Letter from Vice Provost for International Affairs

Cartoons have the power to capture the imagination and call attention to important problems. Following the October visit of His Holiness the Dalai Lama to Emory University as Presidential Distinguished Professor, “Cartooning for Peace” comes to Emory in November. Emory hosts cartoonists from around the world on campus the week of Nov. 11, 2007, with an extended exhibition of cartoons at the Schatten Gallery (see back page for details).

As we go to press, Emory’s Institute for Developing Nations (IDN) holds its first international conference, “Research Partnerships and Collaborations for Development: Strengthening Structures of Reciprocity and Responsibility” in Cape Town, South Africa, where Provost Earl Lewis also hosts this year’s Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) advisory board meeting. Inside, you can read more about one student’s experience practicing journalism in this remarkable country.

Every year, about 40 percent of Emory undergraduates participate in nearly 100 semester or summer study abroad programs worldwide through Emory College. Study abroad took a more concentrated form with The Halle Institute’s first student study trip to Brussels for five intensive days last spring to see the various components of the European Union at work, as part of a senior seminar. Ana Bedayo reports some of the trip’s highlights. Inside this issue, you’ll also learn more about the research and teaching that members of Emory’s distinguished faculty are doing in England, Israel, and Indonesia. There’s also news from The Halle Institute’s recent faculty study trip to Germany and the fascinating work of the trip’s co-sponsor Atlantik-Brücke in post-Katrina New Orleans.

This issue’s cover story is about a group of Emory faculty, administrators, and staff who traveled on a fact-finding trip to Jordan, Israel, and the West Bank. Sponsored by the Dean of the Chapel and Religious Life, the trip has already generated lively discussions on campus with scholars and humanitarians visiting Emory throughout the year.

Holli A. Semetko
Vice Provost for International Affairs
Director, Office of International Affairs & The Claus M. Halle Institute for Global Learning
Professor of Political Science