Sigur Center Summer Research & Language Fellows – Page 8

a temple's tip with strings of decoration tied to it connecting it to other objects

Interactive Research Methods in Gorkha, Nepal

January 23, 2019July 8, 2021Sigur Center 2018 Summer FellowsLeave a Comment

Emily Hall, posing in front of natural scenery on a clear day

When I first began thinking about conducting research in Nepal for my master’s thesis, I wondered how I could address the language gap between myself and research participants. To better understand how quality education is perceived in the local context, I decided it would be necessary to conduct interviews with school headmasters, teachers, and parents. Having lived in Nepal for eight months as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant (ETA), I speak Nepali at a beginner level but not well enough to capture the full-meaning of interviews conducted in Nepali. Immediately, I knew that it would be necessary to have a translator. Yet, additional questions emerged involving the amount of time and effort it would take to fully understand the meaning of interviews and what might get lost in translation.

When thinking about sample size, the amount of time I would have to collect data, and how to most quickly and accurately conduct interviews, I asked myself who within my participant population would most likely be able to be interviewed in English and who would need to be interviewed in Nepali. Having been a guest teacher or teacher trainer at all of the schools included in my sample population, I understood that most headmasters and teachers would be able to be comfortably interviewed in English. Since interviews conducted in English would take less time to conduct and analyze, I decided that it would be best to hold one-on-one semi-structured interviews with headmasters and teachers. I prepared a set of guiding questions and possible follow-up questions. Due to the semi-structured nature of the interviews, I also had the freedom to ask participants to elaborate upon certain responses in a more conversational manner.

Assuming that interviews with parents would need to be conducted in Nepali, I determined that I could save time and increase the sample population size by conducting group interviews. Reflecting back on my experience being a teacher, I thought that group-work focused activities, such as making a poster, might make the focus group more engaging for participants by encouraging their simultaneous contributions. Thus, I developed a focus group plan that followed a template similar to a lesson plan for teaching. The first activity was to have parents work in groups of 2-3 to create a poster of “what makes a good school.” Subsequently, with the help of my translator, we discussed the meaning of what each group created.

Since it was my first time conducting focus groups in which participants created posters, I wasn’t sure how it was going to go. Given the cultural context, I think the poster task was a big success! Parents actively participated in the conversations and created posters that reflected their beliefs. If I were to design my research project again, I would definitely still use the poster making activity. I’m excited to analyze the collected data to determine trends; I look forward to including photos and translations of each poster in my final research report.

Interested in learning more about my experiences in Nepal? Check out my personal blog Highlights of the Himalaya!

notes and graphs on Emily Hall's research

By Emily Hall, Sigur Center Field Research Grant Recipient. Emily is a master’s student in the International Education Program at the George Washington University. Emily’s areas of interest include understanding and supporting teacher quality and teaching quality in developing country contexts through the lens of cultural anthropology. Her master’s thesis examines local perceptions of quality education in Nepal and analyzes government funded educational reform initiatives seeking to improve equitable access to quality education. To learn more about her experiences in Nepal, please visit her personal blog: Highlights of the Himalaya

Emily Hall posing for photo at a mountain peak with mountains in the background

Kindness, Nourishment and Newfound Friends

January 22, 2019July 8, 2021Sigur Center 2018 Summer FellowsLeave a Comment

This is the story of how I ended up eating the best tasting chicken I have ever had during a 10-hour layover in Chengdu, China. While this auspicious event took place at the end of my research journey, the moments that led to it began on my first day of travel as I tried to explain that my checked-luggage was missing in the Chengdu airport.

While waiting for my connecting flight, I met two Americans.

“Did you recheck your bag?” They asked me. “We were told that our bags would go all the way to our final destination but just found out that they won’t!”

At that moment in time, I knew that my bag wouldn’t make it all the way to Nepal.

