Bringing the World Closer

Throughout the process of putting together this interview, I was ruminating on remarks Tim Howard made about the unfortunate American work schedule that doesn't allow for lengthy travel. It's worth checking out. Just another reason to go ahead and book tickets for your own voyage of discovery!

Imagining A Higher Form of Tourism

Nowadays taking pictures is an integral part of most people’s travel experience. But sometimes it feels like travelers take pictures instead of actually processing what they’re seeing.  I'm inclined to believe Annie Dillard when she said, “People who take photographs during their whole vacation. They won't remember their vacation. They'll only remember what photographs they took."

But maybe that's what people want when they travel: to capture a place in pictures and lay claim to their experiences there. And in that way we take a piece of a place with us. But maybe tourism could be a more altruistic endeavor. Could it even be an instrument for development and at what cost? 

So, I was fascinated by the research that Sheethal Jose did in the Chamba district of northern India. She wondered whether tourism could be designed to benefit the local residents. She's imagining tourism that's motivated by curiosity and a real desire to connect with another place and its people. 

Context for Change

I am doing a series of interviews for UVA Global Internships with some of the students who have taken advantage of the support and resources they offer. For the first one, I spoke to Jack Burden about his internship last summer with Windows - Channels for Communication in Tel Aviv, Israel.