepidochelys olivacea), Playa Malena, Azuero Peninsula, Panama, Soleil Foy, University of Colorado Boulder
Development-Induced Displacement in Kiryandongo District: A Case Study of the Karuma Hydroelectric Power Plant, Remington Fritz, William & Mary
Purple Shadows in Catalonia: Josep Pla, Great Questions of Literature, and the Bid for Catalan Independence, Caya Greenspan-Layman, Muhlenberg College
A Hidden Emergency: Transgenerational Inheritance in the Next Generation of Rwandans, Neila Gross, University of Notre Dame
The Gap Between Policy and the People: A Case Study of the Buikwe Fishing Communities, Capri Gutiérrez, Rollins College
A Ladder of Endemicity: A pioneering study of anuran communities along an elevational gradient in the Eastern Andean Cloud Forests, Ecuador, Ella Halbert, Oberlin College
The Hands that Weave Stories, Elanna Hawkins, Southwestern University
The Multi-step Approach to Covid Prevention in the Casamance Region, Saraí Hernandez Salguero, Bowdoin College
Landmine Removal in Post-Conflict Rwanda: The Connection Between Demining, Reconstruction, and Reconciliation, Riley Hinklin, Macalester College
Land Use as a Predictor of Water Hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) Presence on the Entebbe Coast of Lake Victoria, Uganda, Zachary Hoffman, Gettysburg College
Los Efectos Psicosociales que Produce el Embarazo en las Vidas de Madres Adolescentes en Quito, Ecuador, Kaylee Howell, Wake Forest University
Investigating The Impact of Land Use on Avian Diversity and Abundance in Areas Surrounding Mabamba Swamp, Uganda, Sydney Marie Jones, Carleton College
An Assessment of the Traditional Botanical Usage of the Indigeneous People of the Bugungu Sub-Region of Western Uganda, Elena Kilber, Portland State University
A biological assessment of water quality in El Placer, Ecuador: The effect of agriculture on stream health and the quality of historical versus current drinking water sources, Danielle Kleinberg, Gettysburg College
Representation and Recommendations: Participation of People Who Use Drugs in UN-Level Policy-making, Lily Knudsen, Vanderbilt University
Bird Diversity in the Ecuadorian Chocó: A Proposal for Avitourism in Villaflora and Manduriacu Reserve, Elizabeth Kroger, Middlebury College
Lessons learned from the HIV/AIDS pandemic and access to medicines for COVID-19 treatment, Thalia Le, Emory University
Alienation of Labor or Alienation of Self: Perceptions of Hospitality Labor and Economic Development in Morocco, Julian Madera, Brandeis University
Cape Town Cartographies: Which spaces can the youth access? Mapping the mobilities of 11 University of Cape Town (UCT) students, Sokona Mangane, Bates College
CBOs as a Tool for Sustainable Community Development: The Case in Kapchorwa, Annie Manges, Appalachian State University
La autenticidad y el yo: Un análisis sobre la experiencia urbana de las mujeres indígenas en Ecuador, Madison L. McClellan, Northwestern University
Burning in Purgatory: The Suffocation of Bisexuality and How the Match was Lit, Tricia Menzel, University of Colorado Boulder
Indigenous conceptions of community organization and autonomy in Oaxaca’s Sierra Norte: Answers and resistance to State-sponsored practices of internal colonialism, Carter Minnick, The University of Virginia
Taking the Waste out of Wastewater: Evaluation and Implementation of Sustainability Measures at Base Aérea N.°5’s Wastewater Treatment Plant, Abigail Monahan, Skidmore College
Perceiving the Intangible: Introspective & Meditational Practices in Moroccan Sufism, Anna Gray Morales, University of South Carolina
Draagmoederschap: Surrogacy in the Netherlands, Olivia Murray, Georgetown University
Analysis of the Moroccan Government & NGOs Responses to Migrant Health Crisis, Jepchirchir Mutwol, Grinnell College
Comparación entre las percepciones médicas y psicológicas de la diabetes tipo 2 y la tuberculosis en el Ecuador, Héctor Ortiz, Wofford College
Man v.s. Wild: An Analysis of Language Used Regarding Human-Wildlife Conflict in the Kibale National Park Community, Western Region, Uganda, Sophie Perfetto, Carleton College
Soil Not Oil: An Assessment of the Role of Earth Jurisprudence in Restoring Biodiversity Conservation in the Indigenous Bagungu Community, in Uganda, Joslyn Primicias, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
The Labyrinth of Data Collection for Humanitarian Project Funding and Implementation, Maria Alejandra Pulido, Hamilton College
Public Perception of Forest and Fire Management Policy in Portugal, Jensen Rocha, Washington and Lee University
Taxonomic Annotation of Near-Coral Seawater Microbiota in Kilifi, Kenya, Megan Ruoff, Swarthmore College
Letters to a Glacier; An Experiment and Critique of M. Jackson’s Glacier-Ruins Narrative, Lily Fife Schaeufele, Smith College
Evaluating the Pragmatic and Moralistic Approach to Drug Policy and Addiction in Opioid Epidemic Outcomes, Brielle Seidel, Syracuse University
A Phenological Analysis of Páramo Vegetation Along an Altitudinal Gradient: The Influence of Camelids on Andean Flora in the Páramo of Chimborazo, Ecuador, Tessa Seifried, Northwestern University
Disability and Healthcare Access in Morocco: Social and Cultural Influences, Christa Shipman, Oregon State University
