International Mondays
International Mondays is a series of informal conversations about the world today, conducted in various languages, with guests from across the UNF campus and the North Florida area. All are welcome, including native/heritage speakers and language learners at all levels.
The International Studies Program organizes International Mondays in partnership with the Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures, the International Business Flagship Program, and the International Center.
All events are held 11-11:50 AM in Building 10/Room 2245.
Spring 2019
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Denise Olsak, UNF communication/Spanish graduate (2016) and multimedia communications specialist at WPBT2 South Florida PBS
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Pamela Martínez, international studies major
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Constanza López, associate professor of Spanish and organizer, Embroidering for Peace and Memory, and Angelic Fleites, international studies major and Spring 2019 project intern. Special location: The Green (Building 15/Room 1105 in case of rain).
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Natalia Rivera-Pacheco, international studies major
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Nathan Kunz, assistant professor of operations management & Sara Kunz
Fall 2018
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Moderated
by Dr. Constanza López, associate professor of Spanish
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Thanks to UNF graduate Wesley Wilkins (Spanish, 2015) for his talk "Reflexiones sobre dos años en España" (Reflections on Two Years in Spain). Wesley shared his experiences pursuing a Masters in Bilingual and Multicultural Education through the Instituto Franklin at the Universidad de Alcalá de Hernares. He also reflected on his work as a English language conversation teacher (auxiliar de conversación) for the Community of Madrid (Comunidad de Madrid). (Facebook Post)
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We'd like to thank Dr. Nuria Ibáñez and students Hannah Meiners, Kathryn Neff, Yanitza Eguigure and Rachel Meiners for sharing with us their experiences in Spain in Summer 2018. Hannah, Kat, Yanitza and Rachel participated in the Spanish Language and Culture Semester Abroad program in Santander offered by the UNF Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures and led by Dr. Ibáñez. (Facebook Post)
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Ángel
Viloria, international studies major. Ángel discussed the origins and current state of the political, economic and humanitarian crisis in Venezuela, reflecting on his own personal experiences before emigrating to the United States five years ago. He described the problems faced by Venezuelans trying to flee the country today, as well as the challenges this migration is presenting for neighboring nations. We're grateful to Ángel for providing us his thoughtful and personal insight into this complex situation. (Facebook Post)
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Theodore Filkin (French studies), Alicia Smith (French studies/international studies) and Rachel Poore (anthropology/international studies) discussed their experiences as participants in the Summer 2018 French Language and Culture Study Abroad Program in Strasbourg, France, led by Dr. Shira Schwam-Baird. (Facebook Post)
Spring 2018
Fall 2017
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A conversation with Julia Grecia Portela Ponce de León, moderated by Alison Bruey. Dr. Portela is an art historian, art critic, curator, and professor from Havana (ISA-Universidad de las Artes, Facultad de Artes Visuales), and we hope that her visit to UNF this week will be the start of an ongoing relationship between our institutions. Our thanks as well to Alison Bruey, UNF associate professor of history, the UNF Department of History, the UNF Department of Art and Design and the UNF Latin American and Caribbean Council for helping to make this event possible. Photo (from left): Sheila Goloborotko, UNF assistant professor of printmaking; Dr. Portela; Dr. Bruey; and International Studies major Larisa Kupinszky.
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Nuria Ibáñez, associate professor of Spanish, and student participants from the Summer 2017 Semester Abroad program in Santander. Mark Lester, Korena Neal (Wise), Jaidan Roberson, Krysten Ross, and Kathryn Sandridge all participated in the 2017 Summer Semester Abroad in Spain, led by Dr. Ibáñez and offered by the UNF Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures.
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C
hris Baynard, associate professor of geography and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). At this event, Professor Baynard led a discussion in Spanish about the trips he has taken with UNF to explore the mining and wine industries in the Southern Cone, and explained how those trips have provided insight to students from various majors into issues related to sustainability and international commerce.
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Yongan Wu, associate professor of Chinese. Dr. Wu discussed the creation of new holidays and the adaptation of traditional ones, as the result of contact between China and the West, the influence of capitalism, and the growth of online commerce and social media use.
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We are grateful in particular to international studies major Tamlynn AriElle Torchon, who moderated this discussion involving faculty panelists Pat Geesey, professor of French and chair, UNF Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures; David Schwam-Baird, associate professor of political science and director, Master of Arts in International Affairs program (UNF PSPA); Shira Schwam-Baird, professor of French; and Rosa De Jorio, professor of anthropology (UNF Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work). We were also pleased to be joined by Nathan Kunz, assistant professor of operations management (Coggin College of Business); Mag Malek, professor and chair, Department of Construction Management (College of Computing, Engineering, and Construction); and George Rainbolt, professor of philosophy and dean, College of Arts and Sciences; as well as numerous students from the French and International Studies programs.
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Ruth López, director of the UNF International Center, with a panel of international students. Ruth, a graduate of the UNF programs in Spanish and International Studies, began by discussing trends related to Hispanic immigration, based on statistics from the Pew Research Center, and showed a brief student-made video about profiling called "What Kind of Hispanic Are You?" Ruth discussed experiences that she had when she moved to Jacksonville to attend UNF, after immigrating to the US as a small child and growing up in Miami. She then engaged the faculty, staff and students who attended in a conversation about discrimination and ways to educate others and create an environment of mutual respect.
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Nathan Kunz, assistant professor of operations management, and special guest Sara Kunz. The conversation addressed cultural differences between France and the United States related to food, etiquette and meal presentation. Sarah brought delicious “galettes des rois” cakes, eaten traditionally on January 6 to celebrate the Epiphany, for participants to sample. Our thanks as well to the students and faculty who attended.
