course packet - global-illinois.org · audience for additional feedback. students will document the...

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Course Packet

Table of Contents

Document 1………………………………………………………………………………..3

Document 2………………………………………………………………………………21

Document 3………………………………………………………………………………43

Document 4………………………………………………………………………………57

Document 5………………………………………………………………………………58

Document 6………………………………………………………………………………61

Document 7………………………………………………………………………………77

Document 8………………………………………………………………………………78

Document 9………………………………………………………………………………79

Document 10……………………………………………………………………………..97

Document 11………………………………………………………………………….….98

Document 12……………………………………………………………………...….….99

Document 13……………………………………………………………………...……100

Document 14…………………………………………………………………...………101

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DOCUMENT 1

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Illinois Global Scholar Performance-based Assessment

© 2017 All rights reserved Illinois Global Scholar

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Overview: This project requires students to investigate a global issue connected/related to one or more academic disciplines.

To do this, students must each develop a compelling and actionable question addressing a global issue. In order to refine these questions and establish a plan for investigation, students will seek advisement from no less than two experts possessing firsthand experience with their specific issue. They will communicate regularly with these experts as they research their questions, draw conclusions, and propose research-based solutions. Finally, students will develop an action plan and/or artifact to implement their proposed solutions, which will be shared with an outside audience for additional feedback. Students will document the entire process and reflect on their learning throughout the experience.

What Students Will Do (Process)

Students completing the capstone assessment will progress through the following steps:

• Develop a compelling and actionable question

• Investigate and research

• Draw conclusions and propose solutions

• Create an artifact to demonstrate learning and effect change

• Refine the artifact based on input from experts

• Take action and communicate to an outside audience

• Reflect and document learning

What Students Will Make (Products)

Students completing the capstone assessment will submit the following products:

• A written narrative describing the entire experience

• Documentation compiled during each step of the process

• The artifact used to communicate with an outside audience

The written narrative should be submitted as a complete product, but students may choose to include subheadings corresponding to each of the seven steps. It is recommended that the submission of products, particularly, the documentation, be completed electronically to allow for the inclusion of media-rich files.

Purpose:

The purpose of the capstone assessment is to ensure that students completing the Illinois Global Scholar Certificate are able to demonstrate a high level of knowledge about, and skill in addressing, global issues. Students will engage in a process of inquiry with required components and products, demonstrating mastery of designated standards. The standards addressed by this assessment incorporate both national learning standards and established standards for global competence accessible at http://global-illinois.org/

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Description of Step Students develop a compelling and actionable question addressing a global issue (e.g., climate change, religious intolerance, food shortage, gender inequality, global conflicts, migration, ethnic conflict, genocide, water quality) and draft an investigation plan.

Students should concisely answer the following questions in their narratives:

• What is the compelling question that you chose to answer?

o Students may consider the following sentence frames to develop a compelling and actionable

question:

▪ What is an effective way to address [issue] for [population] in [place]?

▪ How can [social institution(s)] be changed to [improve/better serve] [issue] [population]?

• What background experiences, knowledge, and/or research led you to ask this question?

o What research did you use to ensure that your question was rooted in a specific discipline(s),

and why is it important to answer the question in order to help close an existing gap in the

research?

o What is your specific plan for answering your proposed question? What resources will you

consult, and who would you like to interview? How will these resources reflect multiple

perspectives?

Students should include the following documentation related to this step:

• A list of sources and/or reviewed literature used in generating the compelling question

Note to Students The compelling question will drive the entire capstone project. It is important that the question be actionable. An actionable question is one that will lead to a proposed solution that is specific enough to be feasible, and for which the impact may be measured (i.e., the student can take specific steps necessary to effect positive change). The question must also be rooted in a specific global context or concern a specific global community. Developing questions of this nature can be challenging, therefore preliminary research may be necessary.

Examples of actionable compelling questions include: What is an effective way to address the refugee crisis in Syria? What is an effective way to overcome religious prejudice in the United States? How can medical practice best be changed to improve healthcare for rural citizens of El Salvador? How can the high school “mission trip” be changed to make a real difference in the developing world? How can the policies of the United Nations be changed to better address climate change? What can a high school student do to end poverty in Chad?

Develop a Compelling Question

and Investigation Plan

Step 1:

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Description of Step Students investigate (through academic research, interviews and/or global outreach) the current causes and solutions related to their issues, and describe, analyze, and summarize their issue. It is highly recommended students locate and secure the advisement of no less than two experts with firsthand, on-the-ground knowledge of the specific issue being investigated.


• What did you do to seek and find an answer to your questions?

• Who did you decided to include as your experts with firsthand experience? Why did you choose

each individual, and how did you go about locating them? If this portion of the process is not yet

complete, please indicate steps taken to this point.

• What culture-specific preparation did you take when communicating with your chosen experts? If

this portion of the process is not yet complete, please indicate steps taken to this point.

• What process did you use to research your issue?

• How did the process of investigation shape the path you took? What changes in direction did you

take as you investigated the question? What did you find out that surprised you or challenged

your assumptions at each step in the research process?

• What supporting questions did you ask and answer as you considered proposed solutions for your

compelling question?

• What specific feedback did your on-the-ground expert offer about the sources you considered,

and what additional sources did they suggest? If this portion of the process is not yet complete,

please indicate steps taken to this point.


• Works cited in researching the global issue and the proposed question.

• Other documentation of research (datasets, surveys, interviews, recordings etc.

• Names and contact information of the on-the-ground expert(s) selected (if this has been

accomplished).

• Citations of cultural-specific communication resources consulted prior to communication.

• Evidence of the communication (video, audio, detailed transcript, etc.) with on-the-ground

experts.

• Optional/As Needed: A formal presentation of research findings written in the third person MAY

be submitted if students wish to provide more detail about the research process than is included

in the narrative.

Note to Students Step 2 is a process of discovery rather than simply collecting sources about a topic. The compelling question should drive this process of inquiry, leading to a wide breadth of sources and deep understanding of the global issue being addressed. Through the process of inquiry, methodology may be altered or adjustments made to the compelling question. The expectation is to document this process of inquiry. Therefore, it is

Investigate and Research Step 2:

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highly recommended that a journal be kept to included thoughts and reflections as the research process progresses. This journal should record what is known, questions students have, and ideas for further investigation and research. If efforts to identify and communicate with an on-the-ground expert are unsuccessful at this stage, it does not prevent continuing work on the next step of the process.

Description of Step Students (1) draw conclusions based on research, (2) propose a systemic solution to the question he/she asked, and (3) identify a local and/or global plan of action addressing the statement: “Here’s what we can do to improve [issue or concern].” Throughout this step, students are expected to actively engage with their selected on-the-ground expert and meaningfully incorporate their feedback.


• What conclusions did you draw based on your research?

• What solutions did you propose?

• How did you consider current best practices, and how did these practices shape your proposed

solution? What culture-specific preparation did you take when communicating with your chosen

on-the-ground experts?

• What specific communication took place between you and your experts, including specific

feedback about the conclusions you drew and your proposed plan?

• What modifications did your on-the-ground expert suggest, and how did you incorporate their

feedback intro your conclusion and proposed solutions?


• Any additional citations of cultural-specific communication resources consulted prior to

communication.

• Evidence of the communication (video, audio, detailed transcript, etc.) with experts.

• Original and revised drafts of conclusions, solution, and planned artifact.

Note to Students In Step 2, research is completed, and at this point in Step 3, a synthesis of what was learned, a proposed answer to the question, and a suggested specific plan that can be taken to improve conditions is the focus. A more formal tone may be taken in this portion of the narrative, as this section of the narrative will be communicated to experts for feedback/advice. In seeking advice from on-the-ground experts, it is important to request constructive criticism of the research sources and methodology, conclusions, and/or the proposed actions. Quality feedback from an advisor requires thoughtful commentary and advice rather than an editorial review or a “stamp of approval.” At this stage, it is strongly advised to begin the process of thoughtfully selecting an audience and venue (physical or virtual) to present findings and take action.

Draw Conclusions and Propose

Solutions Step 3:

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Description of Step

Students create the artifact and/or detailed plan for an artifact that documents, describes, synthesizes, reflects the global issue or concern. The artifact created can vary widely (e.g., a work of art, a movie, an awareness-raising campaign, a children’s book, professional presentations, a series of infographics).

Students should answer the following questions in their narratives:

• How would you describe your plan/artifact?

• How does it align with your conclusions?

• How do you intend to use this plan/artifact to implement a solution or to serve as a record of

action taken to improve conditions?


• The artifact itself or a photograph of the artifact.

• Narration or an artist’s statement, as appropriate, to explain the artifact.

• Any communication with on-the-ground experts regarding the artifact.

Note to Students All revisions suggested by on-the-ground experts during Step 3 should be made prior to beginning Step 4. It may be impractical to revise some artifacts (e.g. a mural painted on a local building), therefore, students may wish to create a plan or sketch of the revised artifact. The artifact is expected to be of professional quality, to be an original work, and to be culturally appropriate.

Description of Step Students seek feedback on their detailed plans/artifacts from their experts and

revise plans and artifacts accordingly.


• What feedback did your on-the-ground expert offer about your plan/artifact?

• How did you incorporate this feedback?


• Evidence of the communication that took place to receive the feedback about the artifact

Step 4: Create Artifact

Step 5: Refine Artifact Based on Input

From Experts

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(interview transcripts, audio/film recordings, bibliographies, surveys, datasets, social media posts and communication, and/or written feedback of various types).

Note to Students This step is similar to Step 3 except that the on-the-ground expert”s specific feedback on the artifact/plan for artifact is the focus.

Description of Step

Students present their proposed solutions to beyond school audiences and engage these audiences in implementing their solutions for positive change.


• What actions did you take to address the issue?

• How and why did you select your specific audience and venue?

• How did you adapt and/or create materials to suit the selected audience?

• How was your artifact used to engage the audience?

• How did you involve the audience in improving conditions or creating change related to your

global issue?

• How would you describe the impact of your work? What qualitative and quantitative data

collected from your audience would support your decision?


• Materials used to present the artifact, findings, and action recommendations to the specific

audience.

• Evidence of feedback used to assess the impact of the students’ action (e.g., a battery of survey

questions with accompanying data, a list of questions with a recording of the students asking

these questions with an audience, a list of reviews or comments made online, written impact

statements).

Note to Students Step 6 requires action to improve conditions or effect positive change. The audience selected for this step MUST engage participants beyond the school community. The audience may also include your on-the-ground experts and school peers.

Step 6: Take Action to Effect Change

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Description of Step

Students communicate their reflection about the entire process.


• How did this project develop your understanding and learning of the global competencies?

• Based on quantitative or qualitative data, what impact did your action have on the global issue

you investigated?

• What were your successes and failures throughout this process?

• What surprised and/or changed your perspective throughout this process?

• What are your future plans to continue work as a globally-competent person?


• Research journal (optional)

Step 7: Reflect

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Task Steps 1-7 (Table View)

Project Step Description of Step Narrative Includes Documentation Includes Note to Student

Step 1: Develop

a Compelling

Question and

Investigation

Plan

Students develop a compelling

and actionable question

addressing a global issue (e.g.,

climate change, religious

intolerance, food shortage,

gender inequality, global

conflicts, migration, ethnic

conflict, genocide, water quality)

and draft an investigation plan.

These sentence frames can be

used by the student to develop a

compelling and actionable

question:

a. What is an effective way to

address [issue] for [population] in

[place]?

b. How can [social institution(s)]

be changed to [improve/better

serve] [issue] [population]?

Students should concisely answer the

following questions in their narratives:

What is the compelling question that you

chose to answer?

What background experiences, knowledge,

and/or research led you to ask this question?

What research did you use to ensure that your

question was rooted in a specific discipline(s),

and why is it important to answer the

question in order to help close an existing gap

in the research?

What is your specific plan for answering your

proposed question? What resources will you

consult, and who would you like to interview?

How will these resources reflect multiple

perspectives?

A list of sources and/or

reviewed literature used in

generating the compelling

question.

The compelling question will drive the entire capstone

project. It is important that the question be actionable.

An actionable question is one that will lead to a proposed

solution that is specific enough to be feasible, and for

which the impact may be measured (i.e., the student can

take specific steps necessary to effect positive change).

The question must also be rooted in a specific global

context or concern a specific global community.

Developing questions of this nature can be challenging,

therefore preliminary research may be necessary.

Examples of actionable compelling questions include: What is an effective way to address the refugee crisis in Syria? What is an effective way to overcome

religious prejudice in the United States? How can medical practice best be changed to improve healthcare for rural citizens of El Salvador? How can the high

school “mission trip” be changed to make a real difference in the developing world? How can the policies of the United Nations be changed to better address

climate change? What can a high school student do to end poverty in Chad?

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Step 2:

Investigate and

Research

Students investigate (through

academic research, interviews

and/or global outreach) the

current causes and solutions

related to their issues, and

describe, analyze, and summarize

their issue. It is highly

recommended students locate and

secure the advisement of no less

than two experts with firsthand,

on-the-ground knowledge of the

specific issue being investigated.

A Students should concisely answer the


What did you do to seek and find an answer to

your questions?

Who did you decided to include as your

experts with firsthand experience? Why did

you choose each individual, and how did you

go about locating them? If this portion of the

process is not yet complete, please indicate

steps taken to this point.

What culture-specific preparation did you

take when communicating with your chosen

experts? If this portion of the process is not

yet complete, please indicate steps taken to

this point.

What process did you use to research your

issue?

How did the process of investigation shape

the path you took? What changes in direction

did you take as you investigated the question?

What did you find out that surprised you or

challenged your assumptions at each step in

the research process?

What supporting questions did you ask and

answer as you considered proposed solutions

for your compelling question?

What specific feedback did your expert

advisor offer about the sources you

considered, and what additional sources did

they suggest? If this portion of the process is

not yet complete, please indicate steps taken

to this point.

Works cited in researching the

global issue and the proposed

question.

Other documentation of

research (datasets, surveys,

interviews, recordings etc.)

Names and contact information

of the on-the-ground expert(s)

selected (if this has been

accomplished).

Citations of cultural-specific

communication resources

consulted prior to

communication.

Evidence of the communication

(video, audio, detailed

transcript, etc.) with on-the-

ground experts.

Optional/As Needed: A formal

presentation of research

findings written in the third

person MAY be submitted if

students wish to provide more

detail about the research

process than is included in the

narrative.

Step 2 is a process of discovery rather than simply

collecting sources about a topic. The compelling question

should drive this process of inquiry, leading to a wide

breadth of sources and deep understanding of the global

issue being addressed. Through the process of inquiry,

methodology may be altered or adjustments made to the

compelling question. The expectation is to document this

process of inquiry. Therefore, it is highly recommended

that a journal be kept to included thoughts and reflections

as the research process progresses. This journal should

record what is known, questions students have, and ideas

for further investigation and research. If efforts to

identify and communicate with an on-the-ground expert

are unsuccessful at this stage, it does not prevent

continuing work on the next step of the process.

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Step 3:

Draw

Conclusions and

Propose

Solutions to “on

the ground”

experts

Students (1) draw conclusions

based on research, (2) propose a

systemic solution to the question

he/she asked, and (3) identify a

local and/or global plan of action

addressing the statement: “Here’s

what we can do to improve [issue

or concern].” Throughout this

step, students are expected to

actively engage with their

selected on-the-ground expert and

meaningfully incorporate their

feedback.

Students should concisely answer the


What conclusions did you draw based on your

research?

What solutions did you propose?

How did you consider current best practices,

and how did these practices shape your

proposed solution?

What culture-specific preparation did you take

when communicating with your chosen on-the-

ground experts?

