Summer 2025 overseas faculty development seminars to Indonesia, Mexico and Mongolia
December 2, 2024 at 5 p.m. EDT is the deadline for applications for the Summer 2025 overseas faculty development seminars. These fully-funded seminars are designed for faculty and administrators at US community colleges and minority-serving institutions. The objective of the seminars is to help participants gain international experience to develop and improve curricula at their home institutions. Awardees will participate in a short-term academic program that includes round-trip travel, accommodations, meals, and site visits. The Summer 2025 series includes seminars presented by Overseas Research Centers in Indonesia, Mexico, and Mongolia. Visit the CAORC’s Overseas Faculty Development Seminars webpage to apply, learn more, and register for an online informational webinar on November 22. For questions contact fellowships@caorc.org Indonesia - Cultural Currents: Education and Society in the Indo-Pacific Region Indonesia’s national motto, Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (“Unity in Diversity”), exemplifies how cultural and ecological diversity contribute to social and cultural cohesion globally. As an archipelagic society spanning over 17,000 islands across the Indo-Pacific, Indonesia connects communities through shared traditions and innovations. The AIFIS OFDS program offers participants the opportunity to experience Indonesia’s rich cultural paradigms firsthand. Through visits to key cities like Jakarta and Yogyakarta on the island of Java, along with an excursion to the Eastern Islands, participants will explore how the world’s largest Islamic society integrates both public and religious education, while gaining insights into global English and modern technical fields. Mexico - Mexico's Indigenous Languages and Cultures The ethnic and cultural diversity of the contemporary United States has many of its roots in the deep historical traditions of Latin America. The dynamic processes that are multiplying the interconnections between Mexico and the U.S. are due, in large measure, to the resilience of Mexico’s Indigenous peoples. The Indigenous population of Mexico is one of the world’s largest, and Indigenous migrants from diverse linguistic and cultural traditions have come to the U.S. for decades, with their numbers continuing to increase. This seminar based in Mexico City, Tlaxcala, and Puebla will provide concrete exposure to the geographic and cultural diversity of Mexico and its historical ties to the U.S. Participants will gain first-hand experience of Mexico’s Indigenous communities and will meet local scholars, artists, and activists. The seminar will also explore the rich collections held in Mexico’s museums, libraries, and archaeological sites. Mongolia - Climate Change and Public Health: What does Climate Change Mean for the People of Mongolia? This seminar is focused on issues related to Climate Change and Public Health and will include stays in the urban capital Ulaanbaatar, the rural communities at Kharkhorin, the historic capital of the Mongol Empire, Erdene Zuu Monastery, the oldest Buddhist monastery in Mongolia, and a visit to Hustai National Park, home to the rare and endangered Przewalski’s horses. Mongolia, with its vast landscapes, shares similarities to rural parts of the United States and other countries, where limited infrastructure and a dispersed population that lives on the land must contend with a lack of access to health resources and a rapidly changing climate. Mongolia’s average temperatures had already risen more than 2°C and rainfall declined by 7% before 2015, leading to challenges for people in both rural and urban areas. This course will focus on how climate change is already impacting public health and life in both urban centers and rural communities in Mongolia.
