Ten years ago, when I worked at a cellular company, my colleagues and I bought cacti and placed them on our desktop, next to the computer. We had a strong belief that the plant would protect us from harmful computer radiation. But…
Road Trip Musings
Yesterday marked the end of the first week for the Study of the United States Institute (SUSI) 2024 Scholars and it was such a delight for those of us at the Arizona State University’s (ASU) Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and…
Experiences on Flights to the Gateway of Knowledge
I am a special scholar among the 18 SUSI 2024 fellowship recipients, one who does not have a graduate degree in journalism and media. Nearly all of the scholars are journalism lecturers, journalists, researchers, and professors from eighteen different countries gathering…
L.A.: The SUSI Bridge Between Phoenix and Washington
July 8, 2023, the 18 SUSI musketeers are having their last morning in downtown Los Angeles (L.A.). Everyone is finishing packing and getting ready to depart for Washington, D.C., which will take all day. After four weeks in Phoenix, Arizona and with…
And Then the Magic Happened…
Nothing can be usual when you are in the city of dreams. For us, it was surely an unusual day in Los Angeles when we started to explore America’s westward expansion. It was a day of stories unfolding — stories…
Diversity and contrast in LA
On our first full day in Los Angeles, the second most populous city in the country, on the 5th of July, we had a free day to explore its famous landmarks and diverse areas. Most of the scholars decided to…
From 41 degrees Celsius to 21, and Celebrating Independence Day
On July 4, the SUSI ’23 Scholars headed West. Early in the morning at 7 a.m. the Scholars began their travels to Los Angeles, California. It was a short flight from Phoenix to LA. From the window of the plane,…
“Imagine all the people, sharing all the world…”
There could not have been a better excursion than this for the 2023 SUSI scholars visiting Arizona’s Valley of the Sun, before their departure in three days for Los Angeles. The scholars stood before a harsh political reality on the…
Desert Delights: an Epic Road Trip from Phoenix to the Grand Canyon
On June 10, 2023, at 8 in the morning, all of the SUSI scholars gathered and boarded the bus. Our first destination was a gas station surrounded by magnificent Arizona cactuses. With our driver, Ronnie, cautioning us about snakes, we captured…
A Borderless World?
“The world is flat.” This statement was made in the early 21st century by Thomas L. Friedman, who argued that globalization makes the world become a level playing field. The “flatteners” he suggested included the collapse of the Berlin Wall…