society nearly impossible. As a result, the Potters remain isolated and ig- nored. The group presented their findings to the district mayor of Ka- rongi, who reports directly to President Kagame. The mayor was very im- pressed and said that he would devote more time and resources to helping the Potters in his district. They also met with officials from the U.S. Embas- sy, UNDP, and the Rwandan Ministry of Youth who shared what they were do- ing to further the country‟s develop- ment. Although Andrew‟s group was encouraged by the positive responses to their work, they were constantly reminded of the limited resources and bureaucratic challenges that inhibit progress. “Rwanda is called „the land of a thousand hills,‟ and it often feels like development work in the country is one uphill struggle after another,” states Andrew, “but, as I‟ve learned from my time aiding the struggle to- wards lasting peace and sustainable development, sometimes it‟s im- portant to stand back and marvel at Rwanda, Human Rights, and Development By Andrew Dusek This past winter, Andrew Dusek who graduated with a minor in IDs and a major in Political Science , had the privilege of traveling to Rwan- da as part of an international human rights delegation with an organization called Global Youth Connect. GYC is dedicated to empowering individuals from around the world to advance hu- man rights through youth activism. As one of fifteen delegates from North America, Andrew participated along- side his Rwandan counterparts in cross-cultural human rights learning workshops, volunteer service activi- ties, and sustained human rights activ- ism while engaging with grassroots NGOs, policy makers, and other key stakeholders through advocacy. One of the key areas of focus was the complicated relationship be- tween human rights and development. In the aftermath of the 1994 genocide, the country was economically and mor- ally decimated. Survivors were left with the daunting task of rebuilding a coun- try that had failed to protect them from harm. Worst of all, they were forced to do so alongside many of the same people who had killed their friends and families. Today, Rwanda has truly risen from the ashes. With record high pri- mary school attendance, a progressive national parliament with a female ma- jority, and investments in new technol- ogies opening up the country to grow- ing Internet accessibility, e-commerce, and foreign direct investment, Rwanda is a paragon of political and economic development in Africa. Yet there are still many areas that need improve- ment. Issues such as juvenile justice, the rights of indigenous peoples, and the status of refugees continue to cause concern. During his three-week visit, Andrew volunteered for an NGO in the capital city of Kigali called Health De- velopment Initiative. Although HDI is dedicated to improving the quality and accessibility of healthcare through advocacy, education, and training, the organization‟s work extends far be- yond the field of health care. Andrew did field research and created out- reach materials to educate key stake- holders in the Rwandan government and the development community on the rights of a historically marginal- ized, indigenous group known as the Community of Potters. He traveled to remote villages to speak with local leaders about issues ranging from adequate housing and the importance of agriculture to personal security and access to health insurance. The stig- matization that the Potters suffer pre- vents them from identifying as true Rwandans and makes integrating into IDS ALUMNI ADVENTURES INSIDE THIS ISSUE Rwanda, Human Rights, and Development 1` The Indian Himalaya Field Course in Development Studies 2 Inhabiting Many Worlds 3 IDS Student Receives Undergraduate Research Award 3 New IDS Peace Corps Program 4 INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT STUDIES NEWSLETTER #3 SPRING 2011 #3 SPRING 2011 IDS SPRING RECEPTION PRESIDENTS ROOM (In Brantly Hall) Tuesday, April 19 3:30 pm to 5 pm Guest Speaker:: Provost Perry Brown
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Transcript
society nearly impossible. As a result,
the Potters remain isolated and ig-
nored.
The group presented their
findings to the district mayor of Ka-
rongi, who reports directly to President
Kagame. The mayor was very im-
pressed and said that he would devote
more time and resources to helping
the Potters in his district. They also
met with officials from the U.S. Embas-
sy, UNDP, and the Rwandan Ministry of
Youth who shared what they were do-
ing to further the country‟s develop-
ment. Although Andrew‟s group was
encouraged by the positive responses
to their work, they were constantly
reminded of the limited resources and
bureaucratic challenges that inhibit
progress.