I arrived in Chengdu at 2 AM and looked for someone to help me fix my baggage situation. However, at that time in the night there were very few staff members in the airport. When I finally located a woman, I tried to tell her that my bag was missing and see if she could help me. But to my dismay, she didn’t speak English. I tried to login to the airport wi-fi on my cell phone so that I could use an Internet translator. Little did I know that in China, certain sites on the Internet are blocked to users unless they have a virtual private network (VPN), so I couldn’t connect to the Internet.

Suddenly, I noticed that a person was standing behind me. “Can I help you?” he asked. “I speak both Chinese and English, so I might be able to help you translate.”

“Help would be terrific!” I replied.

The young man explained my situation. The staff member reassured us that my bag should arrive in Nepal and that if it didn’t, I should speak with the staff at the airport in Nepal for help.

When I thanked the young man for his assistance, he asked me where I was traveling. “I’m going to Nepal for research,” I explained.

Thereafter, we began speaking in Nepali, as the young man himself was from Nepal and on his way to meet his family. The young man, named Sagar, introduced me to a group of his friends who had also been working with him in the hospitality sector in China. The remainder of the 10-hour layover was filled with joyful conversations, stories, and Nepali folk songs.

When we arrived in Tibet, I was absolutely starving. After passing through immigration, we came to a small shop with chips, sodas, and cigarettes. Since I didn’t have any Chinese currency, I wasn’t able to purchase any food. Sagar came to my rescue once again, and kindly purchased me a bag of Tibetan potato chips.

“Here, take this Chinese money,” he said, handing me a few Yuan. “You will need this on your return trip.”

I was absolutely grateful for his help and gave him a few U.S. dollars in exchange.

Sagar (pictured right) and Emily Hall's new Nepali friends in the airport in Lhasa, Tibet (after eating the chips)

To my greatest dismay, when I finally arrived in Kathmandu, Nepal, my suitcase was lost as anticipated. My checked luggage included wedding gifts for my friend and American vitamins for another friend’s family. When I spoke to the airport staff about when to expect my bag, I lost hope that I would get it back. The following day, I tried calling the airline, but they hung up on me! I postponed my trip to the village, hoping to at least find out when to expect my bag

In my time of need, my Nepali friends helped me once again.

My college friend, who worked in the tourism industry, had many connections with airlines and called on my behalf. I also had another college friend from China call the airline to ask for help. Miraculously, thanks to the assistance of my friends from around the world, my bag arrived the next day! The staff at the Nepali airport were absolutely shocked. They shook their heads in amazement with wide eyes and friendly smiles.

Emily Hall and friend posing with suitcase in hallway

The rest of my time in Nepal was filled with research interviews and focus groups. I enjoyed reconnecting with students and friends in the village where I lived as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant from 2014-2015. Before I knew it, my time to return to the United States arrived.

On my last day in Nepal, there was no electricity at night. Around 4 AM, I used the flashlight function on my cell phone to go to the bathroom. Enroute, my phone fell and shattered into pieces on the concrete floor. Oops! There went all of my pictures which hadn’t been backed up due to limited internet. Yet, what I was most concerned about was how I would communicate in Beijing and Chengdu in case my bag got lost again.

Another caring friend who had just received the latest iPhone, generously gave me his old phone and downloaded a Chinese dictionary that I could access without Internet. It meant a lot to me that he allowed me to take the phone with me all the way back to America. This act of kindness played a vital role in leading me to the tasty chicken in Chengdu.

When I arrived in Chengdu, I hadn’t eaten for about seven hours. Since I had such a long layover, I was taken to a transit hotel. When I found out that there was no food at the hotel, my stomach growled with immense disappointment. Luckily, armed with the Chinese translation app, I approached the hotel reception desk and asked, “is there a nearby place to get food?” Once again, the kindness of strangers came through. “Come with me, I’ll show you,” the receptionist wrote on my phone in Chinese. When we walked onto the street, the sweet aroma of grilled chicken and noodles filled the air. Using the Chinese currency given to me by Sagar, I bought some grilled chicken, noodles, and bubble tea. My new friend from the hotel bought me a skewer with three sweet bread balls covered in sesame seeds.