What specific communication took place

between you and your experts, including

specific feedback about the conclusions you

drew and your proposed plan?

What modifications did your on-the-ground

expert suggest, and how did you incorporate

their feedback intro your conclusion and

proposed solutions?

Any additional citations of

cultural-specific

communication resources

consulted prior to

communication.

Evidence of the communication

(video, audio, detailed

transcript, etc.) with expert

advisors.

Original and revised drafts of

conclusions, solution, and

planned artifact.

In Step 2, research is completed, and at this point in Step

3, a synthesis of what was learned, a proposed answer to

the question, and a suggested specific plan that can be

taken to improve conditions is the focus. A more formal

tone may be taken in this portion of the narrative, as this

section of the narrative will be communicated to experts

for feedback/advice. In seeking advice from expert

advisors, it is important to request constructive criticism

of the research sources and methodology, conclusions,

and/or the proposed actions. Quality feedback from an

advisor requires thoughtful commentary and advice rather

than an editorial review or a “stamp of approval.” At this

stage, it is strongly advised to begin the process of

thoughtfully selecting an audience and venue (physical or

virtual) to present findings and take action.

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Step 4:

Create Artifact Students create the artifact

and/or detailed plan for an

artifact that documents,

describes, synthesizes, reflects

the global issue or concern. The

artifact created can vary widely

(e.g., a work of art, a movie, an

awareness-raising campaign, a

children’s book, professional

presentations, a series of

infographics).

Students should answer the following

questions in their narratives:

How would you describe your plan/artifact?

How does it align with your conclusions?

How do you intend to use this plan/artifact to

implement a solution or to serve as a record of

action taken to improve conditions?

The artifact itself or a

photograph of the artifact.

Narration or an artist’s

statement, as appropriate, to

explain the artifact.

Any communication with on-

the-ground experts regarding

the artifact.

All revisions suggested by on-the-ground experts during

Step 3 should be made prior to beginning Step 4. It

may be impractical to revise some artifacts (e.g. a

mural painted on a local building), therefore, students

may wish to create a plan or sketch of the revised

artifact. The artifact is expected to be of professional

quality, to be an original work, and to be culturally

appropriate.

Step 5:

Refine artifact

based on input

Students seek feedback on their

detailed plans/artifacts from their

expert advisors and revise plans and

artifacts accordingly. Students should answer the following

questions in their narratives:

What feedback did your expert advisors offer about

your plan/artifact?

How did you incorporate this

feedback?

Evidence of the communication that took place to receive the

feedback about the artifact (interview transcripts, audio/film

recordings, bibliographies, surveys, datasets, social media

posts and communication, and/or written feedback of various

types). This step is similar to Step 3 except that the expert advisor’s

specific feedback on the artifact/plan for artifact is the focus.

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Step 6:

Take Action to

Effect Change

Students present their proposed

solutions to beyond school

audiences and engage these

audiences in implementing their

solutions for positive change.

Students should answer the following questions

in their narratives:

What actions did you take to address the issue?

How and why did you select your specific

audience and venue?

How did you adapt and/or create materials to

suit the selected audience?

How was your artifact used to engage the

audience?

How did you involve the audience in improving

conditions or creating change related to your

global issue?

How would you describe the impact of your

work? What qualitative and quantitative data

collected from your audience would support

your decision?

Materials used to present the

artifact, findings, and action

recommendations to the

specific audience.

Evidence of feedback used to

assess the impact of the

students’ action (e.g., a

battery of survey questions

with accompanying data, a list

of questions with a recording

of the students asking these

questions with an audience, a

list of reviews or comments

made online, written impact

statements).

Step 6 requires action to improve conditions or effect

positive change. The audience selected for this step MUST

engage participants beyond the school community. The

audience may also include your on-the-ground experts and

school peers.

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Step 7:

Reflect Students communicate their

reflection about the entire

process.

Students should answer the following questions

in their narratives:

How did this project develop your

understanding and learning of the global

competencies?

Based on quantitative or qualitative data, what

impact did your action have on the global issue

you investigated?

What were your successes and failures

throughout this process?

What surprised and/or changed your

perspective throughout this process?

What are your future plans to continue work as

a globally-competent person?

Research journal (optional)

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Evaluation Criteria

Develops compelling questions and plans

inquiries related to a global issue. Criterion 1: Develops a compelling question that is actionable and measurable

Yes / No Indicators

1. Develops a compelling question addressing a global concern [an issue that exists

in several locations around the world]

2. Ensures compelling question leads to a deeper understanding of the global

concern, including the fundamental cause of the issue

3. Designs a compelling question that is actionable and measurable [allows the

student to identify and measure small- and/or large-scale solutions to global

concerns and then take small- and/or large-scale action to change or improve

conditions related to the global concern]

Uses effective communication skills to

gather information and inform diverse

audiences about an identified global issue. Criterion 2: Uses culturally informed communication skills consistently throughout the project

Yes / No Indicators

4. Uses appropriate, culturally-informed language1 to communicate in a logical and concise manner

5. Uses discipline-specific terminology appropriate to the task

6. Elicits feedback from on-the-ground experts2 ensuring that the organization, development, substance, and style are appropriate and culturally-informed to the purpose and audience (e.g. develops a survey, engages in dialogue)

7. Communicates using media that is appropriate to the audience/person

8. Uses language conventions appropriate to project

1 Culturally-informed language is language that is based on unfounded assumptions, negative stereotypes of a person’s or

group’s age, class, gender, or age, class, gender, or. geographic, racial, religious or ethnic characteristics. 2 An “on the ground expert” is someone who is either directly impacted by the global issue or concern being investigated, or

has firsthand, on-the-ground knowledge of the issue or concern.

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Criterion 3: Collects research and communicates academically, consistent with the standards of the discipline(s)

Yes / No Indicators

9. Provides evidence that research was applied when presenting the artifact to stakeholders

Criterion 4: Gathers research that sufficiently addresses the global concern and leads to possible resolutions of the global concern specifically addressed in the student’s compelling question

Yes / No Indicators

10. Incorporates culturally-informed perspectives and opinions from stakeholders to

analyze evidence from multiple sides of a global concern

11. Designs and carries out a research plan using a variety of resources (i.e. a

combination of credible scholarly sources and interviews/narratives) representing

multiple perspectives including the perspectives of those impacted by the global issue

12. Ensures research explores causes and effects of the issue of global concern from

the perspectives of a variety of stakeholders

13. Provides evidence of research of the global concern from several locations in the

world

14. Demonstrates that research includes a review of the impact of possible action and

previous interventions to address the global concern

15. Documents source material, and evaluates for accuracy and credibility

16 Uses a depth and breadth of source material adequate to develop an understanding

of the complexity of the global concern

17. Demonstrates how source material contributes to understanding of the global

concern

Translates ideas and findings into

appropriate actions to improve conditions

related to an identified global problem or

issue.

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Criterion 5: Designs action to be taken in relation to an issue of global concern that closely aligns with, and logically results from, the conducted research

Yes / No Indicators

18. Designs an action plan that is based on findings from the research

19. Develops a plan to measure the impact of proposed action

20. Incorporates feedback from multiple stakeholders

Criterion 6: Designs an artifact3 reflecting the proposed action to be taken in relation to the global concern

Yes / No Indicators

21. Plans an artifact that informs and engages the stakeholder audience about the

proposed action [used during the implementation of the solution or serves as a record of

the action]

22. Artifact serves as an appropriate vehicle to take action and effect change

23. Develops an artifact that supports understanding of research findings, reasoning, and

evidence to inform and engage the stakeholder audience

Engages in appropriate informed actions to

address or potentially improve conditions

based on analysis of global issue/concern.

Criterion 7: Takes action that demonstrates understanding of global concern

Yes / No Indicators

24. Utilizes the artifact in planning, implementing, and/or documenting the action that is

designed to effect local and/or global change

25. Advocates for suggested improvements and alternatives on behalf of those impacted

and/or engages the new audience to take action

26. Offers new audience a blueprint for change

3 An artifact is a physical or electronic object or set of objects that will be reviewed by “on the ground experts” BEFORE the

student initiates his or her planned action. Artifacts must be used to take action and effect change related to global concern. The range of possible artifacts is wide and may include planning documents, films, presentations, works of art, poster presentation, research paper, music, or an outline describing a wide variety of events (community cleanup, awareness-raising campaign)

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Criterion 8: Reflects on the capstone process

Yes / No Indicators

27. Analyzes how this project develops understanding and learning of the global competencies

28. Evaluates the impact the action had, didn’t have, or might have on the global concern using quantitative and/or qualitative data

29. Analyzes successes and failures throughout this process

30. Identifies future plans to continue work as a globally competent person4.

4 Globally-competent students are able to perform four competencies: (1) Investigate the World--Students investigate the

world beyond their immediate environment, (2) Recognize Perspectives--Students recognize their own and others’ perspectives, (3) Take Action--Students translate their ideas into appropriate actions to improve conditions, (4) Communicate Ideas--Students communicate their ideas effectively with diverse audiences.

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DOCUMENT 2

Running head: UNIVERSAL HEALTHCARE IN AMERICA

Who the Healthcares?: A Study of Universal Healthcare in Canada and Japan to Determine

Which System is Most Viable for America

Adam J. Spitz

Naperville Central High School

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UNIVERSAL HEALTHCARE IN AMERICA 1

Abstract

This narrative will thoroughly explain the process of how I developed a complex question

that's both globally focused, narrow and actionable. This question was altered numerous

times in order to focus it globally as well as narrow it down to something relatively

attainable. The question I ultimately formulated is “America has yet to establish a health

care system that will be effective for generations to come. By looking towards countries

with successful healthcare systems such as Japan and Canada, which aspects of each

system should the US consider adapting and implementing?” It will also explain the

research process I decided to undergo, to ultimately reach a conclusion that is both

actionable and attainable. On the way to reaching a final conclusion, I will explain the path

as well as the process of how I eventually got to the end. The narrative in the end will

explain a concrete conclusion to the question at hand, however the path there isn’t so

smooth. In order to draw conclusions, I will talk about my on the ground experts who

helped me exponentially on my journey to reaching a final conclusion. These on the

ground experts include Salim Hasham, a Global Healthcare Executive, Senator Kimberly A.

Lightford of The State of Illinois, and Dr. Kawagoe from Japan. I cannot thank them enough

for what they did for me and my project, and intend fully to illustrate the sense of

gratitude I have for them to the best of my abilities.

Keywords: universal healthcare, coverage, efficiency, perception

Page | 23


Who the Healthcares?: A Study of Universal Healthcare in Canada and Japan to Determine

Which System is Most Viable for America

When first beginning this semester long project, saying I was unprepared would be

an understatement. I was relatively confident in my abilities going into this journey, but

sometimes my abilities alone wouldn’t allow myself to succeed. Luckily, throughout the

whole process, I was able to receive assistance from my classmates, my teacher, the

librarians at our school, as well as my on the ground experts. I was soon to find out that

healthcare as a whole is a very complex topic, certainly more complex than I could have

ever imagined, but embracing “the grind” was undoubtedly worth it.

Going into the beginning of my research, the question I had formulated was “ Why is

the US the only wealthy country in the world without a Universal Healthcare system?”.

There was two major problems I soon noticed with this question. The first problem with

the question was it was way too broad. At the current state of the question, I could have

taken so many different angles to try to answer it, but in the end I would have never been

able to reach a concrete conclusion. The second problem I identified with my original

question was it wasn’t necessarily globally focused enough. In order to make the question

more globally focused, as well as more narrow, I decided to research Canada and Japan. I

chose these two countries for two main reasons. The first being was that I was interested in

learning about each system individually. I was interested in Canada because I was born

there and experienced the healthcare system first hand, and Japan because of their aging

population and how that affects their universal healthcare system. The second reason was

that these respective countries also worked out well for my research because Canada has a

universal healthcare system and Japan has a single-payer universal healthcare system.

Page | 24


Once I identified where I wanted to focus my research, I had to change my question

accordingly. The question I then formulated and ran with was “ By looking towards

countries with successful healthcare systems such as Canada and Japan, which aspects of

each system should the US consider adapting?”.

Once I had developed a question I felt confident in researching, I ran with it. The

problem was however that I started to run with it later than most, because it took me so

long to figure out the question I wanted to ask and how I was going to be able to conquer it.

This resulted in playing catch-up throughout the whole semester, which contributed to late

assignments and a few sleepless nights on occasion. When I first started researching, I met

with Mrs. Gottlieb, our schools librarian, who gave me five credible, peer-reviewed sources,

three focused on Canada and two on Japan. At the beginning of my research, all I was

unraveling was stats, stats, and more stats. I realized that the stats that I was unraveling

were good and all, but they wouldn’t tell the whole story. The problem I ran into was I

thought the stats alone would be enough to persuade the American population, but I soon

found out that they wouldn’t. I was at a crossroads in my research, so I needed to reach out

to on the ground experts in each respective country to hopefully find answers.

I decided that it would be beneficial to contact one on the ground expert from each

country I was researching. At the time, I was more uneducated about the Japanese system,

so Mr. Brady and I decided to search on the Illinois Alumni Exchange Website for a

healthcare expert in Japan. During our search, we came across a man by the name of Dr.

Kawagoe. We then emailed him, and the original plan was to setup a skype call, but it never

ended up happening. Instead, he sent me a fifteen page pdf that was very informative. The

pdf was called “The Future of Japan’s Health System- Sustaining Good Health with Equity at

Page | 25


Low Cost”. Rather than just giving statistics, all that I was finding up until this point, it

talked about the practicality and practices necessary in a universal healthcare system,

specifically Japan’s. Now that I had developed a sufficient amount of knowledge of the ins

and outs of the Japanese Healthcare system, I needed to reach out to a Canadian expert to

gain more knowledge about the Canadian system. Mr. Brady and I then once again searched

the Illinois Alumni Exchange Website to find a Canadian expert, and we came across a lady

named Leann Hackmann-Carty. She gave us four experts to contact, so we reached out to

them all, but only one responded. The one who responded was a man named Salim Hasham.

Mr. Hasham is currently a Global Healthcare Executive, and helped drafted Hawaii’s

proposed Universal Health Care system a few years ago. Mr. Hasham was more than willing

to assist in my research, and we ended up having a very informative thirty minute skype

call. In that thirty minute call, there was two major ideas that really stuck with me. The first

idea was the healthcare debate in America is more of a ideological debate rather than an

economic debate. If universal healthcare was ever to be made a realistic option in America,

the people would have to believe that healthcare is a basic human right rather than a

necessity. Once that is acknowledged by the government as well as the people, then the

implementation can start to gain steam. The second main point that stuck with me is that

universal healthcare in America would only be made possible if the states took charge,

rather than the federal government. States have the power to implement their own

healthcare systems, however if they choose to do so they will lose a significant amount of

funding from the federal government.

I reached two major turning points in my research as a result of having my

conversations with on the ground experts. These two turning points were that a universal

Page | 26


healthcare system, more similar to that of Canada’s would make more sense in America

rather than a single-payer system, similar to that of Japan’s. I also realized that due to

conflicting interests in the political world, that a universal healthcare system in the federal

government is not possible in America at this point in time, so the states must lead the

charge. Once I realized this, Mr. Brady and I decided to reach out to Illinois State

Representatives and Senators. We ended up reaching out to more than five, including

Connelly, Wehrli, Biss, Wallace, and Lightford. While waiting to hear back from the

representatives or senators, Mr. Brady thought that it would be a good idea to draft a

senate resolution proposing a self-sufficient universal healthcare system in The State of

Illinois. The idea behind writing a senate resolution was that ideally if and when I was

able to setup a meeting with a senator or representatives, I would be able to show them

my draft and ask for feedback. It turned out that only one of them would come through,

and that was Senator Kimberly A. Lightford. Senator Lightford is the Assistant Majority

Leader in The Illinois State Senator, and similar to Mr. Hasham, was more than willing to

assist with my research. We ended up having a two and half hour meeting in her office,

when it was only supposed to be thirty minutes long. We talked about a multitude of

topics, but at the end of the day I realized that this happens to be one of the most

inopportune times to propose such legislation. The senators are currently more focused

on keeping the funding they have rather than becoming self-sufficient at this point in time

because Illinois isn’t currently the most financially stable state.

