Eastern Europe at a Crossroads: Romania
Final application deadline
Summary
This program will bring together students and UBC faculty to consider freedom of expression, poverty, and housing issues as a means to establishing a more just and sustainable future in Romania. You will travel throughout the country (with a stop in Bulgaria) as seen below:
Led by UBC faculty teaching regular UBC courses, Eastern Europe at a Crossroads will provide a better understanding of housing issues, historical development, and contemporary moral issues through:
- Cultural immersion in Eastern Europe
- Living in the developing country of Romania
- Negotiating cross-cultural interactions
- Intensive engagement with faculty, community partners, and a diverse group of UBC and European students
- Opportunities to engage with citizen associations and international non-governmental organizations
An important part of the program will be volunteer work. You will work in the education field with both children and Romanian University students, as well as in Romanian orphanages. The work will increase your cultural and historical knowledge of the area as well as introduce you to the dealing with cultural issues in emerging free markets and democracies. Additionally, special lectures and meetings with local groups will offer opportunities to learn about other civil societies.
Additional activities outside the classroom include field trips on the Black Sea coast of Bulgaria, the coastal areas of Romania, and Bucharest, the capital. Students will visit traditional markets, historical and cultural places, and archaeological sites.
This group-study program will consist of up to 25 student participants from UBC Okanagan and Vancouver.
Courses
There will be two courses (GEOG 454, and PHIL 437) offered through this program for a total of 6 UBC credits. Students should expect an intensive study experience during the formal teaching weeks. No previous course-work or background in Geography or Philosophy is expected or required for these courses.
GEOG 454 – Geographies of Housing – Dr. Carlos Teixeira
This course explores geography of housing and housing policy in Eastern Europe. Emphasis will be placed in Romania. Topics will include: current housing conditions/trends; the housing allocation-supply process and housing markets; the demand/choice-constraints and residential location; housing submarkets, neighbourhood change/decline and the role of urban social gatekeepers (e.g., planners, politicians, developers, builders); market failures and housing problems; poverty and homelessness; housing policies/programs, social housing and the role of government. Case studies of specific policy issues and alternate housing strategies will be drawn mainly from the Romanian and Bulgarian experience.
PHIL 437 Philosophy and the Global State – Dr. Manuela Ungureanu
This course investigates how philosophical ideals of individual self-development and a democratic society can be applied in the practical arena of free expression. The focus of the course is on misuses or abuses of language, e.g., on speech that is in some sense abhorrent, offensive, harmful or injurious, such as defamation, incitement, hate speech, or propaganda. You will examine the fundamental (individual and/or societal) interests arguably secured by stringent protections (or alternatively restrictions) of expressive liberty, and their particular instantiations in speech, for totalitarian regimes and emerging or established democracies. An analysis of such interests helps us consider the social and political conditions under which it is justifiable to constrain objectionable speech, e.g., is it justifiable to regulate speech due to its message or to its (harmful) effects? How best should we analyze harm when done, albeit indirectly, to groups of people, or to (members of) traditionally disadvantaged groups, e.g., racial hate speech, STASI-type secret police reporting? Is it required that the constraints imposed on free speech be consistent with a firm protection of freedom of expression, and if so, why?
Eligibility
- Courses are offered without prerequisites, and are suitable for second- to fourth-year students.
- You must register for both courses and commit to participating in volunteer opportunities
- You must be prepared to live in less comfortable conditions and have an interest in learning about poverty/homelessness and civil society organizations
- Participants will be selected based on personal maturity and a demonstrated commitment to the learning theme and goals of the program
Language of Instruction
English
Term Offered
May 21 to June 29, 2012
Program Fee
The $2,500 program fee (approximate) includes:
- Buses and guides for all transfers and tours
- Accommodation in simple tourist-class hotels (shared occupancy)
- Breakfast every day, some dinners
- Sightseeing with local guides
- Excursions and side trips
- Go Global Application fee ($371)
Not included:
- Return airfare to Bucharest
- Tuition for two courses
- Health insurance
- Lunches & some suppers
- Personal items
Students will need some spending money for snacks, souvenirs, phone calls and Internet use, some personal travel, and some meals. While personal spending varies, students should consider a budget of at least $1,000.
NOTE: The Program fee will be reduced by $1,000 for UBC students qualifying for the Go Global Award (i.e. students with a 70% average over 24 credits during the 2011-12 academic year)
T
As this is a tentative schedule at this time, all dates are subject to change
| Date | Activity |
|---|---|
| Application deadlin |
|
| May 19/20, 2012 | Arrive in Bucharest |
| May 21-23, 2012 | Bucharest-GEOG 454 begins |
| May 23, 2012 | Travel to Constanta |
| May 23-June 1, 2012 | Constanta, Black Sea Coast |
| June 1-3, 2012 | Varna, Bulgaria |
| June 4, 2012 | Travel to Brasov, stop in Bucharest |
| June 5-8, 2012 | Brasov |
| June 9, 2012 | Travel to Sibiu-PHIL 347 begins |
| June 11-15, 2012 | Classes in Sibiu and countryside |
| June 18-20, |
Targu Jiu |
| June 20, 2012 | Travel to Bucharest |
| June 20-29, 2012 | Bucharest (volunteer component) |
| June 29, 2012 | Final day of class |
Application
- The application deadline for this program is
January 13, 2012 . - Applications are now open and can be initiated online via the Go Global Gateway application system.
If you need to log in to complete your application once you have started it, or to view your application, please access this section of the Go Global Gateway application system. - If you encounter any problems submitting your application via the Go Global Gateway, please direct them to Kerri Leeper at kerri.leeper@ubc.ca
- Eligible applicants will be invited for an interview prior to being accepted into the program.
Please send any questions about applying to this program to Dana Lowton, Go Global Coordinator, at dana.lowton@ubc.ca.
Withdrawls and Refunds
If you decide to withdraw your application following submission, you need to make this request in writing by e-mail to Dana Lowton, Go Global Coordinator. Please be sure to consult the Group Study Refund Policy terms.