When I took a bite into the chicken in my hotel room, I suddenly felt overcome with gratitude for all the people I had met along my journey to Nepal and back. One of the most challenging and rewarding things about international travel is the extent to which foreigners must rely on the helpfulness of locals. As I ate my chicken, I felt my worries dissipate. In that moment, I felt unconditionally nourished by kindness and supported by the goodness of newfound friends around the world.

duck shop in china with roasted ducks hung up

P.S. My bag arrived in the United States without complication.

old rickshaw pull cart in a shed/storage room

Summer 2018 Research Fellow – Spotting the potential of technology in filling critical gaps in migrant health

September 26, 2018April 27, 2021Sigur Center 2018 Summer FellowsLeave a Comment

old bike-drawn cart

Anytime I found myself venturing through Kathmandu valley this summer in Nepal, I developed a habit of scanning my eyes through the vibrant streets often riddled with endless traffic in sight. Each instance would paint a similar picture. The elderly and aging are visible and cannot be missed even if one tried in Kathmandu. Most head to their local temples to attend aarti and make ritual offerings to deities. Others are seen running errands like picking up a sachet of milk to make chia or catching-up with neighbors on the latest political happenings. And then there are those who simply peer through their windows or stand on their balconies to witness the world unfolding before them with keen eyes. Contrasting this population are those dressed in their uniforms and weaving skillfully through the maddening traffic. Young schoolchildren and college students are vibrant and conspicuous throughout the city as well. What one notices over time is the consistent symbolic absence of individuals between the school and college going age and the aging and elderly. If by any chance you miss the significant absence of the working age population visually, you are bound to hear about it during your engagement with the locals. Every household has someone abroad to study, work or do both. A steady stream of young working-age Nepalis arriving and leaving at the airport is another public space demonstrating this on-going trend of migration in Nepal.

In 2014, more than 520,000 labor permits were issued to Nepalis planning to work abroad as migrant laborers.[1] According to captured data, the number of labor permits issued increases every year. What this data doesn’t capture however are individuals headed to countries where labor permits aren’t needed, or working is facilitated via other formal, informal or undocumented channels (e.g. females working in India or recipients of visas or permanent residence in countries like Canada, United States of America or Australia). Making up for their physical absence is the growing reliance on remittance from migrant workers contributing to increasing household incomes as well as the national GDP of Nepal. As much as 25% of the national GDP consists of remittance from migrant workers with inflows topping as much as USD 5 billion according to estimates by the International Labor Organization in 2013. As such, Nepal is ranked third in the world among countries sourcing the highest proportion of remittance in terms of GDP. The economic benefits of Nepali migrant workers filling niche labor markets in countries such as Malaysia, Korea, Qatar, Saudi Arabia among other such countries are manifold. However, studies exploring the recruitment processes and working conditions of migrant workers have revealed indicators of abuse and exploitation involving forced labor and trafficking.[2] Organizations such as Amnesty International have made repeated calls to prevent and protect migrant workers from adverse outcomes while they sacrifice their time with loved ones to labor in foreign countries in the hopes of a better future.

Being aware of the Nepali migrant labor backdrop and conscious of the policies and politics it entails, I was still taken aback when the subject arose in the context of my summer field research activities in Kathmandu, Nepal. A highly esteemed and experienced health care provider at a well-known public hospital in Nepal was the source of a thought-provoking insight. In the context of our interview on the role of technology in providing health solutions for a country like Nepal, they revealed their on-going voluntary efforts to provide medical counsel for Nepali migrant workers abroad via video platforms such as Skype or directly via phone or text messages. They further explained that there were many contextual factors involved in leading to such interactions from cost, lack of access to medical professionals, language barriers, lack of resources such as time and transportation etc. My key informant further noted that their medical oath prohibited them from denying care to anyone especially individuals like migrant Nepali laborers who are underserved and hard-to-reach when adopting the lens of community and population health. Still, they worried that the counsel they provided may not be up-to-par relative to if the person would have been in front of them or if the interaction was aided by another medical professional on the other end even if they were trained front-line workers or nurse aids with minimal medical education and training. This medical professional noted that they include a verbal and written disclaimer anytime they provide medical counsel for migrant Nepali workers. They felt this is the best they can do under the current regulatory framework for telehealth and mobile health in Nepal or rather lack thereof. They were hopeful that guidelines and frameworks to facilitate such interactions would be prioritized and developed by the Nepali government soon, so they wouldn’t have to operate within a gray area.

