News + Noteworthy Archives - Page 12 of 22 - International Student House Washington, DC

ISH-DC Welcomes Former Members of Congress and Ambassador Geir Haarde of Iceland

May 7, 2015 by Neena Dominic

On Wednesday, April 15^th, ISH-DC was pleased to host a dinner for Former Members of Congress planned by ISH-DC Board Member, Betty Ann Tanner. ISH-DC welcomed many former Members of Congress, colleagues and ten resident scholars from nine countries. Among our special guests were the newly arrived Ambassador of Iceland and his wife Inga. Ambassador Haarde lived at ISH-DC in 1973-74 while pursuing his Master’s Degree at Johns Hopkins SAIS. During his distinguished career, Ambassador Haarde served as Iceland’s Prime Minister, Foreign Minister and Finance Minister.

As a current ISH-DC resident, I felt privileged to have an opportunity to interact with both former Members of Congress and the Ambassador. He was more than happy to share his stories, and said that his international exposure at the House prepared him for government service – a case for many of his fellow house mates. Ambassador Haarde also said that as a resident in the ‘70’s, he was pleased to see how the mission of the House has grown and is delighted about its continuing success. But his most poignant quote of the evening was, “I have found it is nearly impossible to stay in touch with all the lovely people you meet during your stay at International Student House, however, out of the hundreds you meet, all will remain close to your heart”.

Living at ISH-DC has been an eye-opening opportunity for me. Reflecting back on Ambassador Haarde’s quote, what truly happens after one’s stay is essential. Questions arise such as: will you forget your friends? Will the same people you lived together and shared amazing moments with not matter after you leave? However, I believe that I find comfort knowing that while we keep incredibly busy with our studies and also try to make time to benefit from the wonderful cultural opportunities afforded to residents in the heart of downtown Washington, we may be interacting with future prime ministers or global leaders in the years to come.

Two ISH-DC Residents Win Davis Projects For Peace Prizes

April 23, 2015 by Jill Holcomb

The Davis Projects for Peace is an annual competition that rewards students who design grassroots projects – anywhere in the world – which promote peace and address the root causes of conflict among parties. Over the years, several ISH-DC Resident Scholars have submitted proposals; nearly every year, one of our residents is selected as a finalist and goes on to win a Davis Project for Peace prize ($10,000).

This year was truly remarkable as for the first time two of our Resident Scholars were finalists, and both were awarded Davis Project for Peace prizes.

Building Rainbow House: Achieving LGBTIQ rights in Kyrgyzstan

Georgina Rannard (UK) is a Humanity in Action-Lantos fellow, completing a Congressional fellowship while working toward a PhD in economic history at the University of Edinburgh. Georgina’s project creates positive social and political change for the persecuted LGBTIQ community in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. Her project transforms LGBTIQ organization Indigo by providing staff with skills in blogging, reporting, and fundraising to end their international isolation and empower them to build a sustainable, permanent safe space and headquarters to change the deteriorating human rights situation.

Eshad (Testify): Egypt

Mai Tarek El-Sadany (Egypt/USA) is a Juris Doctorate candidate at Georgetown University Law School. Her interest is in international human rights and civil rights. She has interned extensively with prominent civil and human rights non-governmental organizations. Her project establishes a database platform that aggregates reports of sectarian attacks in Egypt. The project establishes a non-profit organization, a professional website and database that allows for self-reporting of sectarian violence, and a volunteer corps to verify stories of sectarian violence. Eshad will play an essential role in providing the data that is necessary for effective legal resolution and policy reform to address sectarianism in Egypt.

Congratulations to Georgina and Mai!

Nobel Laureate Dr. Thomas Schelling Discusses Climate Change at ISH-DC.

February 27, 2015 by Josh Ettinger

(Written by ISH-DC Resident Josh Ettinger)

ISH-DC was privileged to have Dr. Thomas Schelling, a Nobel Prize winning economist, give a talk on February 18. Schelling is recognized for his significant contributions to game theory, which explores the dynamics of cooperation and conflict. He has also studied climate change for decades, long before it became a major point of discussion.

He began his remarks exposing a common but false analogy about climate change. The notion of “greenhouse gases” is deceptive because the gases causing global warming—predominantly Co2— do not affect the atmosphere in the same way a greenhouse stores heat. He described several experiments one can conduct in a sink, such as one using dry ice, that give a better idea of how heat is trapped in a space by Co2.

Schelling said climate change will most strongly impact agriculture, particularly food, fisheries, and forests. He gave an example of California’s imperial valley, which relies on snow-melt to replenish its crops. Yet when there is less snow and more rain, the water flows directly to the ocean without the consistency that the snow-melt provides for the crops. While many industries will be adversely impacted, he noted that some will benefit from the changing environmental conditions.

While climate change will most strongly impact agriculture, developing nations will be affected to a much greater extent than developed nations. An increasing global population, coupled with a larger middle class and improved living standards mean a greater demand for food. As food becomes more scarce due to climate change, the prices will only become higher. Countries like the U.S. have the resources to feed its poor, but developing countries do not. It will then become a major point of contention to what extent rich countries can help their poorer counterparts.

Schelling then discussed how rising sea levels will threaten coastal cities.

He noted that many American cities are not prepared whatsoever to deal with rising water levels. The planning phase alone for building infrastructure to handle rising sea levels can take many years. The melting of the Antarctic ice sheet could soon become unstoppable, if it isn’t already, so this could become a reality in the near future.

