News, Profiles, and Reflections from Gallatin's Global Programs
Angie Shu China Summer Fellow 2016 Shanghai, China To succeed in China, a businessman must have guanxi (关系). To describe this concept insufficiently in English terms, guanxi is a network of influence formed by connections and relationships. In just the first two weeks of being in Shanghai, I was able to understand the importance of guanxi, … Continue reading 关系: Connections
Matthew Gibson China Summer Fellow 2016 Shanghai, China From an American perspective, conversations about race, ethnicity, and identity are increasingly common. However, in China, these conversations happen at very small scales. Almost the entire country shares the same ethnic heritage, and there is no adequate translation of “identity” be it personal or social. But at NYU … Continue reading 全球化 Part 2
Matthew Gibson China Summer Fellow 2016 Shanghai, China I refer to my self-designed major in Gallatin as “Globalization”, the academic and philosophic study of a changing world culture. I focus on questions of identity development as it relates to physical, political, and metaphorical boundaries as well as how they are changing in the face of an … Continue reading 全球化 Part 1
Nina Weithorn Gallatin Africa House Fellowship Cape Town, South Africa Just east of the main city center of Cape Town, South Africa, in the Constantia region, lies a tiny agricultural haven among vast wine vineyards and suburban homes. Soil for Life, a non-profit organization that teaches subsistence farming in township communities, established their main offices … Continue reading Sustainable Agriculture in Cape Town, South Africa
Matthew Gibson China Summer Fellow 2016 Shanghai, China The French Concession is home to prominent Shanghai landmarks that earned the city it’s title of, “Paris of the East.” As you stroll along the narrow streets, you can imagine the splendor of this district of the city in it’s heyday in the 1950’s. But, today, the unique … Continue reading Lingering Longtangs
Matthew Gibson China Summer Fellow 2016 Shanghai, China When I started learning Mandarin Chinese at New York University, I was thrilled at the prospect of learning such a unique language. However, I will be the first to admit that my excitement came from the prospect of being different. The rarity of Caucasian Americans who were able … Continue reading Party Tricks
Alice Hindanov China Summer Fellow 2015 Shanghai, China There is, in China, a type of build-your-own soup called málàtàng. The má flavor numbs your mouth, while là burns chili-oil hot (tàng means soup). Towards the end of my stay in Shanghai, someone would put out the call for group málàtàng nearly every day; it was one … Continue reading Shanghai Málàtàng
Alice Hindanov China Summer Fellow 2015 Shanghai, ChinaHi! My name is Alice. I’m a senior at Gallatin and will be graduating too soon. My area of study is “Entertainment Business and Visual Theory,” which focuses on how aesthetics affect and reflect societal systems, and how we can use that knowledge to create more ethical and … Continue reading China Summer 2015: Alice, Introductions
Mariah Young-Jones Africa House Fellow 2015 Ghana and Senegal “Are you obruni?” a young schoolgirl asks as I walk down a dirt path in Dixcove, Western Region, Ghana. I’m staying in the neighboring town of Busua, about a twenty minute walk away, but I’ve come here for the day to visit Fort Metal Cross. It’s … Continue reading “Are You Obruni?”
Mariah Young-Jones Africa House Fellow 2015 Ghana and Senegal Hello Internet World! My name is Mariah and I’m a rising senior at Gallatin studying Legacies of Race and Empire. When I first heard about the Africa House Fellowship, the earliest stages of my project quickly began to take shape. Fueled by a long-time fascination with … Continue reading An Introduction: Slave Forts and Castles in West Africa and Heritage Tourism