|
IHRE Alumni Reflections
 "IHRE was a great chance to get a glimpse of the world of NGOs and human rights. I loved being in classes with South African students and I built great and lasting friendships throughout the program. Working with the Crisis in Zimbabwe Coalition gave me a unique opportunity to learn about a country and people in turmoil and bring that knowledge back to the human rights work I have been doing in the U.S."
--Maura Donovan, Hamilton College
"The IHRE program opened up countless doors for me to continue and focus my passion for human rights. It gave me a framework through which to channel all of my energy to help people into something useful and academically sound. On a personal level I grew immensely as a person - studying with IHRE is so unique compared to my friends' study abroad experiences in Europe that I've never once regretted my decision to go to a more "off the beaten track" study abroad destination. "
--Julia Schroeder, Wellesley College
"The program gave me a strong multi-dimensional theoretical grasp on human rights coupled with hands-on experience at an internship site. This way, I could internalize what I had learned in class and apply it in the field/put my classroom learning to practice. Learning human rights from a variety of disciplines was helpful in that I saw the overlaps among the different disciplines and the need for cooperation among different classifications of expertise in order to achieve any human rights standards. I also found the IHRE program to be helpful for anyone looking to discover what particular aspect of human rights they are best able to focus on based on their abilities and interests...be it law, medicine or information technology!
Learning in a classroom with both North American and African (also very diverse in terms of nationality, race, class, ethnicity and religion) students and faculty was an extremely invaluable experience and contributed to the richness of discussions, sharing of the most diverse of experiences and thoughts and was in itself a priceless learning resource.
It was very enriching to interact with several significant human rights figures in person and to hear about their own personal involvement in the field of human rights; firsthand information was very motivating and definitely added to my passion for human rights. Interacting with South(ern) Africans during the course of the program also taught me a lot, not only about human rights but also other aspects of life such as politics, socioeconomic disparities and their effects, culture and contemporary arts!
Having interned at an international organization, I felt extremely grateful that I had the opportunity to intern at a smaller NGO in Johannesburg where I felt more in-touch with the populations that our work was affecting. It is true that different people are cut out for different positions/environments in life, but if you are a believer in the power of grassroots and want to try out one in Africa then IHRE can definitely take you there!"
--Karen Mwaniki, Wellesley College
"IHRE has allowed me to see that there is no longer a need to refer to ourselves as black and white, but rather as human beings working together towards achieving a better world for all."
--IHRE Participant Reflection
"I learned that the human rights discourse is not always positive. People use it to justify oppression. IHRE made me conscious that I can use the human rights discourse to oppress if I am not aware - I am not immune to such things."
--IHRE Participant Reflection
"The mixing of cultures and backgrounds provided us with an unforgettable awareness and lifelong appreciation for each other. It was an opportunity to have a better understanding of each other's cultures and backgrounds. It was an establishment of a worldwide network of international comrades, an intense exchange of diverse ideas and ideologies, and intense educational process."
--IHRE Participant Reflection
|