Throughout the course of this semester, I undoubtedly learned a plethora of

information on healthcare specifically, but also research as a whole. I learned that just

when you think you’re on the right path to destiny, things can change in an instant and you

Page | 27


have to be ready to adapt. I want to thank Mr. Brady for assisting me on a numerous of

occasions, and I truly believe that without the guidance and wisdom he shared with me, I

wouldn’t have been able to complete this project. I also want to thank my on the ground

experts, specifically Salim Hasham and Senator Lightford for taking time out of their days

to help with my research. This capstone turned out to be a great experience, even though

throughout the majority of the course that was not my thinking. Having said that, I highly

advise students to take this course if they have an extreme passion to learn more about a

specific topic, because if the interest is there, anything can happen with capstone.

Page | 28

References

Daniel Dale Toronto Star, Chief. "Canadian-Style Health Care Gains Steam in U.S."

Toronto Star(Canada), 05 June 2017. EBSCOhost,

search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nfh&AN=6FPTS2017060542624

http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nfh&AN=6FPTS2017060542624

Page | 29


591.

`This article really focuses on the idea that a universal healthcare system being

implemented in the US is not entirely out of question. The author mentions how Trump's

healthcare plan would leave 23 million fewer people with health care by 2026, and that

angers many Americans. Even though Trump stated that anything would be better than the

healthcare system currently in place now, the one he’s seeking to implement wouldn’t

necessarily be beneficial at all. This debate taking place in Congress about how we should

fix our current healthcare system has undoubtedly made people more interested than

previously before. However, the idea that universal healthcare is creeping towards

“socialism” scares many Americans, and it will take a lot of convincing to elect politicians

that will suggest higher taxes.

Although this article doesn’t flat out say that universal healthcare will work in the

US, it does suggest that it is a possibility. It gave various statistics that show the negative

impact of a Trump proposed plan, which leads people to ponder the idea of universal

healthcare. It suggests that Americans are upset with the status quo, but what we don’t

know is that’ll they’ll back up their talk in the voting booths. When surveys are sent out

saying “covering all Americans or lower healthcare costs” the results are positive. However,

when surveys mention “ single-payer system, or mention a tax increase” the results are

overwhelmingly negative. Overall, this article doesn’t directly answer my question, but it

does suggest that universal healthcare is an option for America moving forward, and the

people are starting to back it up.

May 19, 2017 Health Economic Law and Public Policy North America. “Is Canada the

Right Model for a Better U.S. Health Care System?” Knowledge@Wharton,

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knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/lessons-can-u-s-learn-canadian-health-care-

system/.

This article does a great job of weighing the positives and the negatives of the

Canadian system. Even though, almost all would argue that Canada has a better healthcare

system then the US, Mark Pauly says “In one sense, what Americans can learn from

Canadians is nothing, because we don’t share the same views of society as they do,”. This

is where the root of the problem truly is, it’s in our American ideology and hatredness

towards socialist programs. It talks about the negative impacts of the Canadian system,

which includes long wait lines. This is because patients will take extra precautionaries, not

necessarily needed because it doesn’t cost anything out of pocket. Even though Canada

has a single payer health system, the programs vary from province to province. Overall,

this is one of the best articles that gives an overall view of the debate, and what we can

take from both systems.

This article helps answer my question because it does suggest that Canada has

aspects that if the US ideology towards healthcare changes, is possible to recreate. The

problem is, medicaid/medicare thus far has not been successful in many people's eyes, so

the idea of the government taking control of healthcare completely scares some. The idea of

universal healthcare is not out of question at this moment in time however, since universal

healthcare guarantees healthcare to all, but it doesn’t necessarily have to be provided from

the government. This article gave me a great deal of confidence that if in fact we can

somehow make Americans trust the government, even with Trump in power, the idea of a

universal healthcare system is not out of question in the near future.

“Japan's Health-Care System Has Many Advantages, but May Not Be Sustainable.”

http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/lessons-can-u-s-learn-canadian-health-care-system/

http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/lessons-can-u-s-learn-canadian-health-care-system/

Page | 31


The Washington Post, WP Company, July 2009, www.washingtonpost.com/wp-

dyn/content/article/2009/09/06/AR2009090601630.html.

This article bombards the reader with various statistics showing the benefits of the

Japanese healthcare, but ultimately ends with it not being easily suitable in America.

Different from Canada, Japan has a universal healthcare system, rather than a single payer

system. Japan has a hybrid system, funded by job based premiums and taxes, which

consumes about 8% of the national GDP. Even when the healthcare isn’t fully funded by the

government, the government guarantees healthcare by implementing price ceilings on the

costs, so no matter your income, you’re guaranteed coverage. The system isn’t what

completely makes the country healthy, daily life habits is what really makes the difference.

Japanese citizens visit the doctor 4 times for often than American, focusing primarily on

preventative practices rather the reactionary practices. Despite all these positives, there

are some downfalls. Skilled doctors in Japan tend to leave and go elsewhere, seeking higher

pay. Similar to Canada, long wait lines are common for non-death threatening issues. Just as

the Wharton article does a great job putting a face on the Canadian healthcare system, this

article does the same for Japan, and there's certainly a lot to take away from it.

There is undoubtedly a plethora of information one can take away from this article,

and it’s arguably one of the top articles I've read focusing on Japan. The main ideas I can

take away from this article include the idea of a hybrid system, lifestyle habits, and doctor

visits. On all of these fronts, the Japanese are out doing Americans. The Japanese average

life expectancy is 83.84, while America's is 78.74. This mainly falls on the lifestyle the

Japanese people carry out, not necessarily the quality of treatment they are receiving. The

people of Japan visit the doctor on average 14 times per year, which is 4 times for than the

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/06/AR2009090601630.html

Page | 32


typical American. This is because it costs nothing out of pocket for the Japanese, so why

wouldn’t you take all the necessary precautions? This article ultimately helps lead me to

answering my question, that maybe America would be better off adopting a universal

health care, similar to that of Japan, rather than the single payer system in Canada.

Kazuaki Nagata, Shusuke Murai. "Japan, Asia Development Bank to Promote

Universal Health Care in Asia-Pacific." Japan Times, 05 May 2017. EBSCOhost,

search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nfh&AN=2W6501650203.

Although this article doesn’t have much meat to it, it does contain some useful

information. First off being that Japan is a leading nation in the region promoting universal

health care. However, Japan as well as surrounding nations are experiencing a major aging

problem. By 2050, 1 in 4 people in the region will be above 60. This creates major problems

for nations running under a universal healthcare systems, because costs will rise

dramatically. Since 60+ year olds are necessarily contributing members of society,

government spending towards them doesn’t have much economic benefit. To combat this

problem, organizations such as the ADP (Asia Development Bank) are promoting public-

private entities on projects that benefit the using more efficient private-sector expertise.

There isn’t a lot to take away from this article, but there a couple few points I didn’t

want to pass up. These major points include combatting an aging population under

universal healthcare, as well as the fact that Japan is a leading example of universal

healthcare in Japan. If under universal healthcare, it’s the law to provide everybody with

sufficient health care, however it can become costly if those consuming the healthcare

aren’t contributing members of society. However, there are ways to combat this issue, such

as better prive-public communication to create programs that are more efficient. Despite

http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nfh&AN=2W6501650203

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the aging population issue, this article states that Japan is a leader in universal healthcare

in the region. This shows that there are many aspects of the system that the US should

consider adapting if the ideology of Americans change.

Merelli, Annalisa. “A History of Why the US Is the Only Rich Country without

Universal Health Care.” Quartz, Quartz, 18 July 2017, qz.com/1022831/why-

doesnt-the-united-states-have-universal-health-care/.

This is a great article that explains how the US healthcare system got to this point. It

starts off by saying it’s because we have yet to adapt a universal healthcare system of some

sort, and for two main reasons. Those two main reasons are the universal healthcare allows

for the government to negotiate and regulate the price of drugs and medical services, and it

eliminates a large private health-insurance bureaucracy. Basically the government's role in

the American healthcare system is to subsidize the extremely large costs sets by the for-

profit market. The root of the problem stems from WWII. During WWII FDR imposed a

freeze on labor wages, which caused companies to offer healthcare to retain their workers.

Even Though the rest of the population wasn’t covered, it meant the unions didn’t put any

pressure on the government to create a public healthcare system.

This is the best article I have found that explains how the US got to where we

currently expands. This is necessary in answering my question, because you have to know

the root of the problem before you can find a solution to it. As we figured out, the root of

the problem started during WWII, and we never turned back until Obama Care. Even

though this article focuses specifically on America, it contains that necessary info in order

to understand how we got here. It also suggests that even though universal healthcare

would make much more economic sense, it would be a mess trying to dismantle our

http://qz.com/1022831/why-doesnt-the-united-states-have-universal-health-care/

http://qz.com/1022831/why-doesnt-the-united-states-have-universal-health-care/

Page | 34


current system to that extent. It would cost many jobs, at least 800,000 in the health

insurance industry, so it’s difficult for any party to propose an idea where that would be the

result. Basically we’ve dug ourselves into a massive hole, and were going to need a miracle

to get us out of it.

Otake, Tomoko. "Japan's Buckling Health Care System at a Crossroads." Japan Times,

20 Feb. 2017. EBSCOhost,

search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nfh&AN=2W62254897219&site

=ehost-live.

This article really talks about the downfalls of the Japanese system, despite looking

very appealing from the outside looking in. With the arrival of new drugs and technology,

causing costs to rise and putting great stress on the system as a whole. Even though the

premiums have risen, they haven’t risen nearly as close to those in America, where one can

go bankrupt because of medical bills. Cost has now become a weak point of the Japanese

healthcare system, which ultimately falls on the aging population. Tsugawa suggests that

Japan needs to alter how they reform health care, rather than relying on guts and instinct,

lean more on expertise and theory, which is relatively self explanatory. Japan needs to start

educating doctors better as well, due to the fact the experienced doctors are leaving to seek

higher pay elsewhere.

Even though the Japan health care system looks appealing, there are many issues

that the government needs to fix moving forward. What I’m able to take from this article

that universal healthcare is only successful if costs are kept low, and anything that

threatens costs rising has detrimental implications on the system as a whole. In order to

maintain the highest standard of quality healthcare in the world, Japan will need to figure

http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nfh&AN=2W62254897219&site

Page | 35


out how to keep costs down, and experts don’t have a solution at the moment. If the US

were to adopt a universal healthcare system, keeping costs low would be crucial, and

unfortunately we cannot turn to Japan for advice on that front. Also, having medical

proficient professionals is crucial, despite giving them high salaries and plentiful

government benefits in order to keep them in America.

Otake, Tomoko. "Japan's Healthcare System Edges Foreign Care in Expat Survey."

Japan Times, 20 Feb. 2017. EBSCOhost,

search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nfh&AN=2W62059556244&site

=ehost-live.

Roy, Avik. “If Universal Health Care Is The Goal, Don't Copy Canada.” Forbes, Forbes

Magazine, 13 June 2014, www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2014/06/13/if-

universal-health-care-is-the-goal-dont-copy-canada/#74bdfbf078d5.

This article suggest that universal healthcare would make sense for America in the

long run, just don’t copy Canada. Canada pays the 2nd most for health care of the members

of OECD, which in itself is a major downfall. On average, Canadians wait four and a half

months to receive medically necessary treatment after a referral from a general

practitioner. Many of the nations in OECD report no long wait times, so looking towards

those countries to keep waits down would certainly be beneficial. When debating what

healthcare system we should eventually adapt, rather than copying Canada's, we should

look towards Canada’s system to learn what we should avoid.

This article helps answer my question because it eliminates the possibility of

completely copying Canada’s healthcare system. What this article doesn’t provide however

http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nfh&AN=2W62059556244&site

http://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2014/06/13/if-universal-health-care-is-the-goal-dont-copy-canada/#74bdfbf078d5

http://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2014/06/13/if-universal-health-care-is-the-goal-dont-copy-canada/#74bdfbf078d5

Page | 36


what we SHOULDN’T adopt from Canada, but what it does tell us is that Canada has one of

the longest average wait times of member OECD countries. In order to fully answer my

question, I will need to get to the root of the long wait line issue, in order to solve it before

America considers adopting a universal healthcare system. I will be looking towards other

nations with short wait lines to determine a solution, and Japan is better with wait lines,

but not the best by any means.

Torry, Jack. "Is single-payer possible in U.S. health system?." Dayton Daily News. 04

Jul. 2017 eLibrary. Web. 25 Sep. 2017.

This article focuses a lot on that idea that a single-payer system is possible in the US, thanks

to the help of candidates such as Bernie Sanders. As Bernie Sanders states “If every other

major country on earth can do it, surely this country can do it as well”. The article talks

about even though dismantling our current healthcare system wouldn’t be short of

disastrous, the benefits in the long run are certainly not worth passing up. Basically it’s a

win-win situation unless you're a drug company or insurance company. Now the debate

over job loss arises, and those two words provoke Americans unlike any other. Even though

these companies are taking extreme advantage over our own people, some of us cannot

look past the idea of job loss in America.

This helps answer my question more indirectly than directly, because it showcases

that the idea of a single-payer system has gained steam in America. In recent years,

America ideology on health care has shifted for some, but unfortunately not for all. Despite

being a disaster dismantling our current healthcare system, it’s a necessary step to allow

future generations of Americans to prosper. This article doesn’t directly say that a single-

Page | 37


payer system would work in America necessarily, which leads me to the idea of a universal

healthcare system instead. If our government is able to enforce the regulations of universal

health care and keep costs down for all, we would most definitely reap in the benefits in the

long run, similar to the other major countries in the world.

"U.S. healthcare by the numbers." Reuters Health Medical News, 16 Mar. 2012.

Science In Context,

go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=GPS&sw=w&u=nape46071&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA283

096837&it=r&asid=9135b4843e568cd7c1e7bf36ac6142ab. Accessed 18 Oct. 2017.

1st in spending, 1st in obesity, 2nd in prevalence of diabetes, 7th in cancer

incidence, 11th of 11 in unmet need for care due to cost, 27th in life expectancy, 31st in

health coverage, 31st in infant mortality, 31st in preventing premature death. All this

article does is list statistics that have a negative connotation about the current US

healthcare system. All of these statistics are out of the 34 members of OECD which is the

Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Although there are

some statistics such as short wait lines and others, the negatives undoubtedly outweigh the

positives. This would be a great read for the few of those who still think our current

healthcare system is worth keeping.

This article also indirectly answers my question, furthering the idea that something

needs to change with the American healthcare system. The amount of money we are

putting into healthcare is absurd, considering the fact that statistics aren’t pointing to

health care system doing there job. The article does mention that it would make better

sense for the US do adapt a universal healthcare system, in which everyone is covered,

http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=GPS&sw=w&u=nape46071&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA283

Page | 38


either by private or public institutions. We will need to figure out how to keep our waiting

lines down, costs down and change our lifestyle habits before the system gains any

improvement, and turning towards Japan or Canada, there is a lot we can learn from

either system.

