On March 3, 2012, South Korea founded its first American university with a goal to bring degree programs to international universities in hopes of fostering global leaders.
Now, two years later, the school has exceeded expectations, attracting students from 20 countries around the world, including China, Iran, Kenya, Ghana and Uzbekistan.
The State University of New York (SUNY) Korea is one of the campuses of Stony Brook University to open at the Incheon Global Campus (IGC), followed by George Mason University Korea, University of Utah Asia Campus and Ghent University Global Campus. Universities at the IGC are “extended campuses” of universities that are part of a global hub that fosters an atmosphere of industry-university-research cooperation and East-West intellectual and cultural exchange.
At SUNY Korea, students are offered degree programs comparable to prestigious schools in the U.S. where they can enjoy the American education while still being engaged in dynamic Korean culture. In spring 2013, the school saw its first undergraduate class of 38. This fall, the undergraduate enrollment is 133 students.
Still new in development, there’s not much to base statistics off on in order to tell what the graduation rate might be for undergraduates, masters and Ph.D. students. In fact, no undergraduate students have received their diplomas yet; however, this is expected to change in 2016. As the top educational hub in North East Asia, the IGC hosts universities and research institutions in hopes of fostering a diverse population of students from around the globe to become leaders in their fields.
Though SUNY Korea follows that same mission, students can only get degrees in computer science, mechanical engineering and technology systems management. Graduate students, however, can move forward by advancing their fields toward robotics or computational fluid dynamics.
This is not the only difference students are presented with when it comes to a unique university structure. Rather than taking a mix of major requirements and DECs each semester, students may only take major-related courses during their freshman, junior and senior years. However, as sophomores, students are required to spend the year at the Stony Brook campus where they can take a combination of both DECs and major courses.
SUNY Korea is expected to see the Fashion Institute of Technology that will serve as their art program. There’s also a possibility of opening a business program for students down the road, but that is yet to be confirmed.
Since its launch two years ago, SUNY Korea has been able to reach students across the world to foster a technology-driven global hub that brings a whole new level to global education and interconnectedness. As of October 2014, the school has a total population of 230 students, over 30 percent of them international. By 2021, they hope to increase that number to 2,000 students.
With more expansion, SUNY Korea will fulfill their mission in becoming a pioneer of a new global education paradigm without borders.
– Chelsee Yee
Sources: SB Statesman, Korea Herald, SUNY Korea, Scholarship SUNY
Photo: Asia Pacific Regional IGF
SUNY Korea Fosters Global Education
On March 3, 2012, South Korea founded its first American university with a goal to bring degree programs to international universities in hopes of fostering global leaders.
Now, two years later, the school has exceeded expectations, attracting students from 20 countries around the world, including China, Iran, Kenya, Ghana and Uzbekistan.
The State University of New York (SUNY) Korea is one of the campuses of Stony Brook University to open at the Incheon Global Campus (IGC), followed by George Mason University Korea, University of Utah Asia Campus and Ghent University Global Campus. Universities at the IGC are “extended campuses” of universities that are part of a global hub that fosters an atmosphere of industry-university-research cooperation and East-West intellectual and cultural exchange.
At SUNY Korea, students are offered degree programs comparable to prestigious schools in the U.S. where they can enjoy the American education while still being engaged in dynamic Korean culture. In spring 2013, the school saw its first undergraduate class of 38. This fall, the undergraduate enrollment is 133 students.
Still new in development, there’s not much to base statistics off on in order to tell what the graduation rate might be for undergraduates, masters and Ph.D. students. In fact, no undergraduate students have received their diplomas yet; however, this is expected to change in 2016. As the top educational hub in North East Asia, the IGC hosts universities and research institutions in hopes of fostering a diverse population of students from around the globe to become leaders in their fields.
Though SUNY Korea follows that same mission, students can only get degrees in computer science, mechanical engineering and technology systems management. Graduate students, however, can move forward by advancing their fields toward robotics or computational fluid dynamics.
This is not the only difference students are presented with when it comes to a unique university structure. Rather than taking a mix of major requirements and DECs each semester, students may only take major-related courses during their freshman, junior and senior years. However, as sophomores, students are required to spend the year at the Stony Brook campus where they can take a combination of both DECs and major courses.
SUNY Korea is expected to see the Fashion Institute of Technology that will serve as their art program. There’s also a possibility of opening a business program for students down the road, but that is yet to be confirmed.