Processing what this key informant shared, I began to again marvel at the role of technology in connecting individuals in-need and filling systematic gaps before it even becomes evident with data and trends over time. The survey administered by Amnesty International to assess Nepali migrant needs was indeed also conducted via mobile phones. Making the not-so-easily reachable accessible is a boon for researchers looking to cover ground where once it might have been incredibly resource intensive to be able to do so. In the context of migration and immigration, the solutions and needs appear to operate at multiple ecological levels. Policies and regulatory frameworks are necessary to monitor and govern the pathways where such interactions are happening. Awareness and education might be required for governing bodies and medical professionals to understand this phenomenon. Data is critical to understand how these interactions are unfolding and what health and livelihood needs exist among migrant Nepali workers. While the focus of my research wasn’t on migrant Nepali workers as a population, the use of information and communications technologies (ICTs) has been identified as a potential tool utilized by this population to manage their health concerns as one of my research findings.[3]

As Nepal moves towards its mandate of universal health coverage and aspires to establish digital governance measures, addressing the health needs of migrant Nepali workers facilitated by telemedicine programs offered by Nepalese medical providers is a topic that requires further deliberation and action. Similarly, researchers and technologists must come together to understand this phenomenon and provide recommendations to policy-makers and practitioners to enable and diffuse any resulting innovations that are likely to make the necessary impact on improving health outcomes for migrant Nepali workers. The potential for replicating or adapting these solutions towards other migrant populations globally is another impetus for funding and conducting research in this area. Therefore, there are roles to be played by individuals and organizations alike in understanding and addressing migrant health needs by leveraging the potential of ICTs.

[1] http://www.ilo.org/kathmandu/areasofwork/labour-migration/lang–en/index.htm

[2] https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2017/12/nepal-migrant-workers-failed-by-government-exploited-by-businesses/

[3] https://www.futurehealthindex.com/2018/03/05/care-at-the-margins/

Ichhya Pant works at the intersection health, evaluation, data and information and communication technologies (ICTs) with a focus on vulnerable population such as immigrants, refugees, women and children. Currently, she serves as a Research Scientist focusing on monitoring and evaluation on the RANI Project which aims to test whether a multi-level social norms based intervention will reduce anemia in women of reproductive age in Odisha, India. To learn more about her project work to date or thought leadership in her areas of interest, please connect with her on LinkedIn or Research Gate.

black and white image of a young woman sitting by the side of a road

Summer 2018 Research Fellow – Young, female, climbing the doctoral ladder while conducting global health field work

September 26, 2018March 3, 2021Sigur Center 2018 Summer FellowsLeave a Comment

black and white photo of a young woman sitting on the sidewalk

If you’re anything like me, you’re passionate about improving public health to a fault. Whether it’s reducing smoking among adolescents in the United States, preventing anemia among women of reproductive age in India or understanding the scope of technology-enabled projects in Nepal, you’re all in. All in your textbooks that is… until this summer. In my years of professional public health work, I had not yet had the opportunity to go out in the field and get my hands public health field work dirty! Talking to my friends who had done so was contagious so to speak. All puns intended, of course.

