Nicola Hil wrote in her application that she has a “goal to have an international career and life.” We think she is well on her way: she was born in Britain, moved to California during childhood, lived in and volunteered for the International House at UC San Diego and is spending the current year studying Political Science at Institut d’Études Politiques (IEP) Lyon and Université Lumière Lyon 2 in France. Ray and Verena has a wonderful time meeting Nicola in August in her hometown of Livermore prior to her departure for France. She is acclimating to Lyon and writes that, “The area is beautiful with medieval churches and buildings and cobblestones along the streets.” She also reports that the independent research project she undertook the prior year at UC San Diego on the impact of French and European legislation on the rights of immigrant populations has provided a very relevant backdrop for her studies in Lyon. A musician, Nicola bought a trumpet (“a reliable English model”) and is looking for French students with whom to form a brass quintet. She has been able to travel to Telford, Strasbourg, Avignon, Grenoble, Cerdon and Geneva thus far and has plans to visit her grandparents in England over the holidays.
Emilie Ellis (Germany, 2007-08)
Emilie Ellis is a double major in Anthropology and International Studies-Linguistics. Going abroad was a logical choice for her because she feels that “an essential component of Anthropology is getting the native’s point of view by living with people for an extended period of time.” During her year in Freiburg at the Albert-Luwigs-Universität, Emilie expects to get a taste of what fieldwork is all about. One of her ambitions is to use the anthropological research methods she is studying to improve aid programs for health, poverty and education in developing countries. In San Diego, Emilie lived in International House and was involved in I-House efforts to help the local community in San Diego and across the border. This summer, Emilie traveled to Tanzania as a volunteer for the Arusha Project, which spreads HIV/AIDS awareness and supports gender equality. In Tanzania she taught English to children in an AIDS orphanage. Since leaving for Europe in late August, Emilie has been able to travel to Poland, the Czech Republic, France, Switzerland, and within Germany to Berlin and Münich.