Chelsea Holmes

International Experience Country:
Australia
Cohort Year:
2018
Home Institution:

University of Pittsburgh | Greensburg

Heinz Programming Area:
Children, Youth, and Families
Bio:
Study Abroad Country: Cohort Year:  Home Institution:  Programming Area: 
International Experience Summary:

Chelsea studied abroad in Australia through The Education Abroad Network (TEAN). She spent her first week in Cairns, where Chelsea explored the aboriginal culture of Australia. She had the opportunity to take a tour of the Daintree rainforest, one of the oldest in the world. This rainforest was preserved by the tour guides, who live off the land within this rainforest. While in Cairns, Chelsea also had the opportunity to explore the great barrier reef, one of the seven natural wonders of the world. Chelsea learned about the preservation of this natural wonder and the benefits of protecting it and its’ surrounding environment. While in Cairns, Chelsea had the opportunity to learn a great deal about Australia’s people and culture through these experiences.

Chelsea spent the next eight weeks interning in Sydney with Cancer Council New South Wales (NSW) as an events assistant. Cancer Council NSW is a non-profit organization that raises funds for cancer research. As part of her role, Chelsea was instructed to help create a leadership conference for all Relay for Life events in NSW as well as getting Australians involved in their annual Daffodil Day event. While working on these events, Chelsea made quality relationships with her coworkers, which helped her learn more about Australian culture and people. Her coworkers were kind enough to show Chelsea various sights around the city including the Vivid light festival, the Chinese Garden of Friendship, a play at the Sydney Opera House, the Blue Mountains, the Australian Museum, and the Art Gallery of NSW.

Community Engagement Experience Summary:

CEE Title: I'm not a Bitch, I'm a Woman: Global Perceptions of Women and Feminism

The University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg’s 2018 Vira Heinz cohort presented a CEE entitled “I’m Not A Bitch, I’m A Woman: Global Perceptions of Women and Feminism”. During our presentation, our cohort discussed our experiences abroad regarding feminism, including perceptions of women, after studying abroad in Australia, Tanzania, and the Dominican Republic. We researched and presented on feminism, the double bind, stereotypes, the true definition of feminism, job equality, and how to advocate. We examined how each of our host countries perceived women as well as our experiences as women abroad and then compared them to our personal experiences in our own community. We also observed how our peers and educators felt about the issues we were studying in order to raise awareness. To conclude our presentation, we invited four inspirational and passionate women from our campus to speak about the topic. We invited three professors who were knowledgeable on the topic as well as a previous Vira Heinz awardee who spoke well about the topic. We then opened up our CEE to questions and comments from the audience.