When I found a grant opportunity to conduct field work in Asia this summer, I was beyond ecstatic. I quickly put together a proposal and submitted it hoping for the best and I got it! As a female public health researcher semi-successfully adulting her way through life and graduate school, my self-confidence was at a peak when embarking on this journey. I had completed a desk review working with my collaborators for over a year. I knew the technical and non-technical factors associated with my field work. I had a good sense of the landscape and who I would be requesting key informant interviews from once we hit the ground running. I could read and write the local language, had friends and family in the area, and knew the city well. What could really go wrong I thought? Well plenty, it turns out so listen up and read closely so you can learn from my moments of “could have done things better”:

Lesson # 1: Your work begins long before you get to the field

Every country has a local ethical board who will want to know what type of research you’re conducting in their country, how, and what your plans are in collecting and analyzing the data you collect from their citizens at a bare minimum. Often, these ethical review applications are extensive in nature as they should be to protect citizens from harmful and unethical research practices. Bottom line is, you must build these applications into your overall timeline and get them in motion well before you plan to be on the ground. In my case, it took a full six months between pulling the application together, getting it reviewed, revised then finally approved. I did my homework by talking to others who had applied for local ethical approval to conduct field research in Nepal. They shared their knowledge which helped me understand the process a little bit better before getting started. I had individuals review my application before I submitted to catch any errors I might not as a total newbie in this aspect. Once I finally got the application submitted, I began building a relationship with the appointed point of contact. She was super helpful and open to me calling her directly for questions or a conversation. I wasn’t shy about reaching out to her for help and to keep reminding her every so often that my application was still pending approval. Thanks to her help and to all those who helped me along the way I was able to get approval in time for my summer field research grant!

If you walk away with anything from my observations here, remember this:

Apply for local ethical approval well in advance. Give yourself say 6 months or longer to be on the safe side.
Talk to others who’ve applied for ethical approval before and learn from them.
Have others review your application to catch any errors before you submit.
Build a relationship with your point of contact overseeing your application and maintain it after you gain approval.

Lesson # 2: You must be culturally responsive but darn it sometimes it’s really oh so hard I tell ya

When the experienced and the wise tell you being culturally responsive is a must in your classrooms, they weren’t kidding, ya’ll! Working in Nepal was no different. I had a list of people I had reached out and the rate of response was fantastic thankfully. However, I quickly realized that most individuals preferred a follow-up phone call to chit-chat and get to know you better prior to committing a day and time for an interview. Getting them on the phone wasn’t easy either. Often, you’d have to try more than once, exercise those patience muscles and keep yourself busy. When you finally nail down a day and time, then be prepared to wait because 9AM might mean 10AM really for some individuals and that’s just how it works in Nepal. Some of your key informants maybe so busy they have three individuals down for the same time. What this means is you find yourself asking them for a time where only you can meet with them and have their attention for say 30 minutes to an hour. I realize I come off somewhat sarcastic. I promise that isn’t my only goal here. It can get frustrating especially on days when you have multiple interviews with a small margin of time to travel across town for the other interviews. In the same breath though sometimes, this worked to my favor. The flexibility in time and scheduling meant I was able to reschedule with some individuals when it just was not possible to make it to my appointment. I was amazed by how easy it was to do this and thankful for their generosity in fitting me in another day and time. There was reciprocity involved in this laidback approach! I realized that although people weren’t bound to agreed upon timetables and sure that pushed me out of my comfort zone, it also made me appreciate the lack of “time consciousness” rigidity. Is it fun to have to wait an hour to hour and a half for an interview you scheduled? NO, not at all, never. However, there is still a beauty in going with the flow and realizing that this is how things work in Nepal and that’s okay! Accepting that I can’t change the working culture in Nepal, I decide to roll with it and mentally prepared to accept scheduling fluidity. C’est la vie!

Tips and tricks for responding to the working culture in Nepal:

Phone calls and in-person meetings are preferred over emails and video calls for work-related conversations.
Schedules are fluid so learn to go with the flow.
Have a good book to read or an electrifying Spotify playlist to carry you through time spent waiting.

Lesson # 3: Young and female ≠ professional, leader or an expert. What gives?!

Where I really could not find myself going with the flow is when I it dawned on that gender bias still exists and you just must deal with it. Here are some of my interactions while interviewing key informants or discussing my field work with others:

Ichhya, you’re so young (and female). No one will take you seriously in Nepal. Ask falano… they’ll tell you how it is…

So, you’re a master’s student huh?