“Rwanda is called „the land of
a thousand hills,‟ and it often feels like
development work in the country is
one uphill struggle after another,”
states Andrew, “but, as I‟ve learned
from my time aiding the struggle to-
wards lasting peace and sustainable
development, sometimes it‟s im-
portant to stand back and marvel at
Rwanda, Human Rights,
and Development By Andrew Dusek
This past winter, Andrew
Dusek who graduated with a minor in
IDs and a major in Political Science ,
had the privilege of traveling to Rwan-
da as part of an international human
rights delegation with an organization
called Global Youth Connect. GYC is
dedicated to empowering individuals
from around the world to advance hu-
man rights through youth activism. As
one of fifteen delegates from North
America, Andrew participated along-
side his Rwandan counterparts in
cross-cultural human rights learning
workshops, volunteer service activi-
ties, and sustained human rights activ-
ism while engaging with grassroots
NGOs, policy makers, and other key
stakeholders through advocacy.
One of the key areas of focus
was the complicated relationship be-
tween human rights and development.
In the aftermath of the 1994 genocide,
the country was economically and mor-
ally decimated. Survivors were left with
the daunting task of rebuilding a coun-
try that had failed to protect them from
harm. Worst of all, they were forced to
do so alongside many of the same
people who had killed their friends and
families.
Today, Rwanda has truly risen
from the ashes. With record high pri-
mary school attendance, a progressive
national parliament with a female ma-
jority, and investments in new technol-
ogies opening up the country to grow-
ing Internet accessibility, e-commerce,
and foreign direct investment, Rwanda
is a paragon of political and economic
development in Africa. Yet there are
still many areas that need improve-
ment. Issues such as juvenile justice,
the rights of indigenous peoples, and
the status of refugees continue to
cause concern.
During his three-week visit,
Andrew volunteered for an NGO in the
capital city of Kigali called Health De-
velopment Initiative. Although HDI is
dedicated to improving the quality and
accessibility of healthcare through
advocacy, education, and training, the
organization‟s work extends far be-
yond the field of health care. Andrew
did field research and created out-
reach materials to educate key stake-
holders in the Rwandan government
and the development community on
the rights of a historically marginal-
ized, indigenous group known as the
Community of Potters. He traveled to
remote villages to speak with local
leaders about issues ranging from
adequate housing and the importance
of agriculture to personal security and
access to health insurance. The stig-
matization that the Potters suffer pre-
vents them from identifying as true
Rwandans and makes integrating into
IDS ALUMNI ADVENTURES
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
Rwanda, Human Rights, and Development
1`
The Indian Himalaya
Field Course in
Development Studies
2
Inhabiting Many
Worlds
3
IDS Student Receives Undergraduate Research Award
3
New IDS Peace Corps
Program
4
INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT STUDIES
NEWSLETTER
#3 SPRING 2011 #3 SPRING 2011
IDS SPRING RECEPTION
PRESIDENTS ROOM (In Brantly Hall) Tuesday, April 19 3:30 pm to 5 pm
Guest Speaker:: Provost Perry Brown
Kimber and a young friend in a village in
Nakaseke District, Uganda.
Kimber Haddix McKay, Associate Pro-
fessor in the Department of Anthropolo-
gy, is working with students and Ugan-
dan colleagues on a study of disease
prevalence and health seeking behavior
in central Uganda this spring. Two UM
students (undergraduate Ann Tezak, who
returned to MT from UG last Fall, and
graduate student Laura Stanley, who is
currently in UG) are working with the
traditional healer organization
PROMETRA, and will contribute to the
study based on their research on tradi-
tional healing practices and the interplay
between traditional and allopathic heal-
ing systems.
