Concluding thoughts from Argentina

Update from Jane Kellum (Mayo 2009)
Rotary World Peace Fellow Class VI
Universidad del Salvador
Buenos Aires, Argentina
The last year and a half have passed me by so quickly that I am having a hard time believing that I will finish my Master’s degree in just over a month. Back in February 2008, I arrived to Argentina as a new Rotary World Peace Fellow eager to learn as much as I could from the Master of International Relations program at the Universidad del Salvador in Buenos Aires, yet ready to show that I also came with solid experience in the field of international relations. As I prepare to finish, I still possess that same eagerness to learn, but with much more humility, maturity, and questions about what “is” or “is not” or what “should be” or “should not be” in this world. The course work and the process of writing my thesis have challenged me to look beyond what I see on the surface of the complex issues of development, economics, cooperation, and conflict resolution. Furthermore, I have learned that as a political scientist and sociologist, I have a responsibility to challenge normative approaches to analysis and to instead approach analysis in terms of phenomenon in an effort to avoid the trap of thinking that I have all of the answers and the ability to say what is “positive” or “negative” in this world.
Since January, I have been endlessly working on my master’s thesis. As many of you may know, I came to Portland in March of this year to conduct field research for my thesis. This may sound strange and you may even be asking, “She came back to Portland from Argentina to conduct research on some issue related to international relations?” The answer is yes. I went back to study an international phenomenon that has an impact in our own community of Portland: immigration. In particular, I was interested in examining the intervening factors in the processes of acculturation y assimilation of second generation students (typically defined as children of immigrants born in the United States or who arrive before the age of five). Since being back to Argentina after this research trip, I had the opportunity to present my thesis at the Rotary Center for International Studies Annual Seminar to nearly one hundred Rotarians from Argentina and Brazil as well university faculty and students.
After I submit my thesis on June 19, I will head off to Dakar, Senegal for the Applied Field Experience that is part of the World Peace Fellowship. While in Senegal, I will be conducting a needs assessment, specifically related to education and training needs, with adolescent women who have left their villages to work in domestic service in the capital city of Dakar. During my stay, I will be immersed in two new languages, French and Wolof, and will live with a Senegalese family. This short experience will be yet another life changing one as a result of the Rotary World Peace Fellowship. The completion of my three-month stay in Senegal will mark the official end of my time as a Fellow. However, this experience has already impacted me in an irreversible way and will lead me to continue working in the areas of development and peace, thus, contributing to the mission and fourth object, in particular, of Rotary.
Please feel free to email me at janekellum@hotmail.com. I would be happy to answer any questions or receive any comments that you may have. I will keep you posted of the developments in Senegal as well.
Thank you for your generous support of the Rotary World Peace Fellowship.