Since its launch two years ago, SUNY Korea has been able to reach students across the world to foster a technology-driven global hub that brings a whole new level to global education and interconnectedness. As of October 2014, the school has a total population of 230 students, over 30 percent of them international. By 2021, they hope to increase that number to 2,000 students.
With more expansion, SUNY Korea will fulfill their mission in becoming a pioneer of a new global education paradigm without borders.
– Chelsee Yee
Sources: SB Statesman, Korea Herald, SUNY Korea, Scholarship SUNY
Photo: Asia Pacific Regional IGF
The Mighty World AIDS Day of 2014
The 27th annual World AIDS Day was globally celebrated on December 1, 2014. The first World AIDS Day held in 1998 was the first-ever global health day. Since 2011, the universal theme for World AIDS Day has been “Getting to Zero: Zero new HIV infections. Zero deaths from AIDS-related illness. Zero discrimination.” This year, the U.S. theme for World AIDS day was: “Focus, Partner, and Achieve: An AIDS-Free Generation.”
Currently, 35 million people in the world live with HIV/AIDS. Since 1981, 39 million deaths have been attributed to this disease.
The fight against AIDS has been a global, collective effort. It is outlined in Millennium Development Goal 6 and the United Nations has declared fighting AIDS a top priority.
While significant strides have been made against combating HIV/AIDS in recent years, the greatest concern of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is that there are still too many new cases of HIV infections each year.
One of the primary ways that the world is working together against HIV/AIDS is through the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), which was established in 2012 and islargely guided by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).
Currently, the CDC facilitates the growth and development of national HIV/AIDS programs in nearly 60 developing countries, particularly throughout sub-Saharan Africa. Through PEPFAR funding, the CDC leads programs aimed at tackling HIV/AIDS and eradicating the disease completely.
In November 2011, then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton stated:
“The goal of an AIDS-free generation may be ambitious, but it is possible with the knowledge and interventions we have now. And that is something we’ve never been able to say without qualification before. Imagine what the world would look like when we succeed.”
PEPFAR outlines the framework to tackle all the areas that would stop the spread of HIV. The four main points include:
Despite the large number of new cases of HIV each year, significant progress has been achieved. Even the mortality rates due to HIV/AIDS have substantially dropped by 35 percent since 2005, which was considered the worst period for AIDS. In 2005, the number of deaths caused by AIDS had risen to 2.4 million people. By 2013, that number dropped to 1.5 million deaths.
One thing to emphasize is the importance of working collectively against this disease and finding new methods of treatment and prevention. The disease is not limited to third-world countries. Rather, no country has been exempt from finding new cases of HIV infections. While the highest instances of new HIV infections are found in sub-Saharan Africa, the first world has its share as well. For instance, there are nearly 100,000 people in the U.K. who live with HIV and in the U.S. alone there are currently 1.2 million people.
As the world joins together once a year to remember all those who have lost their lives to HIV/AIDS, support those currently battling HIV/AIDS and work together to bring sustainable solutions to eradicate the disease, one can celebrate the great strides already made and hope to see the virus destroyed forever.
– Christina Cho
Sources: AIDS.gov, CDC, UNDP 1, UNDP 2, US Department of State
Photo: The Guardian
Movement for Global Mental Health
The Movement for Global Mental Health (MGMH) is a coalition of individuals and institutions aimed in eliminating the treatment gap for people living with mental disorders worldwide. It is the Movement’s mission to have full and effective participation in society of people with disabilities, including those with mental illnesses. The organization is based on two fundamental principles: scientific evidence and human rights.
The movement began in 2007, stemming from a Call for Action produced in the Lancet series, groups of articles addressing important topics of health that are often neglected by mainstream medical publications. Through a joint effort with partners, MGMH has formed into a space where members are able to discuss ideas and implement activities and programs to assist those with mental illnesses. MGMH aims to improve the availability, accessibility and quality mental health services for people all over the world.
Currently, members consist of over 200 institutions and 10,000 individuals, many of whom are family members of those affected by mental disorders, as well as health care providers, researchers and activists.
MGMH mainly focuses on low- and middle-income countries (LAMI), where people with mental disorders face the most amount of discrimination at all levels in society. Overcoming these social barriers to receive help often poses greater difficulty then dealing with the mental disorder on a personal level.
Although laws are widely in place to protect those with mental illnesses, they are still seen as one of the most vulnerable and marginalized populations. Thus, the MGMH website serves as a platform to share resources, advocacy articles and personal experiences of human rights violations.