"When it comes to waiting, Canada is last in line." Maclean's, 25 Feb. 2013, p. 4+.

Opposing Viewpoints In Context,

go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=GPS&sw=w&u=nape46071&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE%7

C A320590400&asid=0712df6bc64a7e5c79e28b5a351450a9. Accessed 25 Sept.

2017.

Despite Canada being a leading example of a successful single-payer system for

countries around the globe, there are some glaring statistics that we should try to avoid.

The major one being average wait lines. According to OECD Canada is out of 5 countries out

of 22 that report long wait-time issues in all six possible health care categories, ranging

from the ER to long-term care. Along with this, Canada spends above the OECD per capita

average on health care, even though the results aren’t there like they are for other

countries. These average wait lines have been improving however, but they still aren’t

great. According another survey conducted by the OECD, out of 11 countries, Canadians

visit the emergency the most frequently. This is because there isn’t any out of pocket costs

for visiting the emergency room, yet the downfall is extremely long wait lines for others

who need help immediately.

This article gives a lot of fuel for thought. In order for the US to even consider

promoting a single-payer healthcare system to the people of America, politicians must have

http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=GPS&sw=w&u=nape46071&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE%7C

http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?p=GPS&sw=w&u=nape46071&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE%7C

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developed a way to keep these wait lines down. What I’m thinking is that keeping wait lines

doesn’t necessarily fall on the government's shoulders, yet more so on the people. If the

people wish to abuse the healthcare system by taking necessary precautions, wait lines will

continue to rise. The only way governments can combat this issue is by hiring more doctors

and nurses, getting more medical equipment and facilities, which results in a substantial

amount of government spending. Therefore, the government theoretically would raise

taxes to combat these costs, which isn’t beneficial for everyone. Overall, if we wish to adopt

a single-payer system, there must be a solution to the wait lines before we consider

adopting it.

Page | 40


Before conducting any research, I originally planned to analyze why America is one of the

only wealthy countries in the world yet to adopt universal health care, despite the fact that

universal health care systems have been proven to work in other highly developed

countries. I fine-tuned the question various times, with the end goal to make the question

more globally-focused. After successfully making the question more globally-focused, I had

to choose two countries to analyze. I chose Canada because I was born there but more

importantly, it fit the necessary requirements needed to help fuel my research. I also chose

Japan because it has been a perennial example for universal healthcare and the benefits it

has on everyone, if implemented correctly. My question is essential to answering sooner

rather than later due to the fact that the US drastically overpays for healthcare. If we look

towards Canada or Japan, what could we take from both systems to make create a system

that fits the wants and needs of all Americans. I really wanted to research this topic

because very soon I will be paying taxes, and voting. I deem it necessary that my tax money

is going towards systems such as healthcare is being allocated efficiently so that America

will prosper as a whole. I will also get to vote for candidates who either support universal

health care, or oppose it and researching my question will help me vote for a candidate that

will do the best for America. I intend to discover a solution to my question by browsing

databases, as well as reaching out to on the the ground experts in Canada as well as Japan. I

have unraveled an abundance of quality sources that will allow me to increase my

understanding upon the topic. In total, I have read at least thirty sources from databases on

Page | 41


our library page. These articles focus on the current US healthcare system, Japanese

healthcare, as well as Canadian Healthcare. They give pros and cons for all, and ultimately I

will formulate what the US should take from either country to help establish a better

healthcare system for all. I have reached out to an on the ground expert in Japan that my

teacher Mr. Brady and I found on the U.S. State Department website. Mr. Yokota, who we

first reached out to wasn’t exactly willing to assist, but then said he would reach out to his

colleagues in Japan. He then later replied and asked me to reach out to Dr. Tatsu Kono. Dr.

Kono gave us a very informative pdf file that specifically focuses on the costs of healthcare in

Japan, as well as the results. I intended to setup a Skype call with Dr. Kono, however it never

ended coming together in the end. I then reached out to Ms. Leann Hackmann-Carty, who

Mr. Brady found on the US Department Alumni Exchange website as well. She then referred

me to four separate Canadian Healthcare experts. Only one has responded, Salim Hasham,

and we ended up having a very informative skype call for over 45 minutes. Mr. Hasham

stressed many key ideas, but the one he undoubtedly stressed the most is that countries

must acknowledge healthcare to be a basic human right, rather than a privilege, before any

steps towards a universal healthcare system would be possible. In his opinion, as Universal

Healthcare pertains to the US, the only way it could be made possible would be on the state

level, rather than Federal. Taking his advice, I went out and seeked help from Illinois State

Representatives across various counties. After I gather all the information necessary, I will

be proposing a resolution during the next session in the Illinois State House to establish a

universal healthcare system for all in Illinois. Ideally I will be working on the resolution with

a State Representative to add another dimension of credibility to the resolution. I have

reached out to Rep. Wehrli and Rep. Connolly, and neither have been

Page | 42


successful thus far. Rep. Connolly replied saying universal healthcare isn’t something he

deals with on the state level, which I know isn’t the case. Rep. Wehrli has yet to reply. I have

now reached out to Senator Biss, who is running for governor in the State of Illinois. He is

in avid supporter of a universal healthcare system in Illinois, and we have set up a phone

call in the coming days. I have also reached out to Senator Sodo and Representative

Litchford about an in person meeting, and both are in the works at the moment. I will need

to find a government official to present to and or meet with, or I will have to change my

artifact. Mr. Brady believes he can work something out with the Chicago Global Affairs

Office to set something up, and I’m currently waiting to here if that will be a realistic

possibility of not. If meeting with a government official doesn’t come through, I intend to

create a document of some sort and send it to congress and have a representative sign off

on it so it can be debated in session. The question I now have formulated is “ Why has

America has yet to establish a health care system that will be effective for generations to

come. By looking towards countries with successful healthcare systems such as Japan and

Canada, what can we adopt from either system to best suit the U.S moving forward?”

Page | 43

DOCUMENT 3

Causes Behind the 2014 West African

Ebola Outbreak and Future Prevention

Measures:

A Formal Narrative

Victoria Hurd

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Hurd 1

Step Three: Draw Conclusions and Propose Solutions to Experts

I found that the rapid spread of the Ebola virus can be categorized into seven different

reasons. Each reason is distinct and has specific reasons for the spread. I categorized them as one

through seven in chronological order.

The beginning of the 2014 outbreak began in the small village of Meliandou, in the forest

region of southern Guinea. A small group of children were playing outside and came near a large,

tall tree. They could hear strange sounds emanating from inside the trunk, so a few went in to

investigate. They discovered a large colony of bats, and bushmeat was a part of the village’s diet.

As a result, village adults came out to the tree of interest, lit a fire underneath it, and carried all of

the bats back to their families. Most villagers ate the animals, which happened to be infected with

the Ebola Zaire virus. A few weeks later, many of the villagers and their families fell ill. They did

not know that the bats could be carrying the deadly virus, and also did not know that this same

virus still lives up to forty-two days after its host is dead. The effect of Ebola’s lifespan is the

main reason why the villagers of Meliandou fell sick; Ebola is easily transmitted from animals to

communities that eat bushmeat. Therefore, the first cause of the outbreak is the eating of wild,

scavenged meat without proper preparation.

Many of the affected families in Meliandou fell ill. As person after person was killed by

the virus, traditional caretakers would enter the home, dispose of the body, and clean the house of

blood. A week or two later, these same caretakers would fall ill. Two words can account for the

transmission from the bodies to the living: unprotected contact. The traditional caretakers

disposed of the bodies and cleaned the house of blood without the use of proper protective gear

and disinfection techniques. Ebola highly infectious and is transmitted through the contact of

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Hurd 2

bodily fluids, something that can be prevented with proper techniques and sanitation. These

methods, however, were not implemented by many affected West African populations.

Unprotected contact with those infected with Ebola caused aggressive spread of the virus;

this phenomenon was especially seen through the practice of unsafe burials. Traditional burials of

the dead included the washing and beautifying of the body, a practice carried out without proper

safety precautions. During the ceremony itself, those who attended touched or kissed the body as

a way of saying goodbye. Many believed that if the ceremony did not include these practices,

their dead would have haunted them as a result of not being properly honored. This situation was

apparent throughout West Africa. One particularly devastating instance of an improper burial

took place during the funeral of Mendinor, a renowned traditional healer. Mendinor was

worshipped by thousands and was considered a god to some villages. She was called upon in very

serious cases, such as that of Ebola. During one visit with an Ebola-infected patient, she

contracted the illness herself and died a few weeks later. People residing in the far reaches of

Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone attended her funeral and prepped her for the service. All of the

preparations were carried out sans use of protective gear. Thousands said their traditional

goodbyes at the service unprotected. Many of those who attended this service brought Ebola to

their hometowns, exponentially increasing the number of Ebola cases; Unsafe burials strongly

contributed to the vast quantity of cases.

Generally, a country’s government should have a plan in place in case of a large scale

disaster; plans, protocols, and preparations should all be at the ready in case disaster strikes.

When disaster hit Guinea, however, the country’s government froze. No immediate action was

taken and no long-term plans were implemented. The country initially did nothing to stop the

spread, to stop the deaths of its people. When the government eventually did take action, it was

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Hurd 3

miniscule, unable to contain the disease. Guinea’s government sent out a small group of doctors

into the forest region where the cases were most prominent; the group ran tests to see what they

were up against. After they found out it was Ebola, the government froze yet again, due to lack of

coordination and experience with the disease itself. This shortcoming caused another spike in

cases and caused the disease to broaden its reaches.

The Guinean government’s lack of action caused outside organizations to step in and take

charge. The World Health Organization and Doctors Without Borders were the two most

prominent organizations that worked to try and stop the outbreak. Doctors Without Borders came

up with a basic three step plan: Isolate the sick, monitor contact, and implement safe burial

methods. However, applying this strategy on such a broad scale was beyond the resources of

Doctors Without Borders. They did not have sufficient manpower, money, or respect. The World

Health Organization, on the other hand, did not create a specific plan, or even a way to assist the

governments or Doctors Without Borders. They saw themselves as assistants for the countries’

governments, not those to take direct, on-the-ground field action. They believed they were to

coordinate the outbreaks, but not to be involved in the action itself. As a result, the situation was

left in the hands of the government and Doctors Without Borders. The shortcomings of these two

organizations was damaging, allowing for Ebola to spiral out of control.

The World Health Organization’s ignorance of the issue as well as the lack of manpower

within Doctors Without Borders left the governments of Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone

mainly responsible for attempting to control the outbreak. Hospitals were set up throughout the

West African area. However, although the hospitals were set up, they were not managed

correctly. The governments, wholly incapable and inexperienced, failed to ensure proper hygiene

policies. Many of the hospitals were in horrific conditions. Inadequate hygiene, unsanitary waste

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Hurd 4

management, reused needles, unsafe burials, and improper, essentially useless protective gear

were all immense issues looming over these “Ebola clinics.” The deficiency of proper policies

caused the death of nearly all patients as well as the deaths of nurses and doctors. To make

matters worse, these bodies were laid in public streets, where residents of communities could

freely and effortlessly contract Ebola themselves.

The deaths of those within these clinics caused the formation of wild rumors. Due to the

all too common observation that those who were admitted to the hospitals never came back, the

public began to believe that patients had been deceived. In the town of Kenema, the third largest

city in Sierra Leone, citizens began to believe that Ebola was not real, and was instead a front for

cannibalism. A mob of angry citizens attempted to overrun the hospital and “rescue” the patients

trapped inside. In the area of West Point slums, the poorest neighborhood in Monrovia, Liberia, a

similar situation played out. It was believed that Ebola was a hoax to kill poor Africans in an

attempt to remove them, an “unwanted” class, from society. Again, a mob attempted to overrun

the local clinic. This time, however, they succeeded. Rioters took over the hospital, running

through the makeshift center without so much as socks or shoes. Infectious items were stolen and

the contagious victims disappeared back into the slums. These wild rumors were a final,

prominent cause, finally raising the Ebola count to the highest numbers seen throughout the span

of the outbreak.

All seven of these underlying reasons for the spread of the Ebola epidemic-- the

consumption of bushmeat, improper contact with the afflicted, unsafe burials, lack of

governmental action, purportless organizational action, unhygienic hospital conditions, and

unaddressed rumors-- can be attributed to a single fundamental cause: lack of knowledge. If all

were made more knowledgeable about Ebola and the basics of an Ebola outbreak, the epidemic

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Hurd 5

of 2014 would have been much less devastating. If the Meliandou villagers had known not to

consume undercooked, underprepared bushmeat, the spread may never have began and could

have died out with the infected bat population. If the traditional caretakers of villages had known

how to properly protect themselves, the spread would have been isolated in Meliandou. If those

who attended Mendinor’s funeral service knew not to touch any infected corpse, Ebola would not

have traveled to the far reaches of West Africa. If the government knew how to best apprehend

Ebola through the studying of cases in the Democratic Republic of the Congo a few decades ago,

safe hospitals could have been set up and cases could have been tracked. If the World Health

Organization knew that governments typically fail to properly isolate disease and if Doctors

Without Borders knew to gain respect from the public and to acquire more resources, the

outbreak would have stopped earlier. If hospitals were set up with basic knowledge of how Ebola

is spread, no nurses or doctors would have died and the wild, circulating rumors would never

have began. If the general West African public knew more about what was going on from an

administrative perspective as well as if they knew more about Ebola in general, the clinics would

never have been overrun and the epidemic would have been taken more seriously. General

knowledge, both for the public and administrations, is the key to impeding epidemics.

Step Four: Create Artifact

After the drawing of my conclusion, I video chatted with my primary resource, Mr.

Marah. During the hour and a half video chat, I ran my findings past Mr. Marah, who fully agreed

with me. He continued to ask me how I planned to solve this issue, where some of my first

difficulties with the project arose. At first, I thought that a written letter to the World Health

Organization explaining my conclusions and how they could improve their practices. Mr. Marah

pointed out that this specific solution would not properly address all of those who I decided

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Hurd 6

needed to be educated. I realized he was correct; a letter to the World Health Organization

couldn’t help those in villages such as Meliandou. My next idea was a video identifying the

causes and explaining Ebola basics. Mr. Marah and I decided that this could hypothetically reach

all of those who I decided my project needed to reach. The only issue was how much an audience

would be interested in such a project. Many might see a video as boring and stay unengaged,

therefore learning nothing, unhelpful if disaster were to strike again.

At a loss for what to do next, I decided to try and bounce ideas off of others who were

immersed in the Ebola epidemic. Mr. Marah got me in touch with more people who could be

considered experts on my issue: Abubakarr Kamara, Tamba Abdulai, Sulaiman Kamara, and

Emmanuel Kelly. I now had five experts who could try to give me ideas. I created a

questionnaire about the outbreak that I had my experts fill out, and then they would give the

questionnaire to others to fill out. Although this specific action gave me very interesting

information, it did not lead me to the creation of my artifact. After this unfortunate loss, I had a

conversation with Mr. Sulaiman Kamara as well as Mr. Marah. They told me about an

organization they were involved in called the Youth Exchange and Study program, of which

they were both ambassadors. They work primarily with children in Sierra Leonean schools. This

gave me the idea to compare those schools to those in my own life; How do my peers and I learn

best? Definitely not through a video, many of us fall asleep. However, it suddenly struck me that

games such as Kahoot keep us entertained and engaged. I decided that if a game keeps US

students interested, a game should keep Sierra Leone students interested as well. Again, I turned

to Mr. Marah for advice. He said he loved the idea and had never heard of such an action plan

before, but that it should work well. Students would learn. However, we then realized that this

would not directly reach the administrative levels of authority, such as the higher-ups of the

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Hurd 7

World Health Organization or the governmental members of Guinea. After discussing with the

other experts, we decided that the immediacy need not matter. Those same students who would

be shown this video would grow up to be those members and could replace the older generation

in a few years’ time. I had found my artifact, the epitome and true purpose of my research.

