On This Year and the Year to Come

It has been four months since I've written. So I've got a bit to update. I have had many successes recently in regards to publishing and I'm quite excited about this. At the beginning of this academic year I had a personal goal of getting 3 pieces published, yet I end the year with 7 pieces out. I intend to follow up on this next year with 3-4 more essays, as well as an initiative to conduct a symposium at my new university and to present at a few more conferences in Japan and elsewhere.

I have decided to stay in S. Korea for another year, so long as I am teaching at a better university and in improved living conditions. Thus I will be moving from Yeungjin College in Daegu to Woosong University in Daejeon. At Woosong, I will be teach Freshman and Sophomore English Communication and Culture courses, as well as elective courses for Juniors and Seniors. The school website is at http://english.wsu.ac.kr/. The department at Woosong has 70+ foreign faculty. Most have worked for the Uni for 4-5 years or more, which is for me an indicator that the job must be decent and the living situation nice. Additionally, Daejeon is only 40 mins outside Seoul.

In this year, what I believe will be my last in Asia, I have plans to travel to Australia, Fiji, Cambodia, China, and Japan before leaving.

Outside of my teaching responsbilities, I'm working on consulting work and publishing with international organizations. Thoug I was offered admission into the University of Toronto School of Education (OISE) to study Adult Education toward an MA and Ph.D, I had to deny the offer because funding was not provided. This fall I intend to apply to a number of grad schools in the US and abroad to pursue Education and Conflict Resolution studies. Perhaps I will apply for a Rotary Ambassadorial Fellowship and a Fulbright.

The year in Daegu has been eventful with the joint program between Yeungjin College and the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. UCCS and Yeungjin teamed up to offer various ESL programs to Korean youth and adults. There have been many growing pains with the infant program, some necessary but most probably not. Bickering between all sides is the norm and the treatment of many of the employees here by the institution is outright egregious.

Consequently, I discovered happiness in my work outside of work and in my travels and friendships. I worked with WISCOMP (Women in Security, Conflict Management and Peace of the Foundation for Universal Responsbility of HH the Dalai Lama) in New Delhi in April, and again with Northwestern University teaching HS in New York in March. These programs provided some meaningful work.

Additionally, I have had 7 pieces published with various schools and organizations. And I am dating a beautiful young women, Julie, from Virginia. Julie is a grad of Univ of Mary Washington in Virginia; her mother is the state-side director of the UCCS program we're working for here. Julie teaches art and ESL here. On the publications I have two peer-reviewed academic journal articles out this month in India and the US. Their web addresses are pasted below. I also had a reviewed article published last summer in Costa Rica, two extensive lesson plans published with UN Works, and a book ("The Young Ecologist Initiative (Water Manual): Lesson Plans for Building Earth Democracy") published in India in November. It has been, I think, a productive year in this regard.

1.) An article in 'Peace Prints: A Journal for Peacebuilding in South Asia' with WISCOMP in New Delhi, India, http://www.wiscomp.org/peaceprints.htm. The article concerns a developmental model for implementing peace education programs into schools and non-formal social justice organizations aimed at combatting ethocentrism and fostering non-violence. I have a second article coming out with WISCOMP in the 3rd volume next year writing on the link between gender and racial awareness and a pedagogy for sensitivity and inclusion.

2.) The second article is published with 'In Factis Pax: A Journal of Peace Education and Social Justice' (University of Toledo, Ohio), http://www.infactispax.org/journal/. This paper discusses the relevancy of the Earth Charter as a democratic, civil society document, and its pedagogical implications in educating for intercultural competencies and peacebuilding.

3.) The third article, from last summer, with the 'Peace and Conflict Review' (University for Peace) is about peace education philosophy and a pedagogy of storytelling as a means of inclusion and cooperative, futures envisioning education, http://www.review.upeace.org/index.cfm?issue=37.

4.) I have 2 extensive lessons out with the UN addressing issues of human rights, resource access, and peacebuilding, http://www.un.org/works/Lesson_Plans/Peace/UNwork_ConflictLessonPlan.doc and http://www.un.org/works/Lesson_Plans/Women/UNworks_HR_GenderUnit.doc.

5.) I had a book published in India in November with Navdanya, an educational organization aimed at increasing social awareness and environemental capacities among citizens. Our book was aimed at educators teaching youth, as a means to empower young people and include them in policy making. I was excited to find that the book is available for online purchase at DK Agencies South Asian Books. $7.80. https://www.dkagencies.com/doc/from/1363/to/11230/subj/WAT/subjects.html.