Global Studies Portfolio​
Global Studies Events
Global Studies students are required to attend a minimum of nine events over the course of the year, one of which must be religious of a faith that isn't their own. After each of these events, students write a reflection that serves as an overview of the experience and a summary of their thoughts. Here are some of the Global Studies events I have been apart of so far.
New York City Trip
April 23, 2025
Between the walking tour, the musical, and the free time to explore, I had such an amazing time on the NYC trip this year. Although I have spent time in cities before, I had never actively spent time observing my surroundings with a specifically global lens. Cities are such hubs for international groups of people to co-exist and connect, so the conversations we had on this topic were really interesting to think about and discuss. The walking tour gave me the opportunity to do this, and I noticed details like language, food, museums, and clothing that connected back to the idea of globalization. The other main activity of the day, seeing the Buena Vista Social Club musical, was definitely the highlight of my day. I loved the music, dancing, and overall atmosphere of the musical because of how much energy and emotion was portrayed through it. Having two timelines could have easily been confusing, but it was so well done and having an old and young version of each main character added so much to the experience of slowly uncovering details about their past.
Wadsworth Museum Visit
April 4, 2025
I really enjoyed exploring this museum in it's entirety, but I spent a lot of my time specifically in the Divine Geometry exhibit on Islamic art. One of my favorite pieces was Ocean by Alibaba Awrang, which stood out because of the way calligraphy was added to a watercolor painting. The background of the entire painting was made up of letters, which added visual intrigue by having these letters placed and drawn in certain ways to create designs. In comparison to more traditionally Western art, I was surprised by how there were less depictions of humans, and that most of the exhibit was abstract works that included the natural world through patterns. While Western art often consists of more muted colors, Islamic art uses very bright and bold shades that stand out, creating an atmosphere of joy and energy. After doing a little research on this topic, I learned that my observation of there being less humans and animals is backed up by the fact that in Islam, people believe that only God can create and represent living beings. Instead, through the use of patterns and symbols, Islamic art focuses more on abstraction, which is meant to pay tribute to the beauty of the divine creation. After thinking about the artwork more in depth, one of my main takeaways from this exhibit is about the way geometric patterns are used to represent the idea of interconnectedness, which is a major aspect of religions. This idea can be seen within each artwork through the use of lines that connect each part of the piece together, but also as a way to relate separate artworks. Even between different types of art, like ceramics and paintings, common colors and patterns are used in specific ways to connect individual pieces of art and create a very cohesive exhibit.
ADL Never is Now Conference in NYC
March 4, 2025
Soil Health and Nutrient Value Project with Tembea High School in Kenya
January, 2025
Friday Prayers at Farmington Valley American Muslim Center
January 17, 2025
For the required religious service, I choose to attend Friday afternoon prayers at the Farmington Valley American Muslim Center. Prior to this trip, I had been to a mosque once before when I was younger and had some basic knowledge about the religion. Like Judaism and Christianity, Islam is an Abrahamic religion, which refers to the connection to the prophet Abraham, and it is a monotheistic religion. There are five main pillars of Islam: the declaration of faith (shahada), prayers five times a day (Salah), donating to those in need (Zakat), fasting all the day during Ramadan (Sawm), and participating in a pilgrimage to Mecca (Hajj). These are the main principles that guide the religion and all Musilms are obligated to follow them throughout their lifetime. During the conversation we had with the Imam at the end I learned more about the foundation of the religion, and I found that this part of the trip was very interesting. It seemed to me like his goal was for us to learn more about his religion and feel welcome, especially to combat the stereotypes revolving around Muslims and the way that many people perceive these communities. Because of current events, he also made sure that we understood that the conflict between Israel and Palestine doesn't mean Jews against Muslims.