Are you married? Do you have family in America?

What is your father’s name? Where is your home again?

I noticed your last name is Pant. Which part of the country did your ancestors come from?

Do you have a greencard or US citizenship? (aka what is your immigration status?)

Are you related to falano (Nepali slang for saying “so and so”? You know falano families and Pant families tend to marry each other… Since they are involved in this project too, I wondered if ya’ll were related, you know how it goes…

Notice any trends here? I was shocked I tell you (not really) that I was on the receiving end of such gendered mindsets. Okay, so I can accept that I may look young and I’m female. I get it. It’s a man’s world they say. Especially in Nepal. Still, the assumption that I am master’s student was an intriguing gender bias that was persistent across many interviews. What I’m unsure of is whether it is because I look young or if I’m a female. Probably an interaction of the two factors. What’s important is that someone like me isn’t associated with leadership, expertise or doctoral work. Of course, the sample size here is a meager one but I hope other women working in public health in Nepal speak up with their experiences in the field to balance out this conversation.

In America, we note how public health is a woman’s profession. It doesn’t feel that way in Nepal. Where are the women working in the field there I thought to myself? My sample consisted of 80% males. Do women make it to leadership positions in the field of public health in Nepal? Am I just not meeting them? In talking about this with a highly qualified public health female professional working in Nepal, she confirmed that it’s just the norm. People seem to somehow miss the “PhD” behind your name and refer to you as baini (little sister) instead of “Dr. falano”. They openly take pity on you if you aren’t married by X age or have children. You are defined by who your parents are, what caste you belong to, who your ancestors were, and whether you have a husband or children. It’s just how it goes for the most part. Imagine having to navigate a working environment where you’re baini and your male counterparts are “Dr. falano” after years of hard work and earning a PhD behind your name from a globally recognized public health institution. Unpleasant and frustrating, to say the least…

Not everyone adopts and subscribes to such a viewpoint of course and there are teams and environments where such experiences aren’t the norm. My intention here isn’t to generalize but to start a conversation. Can young and female become normatively accepted as the face of public health leadership in Nepal? If so, what will it take and when will it happen exactly? Yes, I know what you’re thinking. It is 2018 and we’re three months away from 2019. What gives?!

If you’re curious and still with me, here’s how I responded to the questions I noted above:

Ichhya, you’re so young (and female). No one will take you seriously in Nepal. Ask falano… they’ll tell you…

(Seriously taken aback)… really? I guess I will have to rely on my intellect and present myself accordingly, so I am taken seriously… (still taken aback….)

So, you’re a master’s student huh?

Oh no, I’m a third-year doctoral student. I mentioned that in our previous conversations but perhaps you missed it. I got my master’s six years ago in fact.

Are you married? Do you have family in America?

Yes, I do have family in America but here in Nepal as well.

What is your father’s name? Where is your home again?

My home is in Kamalpokhari. Do you know Kumari Hall? Within walking distance to it, in fact…

I noticed your last name is Pant. Which part of the country did your ancestors come from?

(extremely uncomfortable) I consider myself “duniya ko Pant” (Pant of the earth)… followed by awkward laughter…

Do you have a greencard or US citizenship? (aka what is your immigration status?)

(extremely uncomfortable) Umm… I am a Nepali citizen… (still extremely uncomfortable)

Are you related to falano (Nepali slang for saying “so and so”? You know falano families and Pant families tend to marry each other…

No, I had no idea that these families marry into each other. We aren’t related though. (awkward silence)

I don’t know if my response does justice to balancing tilted gender perspectives or if a key informant interview is where I should even attempt to doing so. I frankly was ill-prepared to address them. I did the best I could in the moment where these questions or comments came my way. I realize there are larger gender norms at play and my experiences aren’t simply an artifact of viewpoints in the public health corner of Nepal. We can’t change them overnight of course but I feel, strongly might I add, that it’s time we begin to talk about them, address them and intervene wherever and whenever we can. So, at the risk of appearing naïve and controversial, where do we begin? I want to especially hear from my female and young or (not) public health and development professionals in the field. Please speak up about your thoughts and experiences on this matter because #Timesup.

