SPRING LEADERSHIP PROJECT

For the Spring leadership project we encourage ILP students to build on the relationships they formed when networking with internationally related organizations on and off campus. Because the spring project tends to be a collaborative with other organizations, the structure of the project varies from year to year. For several years the ILP students were responsible for organizing half of Washington University’s annual International Human Rights Film Festival. In other years the ILP students have put on forums highlighting the research they have pursued in their International Development course. Some classes have also chosen to put together a presentation so that they can participate on a panel in the International & Area Studies Spring student conference.  Take a look below to get a glimpse at some past ILP Spring Projects.

International Human Rights Film Festival

ILP students researched documentary and feature films from all around the world that highlighted international human rights issues. The students then researched the issue itself, wrote an informational packet contextualizing the issue and invited an expert speaker to introduce the film. Other ILP students were then responsible for inviting related organizations to co-sponsor the film, publicizing the festival, and developing an “action” piece so that impassioned audience members had a way to become further involved.

Energy, Environment & Global Politics Student Conference

ILP students developed a list of colleges around the world committed to pursuing environmental sustainability. The students then became liaisons with environmental leaders on these campuses to determine what environmental innovations, policies and reforms were successful on these other campuses. Finally, students compared these initiatives with Washington University’s environmental plan to come up with a proposal for ways Washington University could learn from other campuses in making a more environmentally sustainable institution. These students then put together a presentation for the final panel of the International & Area Studies Program’s “Energy, Environment & Global Politics Student Conference.”

Student Forums on Int’l Development

One of the past case studies for the International Development course focused on the reintegration of child soldiers in West Africa. ILP students wanted to broaden this issue and focus on the world-wide problem of youth in organized violence. The ILP students therefore invited Jo Becker, from the Children Right’s Division of the Human Rights Watch, Dr. Finn Esbensen an expert on gang violence in the U.S. and Europe and Dr. Derek Pardue an expert on youth culture in urban Brazil to provide a panel discussion on their topic.  In preparation for this event, the ILP students’ researched case studies of youth engaged in organized violence around the world and put together a photo exhibit profiling the stories of these youth.