The Indian Himalaya Field Course in Development Studies
This summer, instructors Keith
Bosak and Laura Caplins will take a
group of students to the Garwhal region
of the Indian Himalaya, giving students
the opportunity to take a field course
abroad. The Indian Himalaya Field
Course consists of two classes – Himala-
yan Environment and Development
(FOR/RECM 352) and Tourism, Liveli-
hoods, and Sustainability in the Himala-
yas (FOR/RECM 353). These classes are
IDS minor content courses so students
can simultaneously work toward their
minor requirements and take advantage
of a rare opportunity to visit the Garwhal
Region. Students enrolled in the field
courses will spend the majority of their
time trekking and living in the Nanda
Devi Biosphere Reserve learning through
extensive readings, class discussions,
direct field experience (including living in
a remote mountain village), meetings with
development officials, sustainability activ-
ists and stakeholders in the region.
The Nanda Devi Biosphere Re-
serve is located within the northern Indian
state of Uttarakhand, specifically within
the Garwhal region. The Garhwal region
of the Indian Himalaya is known as the
abode of the gods. It is a holy place con-
taining some of the most sacred sites in
India. One of these sites, Nan-
da Devi, is the second highest
mountain in India and wor-
shipped throughout the region
as the physical incarnation of
the goddess Parbati. The Nan-
da Devi Biosphere Reserve has
been designated a United Na-
tions World Heritage Site for its
extensive biodiversity. Local
people have worked to imple-
ment a plan to promote com-
munity based ecotourism that
will benefit the local environ-
ment while providing commu-
nities in the area with a sus-
tainable livelihood option.
Students participating in the pro-
gram spend nine nights traveling through
the High Himalayas using the power of
their own two feet. Trekking portions of
the trip are porter supported, so students
only need to carry their personal belong-
ings. Most of the treks take place above
the tree line in beautiful alpine meadows.
Trekking follows a daily pattern. In the
morning students wake up and pack, leav-
ing out what is needed for class and
Page 2 INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT STUDIES
IDS Faculty Happenings
In cooperation with Asociacion Nuestros
Ahijados, Peter Koehn, Phyllis Ngai, their
twin 13-year-old boys Justin and Jason,
and 34 other members of the UCC church
spent their spring break building houses
for needy residents of Antigua in Guate-
mala. While in Guatemala, Peter also ex-
plored internship opportunities for IDS
students.
breakfast. After a one hour class, breakfast
is served and then students continue along
the trail. After a couple hours of hiking, trek-
kers stop for a brief lunch and then continue
onward to the evening camping spot. Once
in camp, the tents are set up and then over
a hot cup of chai tea, students can do some
reading, take a nap, explore the local area,
or work on their journal entries. A second
class is held from 6:00 – 8:00 at night ei-
ther outside or in a “class tent” depending
on the weather, After class dinner is served
and students have the remainder of the
evening to relax and visit.
The program for this summer is
already at full enrollment so students should
be sure to contact Keith Bosak or Laura
Caplins early for next summer‟s program.
While the cost of such programs seems
daunting at first glance, there are a variety
of aid options available to students interest-
ed. Student aid applies to summer study
abroad programs and there are a variety of
scholarship aid resources available to any
prospective enrollees.
The most powerful teachers I have
found in India are my women teachers;
gentle, statuesque beings wielding machet-
es. For three months I am interning at
Vanastree; a collective of seed-keeping
women who market and sell value-added
garden products. I found it funny that,
when researching my new Indian home of
Sirsi, Karnataka, it‟s qualities resembled
Missoula‟s on paper. Sirsi is about the
same population size and density as Mis-
soula, located in one
of the least populat-
ed regions in India in
the midst of a wealth
of natural forest
resources and with
the whole slew of
human and resource
rights issues at-
tached along with it.