The Movement seeks to emulate HIV/AIDS campaigns that have been successful in mobilizing global resources for people in LAMI countries. These types of movements were specific in the call for action and set clear guidelines in how to provide resources for testing and decrease the stigma associated with HIV/AIDS. MGMH hopes to mimic their successes by collaborating with human rights organizations, non-profits and universities to provide higher quality treatment for people with mental disorders, while protecting their basic human rights and increasing research in developing countries.
– Leeda Jewayni
Sources: British Journal of Psychiatry, Movement for Global Mental Health
Photo: Patch
Dance Education Through Movement Choirs
Movement is freedom, flow, connection to oneself. Dancing can be a beautiful form of self-expression and can help you in more ways than one. Studies show that any type of movement improves our creativity, fitness, mental health, relationships with others and ourselves. The Laban Dance Movement Choir is aware of this and opens up the teachings of dance and movement to any human being no matter their size, age, gender, appearance or experience level.
A movement choir’s main goal is for participants to touch and enhance their inner being. Focusing on the simplicity and beauty of the movement, as well as connecting with oneself and others. The union is formed around dance, not designed to perform to an audience but to perform for those participating. Movement choirs are very easily accessible within a community and are known to boost a sense of community morale, brightening moods, forming bonds and increasing the quality of life in an area.
In a typical movement choir, large group of people will typically meet up for a couple hours in the scheduled date and work together to create a beautiful piece of choreography called a “choir.” The idea of a movement choir originated in the 1920s by Rudolf Von Laban, who was a choreographer and performer originally based in Germany and then moved to the UK.
In these days of short conversations, electronics, and everyone in a rush, movement choirs focus on self-expression in the present moment. The connection with the music, people and movement results in a successful movement choir.
No matter the skill level, a movement choir is worth a try if you are looking for a new way to connect with people, establish relationships, do some physical fitness, or learn how to dance in general, no matter what the movement choir is always open to participants.
Currently, movement choirs are most popular in UK and Germany and are slowly but surely becoming a global trend.
– Charisma Thapa
Sources: Positive News, Movement Choir, Laban Guild
Photo: Movement Research
Three Nonprofits Fighting Ebola
The 2014 Ebola epidemic has been the largest in history, affecting multiple countries in West Africa. While only one death has been recorded in the United States, Ebola has caused over 5,000 deaths in Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia alone. Many organizations have now shifted their focus to combat this treacherous disease. Here is a look at three nonprofits fighting Ebola.
1) Doctors of the World
Mainly working in Liberia and Sierra Leone, Doctors of the World is aiming to prevent the transmission of Ebola and the spread of the disease within the two countries. Previously, the organization has worked in Liberia for over 10 years and is now providing medical assistance to overwhelmed healthcare facilities. They are training local health workers to protect citizens by raising awareness and conveying tips to prevent Ebola in communities. In addition, Doctors of the World is teaching people how to identify patients with Ebola and is providing medications and psychological support. As an international humanitarian network, the organization is swiftly moving on to more West African countries to halt the transmission of Ebola.
2) Global Health Ministries
In collaboration with the Ministry of Health in Liberia, the Lutheran Church in Liberia and multiple partner hospitals, GHM is responding to the Ebola outbreak by providing personal protection equipment, such as masks, gloves, hand sanitizer and more. The organization has already sent out several suitcases and pallets of PPEs to Liberia via air freight. Through donations, GHM hopes to continue sending basic protective gear to Liberia to diminish the chances of contracting Ebola, especially by health care personnel.
3) Mali Health Organizing Project
In late October, Ebola spread to Mali, infecting dozens of people and putting even more at risk. In coordination with the government, the Mali Health Organizing Project became equipped with staff that can address the outbreak. They have installed sanitation kits in each clinic in Mali, in addition to providing trained health workers. Moreover, Mali Health has launched an Ebola radio program, where citizens have access to the most up-to-date Ebola information and can call to get their questions answered by medical professionals.
– Leeda Jewayni
Sources: CDC, Doctors of the World, Global Health Ministires, Mali Health
Photo: Flickr
Where to Find Global Health Jobs
Global health is an indispensable field of study for advancing the health of populations all over the world. Today, there is an array of international health organizations that provide global health aid and care. International organizations are usually divided into three subcategories, including multilateral, bilateral and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Here is a look at three agencies aimed at improving healthcare in developing countries:
1) World Health Organization (WHO)
As the premier international health organization, WHO works with the United Nations to provide guidance in global health matters, shape the health research agenda, set healthcare standards and issue technical support to developing countries. Their database illustrates a number of projects and programs in over 100 health topics. The index includes diseases ranging from avian influenza to taeniasis.