The next step for me was decided how the game would be played and what it would

consist of. At first, I wanted to make a quiz game, just like that of Kahoot. This type of game is

played by displaying a question through a projector and having students answer the questions

through cellular devices or computers. However, Mr. Marah informed me that most students do

not have access to a cellular device (more than half) and that most classrooms do not have a

projector, making a game like Kahoot impossible. Instead, I decided to create a choose-your-

own-adventure game. This type of game has a series of scenarios contained multiple options of

what to do next where the player chooses which option. Most times the game is played, a

different “adventure” is experienced.

A new problem presented itself after this decision; what should be the basis of the game?

At first, I wanted the player to be immersed in the situation and try to evade the contraction of

Ebola. However, Mr. Marah drew to my attention that this may be very insensitive. There was no

possible way that I could understand the true degree of Ebola and there was no way that I could

write about in a knowledgeable way. The students who would play the game would understand

being a citizen of West Africa much better than me. This type of game would be better for those in

other parts of the world. For a while, I was stuck. We were out of ideas, struggling to find a basis

for the game. One night, I was researching Doctors Without Borders out of curiosity when it

struck me that the children would not be able to relate to being a doctor for this organization. I

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Hurd 8

could make the player be a member of Doctors Without Borders, sent to help the public with this

tragedy.

The only step left for me was to actually create the game. It took hours of drawing out

different plans and different scenarios attempting to create a cohesive game that included all of

the elements that needed to be taught throughout the program. After all of my storylines were

created and after I had checked that all of my learning points were distributed and correctly

woven into the story, I had to put this story into a program that was accessible throughout the

world. The first program I chose seemed perfect. It was easy to follow and easy to program.

However, the program was incredibly outdated, and after a small amount of research, I realized

that its creators were planning to shut it down in solely a few months, meaning none of my

progress would be saved. For the second program to work correctly, I had to learn basic coding.

After learning the fundamentals and putting a few hours of work into the program, I learned that

my game could only be played on the computer it was created on, and therefore could not be

played in a country halfway across the world. Finally, I found my final program, up and running

for the foreseeable future and accessible to those in Sierra Leone, known as textadventures.co.uk.

That same night, I stayed up until five in the morning solely programming my game. The next

day, half running off of adrenaline and half off of caffeine, I sent the link to my experts in Sierra

Leone. Posted here is the live link to my artifact:

http://play2.textadventures.co.uk/Play.aspx?id=pm25qqwta0uysr2wxipt-a

Step Five: Communicate with On the Ground Experts and Revise Artifact

A few days after the creation of my choose-your-own-adventure game, I received

collective feedback from Mr. Marah. He asked me to incorporate a set of instructions as well as

http://textadventures.co.uk/

http://play2.textadventures.co.uk/Play.aspx?id=pm25qqwta0uysr2wxipt-a

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Hurd 9

to add in a few extra slides in the beginning to make it more of a “story.” I fixed these few

changes, and we considered it done.

This seems like very little to revise my final artifact. However, due to Mr. Marah and I’s

close communication, not much was necessary. We worked hand-in-hand to create the storyline

as well as the programs details, such as the basis, the options, and the elements incorporated. We

made sure that the language was sensitive to the students, that it would properly communicate

my finding with the youth in an interactive way, and that it served as an appropriate vehicle to to

affect change in the future. It properly exhibited my findings, using reasoning and evidence. Mr.

Marah and I worked together to make sure everything was perfectly in order. Therefore, very

little needed to be changed after my game was finalized.

Step Six: Take Action to Affect Change

This action plan, as it was entirely based upon the findings and summations of my

research, was believed by Mr. Marah and myself to have enough information to inspire change.

So the next step needed was to create a way to measure the information learned through playing

the game. After much deliberation, I decided to create a “questionnaire” of sorts, a survey that

focuses on the main elements of my research that were incorporated into my game. These

elements include correct consumption of bushmeat, correct hygiene practices when dealing with

unknown ailments, safe burial practices, common symptoms, and the debunking of rumors that

circulated West Africa during the time of the outbreak.

The questionnaire itself contained specific questions that directly asked the respondent

their opinions and thoughts on each of these subjects. Here is a list of those questions:

1. What is your name?

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Hurd 10

2. How old are you?

3. What are some signs that a person has the Ebola virus?

4. What are some ways that you could get Ebola?

5. Does Ebola have a cure?

6. Is keeping someone infected with Ebola away from others a good idea? Why?

7. Should experts spend time tracking down the friends and family of those who are sick?

8. Is Ebola a hoax?

9. Can you touch an infected victim without any protective gear?

10. How long does it take for Ebola to show symptoms?

Mr. Marah and I decided that the best place for my game to be put into action would be a

school of kids who are fourteen and younger. He also has direct contact with the St. Edward

Secondary School in Freetown, Sierra Leone due to his connections as a YES ambassador.

Trying to change the mindsets of children of this age is most important as they are just now

learning who they want to be in the future. Armed with correct knowledge of epidemics and how

to prevent them in the future will lead to more accurately informed teachers, doctors, lawyers, et

cetera. In addition, some cultures in West Africa encourage pregnancies at this age, and it is

important that correct knowledge is passed down to offspring. We proposed our ideas to

Sulaiman Kamara, who agreed and offered to help administer the action plan as he is also a YES

ambassador for the same school as Mr. Marah.

In April of 2018, Mr. Marah and Mr. Kamara had some of the St. Edwards Secondary

School students play my game, dubbed “Rapid Response: Ebola.” I had them ask the kids to

answer the questionnaire first, play the game, and then answer the same questionnaire again. I

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Hurd 11

would use the discrepancies between their two answers in order to measure the amount that the

kids learned by playing the game itself.

I believe that it is most important to focus on the data from the students who gave the

most promising results. The respondent who gave the most discrepancies, and therefore learned

the most, was a student named Joseph Alie Thoronka, nicknamed Alie. He is twelve. Alie’s

answers before and after playing the game were very, very different. From the first

questionnaire, we can see that there are two types of discrepancies found in his results; they were

either completely changed answers or answers that had more detail in the second questionnaire

than the first.

The most shocking result for me was the fact that, in the beginning, Alie thought that

Ebola was not real. I have an audio message of him saying, “Yes, Ebola is a hoax.” However,

after playing the game, he said that “Ebola is a real disease that can hurt a lot of people,” proving

that my game did its job and effectively taught young children the truth behind Ebola.

Alie’s change in mindset about the reality of Ebola was a complete 180 from his initial

mindset. Alie also had observable changes from playing the game through an elaboration on his

previous responses. For example, when asked about some ways that someone could contract

Ebola, initially he only said “through other people,” but afterwards he said “by eating bushmeat

not made properly and touching other people.” Not only is this an elaboration on his initial

answer on other people, but it also adds another element taught through the game itself.

Most of my responses had similar results. Most were not as drastic, but still had

observable, positive changes. The game I created, “Rapid Response: Ebola,” had a positive,

measurable effect on the younger community of West Africa and effectively taught the public

about the tragedy of Ebola, possibly preventing a future disaster of such magnitude.

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Hurd 12

Step Seven: Reflect

This project develops my understanding of global learning because it showed me an

accurate perception of life in other countries. I had to learn other customs and cultures in order to

effectively complete my project, such as the daily lifestyles of those in Sierra Leone, the

pressures that faced young children and parents due to political unrest, and the differences

between US schools and Sierra Leone schools. All of these differences showed me that life in

other countries can be drastically different from that of the US, proving how lucky we are to live

in such a free society.

This process was filled with numerous successes balanced out with numerous failures. All

of these eventually led me to my finished project, something that I believe was successful. My

failures included issues finding specific, relevant, new information, which was hard to come by.

Most of the research I found was repetitive or was unrelated to my project. However, after

reaching out to Mr. Marah, I found much more information that was more reliable and more

helpful, as it came directly from people who experienced Ebola firsthand. Another significant

failure was creating the artifact itself. I struggled to figure out a way to communicate my findings

in an interesting way that would educate the public for years to come. Even after realizing I

wanted to create a game, the basis around the game was difficult due to sensitivity issues. I did

not want to offend anyone who may have lost a loved one throughout that tragedy. After figuring

out a basis that was much less sensitive, I created and perfected my artifact with the help of Mr.

Marah. My final struggle was based around political unrest in Sierra Leone. There was an election

going on around February and March of 2018 which created so much public anxiety that many

wouldn’t allow their kids to go to school, much less help an American stranger with a school

project that was based around a tragedy that parents believed to have been

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Hurd 13

orchestrated by the government. After the election, deploying my artifact became much easier, I

just had to wait until April. I had many successes throughout the process of this project. I believe

the biggest and most helpful was finding Mr. Marah, someone who willingly became an enormous

part of my project. He connected me with helpful research as well as four other experts who also

wanted to become a part of my project. Lastly, as a YES ambassador, he happily helped administer

my artifact to students of the school that he worked for. All of these were small successes but came

from one large one: Mr. Marah himself.

This project has taught me to become globally competent and to understand the world

around me to a new degree. I plan to continue my global education from this project through more

research similar to this one throughout my college career, and even possibly becoming a part of the

Engineers Without Borders program after graduation. I am immensely thankful for the experience

from this venture; it has changed how I view the world around me for the rest of my life.

Page | 57

DOCUMENT 4

Sarah K*** - class project Inbox x n e

a

Sarah K*** <******@stu.naperville203.org>

to jasflip111 -

2:57 PM (22 hours ago)

Dear Mary,

I hope you are doing well! I know my mom talked to you about my class project and about

needing some people to talk to. So just more about what I'm pursuing. Recently, there's a new

certificate you can receive called "Illinois Global Scholar Certificate, which essentially shows that

you are a global citizen and are involved in global issues, not just in the United States. My

project is about disability 'unding and government programs in China. I'm researching what the

current program in China is and how it has developed in history. At the end, I have to develop an

action plan that would carry out a possible solution to the problem. I have attached my official

proposal and tiesis that goes more in depth.

GI Proposal/Thesis/Methodology

I'd like to interview you and the China director for Joni and Friends, if that is at all

possible. If you could put me in email contact with the China director tha: would be

great, also if they speak english or not. A phone conversation would be the best way for

me to document our interview.

Thanks for your help!

Sarah K***

PS. This is my school email.

mailto:******@stu.naperville203.org

Page | 58

DOCUMENT 5

Artifact Creation Question and his response

(The source he recommended never emailed me nor responded to the email

I sent him.) My response to his response above and my Initial Artifact

review request.

Page | 59

S e n d i n g m y r e q u e s t f o r h i s a p p r o v a l o n m y a r t i f a c t i n a n e w e m a i l c h a i n ( 2 n d t i m e ) a n d

h i s r e s p o n s e .

Chad Sype <[email protected]> Nov 16 (5 days ago) Ir

to Umesh -

Dear Mr. Dhimal,

As I have mentioned in my previous email, I have been working on making an Informational Earthquake and Structural Safety video in Nepali for the average citizen.

Attached to this email is the script for the video. The left column is what will be said by the Narrator in Nepali while the right column details what the animators will do.

I would really appreciate your input on what I should add or change. If you have any questions please feel free to ask. I really need a response by November 19th at the latest. I'm sorry for any inconvenience but I really appreciate your willingness to help so far.

Regards, Chad Sype Phone: 6308802423

W 1st Draft Nepali

Umesh Dhimal

to me -

Dear Mr. Sype, I will send by saturday evening,

regards umesh dhimal

Clarification and Completion.

Umesh Dhumal

to me -

Dear Mr Sype Do you want me to narrate in nepali or write ?

Rgds

Umesh Dhimal

Sent from my iPhone

•••

Chad Sype <[email protected]>

to Umesh

Dear Mr. Dhimal,

Nov 16 (5 days ago)

Nov 18 (3 days ago)

Nov 18 (3 days ago)

You do not need to narrate or write in Nepali. I was hoping you could review everything I stated in the script for accuracy and correctness. I was hoping you could take a

look at the script to see if there is anything that should be changed, taken out, or added in. If you would like to translate in writing the left column of the document please

feel free to.

Thank you very much, Chad Sype

Umesh Dhimal Nov 18 (3 days

ago) to me -

Dear Mr. Sype,

Please find the edited script.

regards

umesh dhimal

mailto:[email protected]


Page | 60

T r a n s l a t i o n p o s s i b i l i t y ?

Chad Sype <[email protected]> Nov 20 (1

day ago) 1.

to Umesh -

Dear Mr. Dhimal,

I know I had told you in a previous email that I didn't need you to translate the left column in my script. However, upon further reflection, I've realized that it

would be incredibly beneficial if I could have someone who speaks Nepali daily translate my script. I was hoping, in a kind act of support, if you could

translate the left column of my script into Nepali. This would be incredibly helpful and impactful on the effectiveness of this video. If you were to do this, I

would kindly ask that you make sure each item on the right column lines up with what will be said in the left column. I don't know how long this is going to

take but if I could get this translated as soon as possible that would really help.

Thank you for all of your amazing help,

Chad Sype

Chad Sype <[email protected]>

to Umesh -

Dear Mr. Dhimal,

I would appreciate it if you could translate the new attached script.

Thanks again,

Chad Sype

11:13 PM (14 hours ago)



Page | 61

DOCUMENT 6

Page | 62

Page | 63

Abstract ------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2

Introduction ------------------------------------------------------------------- 3

History of Education Policy ------------------------------------------------ 6

Primary Issue ----------------------------------------------------------------- 7

Primary Solution ------------------------------------------------------------- 9

Call to Action/ Conclusion ------------------------------------------------ 10

Bibliography------------------------------------------------------------------11

Photograph References---------------------------------------------------- 12

Table of Contents

Page | 64

The goal of this white paper is to bring awareness to addressing the issue of disability

education inclusion in China. In February of 2017, China released an updated Regulations

on Education for Persons with Disabilities, which was effective May 1, 2017. This new

policy aimed to emphasize the ideals of compulsory and inclusive educational

opportunities for disabled students. Observers praised the government for writing policy

that strives to accurately address the complex issue of integrating disabled children into

mainstream primary and secondary schools. However, several months after the policy

took effect, it became clear that the statements made in these new regulations would not

improve the lives of the people it aimed to help. Instead, it merely explains what should

be done without a direct,

specific plan to solve the

issues. The real tragedy is

that the changes proposed in

the Regulations on Education

for Persons with Disabilities

could dramatically change

the lives of people with

disabilities. By allowing the distribution of resources and funds while simultaneously

working against the stigma that can be associated with disabilities, this new policy could

be successfully implemented in both urban and rural areas of China.

Abstract

Page | 65

According to the World Bank, one billion people, or 15% of the world’s population have a

disability. 4The International Classification of Functioning-Disability and Health (ICF) defines a

disability as a person afflicted with impairments, activity limitations, and participation

restrictions. More specifically “disabled” is an umbrella term and is understood as “the

interactions between individuals with a health condition (e.g. cerebral palsy, Down syndrome

and depression) and personal and environmental factors (e.g. negative attitudes, inaccessible

transportation and public buildings, and limited social supports).”5 As the obstacle of disability is

prevalent globally, people with disabilities continually seek promised assistance from their

respective governments.

