I signed up to take LACS 20, The Politics and Ethics of Development, because the course description sounded very interesting to me and I want to get exposed to a greater breadth of international material. I will not be going on the Cross-cultural Education and Service Program in December, but I consider it a possibility to apply next year to go on it. I have never been to Central America and it is a part of the world I wish to learn more about. I believe that by taking this course I will learn a lot more about what goes into strong developmental programs in emerging countries.
This past winter I studied abroad in Buenos Aires, Argentina on Dartmouth's LSA program. My time there coincided with the new President Macri's first few months in office. I saw the political landscape change over the course of my time there. Argentina is a modern society in many ways, but serious shortcomings still exist. Having never lived in a large city myself, it was my first time experiencing homelessness and children coming up to you and asking for money on the street and in restaurants. Though I do not have much experience with medicine or global heath, I look forward to learning about the large role that medicine plays in these developing countries. I hope my experience in Argentina will intersect with some of the material we cover in this class and that I will see international development in a new perspective that will allow me to apply what I have learned in my future endeavors. I'm excited about all that we will cover in this term and I look forward to the days ahead.