Chloe King and her mother posing for the camera on a ferry boat

Summer 2018 Language Fellow – When Your Mother Joins the Adventure!

September 10, 2018July 15, 2021Sigur Center 2018 Summer FellowsLeave a Comment

After 8 weeks of intensive language study, in the classroom for 5+ hours a day, living and learning with a host family when I wasn’t doing field work, it was time to have some fun! My mother, the brave soul, decided to meet me in Indonesia after my program for a week of serious adventuring. We traveled to one of the most remote places I have been in Indonesia (or the world) so far, braving a 12 hour overnight public ferry, broken dive boats, no AC or electricity for that matter, and much more…just for some seriously spectacular diving. Wakatobi, we love you!

This is my final blog post, so I would just like to thank the Sigur Center for funding such an incredible opportunity. My Bahasa Indonesian has advanced beyond what I thought possible, and I made so many friends and connections during my time in Salatiga. I can’t wait to go back. Terima kasih!

Chloe King scuba diving Chloe King B.A. International Affairs 2019
Sigur Center 2018 Asian Language Fellow
School for International Training Indonesia, COTI Summer Studies Program, Indonesia

Chloe King is a rising senior in the Elliot School, majoring in international affairs with minors in sustainability and geographic information systems. She spent seven months in Indonesia in 2017 as a Boren Scholar, researching NGO conservation initiatives in marine ecotourism destinations around the country. A PADI Divemaster, her passion for protecting the ocean keeps pulling her back to Indonesia and some of the most diverse—and threatened—marine ecosystems in the world.

Summer 2018 Language Fellow – Adventures in Indonesia with Chloe King

August 30, 2018April 27, 2021Sigur Center 2018 Summer FellowsLeave a Comment

Chloe King scuba diving Chloe King B.A. International Affairs 2019
Sigur Center 2018 Asian Language Fellow
School for International Training Indonesia, COTI Summer Studies Program, Indonesia

Summer 2018 Language Fellow – Alex Bierman’s Final Presentation

August 28, 2018April 27, 2021Sigur Center 2018 Summer FellowsLeave a Comment

I am incredibly grateful for this summer in Taipei where my Chinese improved dramatically. For anyone looking to study abroad to study Chinese, I cannot recommend ICLP enough. The focus on listening and speaking, along with class sizes of no more than four students, forces you to truly focus on improving every aspect of your Chinese language skills.

For my final blog post, I included my final presentation for my program. For those who would like to listen, I have included the script below to follow along. Please excuse my nervousness and mistakes!

中國侵略台灣的威脅究竟到了什麼程度呢？根據目前的局勢，我的觀點是，現在中國侵略台灣的威脅實在不大。因為時間不夠的關係，以及有歷史以來，台灣的前途一直為外國局勢所影響，再說蔡英文好像不願意公開宣布台灣獨立。因此我會跳過有關目前台灣政局的說明，直接談一談美中政府對兩岸局勢的影響。最後，再做個總結。
關於現在美國的政治情形，川普總統在政治上，給美國帶來了根本的改變。這十五年來美國對亞洲的政策一向很謹慎，現在卻不是。不過，這並不代表川普的策略完全沒有益處。其實他拉近了美台的關係，比如最近美國宣布了一些支持台灣的政策。此外，川普的意見常說變就變，使得全球各國的政府都小心翼翼。連在中美貿易戰爭下，台灣也沒受到實際的威脅。由此可見，不論川普小小的言行如何支持台灣，中國似乎都不會認真地考慮侵略台灣。至於可以持續多久，恐怕就無法知道了。
雖然中國向來主張兩岸統一，然而一直以來都缺乏軍事能力。跟過去1995年到1996年【台海危機】那個時代的中國政府比起來，現在的卻十分不同。在那個時期，中國主席—江澤民沒有他的前任那麼有威嚴。於是，在政治上，他面臨了一些障礙，比如政治派系的問題。由於當時台灣總統李登輝訪美，因此從其他政治局人員來的壓力都落在江澤民的頭上，並且勸他以強硬的態度向美台政府表態。時過境遷後，從2012年起，習近平所領導的政府則很穩定。無論貪污或者政黨之間的鬥爭，都大致被習近平消滅了。同時恢復了人民對共產黨的信心。既然中國人民那麼崇拜習近平，他就不必急於侵略台灣了。假如發動侵略，結果失敗了或沒有完全成功，那麼共產黨的合法性就會消失。
不過，在習近平主席的心目中，無論如何，有一天兩岸必須統一。由於目前的現狀絕不是永存的，因此台灣一刻也不能鬆懈，以免猝不及防。總而言之，我的結論是，台灣最好保持自己的軍勢，要不然得付出失去民主自由的代價。