To its credit, the Chinese central government’s role in the field of disability services has evolved

from avoiding the issue to creating policy measures specific to improving integration and support

services. Some recent policies include the Law on Basic Protection of the Disabled,

specifications in their Constitutions, and the Law on Protection of People with Disabilities 2008.

Together, these policies demonstrate that the government acknowledges the lack of assistance

that disabled citizens receive.

However, even as the central government pushes out policies to aid persons with disabilities, the

societal stigma associated with disabilities mutes the impact of these policies. As seen in 8 Figure

1, disabled persons live throughout all of China, meaning the stigma stays constant everywhere.

However, while this discriminatory attitude is still present, there is slow progress to change

social and societal perceptions of individuals with disabilities. For instance, prior to 1980,

persons with disabilities in China were referred to as canfei (残废), which meant “the

handicapped and useless,” but later the definition was changed, by the government, to

“persons with disabilities.” Now, forty years later, the definition has been refined as stipulated in

Article 2 of the Law on the Protection of Persons with Disabilities (2008), to reference people

Introduction

Page | 66

with "visual, hearing, speech or physical disabilities, intellectual disabilities, psychiatric

disabilities, multiple disabilities and/or other

disabilities."11 Though this categorization represents

progress, this definitional change has not translated into

overall attitude improvement.

In fact, Handicap International, an organization that

works alongside disabled people to respond to their

essential needs and promote respect for their

fundamental rights, reports “a majority of the 85 million

persons with disabilities in China live in poverty and

only one third of those needing rehabilitation services

have access to care.”3 The arduous cycle of poverty leaves persons with disabilities lacking

resources, economic stability, and more

specifically access and motivation for

education. Dr. Karen Fisher, professor at the

University of New South Wales explains

how education is essential to ending the

cycle of poverty.6 As seen in 9 Figure 2, only

60%-70% of disabled children are educated;

this is contrasted with close to 100% for the

able-bodied. In addition, after primary

school, fewer than 25% attend middle

school and less than 10% attend high school.

Chinese central government’s policies on

education have addressed disabilities for some

time. Among the documents that have

acknowledged the issue of disabled people are the

Changes in Law on Basic Protection of the

Disabled, The Educational Act for the Disabled,

Figure 1: Percentage of disabled persons

under 18

by location

Figure 2: Percentage of Disabled and Non-

disabled People in Education in All Levels of

Schooling

Non-disabled people

Page | 67

National Five Year Projects for the Disabled, 1988-1992, 1993-1998, 1998-2003 , and the

Eighth Five-Year Programme for Special Education( FPSE), 1991-1995; the ninth FPSE 1996-

2000; the tenth FPSE 2001-2005, the Compulsory Education Act, and the updated 2017

Regulations on Education for Persons with Disabilities. These policies detail what should be

implemented, but have produced no effect. The gap between implementation and what is written

in policy is large enough to keep Chinese citizens wary of falling victim to a policy that is one of

“lip service,” rather than action.

Education accessibility, inclusiveness, and needed funding for disabled children in China. Seeing

that children’s education could be a starting point for a better life, awareness must be raised so

that the the gap can be closed. This makes it imperative to ask the question:

How can all parties (e.g. students, teachers, central government, parents/families,

schools, construction departments, etc.) involved in disability education

implementation improve the education environment for disabled students that are

stipulated in China’s Regulations on Education for Persons with Disabilities

(2017)?

Page | 68

It is important to understand Chinese history concerning people with disabilities. One of the most

notable facts about China’s central government

lies in the Communist ideology which insists

that everyone must be equal. This partially held

true for those with disabilities as well.

However, China’s history of addressing

disabilities begins much earlier. In 1874, China

established a school for the blind. In 1887, they

established the a school for the deaf. After these

initial services, the government failed to build

on the success of this school, and as a result,

there was no major progress.

However, in the 1980s, they began to develop inclusive education. Chen2 discusses the history of

the LRC, (‘Learning in Regular Classrooms’ initiative). China was unable to create separated,

specialized schools for people with disabilities, due to a lack of financial resources and educated

professionals. Therefore, students were placed in regular, learning classrooms and received little

to no attention from teachers. This was reasonable at that time, as the government did not hold

the resources to have special education schools. However, according to Chen, when China’s

economy started to soar, there was no noticeable change in the LRC policy.

Later, in the 1986 Compulsory Education Act, Chinese officials acknowledged the presence and

needs of disabled students in disability education. The law, which was then updated in 2006,

stated, “all level of governments are responsible in setting up special schools and special classes

for disabled children and youths.”

History of Education Policy

Page | 69

This new policy became an important catalyst for more emphasis on the education for disabled

persons, resulting in policies such as, Law on Protection of People with Disabilities 2008, Law

on Basic Protection of the Disabled, and in the official Constitution.

In the last two decades the amount of special education improvements has slowed down, and the

practice of the policies has not come into fruition. In the recent years, “China’s National Plan for

Medium and Long term Education Reform and Development for years 2010–2020 (CPG, 2010)

the government has provided concrete guidelines for implementing its strategy of inclusive

education. One concrete goal is to ensure that by 2020 every prefecture, prefecture-level city, and

county of more than 300 000 residents has at least one inclusive school.”10 However, many

barriers prevent this plan from being successful, such as financial burdens, citizens who are

unwilling to create a welcoming environment, scarce resources, and lack of mainstream teachers

willing to incorporate disabled students into their daily teachings.

The written policies of the

government are well intentioned;

however, the actual

implementation is insufficient.

Multiple factors explain this

insufficiency. These include:

Stigma. A stigma is the negative connotative association someone has with a particular

circumstance, person, or quality. For disabilities, the harsh stigma lies in the connotation that

they are worthless and mistakes in society. 7 Fisher and Shang explain a case where the parents

are ashamed of their disabled child, not wanting anyone to know the child is even present. They

Primary Issue

Stigma of disabilities

Teachers are not experienced

Lack of resources and direction for

implementation

Page | 70

quote a researcher who explains how the local culture forbids such a child and his parents from

seeking education, especially in rural communities. Instead, the child is forced to stay home and

work. This lack of motivation is present in the minds of many parents, who did not think school

is suitable for their children, so they do not actively seek opportunities for their children.

However, even when parents successfully advocate for their children to be included in

mainstream education, the competitive nature of schools discourages “mainstream” students

from interacting with disabled students in meaningful ways. In this sense, China’s basic school

system can tend to be elitist, as everything is based on a graduation examination and general,

large standardized tests to pit students against each other, creating a very competitive

environment. Yet, despite the “inertia” of elitist education, Chinese citizens have extremely

limited resources and no motivation to understand inclusive education. Fisher and Shang

describe that social relations with peers are an integral part of social development; however,

schools do not educate students on “non-discriminatory attitudes” to be aware of toward disabled

students. This lack of a welcoming environment has caused disabled students to not attend school

because they were bullied and ignored by teachers and students alike.

Lack of Teacher Training and Experience. In the same way that the competitive atmosphere

of schools fails to create a positive peer environment for disabled students, similar forces

discourage teachers from helping students with disabilities. Put simply, teachers’ performances

are graded upon how well their students do on general graduation examinations. This makes

them more unwilling to have disabled students who may most likely bring down their

performance reviews.10

Lack of Resources and Direction for Implementation. In Table 1, Gao’an conducted a survey

on Level of School Enrollment of Children with Disabilities in Gao’an City. These rates are an

overestimation of school attendance, because the number of children with these disabilities is far

lower than would be expected in a city of this size, probably because it does not include any

children the government defines as incapable of benefiting from education.7 This prominent

example from Fisher and Shang is Gao’an Special City School founded in 2010. Their mission is

to teach students how to support themselves and survive in the mainstream world. While

adhering fully to the government-implemented policy, the school took in any disabled student

Page | 71

that was able to be enrolled in school. The tuition was free for every student admitted by

following the “two

exempt, one

allowance” living

expense support.

However, this

decision also

hindered the amount

of students the

school could admit

and limited their resources even further. In addition, the curriculum they used was from the

central government. This curriculum requires that teachers alter lesson plans for their

intellectually delayed students, teach in spoken language and sign language, and focus on living

skills along with basic education. Even though this is much better than any other options offered

to disabled children in China, their resources and funding were scarce, making it so that classes

could not be offered above grade 4.

The government’s well-intentioned policies are unable to provide the support and services they

promise in writing.

Table 1: Level of School Enrollment of Children with Disabilities in

Gao’an City

Page | 72

The government should affirm its thorough commitment to inclusive and compulsory education.

This can be done by formulating a concrete plan to ensure that teachers and school administrators

are provided with adequate funding, training, and an evaluation mechanism that motivates and

supports teachers to carry out inclusive education. Central to this plan are parents and children

and young people with disabilities — the government should ensure that they are informed about

children’s educational rights and options and empower them to get involved in the formulation

and implementation of the plan at all levels of education. ‘Only then will education of students

with disabilities be more than just “muddling along with the class” and genuine inclusive

education become a reality.’1

To qualify this solution, one must acknowledge prominent issue of the ‘dilemma of difference’

that suggests that “as long as there are differences between individuals, unfavorable results will

show up at an attempt to merge these individuals into a group, whether their uniqueness gets

addressed or ignored (Minow, 1985; Norwich, 2008).”2 This inevitable tug-of-war should be

thoughtfully and equitably resolved by the central government because the need for resources

will require a change in schools, meaning students, teachers, and parents will have to adjust to

new changes.

The government will also have to budget for the financial impact that providing resources will

bring. The 2017 updated Regulations on Education for Persons with Disabilities emphasizes

inclusive education, and implementing inclusive education will create less of a budget strain.

This is due to the fact that establishing a

new school will add on the costs of

construction and permits that inclusive

education does not require. Even though

special schools will create a more

convenient way of disability schooling,

inclusive education will aid in social and

developmental skills in addition to academic education.

Primary Solution

Page | 73

As described above, it can be possible for this gap between policy and implementation to be

closed. This white paper is intended to call attention to this prevalent issue that is plaguing

China’s disabled students. Bringing up the severity and urgency of this issue to outside,

international organizations is intended to acknowledge the issue that has for too long been

overlooked.

Realizing the extent of this issue, I urge you, the reader of this white paper, to take action. One

way is to do your part to minimize the stigma of disabled persons. The stigma lies in the fact that

many people have the medical disability definition as their initial mindset: a physical or mental

condition that limits a person's movements, senses, or activities; a handicap. However, by

teaching citizens the misconceptions about disabilities, we can slowly destigmatize the negativity

of disability. This small step will be a impact that takes this complex issue in the right direction.

In the US, it is most helpful to reach out to organizations such as Handicap International,

Inclusion International, DREDF, Asia Society, etc. to raise the importance of this issue.

Call To Action

Page | 74

Being more active in supporting the disability community is important and should be given more

attention. However, the issue is the gap between policy and practice. The government’s policy

has the right goals; however, it is not viable without the necessary resources and full support

from all parties (parents, students, teachers, government) involved. Outside organizations can aid

in supporting the trend of slowly moving forward to bridge the gap - and finally seal it in the

long run.

Conclusion

Page | 75

1 “As Long as They Let Us Stay in Class” Barriers to Education for Persons with Disabilities in

China. Human Rights Watch. Right-to-education.org. N. p., July 2013. Web. 30 Nov. 2017.

2 Chen, Weiwei. (2016). Perspective of Parents of Children with Autism or Intellectual Disability

on Inclusive Education in Urban China. Proquest. 10194225. 06 November 2017.

3 "China." Handicap International. N. p., 2017. Web. 30 Nov. 2017.

4 "Disability Inclusion Overview." World Bank. N. p., 2017. Web. 7 Nov. 2017.

5 "Disability And Health." World Health Organization. N. p., 2016. Web. 7 Nov. 2017.

6 Fisher, Dr. Karen. Personal Interview. 24 Oct. 2017.

7 Fisher, Dr. Karen and Shang, Xiaoyuan. (2017) Child Disability Policy in China: Child and

Family Experiences. - Ch. 10-11.” 2015. Print. 24 Oct. 2017.

8 Fisher, Dr. Karen and Shang, Xiaoyuan. “Child Disability Policy in China: Child and Family

Experiences.” Social Policy Research Center. Sprc.unsw.edu.au. N. p., 23 June. 2015. Web. 9

Oct. 2017.

9 “海洁, 尹. "残疾人的受教育状况：公平缺失与水平滑坡" (PDF). 15 Sep 2011. 3 Dec. 2017.

10 Malinen, Olli-Pekka. (2013). Inclusive education in China. CEREC Working Paper Series. 1-

25. Jan 2013. N. p. 06 Nov 2017.

11 Wang, Y. " A Glance At People With Disabilities In China ." Chinasource. N. p., 2016. Web.

30 Nov. 2017.

Bibliography

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"Adjusting To A Disability." Universitylifecafe.k-state.edu. N. p., 2017. Web. 10 Dec. 2017.

"殘障靠電輪椅拓展生活青年家貧難購置渴望善長伸援手." Apple Daily 蘋果日報. N.

p., 2017. Web. 10 Dec. 2017.

"China: Shen Zhen Yuan Ping Special Education School." Pulitzer Center. N. p., 2015. Web. 11

Dec. 2017.

Cooper, Klaus. "China: End Discrimination, Exclusion Of Children With Disabilities | Ana Shell

Media Press ." Anashell.com. N. p., 2017. Web. 10 Dec. 2017.

"EDUCATION IN CHINA | 2011-2012 Facts & Statistics." China-mike.com. N. p., 2017. Web.

10 Dec. 2017.

Gran, Michele et al. "You Can Teach English In China As A Short-Term Volunteer.." Global

Volunteers. N. p., 2017. Web. 10 Dec. 2017.

"Inclusive Education Faces Headwinds - China - Chinadaily.Com.Cn." Chinadaily.com.cn. N. p.,

2017. Web. 10 Dec. 2017.

"Olivia's Place Archives » Page 12 Of 23 » LIH Olivia's Place." Oliviasplace.org. N. p., 2017.

Web. 10 Dec. 2017.

"Portraits Of Blind Children In Rural China." Vice. N. p., 2015. Web. 10 Dec. 2017.

" Special Education And Vocational Education." En.chinaculture.org. N. p., 2017. Web. 11 Dec.

2017.

Photograph References

Page | 77

DOCUMENT 7

Student email to a Palestinian native, addressing the compelling question: What is the

most effective way to address religious persecution of Palestinian Muslims in Israel?

Hi,

Part 1- https://drive.google.com/file/x

Part 2- https://drive.google.com/file/x

This is my presentation for my project. I had to split it into two parts because the recorder I am

using only allows the video to be 10 minutes max so you can watch part 1 first then part 2. After

watching could you please give me some constructive feedback on my presentation with some

detail. (Also, the presentation is kind of long so if you want you can forward through each slide so

that it is faster. And you don't have to listen to the audio that is just for my teacher.)

Thanks.

Response from "on the ground" expert

Hi,

Sorry because I have been traveling I did not get a chance to review it; I have been very busy.

I just listened to it on my phone while in a restaurant getting something to eat. Not most ideal

situation.

I think it is very good. I have some comments below.

Biggest issue is when you said Obama is an obstacle, he is not. He tried, he was very weak and

unable to forge a peace agreement; yes he signed loan guarantees for $38 billion of aid to Israel

but he is not the obstacle; Netiniaho prime minister of Israel is the obstacle and his government

that oppose 2 state solution and constantly building and growing settlements; eating up the

Palestinian land and breaking connectivity of Palestinian cities, picking up the tops of hills; fertile

land and water resources.

Second comment when you talked about demolishing homes in Gaza, I would have mention Israeli

invasion of Gaza where they destroyed thousands of homes. I would have mentioned the blockade

they have on Gaza for the last 6 years making it a large prison.

Another comment when you mention who, I would clarify that's world health organization.

You could have elaborated about the birth of Zionism and their terror organization that terrorized

arabs and Jews in Europe to scare them and encourage them to move to Palestine from Europe.

I would have the big role played in this starting with the Belfore declaration 99 years ago in 1917

promising a homeland for Jews in Palestine and how they aided and facilitated the Jews migrations

and arms to the Zionist gangs in Palestine.

Again, sorry about the late reply; it has been very hectic and unusual weekend

https://drive.google.com/file/x

https://drive.google.com/file/x

Page | 78

DOCUMENT 8

Page | 79

DOCUMENT 9

Annotated Bibliography

Rubenstein, James M. Cultural Landscape. Pearson Education Limited, 2014.

This is a textbook for AP Human Geography which is a field of study regarding changes

in culture in relation to location and environmental factors as well as the movement of ideas and

people. The text remains purely objective throughout, looking at events and such factually. For

more controversial topics, the textbook, in order to remain objective, would provide claims for

both sides of an argument. This textbook defines different aspects of human geography while

drawing particular examples of the concepts from modern society as well as past society.

Particularly of the textbooks interests is the topic of globalization and modernization. It

discusses the effects as well as consequences of them.

It is this book that provided me with the foundation of my understanding of human

geography which is extremely relevant to my topic. This book not only provided me with the

jargon of the human geography world but also informed me of the culture of China and how it

is affected by environment as well as some of the effects of globalization. Although the

information provided in the textbook is pretty surface level it gave me a place to start with my

research. It made sure that I wasn’t going into this project totally clueless as to what I was

doing and was able to search key terms that I felt fit well with my claim.

In addition to my textbook, I was able to find a source from a database provided by the

school called Culturegrams, which further provided me with a general understanding to

the culture of China.

Page | 80

"China: General Attitudes." CultureGrams Online Edition, ProQuest, 2017,

https://online.culturegrams.com/world/world_country_sections.php?cid=34&cn=China&sn

ame= General Attitudes&snid=6.

This source, Culturegrams is a renowned reliable source that discusses the attitudes and

the formalities of Chinese culture. Things like gestures that are considered the norm and are

unacceptable to ignore. For example, “The principle of guanxi commits friends and associates

to do what they can for each other when called upon. To violate guanxi is to lose reputation or

honor. Children are expected to uphold the family's social standing.” Thus making it very clear

that the traditional culture of China is to very respectful and modest. However, culturegrams

also mentioned that there has been a shift in attitudes in chinese culture as of traditionally you

are to have “respect and obedience for authority,” however, “ over time, people have lost

respect for some local and national leaders. The change is slowly forcing local officials to be

more accountable.” This culturegrams article also provided general background about the

country and major historical events.

The topics discussed within the article are relevant because it informed me of the cultural

norms in China. This is significant because it created a baseline which I could use as a point of

comparison for change. Furthermore, it informed me that attitudes have changed over time and

that urbanization may play a major role in it. Which the movement from rural areas to urban

areas, although is not exactly westernization, is a form of modernization. This confirmed the

fact that with modernization there is bound to be change. It is this confirmation that furthered

my understanding of what amount of change is inevitable with modernization and what amount

of change can be or should be prevented. In addition it also states what sort of influence western

culture has had on Chinese culture.

https://online.culturegrams.com/world/world_country_sections.php?cid=34&cn=China&sname=General_Attitudes&snid=6



Page | 81

Another source which I had used to solidify my understanding of westernization and

modernization was a very old article that had been recommended to me by the librarian.

Yeh, Stephen H.K. “Understanding Development: Modernization and Cultural Values in

Asia and the Pacific Region.” UNESCO, 1989.

http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0008/000838/083839eo.pdf

This article written by Stephen Yeh whose expertise is in ideology and cultural

development, defines the different schools of thought on modernization and cultural values.

After providing the definition it transitions into comparing the different schools of thought and

thus creating a clear-cut definition of each. In addition to defining the different schools of

thought, it defined modernization. The different schools of thought being modernization school

and dependency school. It stated that “The focus of the modernization school is on the Third

World, especially on how to promote development in the Third World while implicitly holding

the First World as a model.” The other school of thought which he mentioned was the

dependency school of thought where “ the essence of the argument is that Third World nations

remain economically backward not because they have traditional values and institutions, but

because they are exploited by advanced capitalistic nations.” He then discusses

Wallerstein’s world system model which encompasses of the idea that the world is the primary

factor in deciding the fate of a country.

This article was mostly for understanding the idea of modernization and how it plays a

role in cultural values or the other way around. It also allowed for me to be introduced to yet

another person that I could research. Particularly, Wallerstein and his concepts. Though the




Page | 82

article is dated, many of the concepts discussed on the article remain unchanging in society today

thus making it significant even today.

Going into the project I was convinced that China was being corrupted by western values

and that China wasn’t doing everything that they could to preserve traditionally Chinese culture. I

had naturally assumed these things as of I would frequently hear news about corruption in

buddhist temples and I would compare the China I had visited to the China I had seen in dramas.

Under this assumption everything sailed smoothly, I had found so many articles about corruption

and I decided that it was necessary for me to interview a monk as of the image of the monk kept

on popping up in my mind. Thus I asked my parents if they knew anyone who perhaps was in

contact with one in China. After a lot of networking, someone was able to contact a monk and

direct him to my parents and someone else was able to provide basic information. It soon became

clear to me that to be a Monk today holds a different meaning from just a few years ago. In fact, I

found that today, to become a monk you need to first be educated through a specialized school

and then apply for the position like one would apply for a position at a KFC or McDonalds. With

this new information handy, I was then able to connect it back to western culture where Ministers

too for a while have been applying for the title like a job. To gain understanding of this aspect I

searched for a website for a university meant for monks.

"Buddhist College Of Singapore." Bcs.edu.sg. N. p., 2017. Web. 10 Oct. 2017.

https://www.bcs.edu.sg/en/

This page provides a plethora of information on the Buddhist College of Singapore. It

includes the kind of degrees which people can receive from there as well as states its mission. The

goal for the College as stated by the website is to specialize in Chinese Buddhism, respect other

lineages and promote inter-religious harmony. This is achieved through conducting a brief study of

http://bcs.edu.sg/

https://www.bcs.edu.sg/en/

Page | 83

the various Buddhist schools. Furthermore, it clarifies the benefits of attending the school as well

as the things that are to be taught at the school. Website links to news articles regarding the

Buddhist College of Singapore was also included in the page. From there I investigated the

similarities and differences between the buddhist monks and pastors. I also found the basic

principles of buddhism:life is suffering, suffering is caused by craving and aversion, suffering can

be overcome and happiness can be attained, and the eightfold path leads to the end of suffering.

Again I was reminded of the time when I saw the monk counting money and wondered if this

monk was of the minority of monks. As it turned out, monetization of monks was becoming

more common.

It is due to the fact that the college was able to make relatively clear the purpose,

curriculum, and requirements that I now have a better understanding of the changing religious

climate which can be generalized to China as well. Although the college is in Singapore the

buddhism that they practice, as well as language, are the Chinese ones. It also made me realize

how serious the position of the monk is as of a lot of schooling is needed to become a monk. I

didn’t realize that the colleges for monks are actually armed with the will to educate

intellectuals. However, this also prompted my doubt in the changing religious climate because

this favoring of education to become a monk may discriminate against those who are truly

passionate about buddhism but may not be smart enough to college or interested in college.

Other than the fact that it is a college for monks, the school is a pretty typical school

The reality of the situation was not what I had expected. I remember always seeing those

Chinese historical dramas and the monks were always very strict with their beliefs and never

succumbed to greed. What's more my bias was exacerbated because whenever there was news of

a corrupted monk my parents didn’t hesitate to express their extreme disapproval and it was clear

that my parents weren’t the only ones who felt that way.

Page | 84

However, with my interest growing I knew I had to build a better foundation of my

understanding of change in Buddhism. I barely understood the relation between change in China

and the Change in Buddhism and only had been judging monks based of my previous bias. Using

JSTOR, a database provided by the school, I located an old but informational excerpt by Holmes

Welch.

Welch, Holmes. “Buddhism under the Communists.” The China Quarterly, no. 6,

1961, pp. 1–14. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/651751

The article “Buddhism under the Communists” by Holmes Welch, a former state

department official. In this article he compares the practice of tradition practice of Buddhism to

the Buddhism being practiced under communism. Through this article he reveals that the life of

the monk had drastically changed after the implementation of communism. The difference in

lifestyle being that the monks could no longer live at a higher standard of life than commoners.

Furthermore under the harsh policies the monks were not to slack off and properly do their job.

This essay helped provide context to what Buddhism was like before, because I had previously

thought that Buddhism had only recently changed. It also provided me with the information

that because of communism the Chinese Buddhist association was formed. This is significant

information because it is that organization that united the buddhists of China, helped carry out

policy of freedom of religious belief, and maintain excellent traditions of buddhism. Since the

monk that I am going to interview is an older monk, I am confident that he is very familiar

with this transition. From there I hoped to be able to contact the organization but it became the

first of many failures to come. Contact information was more elusive than I had thought. I

refocused, since it was clear to me that I was not going to find an interview from them anytime

soon, and focused on the landscape of China in regards to architecture.

http://www.jstor.org/stable/651751

Page | 85

Upon researching the destruction of old architecture in China I recalled that in movies set in

ancient China always had showed Beijing to have a giant wall around it. This intrigued me because

I remembered that the last time I was in China I saw no such thing. This led me to ask my parents

if there ever was a wall or it was just made up for dramatic effect, as it turns out there was

a wall. However, the government had destroyed it years before my parents were even born. From

there I searched for articles on the destruction of the artifacts and discovered several cases of

similar incidents. One article by Jonathan Kaiman discussed the destruction of the Peking wall,

which after reading the article I decided to contact him for more information on my topic.

Kaiman, Jonathan. “Razing History: The Tragic Story of a Beijing Neighborhood’s

Destruction.” The Atlantic, 2012.

https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/02/razing-history-the-tragic-

story-of-a-beijing-neighborhoods-destruction/252760/

This piece written by Jonathan Kaiman, explores the event of the destruction of

the Peking wall, which was thousands of years old and to be replaced with modern

buildings. It states that due to this deconstruction people had to be relocated. Even when

the wall was replaced the government admitted to regretting their decision. This

modernization caused harm to the community because people were forced to migrate

away from their homes permanently. This was useful because it provided me with a

story about a part of Chinese culture being lost as what has been part of Chinese life is

slowly being replaced by what is western or modern. It also shed light on the devastation

that was caused by modernization.

This article was important because it showed that the government’s involvement

in destroying the culture. However, at the same time the very fact that the government is

https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/02/razing-history-the-tragic-story-of-a-beijing-neighborhoods-destruction/252760/

https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/02/razing-history-the-tragic-story-of-a-beijing-neighborhoods-destruction/252760/

Page | 86

trying to make reparations for what they had done means that what they were doing is

clearly against the approval of China’s culture and thus can be considered to be a bad

action and thus a bad balance.

Much to my excitement after emailing, Kaiman responded within the next day. He

stated that he hasn’t thought of the topic for a long time and redirected me to an

organization that fights for preservation of Chinese buildings. To get through to this

organization I had tried to email, call , tweet, and even text them through Wechat, but my

efforts only lead me to a deadend. Multiple times I would research groups that helped

fight for preservation of ancient buildings and contacting proved only to be a setback. I

asked my dad about it and he laughed saying “all those organizations are just a scheme to

get money.” Again I decided to refocus, except this time I would focus on the language

aspect of modernization.

Upon researching major organizations fighting to protect culture in disappearing cultures

I discovered the organization by the name of UNESCO. The organization is focuses on the

preservation of cultures as well as fighting for human rights. It was here that I happened upon

two articles. The first being “Hexhen Yimakan Storytelling-Intanginlee Heritage-Culture Sector-

UNESCO.”

"Hezhen Yimakan Storytelling - Intangible Heritage - Culture Sector - UNESCO."

Ich.unesco.org. N. p., 2017. Web. 11 Sept. 2017. https://ich.unesco.org/en/USL/hezhen-

yimakan-storytelling-00530

The article is about the Yimakan storytelling ways, part of an obscure subculture in

China, is being lost. This loss can be attributed to the fact that the young no longer are satisfied

with remaining in their rural and modest hometown and thus migrate to urban areas or yearn for

http://ich.unesco.org/

https://ich.unesco.org/en/USL/hezhen-yimakan-storytelling-00530

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the urban life which is based off of western society. It talks about how both technological

development and decreasing interest in the art is leading to the downfall of the Yimakan

storytelling ways that is so unique to them.

The story of the Yimakan storytelling being lost allowed for greater insight on how culture

can be lost through time and changing political, social, technological , climates. It also serves as

evidence of the fact that there is any cultural change due to modernization and arguably

westernization. Especially since a major reason for the loss in their cultural identity has been

specifically because of urbanization and changing economy, I believe that this story of the

Yimakan is something that could potentially occur to China as a whole culture wise one day.

The second article which I had found was more centered around language more than any

other cultural aspect.

“Investing in Cultural Diversity and Intercultural Dialogue.”Paris: UNESCO,

2009 .http://www.lacult.unesco.g/docc/2009_Investing_in_cult_div_Completo.pdf

UNESCO is a world renowned organization that fights to preserve cultural heritage of places as

well as aiding developing countries so that they can gain stability. This article specifically

addresses the loss of ethnic languages. It talks about how hundreds of languages around the

world are in danger of being lost. It reminds of the necessity of language in daily life. It then

discusses the affect of globalization on the composition of country’s languages. Globalization has

really enabled languages to disperse throughout the world.

The UNESCO article, although not specific to China, again provided a baseline for my

understanding of modernization and development. The article really informed me of the life and

the death of languages. It also informed me of the advent of English and the push for English to

http://www.lacult.unesco.org/docc/2009_Investing_in_cult_div_Completo.pdf

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be known globally. This provides as an example of the dominance of westernization that

European has on the world. Furthermore, the article discusses the relationship between identity

and language which, again, corresponds with my topic of interest.

After seeing the two articles I had decided that UNESCO would definitely be in reach of people

familiar with my topic, however after emailing them, I was unable to receive any type of

response. It was about then I began to grow panicked that I would be unable to find another

person I could interview.

Under the impression that I couldn’t secure another interview, I searched for professors who

specialized in human geography in China. One of the first professors that I was able to find

contact information for was Professor Emily Yeh. She, as it turns out, is a professor from the

University of Colorado at Boulder. I emailed her expecting no response, but within a few days I

was surprised to find her name in my inbox. However, it was not the kind of response I was

hoping.

She heavily criticized how general my topic was. Despite it being a large setback , her

response really helped me come to the realization that the question that I was trying to find that

answer is too broad for me to properly execute in the span of one semester. In addition the email

had made it clear to me that I needed to somehow define what a good balance was and be very

clear about that, which with the research I had at the time, I couldn’t really do. Discussing with

my teacher Mr. Brady further confirmed everything that she had stated in the email . At first it

was upsetting because I was unwilling to give up different aspects that I was originally going to

pursue that was of interest of me. Originally I had decided that I was going to focus on three

aspects: change in popular culture, destruction of old buildings, and religion. However, since

they were too broad I could only choose one of them. I struggled with this because I already had

so much research in the other aspects and also because all of the topics were of interest to me. I

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felt that one aspect could not thoroughly make a point. In the end I chose religion because I had

already secured one interview with the monk and it would have been upsetting to give up weeks

of communication with him. With this in mind I changed my question to “How can China,

specifically Chinese Citizens, maintain a good balance between westernization/ modernization

in what is considered to be traditionally Chinese religions such as Buddhism, Taoism,and

Daoism?” and started over on my research. From there things would get a little less

overwhelming.

Immediately, it became clear that the phrase “good balance” is very hard to define as of it

is hard to delineate what is good or bad especially with different cultural norms and thus different

morals. However, more often times than not, it is easier to identify what is bad than what is good.

Thus, in my mind, in order to define what a good balance was, I needed to outline what a “ bad

balance” is. Conveniently, during the year, I was taking french class and we were learning about

the french revolution, which was a revolution that had caused a craze to destroy any trace of the

once monarchical France. Back then, religion was almost synonymous with the monarchy and in

general was heavily associated with the ideals of the monarchical society. During a time of

extreme rebellion due to hunger, the people naturally believed that in order to reform France they

needed to destroy almost everything that symbolized the monarchical ideals. This meant that

palaces, churches, statues, and other artifacts of value were destroyed. Along with the destruction

of the churches and the palaces, began a period where people were forbidden from practicing

their religion and instead were required to practice philosophy. Since the churches were no

longer deemed useful during this period, so were the valuable artifacts in the churches such as the

stained glass windows, or the statues of the kings of the bible, as well as the church itself. Notre

Dame, a now iconic church, for example was neglected and damaged for years. Even after the

french revolution technically ended, it was only after Victor Hugo put forth an effort to help

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people realize Notre Dame’s worth that there were efforts of conservation. So what does the

purpose of this drastically oversimplified history of the french revolution provide for my

argument, what is its connection to religion in China? Well, because this period of radical change

had destroyed integral parts of the France’s rich history. The extremity of the situation also made

me believe that this level of destruction would serve as a good example of the “bad balance” that

I refer to. Even better, it can be argued that there are a lot of parallels between the french

revolution and the cultural revolution in China.

I then began my research on Buddhism where I had left off last time. I had felt that

corruption in Chinese monks would still be route of use for me. After perusing google I found

articles from smaller sites on the corruption that cited their sources. One of the sources that I had

discovered it had used was from the New York Times, which is much more reputable.

Jacobs, Andrew. "Money, Lust And Kung Fu: Shaolin’s ‘C.E.O. Monk’ Is Under Fire."

Nytimes.com. N. p., 2015. Web. 1 Nov. 2017.

This article from the New York Times is one of the most recent articles that I have been

able to find. It discusses the corruption of the Shaolin monks that were traditionally one of the

most strict group of monks. According to the article, Shi Yongxin had made Shaolin into a global

commercial empire, in fact “critics have complained for years that Shi Yongxin has over

commercialized Shaolin through product licensing and overseas franchises, including plans for a

$300 million luxury Shaolin kung fu resort and golf course in southeastern Australia.”He

seemingly doesn’t regret anything and sees nothing wrong with his actions as of he says “If

China can import Disney resorts, why can’t other countries import the Shaolin Monastery?” He

had also disrespected several of the fundamentals of Buddhism because his “lust for women,

money, and bling runs counter to the virtues of chastity and austere living he has long sought to

http://nytimes.com/

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personify as one of the most prominent figures in Chinese Buddhism.” Apparently monks part of

it had been caught driving fancy cars and embezzled millions of dollars from temples. It states

that this corruption had heightened public cynicism about “ a society in which greed and crass

materialism often seem to trump morality, especially among those in positions in power.”

The article had also made public opinions of this change heading towards a materialistic

system. It had also brought to light that this may have not been the first time that this sort of

corruption had happened. Furthermore, it shows that it it is not all temples that are this

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corrupted. However, the article states that several monks were defending the “ceo”

substantiating the fact that there is some sort of change in ideology and interpretation of the

religion as well as it is a relatively spread out problem. Not to mention it provided an idea of

what is a wrong balance of change and upkeep of culture. It shows the wrong balance in the

sense that it demonstrates an extreme of what China’s religion could be, where religion would

be purely materialistic rather than the traditional values of modesty, chastity and more and thus

purely “western”.

Materialism, especially in China, is regarded to be something western. The very heart of

Materialism originated from ancient European civilizations such as Greece and Rome and has

been a part of most western cultures for centuries. The fact that materialism, in the case of the

Shaolin Monks, was so incorporated and was so successful, has tainted the meaning of Buddhism

for those monks working under Shi Yongxin. What Shi Yongxin did was not a practice of

China’s traditional religion, which values chastity, modesty, and condemns greed, rather it was a

practice of western values.

After looking at this article my thoughts on the role politics had on China was a thought

that I needed to pursue as it could possibly relate to how China can maintain a good balance

between culture retainment and modernization.

"'The Souls Of China' Documents Country's Dramatic Return To Religion." NPR.org. N. p., 2017. Web.

1 Nov. 2017.

This is a broadcast from National Public Radio which is a nationally renowned. This

broadcast was primarily an interview-type broadcast. In this one specifically the person who was

being interviewed is Ian Johnson who wrote the book The Souls Of China. Johnson discusses the

relation between the changing political and economical climate and its effect on religion. Under

http://npr.org/

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Mao, practice of religion became very uncommon because people felt that in order abide to

communism it was necessary for them to discard of their religions. Now under the rule of Xi

JinPing traditional religions have become more of a political endeavor. He has given a lot of

support financially to traditional religions in China such as Taoism and Buddhism. The broadcast

then transitions into the fact that the Communist Party as a way to maintain control over by

preventing people from thinking of politics. This was also because the government recognized that

there was a lack of values in society and encouraging religions also encourages morals.

This broadcast provided a clearer understanding of the relationship between political

climates and the advent of religions. It also made clear the motives of the government and the

effects of religion on masses of people, which up until this article, I had largely

disregarded. From this article it became clear that under the rule of different leaders, there have

been different policies for religion. This broadcast further highlights the importance of the

transition in policies in Buddhism and how it has perhaps changed people as well as how

lucrative religion in China is. Not to mention the article had also mentioned the importance of

the cultural revolution.

After some research, I found that the cultural revolution took place in the the 1960s when

Mao was convinced that communism was the only way which would pull China out of economic

depression. A communist society theoretically has no social classes and thus no economic

disparity between people. Communism is an ideology that is derived from theories from Karl

Marx a philosopher from Germany, thus communism is of the western culture not that of China’s.

This was important to me because communism, something that is inherently not Chinese, had

caused a period of time where people were devoid of religion because religion was considered a

threat to the state. And thus after policies on religion were less strict, people had

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already been devoid of traditional religions for so long no one really remembered how to practice

them. Thus, in my mind very literally, what was western was destroying the traditions and in my

mind I thought that I needed someone I could interview that could corroborate my hypothesis.

Since I had change my topic to specifically religion, finding a person willing to be

interviewed was a process that was much quicker than expected. Before it was difficult because I

had too many aspects to cover and thus it was difficult for me to find a more specialized expert.

Thanks to my specification I was able to find a professor that was very willing to be interviewed

on my subject. As it turns out he is a professor from North Central College in Naperville which is

very close to my high school. The answer was closer to me that I had thought.

Hoffert,Brian. Personal Interview. 2 Nov. 2017.

Professor Hoffert, had spend a year at the Mandarin Training Center in Taipei and had als

received a bachelor’s degree as a specialist in East Asian Studies from the University of Toronto.

During this interview he was able to shed light on a lot of historical context. Specifically, he

discussed the cultural revolution and how during this period people were encouraged to get rid of

the old culture. According to him, at the time people went to temples specifically to destroy them.

After Mao’s death, more freedoms with religion was allowed, because although the constitution

technically had written that there is a freedom to practice any religion, there were really only five

allowed religions. One of them is Buddhism. In the interview he also frequently mentioned his

experiences for the several times that he has been there. One of the times that he mentioned was

when he first went to China in 1988. He recalls that when he visited the temples, which were just

newly reopened, the temples were only there for tourism. He mentions that when he

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talked with the ‘monks’ the monks didn’t even know the the purpose of buddhism. He

described what the government was doing well and what it was lacking in.

This interview with Professor Hoffert was one of the landmark moments in my process

where cracks began developing in the claim that I had been so set on proving. Although I thought

I had went into the interview very open minded, as I listened back to my interview, it became

apparent that I was subconsciously trying to push him to say what I wanted him to say in order to

prove my claim that China is corrupted. It was in this interview that he suggested for me to

reconsider the bias. During this interview he also chose not to take a stance on the topic and made

sure to provide both sides to the coin for every argument. Due to the fact that he was able to

present both sides of each of his arguments, I was also given a more positive perspective on China

and their balance thus far. It is Professor Hoffert’s way of thinking that I would adopt the most of.

Although I had already determined that I would mostly focus on religion I had found that it

would be impossible to solely focus religion and that I still needed other aspects to incorporate

into my claim. Especially because, a lot of times, politics is very involved in religion. Thus I

searched for an article on JStor that I felt really demonstrated the role that politics has changed

China.

Suharchuk, Gregorii D. “Modernization in China and Foreign Policy.” Asian Survey,

vol. 24, no. 11, 1984, pp. 1157–1162. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/2644150.

The essay “Modernization in China and Foreign Policy” is written by Geregorii D.

Suharchuk who is a professor in Oriental Studies. This essay specifically addresses the economic

aspect of modernization in China. It talks about how much the economy in China has improved and

how they improved. It states that under desperate times the leader of China, Deng

http://www.jstor.org/stable/2644150

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Xiaoping,who believed that China needed “to make impressive economic progress in a short time

by resorting to any means, including the wide introduction of capitalist economic methods.” His

method worked because as a result the economy of China had drastically improved because he

encouraged the open society policy. “The situation raises new problems for modern China and it's

leadership. One of the most serious problems in the ideological sense is the need to assess the dual

essence of the current ideological changes and the elaborate appropriate response to them that

would permit China to resist in the broad sense the undesirable foreign and quasi-foreign

influence.” Essentially, during this period of recovery China began modeling after western society

everything from organizations to social life.

This source is of importance because it provides the information that under Deng Xiaoping,

China was moving towards a more western type of society. This then relates to religion because as I

have determined before politics has a heavy effect on policies of religion. This essay by Gregorii D.

Suharchuk was also extremely specific to how certain factors led to change in China. Since the

article points out several ways in which China has copied western culture it substantiates that

westernization is to blame for the cultural change in China. It also proves that the change that China

is heading towards deviates greatly from what is considered to be “traditional Chinese values.”

However, this article had also provided me with the positive effects of western influence in China

rather than just the negative effects that other articles I had read stated over and over again.

Furthermore, while reading about the economy it gave me very broad statements but nothing to

back it up so it forced me to find statistics that could corroborate these things rather than purely

relying on opinionated articles and excerpts.

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DOCUMENT 10

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DOCUMENT 11

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DOCUMENT 12 Compelling question: What are the causes of fast fashion and what are the negative effects it has on the environment and the labor costs in developing countries?

When asking my experts to review my script, I received some pretty encouraging

feedback. Monika, from the solidarity center supported my ideas on encouraging

workers to form labor unions, and made sure to check my facts and statistics. Kelsey

was also very supportive of my ideas, however felt that some of the organizations

listed in the script were out of reach to workers, or it was a bit ambitious of me to

include them. From his comments, I went on to edit the script to include organizations

that are more available and easier for workers to get in contact with.

Masrur had actually preferred we talked over the phone, rather than provide me

feedback through email. He was not so supportive of my ideas. He felt that I should

include a portion of the video that would ask the consumer if they were willing to pay

more for clothing. If workers are earning better wage, the price of clothing will

increase. While I understand his point, and think that this is an important part of

improving the situation in Bangladesh, the short video is directed toward garment

factory workers and not American and European consumers. I also feel that barely

livable, low wages is not the only issue that needs to be tackled, I want to be able to

discuss other forms of unfair treatment that many workers face.

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DOCUMENT 13 Initial email communication to those working in West Africa on Ebola outbreak

Dr. Nell Bond: [email protected]

October 7th

Enthusiastic Student Looking for Academic Resources

Good afternoon Dr. Bond,

My name is Victoria, or Vicki, Hurd, a student at Naperville Central High School. I am currently in the

process of a semester-long course called Blended Humanities Capstone. Each student in this particular

course is researching a specific, actionable topic, creating an attainable solution, and applying this

solution to the world around them, either through a presentation to government officials or publishing a

work in an academic journal. My project surrounds the causes behind the 2014 West Africa Ebola virus

outbreak and what can be done to prevent a similar outbreak in the future. This issue affects thousands

upon thousands of lives, and I want to make my best attempt at a resolution, however small the impact

may be. I understand that you are familiar with this topic. I would absolutely love and greatly appreciate

any resources or people that you could connect me with, such as research journals or experts who could

enlighten me further about my topic. Thank you so incredibly much, I owe you an enormous debt!

Regards,

October 4th

Dear Vicki,

Thanks for reaching out. I can definitely provide you with some research papers discussing the 2014 Ebola

epidemic. Additionally, I can put you in touch with a couple of experts on the topic for you to interview. I'd

be happy to discuss with you as well either via email or over the phone. What is your timeline for this

project? This week is busy for me so if I could get back to you next week with the connections and

resources that would be ideal.

Congratulations on taking on such an important topic!

Best,

Nell

Good afternoon Mr. Marah!

I thank you tremendously for the reply, I am very grateful! I would love to get in touch with both contacts, as long as they are willing to help me out by giving me a few quotes, answering questions, or telling a story or two. If not that is absolutely fine as well, I understand that sometimes people prefer to keep experiences to themselves. I will attempt to reach out to you on Facebook Messenger first under the name__________. Thank you so much for taking the time to help me, I am in your debt!

Sincerely,


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DOCUMENT 14

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DOCUMENT 15

Compelling question: How to spread awareness and fix the deteriorating water quality of the Great barrier Reef?

Sources: • Catchment loads. (2016, October 20). Retrieved April 3, 2017, from

http://www.reefplan.qld.gov.au/measuring-success/paddock-to-reef/catchment-loads/

• Centre, U. W. (n.d.). Great Barrier Reef. Retrieved from http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/154

• Poor water quality. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.barrierreef.org/the-reef/the-threats/poor-water-quality

• C=AU; o=The State of Queensland; ou=Department of Environment and Heritage Protection; ou=Corporate Communications. (2017, February 27). Reef protection regulations | Environment, land and water. Retrieved April 9, 2017, from https://www.qld.gov.au/environment/agriculture/sustainable-farming/reef-initiatives/

• Department of the Environment and Energy. (2014, September 09). What Australia is doing to manage the Great Barrier Reef. Retrieved from http://www.environment.gov.au/marine/gbr/publications/what-australia-is-doing

• Coastal Development and Protecting the Great Barrier Reef. (n.d.). Retrieved April 5, 2017, from http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/managing-the-reef/threats-to-the-reef/coastal-development-and-protecting-the-great-barrier-reef



http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/154

https://www.barrierreef.org/the-reef/the-threats/poor-water-quality

https://www.barrierreef.org/the-reef/the-threats/poor-water-quality

https://www.qld.gov.au/environment/agriculture/sustainable-farming/reef-initiatives/

https://www.qld.gov.au/environment/agriculture/sustainable-farming/reef-initiatives/

http://www.environment.gov.au/marine/gbr/publications/what-australia-is-doing

http://www.environment.gov.au/marine/gbr/publications/what-australia-is-doing

http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/managing-the-reef/threats-to-the-reef/coastal-development-and-protecting-the-great-barrier-reef

http://www.gbrmpa.gov.au/managing-the-reef/threats-to-the-reef/coastal-development-and-protecting-the-great-barrier-reef