Examining factors associated with BCG and Poliomyelitis vaccination coverage in Tanzanian and Kenyan children aged 12 to 23 months using DHS surveys, Ognyan Simeonov, Bates College
Harvesting the Truth about Salt Mining: An Assessment of the Factors and Demographics that Influence Women to Become Salt Miners, Katwe Uganda, Amelia Simmonds, Vassar College
COVID-19 Vaccine Diplomacy in West Africa: Empathetic Soft-Power or Neocolonial Intentions?, Mary Sperrazza, University of San Francisco
The Modern-Day Sand War: A New Dimension of the Morocco-Algeria Conflict Explored Through Youth, Alec Stimac, Davidson College
La educación alternativa y comunitaria y el rol de la minka en la comunidad de Chukidel Ayllu Llakta – Lagunas en Saraguro: Un enfoque intercultural y multilingüe, Kristin Lynn Vogel, The University of Iowa
Political Processes of Displacement in Infrastructure Development: the Case of Aldeia da Luz and the Alqueva Dam, Cordelia Walz, Oberlin College
Science is for Everybody: A resource for understanding glaciers, climate, and modeling, Emma Watson, Carleton College
An Assessment of Terrestrial Decapoda Diversity Across Three Ecological Zones in Mida Creek, Kenya, Reese Yount, Hope College
Assessing and Mapping the Spatial-Temporal Change in Forest Phenology of Arabuko-Sokoke Forest using Moderate Resolution Satellite, Bailey Ytterdahl, Gettysburg College
Submissions from 2020
La integración de las necesidades especiales educativas en aulas convencionales chilenos: investigación y experiencias vividas, Julia Alfiere, Smith College
El valor de la creatividad: Acceso, sentido, y potencial de las artes visuales en el sistema educativo en Valparaíso, Chile., Bianca Allende Boyd, Bowdoin College
Found in the World: An Autoethnographic Exploration of how Place Influences the Growing Formation of One’s Identity, Sydney Atkins, Tulane University
La importancia de los espacios: conociendo los espacios en línea creado por los haitianos y organizaciones haitianas en Chile, Juan Avilez, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The Current State of Migrant Health in Morocco: Pre-and Peri-COVID-19 Pandemic, Layla Babahaji, Tulane University
Trace Metals and the Environment: Studying the Behaviour of Iceland’s Glacially Sourced Trace Metals, Owen Bailey, Bates College
The Political Development of Capital Punishment in the Modern Moroccan State, Mia Barr, Skidmore College
Changing Water Resources’ Effect on Livelihoods and Socio-Ecological Relationships in Himalayan Communities of Nepal, Luke Bazemore, Middlebury College
The Public Secret and Private Pain of Wartime Sexual Violence: Comparing the Heroinat Memorial and the 2020 Newborn Monument from the Perspective of NGOs in Kosovo, Martha Beliveau, Grinell College
Non-state Actors’ COVID-19 Response in Nepal, Jenna Mae Biedscheid, Colorado State University
Shifting Landscapes: The Effects of Male Out-Migration on Food Security and Food Sovereignty in Rural Nepal, Emma Brown, Middlebury College
The Increased Role of Pesantrens in Indonesia’s Modern-Day Approach to Deradicalization, Helen Bruckner, Bates College
Alimentando a México: Los Movimientos Indígenas y Agrícolas Contra las Políticas Neoliberales, Sofia Buchler, Occidental College
Macroinvertebrate Community and Temperature Changes in a Michigan Stream, Nyika Campbell, University of Colorado Boulder
Indigenous Communities Versus Oil Companies: Identifying Trends in Tactics and Success of Indigenous-Led Anti-Petroleum Movements in the Ecuadorian Amazon, Ella V. H. Carlson, Smith College
Catalonia: Independence in History, Rhetoric, and Symbolism, Natalie J. Cestone, Colgate University
La inclusión de la mujer indígena y el conocimiento en la conservación biológica en el Perú, Ivyanna Colon-Greider, Temple University
La Discapacidad en Valparaíso: La existencia de un (¿nuevo?) movimiento social, Julia Conti, Carnegie Mellon University
Facebook’s Façade: Understanding The Disillusionment of Tunisian Youth, Adam Cooper, University of Virginia
¿“La Familia Diversa”?: Una Investigación en Constructos de Familias en Ecuador en el Siglo XXI, Julia Cornick, Smith College
Room to Grow: A Comparative Analysis of Cannabis Regulation Models in Europe, Amanda H. Cronin, Cornell University
The current state of research on the global amphibian epidemic, chytridiomycosis: A systematic literature review and view into the future of the field, Emily DeAlto, Lehigh University
If Watersheds Spoke: A condition analysis of the Rio Tomebamba watershed in southern Ecuador using GIS analysis, Lenka G. Doskocil, Colorado State University
NGOs as Learning Organizations: Evaluating Female Sports Development in Jordan Through the Lens of Women’s Soccer, Saede Eifrig, Haverford College
Finding A “True Morocco:” How Tourists Change Moroccan Economies, Infrastructure and Cultures, Emily Federico, Skidmore College
Medical Trust in Pediatric Care in the United States, Talia Feldscher, Wesleyan University
Los comedores populares argentinos en tiempos del COVID-19: El rol de los comedores durante la pandemia: el sistema alimentario y la acción del gobierno argentino, Katrina Frei-Herrmann, Claremont McKenna College