An Emotional Finale

A group brings their conversation
outside on the final day of
discussion sections 

The classroom component of the Summer Peace Institute is officially over. Students have had their final discussion sessions, completed their group papers, given their presentations, and are currently traveling to all corners of Costa Rica to begin their two-week community projects.

On Wednesday, the final lecture was given by Vice Rector Amr Abdalla, who offered a compelling interpretation of the Arab Spring and the role of Islam in today's world. His hopeful words clearly resonated with the students, as many were brought to tears and asked for further discussion. Not one to disappoint, Dr. Abdalla graciously treated a large group of students to dinner at a local hot-spot, Che Pizza, where they shared stories, debated topics from class, and enjoyed each other's company. Several students commented that it was the perfect way to reflect back on the three weeks of classwork and transition into the more hands-on segment of the Summer Peace Institute. (For a clip of Dr. Abdalla's emotional lecture, click here.)

Beleteze Foretia and his
group explain the issue of
statelessness in Palestine

Thursday and Friday consisted of group presentations. Students addressed topics like rape in the Democratic Republic of Congo, conflict diamonds in West Africa, statelessness in Palestine, and child soldiers in Uganda. The presentations were extremely well-researched and engaging, especially considering the short amount of time students had to put together a final product.

In these final two weeks, look for updates about the community projects and more interviews!