First, a little
back round on
where I am intern-
ing. Vanastree means „women of the
forest‟ in Kannada, the language of the
Karnataka state of southwest India. As a
collective, the Vanastree women each keep
a home-garden, save and share indigenous
and open-pollinated seeds with each other,
and work out of an office in Sirsi town
packaging various products that they brand
with the Vanastree label. Their products
vary from spices to craft items. This work
helps empower these women in the con-
fines of the traditional woman‟s role in ru-
ral India by giving them an external source
of income and a social support network.
When I embarked on this intern-
ship, I hoped that the forest would teach
me about development and that the plants
in the area would teach me about the peo-
ple. I‟m a passionate horticulturalist at
heart so instead of starting with the people,
I wanted to start with their surroundings in
order to study how human growth bur-
geoned out of their environment. What I
came to find in Sirsi is a town of people
living peacefully with the environment, with
no abject poverty and no industrial agricul-
ture in this almost wholly farm landscape.
How could this be? In India? How had so
many supposedly necessary evils of devel-
opment escaped the grasp of a town
whose size ended up feeling much larger
than Missoula, but whose people shared
the same similar type of community?
I had arrived on a doorstep of
rural development. Sirsi town does not
appear rural by any means. All of the mod-
ern conveniences are here in this bustling
town but slip 20 minutes away from the
congested downtown roads, and you‟ll
find yourself in the midst of areca-nut
plantations and rice paddy fields with vil-
lages comprised of entire lineages of fam-
ily members; truly rural living. It is in these
villages where the Vanastree women are
sprinkled, growing or-
ganic vegetables and
holding reverence for
healthy crop seeds.
There is a level of sa-
credness in relation to
the environment and
the natural landscape.
Even small children
freely spout out the
names of every flower,
tree, and garden vege-
table.
During my time in India I have
come in contact with rural-dwelling Indi-
ans, city-dwelling Indians, and rural Indi-
ans who have found themselves in urban
centers. They each make distinctions
about themselves and their ways of life.
Village children have told me that urban
peoples do not agree with their rural life-
style; city-dwellers have relayed that villag-
ers are too „stuck in their ways‟. They are
two different worlds; the rural and urban
India. Differences are held onto with a
strong sense of identity. Yet because of
communication and entertainment tech-
nology, these worlds are increasingly in
communication with each other. Daily,
people in Sirsi and the surrounding villag-
es would talk of the flock of people mov-
ing into the cities and away from rural,
agricultural lives. Yet all of the former vil-
lagers that I met who had found lives in
urban centers spoke of hopes for a rural
renaissance; a return to a slower, land-
based life with extended family units.
I cannot even begin to predict the direc-
tion which rural development will take in
these areas. I can only share the senti-
ments of a rural renaissance.
(Racheal Shear is an IDS Minor who grad-
uated in 2010 with a major in Environ-
mental Studies)
Inhabiting Many Worlds by Racheal Shear
Kayla Hoggatt is a
senior at The Uni-
versity of Mon-
tana majoring in
Political Science
with a minor in
International De-
velopment Stud-
ies. Last fall, Professor Peter Koehn
approached her with the opportunity to
submit an application for an Under-
graduate and Faculty Research Award
in order to work with him on developing
a minor in Global Public Health while
conducting her own research to pre-
sent at UMCUR. Professor Koehn and
Kayla received the $1000 scholarship,
$500 of which went towards Kayla‟s
education, and the other $500 to be
used for their project. Kayla stated, “I
was surprised at how simple the pro-
cess was. I don‟t think that many stu-
dents are aware of this opportunity,
and with 10 awards given out each
year, there is a good chance of receiv-
ing one.”
Kayla‟s research focuses on
the World Health Organization (WHO)
2008 prediction that the number of
deaths by non-communicable diseases
will increase by 17% in the next ten
years. In order to determine why chron-
ic diseases are on the rise, Kayla is
examining the Global Burden of Dis-
ease (GBD) to explore the trends asso-
ciated with the prevalence of chronic
(non-communicable) and infectious
(communicable) diseases in develop-
ing countries. Since new diseases have
been added and investigated with each
new round of the GBD study, whether
these diseases are chronic or infec-
tious could provide useful insights into
the research question as well. In partic-
ular, Kayla is interested in the effects
that development and globalization
have on the prevalence of chronic dis-
eases as well as the continuous spread
of infectious diseases. Kayla is pre-
senting the results of her research at
the UM Undergraduate Research Con-
ference, Friday April 15, 2011.