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A conversation moderated by international studies/political science major Ana Ortiz and international studies/philosophy major Laura Ortiz. This conversation centered on the ways that Colombians are portrayed in the international media, and in particular, in that of the United States. The discussion examined widely held stereotypes about Colombians in general, and more specifically looked at gendered stereotypes about Colombian men and women, situating such portrayals within broader perceptions about Latin Americans in the US. Ana and Laura approached this topic from a personal standpoint, discussing the challenges that stereotypes present as we attempt to exist in the world as individual, unique human beings. They stressed the need for new models of plural identities in an era in which the movement of people across political and social boundaries is increasingly common, and in which so many young people today seek to stay connected to national identities and ideas of cultural heritage while not having such associations limit their potential as individuals.
Spring 2017
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An open conversation moderated by 2016 UNF graduate Saúl Grajeda (International Studies/Spanish) and Sarah Rosen (International Studies/Spanish). This conversation focused on recent shifts in immigration policy, the experience of Hispanic students in higher education, and the insecurity felt by young people of Hispanic origin in the United States today.
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A panel discussion moderated by Constanza López, Associate Professor of Spanish, with current/former UNF students Aitana Arguedas (Political Science), Saúl Grajeda (International Studies/Spanish), and Ricder Ricardo (Art and Design/Printmaking). Cosponsored by the UNF LGBT Resource Center. The conversation centered on how gender and sexuality are experienced differently in the US and in Latin American countries, and the ways in which the attitudes of young people of Latin American descent in the US today often differ from those of their parents and grandparents. Our panelists spoke of their personal experiences, and reflected on ways that they seek to educate others and project pride in who they are.
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Alison Bruey, Associate Professor of History. At this event, Professor Bruey, addressed the topic human rights violations and impunity in Latin America. She approached this topic by focusing on the case of La Legua, a marginal neighborhood of Santiago, Chile. Professor Bruey has studied the Cold War and contemporary history of La Legua since the early 2000s, when she began conducting oral interviews with citizens of the area. Her work has focused in part on exploring the social forces that led to the unrest and resulting repression there during the Pinochet dictatorship. Professor Bruey pointed out the dual challenge faced by those who seek to understand the history of human rights violations in countries like Chile, where on the one hand, a hidden history of past abuse must be brought to light, while at the same time, the abuse that continues today cannot be overlooked or downplayed. She reflected upon a paradigm that historians face when looking at the past--Chile in the 1970s and 1980s is not the Chile of today, and we must therefore recognize it as a separate place in a different historical moment. We must not fail, however, to see how the past informs the present, and ask how the question of impunity remains more relevant than ever today. When considering the recent history of the Southern Cone, we tend to focus on the injustices perpetrated under dictatorships, but the matter of continuing impunity under a democratic systems presents perhaps a more troubling paradigm. Professor Bruey concluded her talk by asking us to consider this question: when the law applies differently to different people, is "democracy" possible?
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Yongan Wu, Associate Professor of Chinese. Professor Wu worked with participants to understand jokes in Chinese dealing with topics including social and economic inequality, official corruption, the North Korean regime, and tensions between China and the former USSR.
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Ángeles Fernández Cifuentes, Associate Professor of Spanish. In her talk, Professor Fernández analyzed the intersections between the novel Don Quixote and the cinema of Woody Allen. She looked at how both Cervantes and Allen use humor to explore the complex relationship between reality and fiction. Professor Fernández considered how the tension between comedic and serious discourses represents in the work of both Cervantes and Allen a strategy for reflecting upon the limits between what is real and what is imagined. She examined in particular at the The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985), which, she observed, both parodies and celebrates the clichés of 1930s Hollywood. Professor Fernández pointed to the complex game of narrative voices and the tension between laughter and seriousness in Allen’s film as running parallel similar tendencies in Don Quixote, which, as she points out, is both a parody of chivalric romances, and the greatest chivalric romance ever written.
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A discussion moderated by David Schwam-Baird, Associate Professor of Political Science, and Director, Master of Arts in International Affairs Program. Dr. Schwam Baird explained France's electoral process and multi-party system, and walked us through the current state of French national politics, highlighting the candidates who will face off in the first round of presidential voting on 4/23. Thanks as well to all the students and faculty who attended and participated in this conversation in French.
Fall 2016
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Andrés Gallo, Professor of Economics and Director, International Business Flagship Program.At this event, Professor Gallo provided an overview, in Spanish, of the current state of Latin American economies. After addressing the complexity of generalizing about a region so diverse, Professor Gallo suggested some common economic and demographic trends, and pointed to challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. We're grateful to Professor Gallo for helping us to better understand these current economic realities in such an engaging and entertaining fashion.
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Thanks to Colombian poet Marta Quiñónez and everyone who participated in the second installment of International Mondays on 10/17. Ms. Quiñónez recited her poetry for us, discussed her experiences, and explained how these have influenced her writing. It was a conversation by turns serious and humorous, and we are grateful to her for sharing with us in such a generous, personal fashion.
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Frances Luna, Refugee Resettlement Job Developer, Diocese of St. Augustine Refugee Settlement Program.
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Anne Pfister, Assistant Professor of Anthropology. Professor Pfister discussed her research at a school for deaf youth in Mexico City, and helped us to understand a variety of issues faced by the deaf community in Mexico. She addressed in particular attitudes toward deafness within the medical establishment and in Mexican culture at large.
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Yongan Wu, Associate Professor of Chinese. Through anecdotes and images, Professor Wu helped participants to better understand the recent rise of nationalist sentiments in China.