Although landing a job with WHO is competitive, the organization offers two different internship programs for high school students and undergraduates that can potentially turn into permanent positions. These internships can last anywhere from six to 12 weeks and will give interested students insight into the inner workings of the intergovernmental agency.
2) The United States Agency for International Development (USAID)
Located in Washington D.C., USAID’s Bureau for Global Health is committed to prevent suffering and create a better future for families in Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean and the Middle East. The bilateral agency’s development projects aim to confront global health challenges through the improvement of healthcare quality and use of essential services. USAID is comprised of eight offices that largely focus on child, maternal and reproductive health, malaria, HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and infectious diseases.
Currently, USAID is in urgent need of contracting officers. Visit their website for more information on positions within the Bureau of Global Health and internships for undergraduate and graduate students.
3) Project HOPE
As the largest NGO devoted to international health in the United States, Project HOPE has delivered essential medical equipment and services to “prevent disease, promote wellness and save lives” all around the globe. By providing health expertise and training, the organization hopes to build capacity and skills at all levels of the healthcare system, starting from volunteers to doctors.
– Leeda Jewayni
Sources: International Medical Volunteers, WHO, USAID, Project Hope
Photo: Natcom
CDA Improves International Efforts
Working off the premise that experience is a good teacher, CDA facilitates collaborative learning processes to analyze the experiences of international efforts.
With this vision comes a mission to encourage communities to engage in peace practice and to support sustainable development.
CDA works with agencies and organizations to identify patterns and lessons across different contexts in order to improve effectiveness. So far its core staff has worked in over 90 countries with local and international partners.
Below is the implementation process of these CDA lessons that often produces new focus questions for improving effectiveness:
Step 1: Development of Training and Awareness Materials
The findings from a collaborative learning process are translated into a form that can be used in different briefings, exposure workshops and extended training events in order to make such findings accessible to other field practitioners.
Step 2: Building Individual Capacity
CDA training programs work not only with organizations but also with individual practitioners to develop the skills needed to implement CDA lessons into their own practices. Mentoring can play a big role in this area when it comes to knowing how to apply specific tools surrounding the framework of a specific organizational setting.
Step 3: Organizational Accompaniment
CDA works directly with partner organizations to incorporate the tools and concepts from its lessons into their routines so that the tools and concepts become a day-to-day practice. This may require training and various forms of coaching to ensure sustainability.
Step 4: Support for Improved Program Design
CDA lessons often require changes in the ways that programs are designed. Thus, it works with partner agencies to promote improvements that will result in better quality programming through design and implementation.
Step 5: Monitoring Progress and Impacts
CDA works with its partners to track the implementation of its skills, tools and concepts gained from CDA programs. This feedback ultimately tells if the application of CDA materials makes a positive difference in the effectiveness of programming.
Step 6: Implications and New Questions
When everyone comes together to share their experiences, new focus questions arise that add to the learning processes — and the cycle repeats!
Since its launch, CDA has been grounded in field experience rather than following a specific theory or model and develops the above process through which organizations learn with each other rather than relying on their experiences alone.
CDA is currently home to the Corporate Engagement Program, the Do No Harm Program and other peace practice programs. For more information, please visit the CDA website at www.cdacollaborative.org.
– Chelsee Yee
Sources: CDA Collarborative, ALNAP, Relief Web
Photo: Flickr
Is the Eurozone Out of Crisis?
However, the German economies’ growth rate recently shrunk to 0.1 percent. This is an unwelcome figure because it was projected to be much higher.
The problem remains. The European Union has yet to bounce back after the 2008 financial crisis. Many countries are still lagging behind with slow growth rates. The European Central bank is at the forefront of the problem.
It is often cited that the European Central Bank fails to boost economic growth. Jean-Claude Juncker, the EU Commissioner, recently revealed a new plan to pump 300 billion Euro into the EU member states in order to stimulate growth.
France and Italy are two big countries that run large deficits and decrease economic growth within the EU. The French government was able to boost their economy through spending, which has propped it up for the time being. However, France’s private sector has continued to perform dismally and bring down the economy.
One of Europe’s major issues continues to be trade. Because the EU relies heavily on exports for revenue, decreased commerce with trading partners has negatively affected their economy. Policymakers believe that the low price of gas will drive down energy costs and have consumers buying more goods.
