People, Research, Politics & society, Profiles

Berkeley in the World blog, featuring students' posts from around the globe, goes live

By Public Affairs

Armed with knowledge, tools, idealism and curiosity nurtured at Berkeley, droves of students fan out over the summer to service-learning, research and humanitarian projects across the Bay or across the globe. Now, on a new blog called Berkeley in the World , a number of these talented young people are sharing periodic, first-person updates on their varied and potentially transformative experiences in the field.

Via Berkeley in the World, published on the NewsCenter , accompany Shahrzad Makaremi, a political science and public policy student, as she settles into a cacophonous and colorful Indian city and seeks to improve the education and earning potential of lower-caste women there.

Follow updates from sophomore Hamza Jaka — co-president of Berkeley’s Disabled Students Union and a self-described “hot-blooded young buck who brings a lot of energy but needs more seasoning and patience” — as he deals with commute challenges in Washington, D.C. and looks at how U.S. labor policies impact youth with disabilities.

Travel with Global Poverty and Practice Fellow Nikki Brand, as she takes in the sights and sounds of Guatemala and works out how to help Mayan artisans develop a sustainable market for their textiles.

See through the eyes of Marissa Ram, a law student and Human Rights Fellow providing legal assistance to Australia’s foreign refugees, as she enters a grim detention facility on the edge of beautiful Sydney.

Learn from future doctor Leah Rorvig as she interviews transgender people in San Francisco about their experiences, good and bad, seeking healthcare services.

Told in many voices, brought alive by photos, Berkeley in the World promises a lively and informative peek into a part of the Berkeley experience that unfolds far from Sproul Plaza and makes, in many cases, a lasting impact on the lives of students and those they encounter. Check back often for bloggers’ updates and feel free, through your comments, to join the conversation.