Page 3 #3 SPRING 2011
IDS STUDENT RECIEVES UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH AWARD
NEW IDS PEACE CORP PREP PROGRAM
The University of Montana, in partnership with the United
States Peace Corps, is pleased to announce the first Peace
Corps Preparatory Program to be instated at a public university.
Beginning in Spring 2011, students at the University of Mon-
tana can earn a Peace Corps certificate demonstrating comple-
tion of preparatory coursework through participation in the In-
ternational Development Studies minor. Preparatory course-
work will aid in increasing volunteer effectiveness and better
equip students for international service.
The existing International Development Studies minor provides
a strong framework for the general Peace Corps certificate pro-
gram. “We are deeply honored that the Peace Corps has recog-
nized the instructional expertise and efforts of IDS faculty
members by designating The University of Montana as its first public university to offer Peace
Corps Prep certification,” said Peter Koehn, IDS program director. “Given the amazing degree of
interest in service in low-income countries that exists on this campus and the doors that open
upon completion of a PC assignment, I expect that many more UM students will elect to com-
plete the IDS minor and one of the new Peace Corps Prep track options.” In cooperation with
Tenly Snow, the Peace Corps strategic representative on campus, IDS is also developing oppor-
tunities for students to complete additional coursework to prepare for service in the Peace
Corps‟ special assignment areas: environment, health and HIV/AIDS, youth and community de-
velopment, business and information communication technology, agriculture/forestry, educa-
tion, and civic engagement.
As the third school in the nation and the first public university to introduce a Peace
Corps Prep Program, the University of Montana is a natural choice for a preparatory program.
Historically the University of Montana has produced 765 volunteers; currently there are 33 ac-
tive Peace Corps volunteers. “Peace Corps is excited to welcome The University of Montana to
the Peace Corps Prep Program,” said B.J. Whetstine, Peace Corps national outreach specialist.
“This new initiative only serves to strengthen an already thriving partnership. UM already offers
two Peace Corps Master‟s International Programs. Peace Corps Prep will extend new opportuni-
ties to undergraduate students.” Peace Corps reactivated its preparatory program in 2006 to
give students an advantage in the highly competitive application process for the Peace Corps.
UPCOMING IDS CORE COURSES Summer 2011:
GPHY 141S Geography of World Regions PSCI 463 Development Administration (Mexico Study Abroad Program).
Fall 2011: ANTH 329 Social Change in Non-Western Societies
COMM 251X International and Development Communication GPHY 141S Geography of World Regions
PSCI 463 Development Administration SOCI 270 Intro to Rural and Environmental Change
SOCI 371 Social Change and Global Environment
What is International Development Studies?
International Development Studies is an interdiscipli-nary field of study focusing on the interconnected pro-cesses of social, political, economic, cultural, and environmental change tak-ing place in low-income countries and disadvan-taged regions of wealthy countries. Coursework in the minor emphasizes a global perspective on the process of change and de-velopment, critical analysis of the role of internal and external influences on the development process, and applications to local (including Montana) situa-tions and challenges. The IDS minor takes advantage of existing faculty expertise and courses to offer an interdisciplinary experience for those students interest-ed in either international or domestic development work. Students minoring in IDS will develop knowledge and skills ap-propriate for graduate study and for working in non-governmental organi-zations, international and bilateral government devel-opment organizations, the U.S. Peace Corps and other national/international equivalents, and /or com-munity-development groups.
#3 SPRING 2011
International Development Studies Program Director: Peter Koehn, Professor of Political Science