Germany champions austerity measures while other EU member states and policymakers cringe. Strict control over the financial markets of other countries has done little to benefit the economy. Meanwhile, some people look toward investment as the way the EU could escape from the current economic turmoil.
Lack of private investment in businesses is also a major problem for the EU, and it is something the ECB is looking to address with the 300 billion Euro investment plan.
For the time being, it does not look like the ECB has the ability to pull the EU out of its long-standing recession. Economic growth could be possible with the new spending measures to boost investment; however, the diversity of the Northern economies versus the Southern member states’ economies remains to be a distressing issue for the EU.
Strong economic growth in the U.K. and the U.S. means these countries will be more likely to buy EU exports, which will benefit the EU economy greatly.
– Maxine Gordon
Sources: The Guardian, Bloomberg, DW
Photo: Flickr
Eneza: Kenya’s Mobile Education Platform
Eneza’s mission is to reach 50 million children across rural Africa to help them gain access to information, allowing them to reach their full potential through the most common form of technology in Africa: the cell phone.
In its pilot program, students are provided with cell phones in school in order to be exposed to content that is aligned with its local context, ranging from textbook materials to unlimited quizzes and tutorials.
In addition, schools and parents are also given access to data and tips for helping these children, allowing Eneza to serve as a simple platform that still provides the same quality educational materials found in high-tech institutions.
The mobile software has found its way into 5,000 public schools and plans to expand to Ghana and Tanzania in the near future.
This year, Eneza Education was declared a winner of the 2014 ICT Innovation Awards at the Connected Kenya Summit, an event that celebrates Kenyans who have developed ICT solutions that drive economic and social growth.
Economic development and social growth are exactly what Eneza spurs with its SMS-based system that sends practice exams to students who can subscribe for the equivalent of 10 cents per week, narrowing the gap between those who can afford education and those who can’t.
Since its launch two years ago, this tiny Nairobi-based social enterprise has given children living in rural areas who can’t afford extra fees and courses the opportunity to reach high and broaden their knowledge base.
According to its co-founder Kago Kagichiri, the app has already processed more than 34,000 exams in September and holds a record of 2.5 million users. It has also proven to increase results within the country’s educational system.
“We’ve seen—from our impact study in 2012—that students increased five percent in their scores,” Kagichiri said. “We tested it out in 2013, last year, with teachers being the driving ends of the platform and working with students. That improvement went up to 11 percent.”
Eneza Education joins one of the many mobile innovations in Kenya that continue to boost the country’s economy and revolutionize the meaning of mobile education.
– Chelsee Yee
Sources: Eneza, Take Part, AFK Insider, All Africa
Photo: Flickr
What Surging Youth Population Means for Global Poverty
Half of the populations of Chad, Niger and Uganda are under the age of 16. The UNFPA report notes that Asian economic juggernauts like China and South Korea experienced a similar surge in the youth population prior to their economic upsurge in the 1970s and 1980s. “In the 1970s, east Asia invested in its young people’s human capital, it enabled the region to realize its demographic dividend, contributing to a 6% surge in GDP and a quadrupling of per capita income in some countries,” noted the UNFPA report.
Similarly, a timely investment will be required if the developing world’s ‘demographic dividend’ is to be fully realized.
In several developing countries, youth population growth is exceeding the capacities of health and education institutions. Preventable and treatable diseases claimed 1.3 million adolescent lives in 2012, and according to the report, more than two million 10- to 19-year-olds are living with HIV.
Youth population growth is exceeding not only the capacities of health and education institutions but also the capacity of the economy to provide enough jobs. Youths aged 15 to 24 account for 36 percent of global unemployment, and 500 million young people live on less than $2 a day.
According to the UNFPA report, sustained economic growth will depend on the improvement of access to credit and community banking systems, the expansion of formal sector employment and the creation of sound legal and regulatory environments. The report also advocates the promotion of gender equity and universal access to education.
Many of the developing countries experiencing a youth population surge depend heavily on foreign aid. If the developing world’s “demographic dividend” is to be realized to its full potential, it will require the investment of wealthier nations like the United States. According to the UNFPA report, if the challenge is met, the results could be extraordinary: “With the right policies and investments and the engagement of young people in nurturing their own potential, the largest generation of young people in human history can become the problem-solving producers, creators, entrepreneurs, change agents and leaders of the coming decades.”
– Parker Carroll
Sources: Forbes, The Guardian, Reuters, UNFPA
Photo: Flickr