Editor’s note: Daniela Rico is a marketing and international business major who serves as an International Student Ambassador in the Office of Global Initiatives.She reflected on her first experience in Paris as a study abroad student spending the semester at the Dauphine Paris Business School. I had never felt this anxious, excited, and scared all […]
As far back as second grade, I’ve been intrigued with Spanish language and culture, and I studied the language avidly through middle and high school. In 11th grade, my AP Spanish Language teacher preached something to our class that stuck with me: the concept of “immersion”. To really learn a language, she told us, one […]
A life full of experiences can give a person the tools and resources to face daily situations with better response capacity, but few will inspire you as much as travel. Earlier this summer, I had the opportunity to participate in a study abroad program called “Business at Sea,” aboard a transatlantic cruise on Royal Caribbean’s […]
“I hope you will judge yourselves not on your professional accomplishments alone, but also on how well you have addressed the world’s deepest inequities, on how well you treated people a world away who have nothing in common with you but their humanity.”—Bill Gates As I near the end of my time as a CUSO […]
I want to beg of you much as I can to be patient toward all that’s unsolved in your heart, and learn to love the questions themselves, like locked rooms, or like books that are written in a very foreign tongue. Do not seek the answers, which cannot be given you, because you would not […]
“For her, those jobs held no meaningful purpose. And so she made the decision to search for meaningful work- work about which she would have such passion that the question, Why try for greatness? would seem almost tautological.” -Jim Collins, author, Good to Great I’ve definitely settled into life here in Akpap Okoyong and it’s […]
The true development of human beings involves much more than mere economic growth. At its heart there must be a sense of empowerment and inner fulfillment. -Aung San Suu Kyi Living and working in Akpap Okoyong, Cross River State is enriching my life immensely and continues to teach me about myself and the world in […]
They’d told us that a couple of the key soft skills we’d need as CUSO International volunteers are flexibility and adaptability—so very true! I knew that in coming to Nigeria I was signing up for an adventure and the past month has certainly not disappointed. After having been required to evacuate from Kaduna to Abuja […]
I spent my weeklong Christmas and New Year holiday in Calabar and Iko Esai, in the southeast of Nigeria, becoming even more aware of the incredible diversity within the country. It is hard to grasp the fact that there are more than 250 different languages spoken here in this one country alone. I had to […]
*A Hausa phrase translated as ‘well done’ and used as a greeting whenever Nigerians see you working, going to work or coming from work. As my time in Kaduna, Nigeria goes by and days turn into months, I continue to learn and grow and enjoy many new experiences. The past month and a half has […]
