By Isaak Heller ‘22, Independent Fellow
Working for Focus On The Global South has been a fascinating process, with opportunities for learning at every turn. The day to day of agrarian reform work has been one very interesting line of work. So far, this has included holding an agrarian reform conference, working on on-the-ground struggles for land redistribution (from Manila), and planning an upcoming regional agrarian reform conference that will be held in Thailand in March (this will be my second time there, the first occurring around a month ago, when I went there for two weeks for Focus’s annual staff meeting, which brought together staff from Focus’s offices in the Philippines, India, Cambodia, and Thailand). Agrarian reform cases are fascinating, in part because they are mini campaigns that include many strategies that are relevant to larger social movements. Unfortunately, I cannot go into the specifics from specific cases.
by Sheng Kao ‘20, Independent Fellow
16:45. 19:50. 21:50. Every day except Sundays and Wednesdays, paper recycling accepted Mondays and Thursdays, plastic recycling accepted Tuesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. I have this schedule memorized, and while I wouldn't say that having to remember when to take out the trash and recycling rules my life by any means, it is a comforting rhythm that outlines my otherwise irregular routine.
Laura Li ‘18, Independent Fellow
With the spreading Coronavirus in both China and Japan, every day's life, every day's work, the things I hear from the news, and the things people around me are talking about, are all embedded in the tone of fear and anxiety. As a Chinese living in Japan, it is a period of time in which I feel that I am sharing a group-trauma/hysteria for both Japanese people and for Chinese people.
Laura Li ‘18, Independent Fellow
Independent Fellow and multimedia producer Jingyi Laura Li '18 made a short film sharing scenes from her everyday life in Japan.