He concluded his remarks highlighting cutting edge geoengineering concepts to mitigate the threat of climate change. There are numerous proposed methods for removing Co2 from the air. However, he pointed out, these are currently very expensive. There are also proposals to add sulfur to the atmosphere, which some believe can block some sunlight.

In response to a question about the political challenges of climate change, Schelling responded that unfortunately, it might take a natural disaster at a scale much larger than experienced before to motivate politicians to action. When asked about the role of the United Nations (UN) in regard to climate change, he said that the UN needs to mobilize rich countries to take action on climate change, but emphasized that the United States must assume a leadership position.

ISH-DC Residents Attend Special Farewell Tribute to Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel

February 24, 2015 by Neena Dominic

I recently had an opportunity to speak with a prospective ISH-DC resident who was weighing the options of seeking a graduate degree program here in Washington, DC as opposed to a university in another city in the US. I told him “if you want to stay in just another city, go ahead, but if you want to have an amazing experience in one of the most important cities of the world, come to school in Washington and stay with us at ISH-DC.”

My perspective was recently reinforced when a group of ISH-DC residents received a very special invitation to attend an event honoring Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel at Fort Myer, the US Army base adjacent to Arlington National Cemetery. Secretary Hagel’s wife, Lilibet, is a member of ISH-DC’s Board of Directors and has helped plan several visits for residents to the Pentagon and the 9/11 Pentagon Memorial.

When the invitation was issued, we were told by a member of Secretary Hagel’s staff that we were in for a treat, which I’m pleased to report, was incredibly true.

The ISH-DC delegation, which included residents from nearly 20 countries, was seated aside the section reserved for high-level US Government officials and senior members of the US military, as well as members of the Hagel family and their longtime friends. The tribute parade featured music by the US Marine Band, commonly known as the “President’s Own,” and the US Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps, which regularly performs at the White House for the welcoming ceremonies for foreign heads of state. The parade included honor guards representing all of the services of the US military. The participation of President Obama and Vice President Biden in the ceremony reinforced how truly fortunate the ISH-DC residents were to be included in such a remarkable event.

Official links to the event:

Seeing the World through Words

February 9, 2015 by Justice Shorter

Would you like me to describe it to you?

As a legally blind person I get this question quite often. Well-meaning friends, associates, family members and even strangers attempt to capture and convey the wonders of our vastly visual world. I frequently marvel at their creativity, clarity and commitment.

Their eclectic perspective of the visual scenery that encompasses our everyday existence has given me the chance to see life through someone else’s eyes. Let me just say, the view is breathtaking. There is so much to be gleaned about someone’s personality and perspective on life purely based on the way they choose to describe the activities, people and physical atmosphere of the world around them.

You quickly begin to learn what’s important to someone by what they choose to include or exclude from their descriptions. For instance, a parent will often acknowledge the presence of children when describing a place or space. Cultural connoisseurs tend to highlight the historical or traditional significance of a space/object. Fashionistas typically describe clothing, shoes and accessories in considerable detail. Peers at the International Student House frequently describe new destinations, daily adventures around DC and weekend excursions along the coast in colorful language linked to all corners of the globe.

My curiosity has served as a catalyst for creating new relationships with people who desire to illuminate aspects of life that have been dimmed but never completely darkened, by my blindness. Personally, I love to attend theater productions, concerts, poetry readings and dine at a plethora of ethnic eateries. To be clear, my experiences would be immensely pleasurable regardless of whether someone provides a visual interpretation given the sheer joy I receive by actively engaging in amazing activities.

So who are these visual interpreters and how do you become one? Well the answer is simple; anyone can be an interpreter of the visual world. Nonetheless, it is paramount that I emphasize a few differences and distinctions amongst visually impaired people. First, not everyone will be receptive to an unsolicited description. Most blind people have a very perfectly pleasing and uniquely personal sensory method of gathering information/details about their surroundings. A visual interpreter respects the abilities and autonomy of those in the blind community.

Throughout the years I’ve had the honor of meting many blind individuals who are managing to maneuver throughout this sighted world with a mind-blowingly high degree of efficiency and effectiveness. Which brings me to my second and perhaps most important point. A visual interpreter should strive to be cognizant of the inferences and interests of the person receiving the description. To accomplish these interpreters may pose a series of questions to gain a greater understanding of if, what and how the visually impaired person would like you to interpret. Again, everyone is different. Correspondingly, some people may appreciate an in depth description of everything from magnanimous to minute details. Others may prefer a more panoramic or ‘big picture’ portrait of non-auditory actions or activities.

Try asking the following questions before you begin your interpretation:

Would you like me to describe what’s happening? Do you want a visual interpretation?

Would you like me to interpret facial expressions and body language? Should I describe clothing, hair styles and accessories? Should I mention any culturally specific gestures or non-verbal behavior?

Would you like me to describe objects, scenery and settings?

Would you like me to use descriptions that include colors, textures and shapes?

Are there any specific hobbies or interests that you would like me to use as a point of reference? Should I relate the description to any comparable experiences? For example, relating the description to tactical tasks such as cooking, fishing etc.

Keep in mind your interpretations should be tailored based to the preferences of the person receiving the description. Lastly, be creative and have fun. Visual interpretation is a budding art form that stems from a genuine willingness to heighten the aesthetic awareness of blind friends, colleagues and family members. Thus, these techniques and styles blossom anew with each intuitive, interpersonal and innovative description.