headshot of Alex Bierman with brick background Alex Bierman, M.A. Security Policy Studies 2019
Sigur Center 2018 Asian Language Fellow
National Taiwan University, Taiwan

Alex Bierman is a M.A. candidate in Security Policy Studies focusing on East Asian security and cyber security. His interests include U.S. policy towards East Asia, Cross-Strait policy, and Chinese politics.

group photo of friends at dinner in Taiwan

Summer 2018 Language Fellow – Last Weeks at ACC

August 28, 2018July 15, 2021Sigur Center 2018 Summer FellowsLeave a Comment

Hi everyone! For my last blog post, I made a short vlog of my last weeks in Beijing. My friends and I performed at a talent show, ate hotpot, went to Beijing’s famous Beihai Park, and visited the Lama Temple, among other things.

picture of Katherine Alesio with crowds in the background Katherine Alesio

B.S. Civil Engineering, B.A. Chinese Language and Literature 2020

Sigur Center 2018 Asian Language Study in Asia Grant Recipient

Minzu University of China – Associated Colleges in China Program

Summer 2018 Language Fellow – Time & Memories

August 28, 2018April 27, 2021Sigur Center 2018 Summer FellowsLeave a Comment

My Final Vlog of the Summer.

While these were my personal experiences, they don’t even begin to contain all that this beautiful country has to offer. I suggest you go see it for yourself!

Zeynep Hale Teke selfie while outdoors Zeynep Hale Teke, B.A. Applied Mathematics 2019
Sigur Center 2018 Asian Language Fellow
Taiwan Mandarin Institute, Taiwan

Hale is a rising senior studying Applied Mathematics in the College of Arts & Sciences department at GW. She fell in love with Mandarin and Chinese culture (especially the bits involving food) after her first Chinese class freshman year and does not plan to stop studying it until mastery. Her eyes not only opened to the infinite wonders, sounds, and beauties of Taiwan, but also how deep the Mandarin language really is.

corner of a building in Tainan, Taiwan at night with street lights illuminating the streets

Summer 2018 Language Fellow – Tainan

August 28, 2018February 23, 2021Sigur Center 2018 Summer FellowsLeave a Comment

For my last weekend, I took a trip to Tainan, Taiwan’s original capital. The city is most famous for its alleys chock full of little snack shops, the food, the first Confucius Temple in Taiwan, and the Dutch forts scattered around the city and surrounding area. Unfortunately, when I was there, Tainan was experiencing the effects of a nearby 颱風（typhoon) and it rained almost 14 inches in the two days I was there. This is apparently the average rain fall of July and August combined. so, advice for anyone hoping to go to Tainan…. Wait until the summer is over.

Picture of Lexi Wong in pink shirt Lexi Wong M.A. International Affairs 2019
Sigur Center 2018 Asian Language Fellow
National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei

Lexi Wong is a Sigur Center 2018 Asian Language Fellow studying Mandarin in Taipei, Taiwan at National Taiwan Normal University’s Mandarin Training Center. Lexi is currently a first-year graduate student at The George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs where she is studying International Affairs with a regional concentration on Asia.