Mass MoCA Trip
October 21, 2024
I had an amazing experience exploring Mass MoCA due to how unique both the museum's layout and the art was. Since it is a modern art museum, there was so much more variation in the art itself and there were ways for visitors to interact with the art rather than just viewing it. My favorite part of the museum was The Plastic Bag Store because I really appreciated how intentional everything seemed to be, with so many small details that created a very unique experience. Since it was very interactive and visually appealing, I think that the exhibit is very effective in showing the visitors how big of an issue the environmental crisis really is. What stood out to me from the movie portion of the exhibit was the idea of throwing something “away”. Everyone says this all the time without thinking about it, but the movie exposes how “away” doesn’t really exist and instead everything ends up in the oceans. Plastic never fully disappears, instead breaking down into microplastics that can be ingested by humans and animals, causing health problems that we have yet to fully research.
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Visit from Arn-Chorn Pond: Stories from a Cambodian Genocide Survivor
October 10, 2024
One of the first few observations I had when Arn was presenting was how strong he was, and how much love he had to share with our community. Each time he presents he has to partially relive the most difficult parts of his past and be emotionally vulnerable in front of a crowd of strangers, yet he continues to travel all around in order to educate the public. I was also struck by how much he talked about crying, specifically how his ability to cry has changed throughout his life. As a young child during the Cambodian Genocide who was in and out of concentration camps, Arn was never allowed to cry or show other emotions externally. He described that it took him many years of finally being safe in America to be able to cry in public, and even longer to be able to cry alone. This connects to the dehumanization that took place during the Cambodian Genocide, during which the Khmer Rouge stripped everyone of their uniqueness by making everyone’s clothes and hair look the same, and by instilling fear so people stopped outward displays of emotion. Now, even though he doesn't completely fit into either culture, Arn appears to feel a deep connection to both America and Cambodia, helping to bridge the gap between these two very different societies. ​
CT Supreme Court Head Justice Confirmation of Justice Mullins'
September 30, 2024
The hearing started with an opening statement by Justice Mullins, during which he addressed some of the ideas he has to improve this branch of the Connecticut government if he were to become the Chief Justice. He talked in depth about technology, one of the global studies themes, arguing that it has both positive and negative effects. While it does make certain jobs much easier, he highlighted that technology can never actually replace human connection. I feel similarly conflicted about the topic of technology and I appreciated that he addressed the downsides of technological advancements, which often seems to be forgotten. One moment that was especially surprising was when one of the Senators explicitly disagreed with Mullins’ statement related to the idea that rights come from the government. Instead, he proposed his belief that rights come from God, directly contradicting the longstanding attempt at the separation of church and state. This put Mullins in a very difficult position, not wanting to undermine the Senator while also having very different views on the subject. This was one of many times that I was very impressed with how Mullins stayed calm and kept his composure, despite being pressed with questions.
Caste: The Origins of
our Discontents, Isabel Wilkerson
Summer Reading and Discussion
Before reading this book, I had heard the word caste used to talk about India a few times but I never considered what it actually meant. Within the first few chapters, I quickly learned that caste is a term that encompasses many of the inequalities that are occurring constantly around us and that are built into the foundation of our country. The book uses the stories of real people that suffered as a result of the caste system and the movie allowed me to watch everything unfold and fit together logically, appealing to a sense of empathy. I watched as a Dalit man cleaned a sewer in India, as books were being thrown into the fire in Germany, and as an African American boy sat on a raft in a swimming pool, surrounded by people giving him looks of fear and hatred. The scene of the man in Nazi Germany with his arms crossed while hundreds of others had an arm outstretched, displaying their loyalty to Hitler, stood out to me from both the book and the movie. I believe many of us like to think we are like August Landmesser, defying what we disagree with in our society, but in reality a lot of us fall short. In writing this book, Wilkerson hoped to inspire more people to defy the longstanding traditions of caste in our society today.
“Radical empathy, on the other hand, means putting in the work to educate oneself and to listen with a humble heart to understand another's experience from their perspective, not as we imagine we would feel. Radical empathy is not about you and what you think you would do in a situation you have never been in and perhaps never will. It is the kindred connection from a place of deep knowing that opens your spirit to the pain of another as they perceive it."
- Isabel Wilkerson, Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents