For my study abroad I chose to participate in a virtual option due to covid. Although I would have loved to travel abroad like I had originally planned, my parents and I did not feel comfortable during this time. Instead, I took the course HONS 490, which was a course that worked with students from Windesheim University in the Netherlands. We were put into groups about four (two Longwood students and two Windesheim students) and were told to create a project about climate change. We had to create a podcast episode and infographic to explain our social innovation and how it would help climate change. My group decided to focus on education and how our school systems here in the United States and in the Netherlands have overlooked climate change. We discussed the need for more research and emphasis on climate change because of how important it is for the future of our existence.
Although my study abroad was not how I had originally imagined, I still gained a lot of important things for my professional development from this course. I used zoom to connect with the students in the Netherlands, I coordinated times to meet that would suit our time difference, I successfully recorded and edited a podcast episode, I collaborated with students from another country/overcame technology differences, and so much more. I will certainly be using all of the technology features in the future so it is great that I got practice. These tools will help me so much in my profession as the world moves more virtual every day. In the future I still plan on traveling to Europe like I said I wanted to do as a freshman, but the Netherlands is now at the top of my list of places to visit.
For my artifact I chose the infographic we created.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PBZN6-WcPKrz_W6NVbasPEAPTH9OTrUOtyeLfDq_N74/edit?usp=sharing