"It Gets Better - UM" Campaign - Seeking Volunteers Willing to Share their Stories

Presently, Robert Hupf is putting together an interesting program at UM.  Specifically, Mr. Hupf is reaching out to seek assistance for a little project he is trying to implement: an "It Gets Better" video for the University of Miami. 

If you haven't seen the youtube videos or heard about the It Gets Better campaign, I strongly recommend taking a few minutes and watching the attached links at the bottom of this email. In short, the campaign aims at spreading positive messaging to overcome sexuality and gender based bullying, discrimination, and ostracization (particularly for those of the LGBTQ spectrum). It does this by spreading testimonials, advice, and personal narratives of individuals who went through that same adversity but kept strong; they eventually came to realize what the campaign is named after - things got better. They found acceptance from friends and family, were able to meet their partners and start families, and in general come to appreciate themselves and their identities as normal and essential, not something to fear over, fret about, or reject completely. Particularly for the college editions of the It Gets Better campaign, many of these students found such acceptance once they joined the larger undergraduate community.

Currently, the video is being proposed as part of Social Justice Week. SJW is going to be the week of April 16-20, and at the end of week there is going to be TEDx conference here at UM. Unfortunately (in terms of scheduling), Friday April 20 is also Day of Silence; our intention is thus to actually show this "It Gets Better" video as the presentation on the LGBTQ issue rather than giving a formalized presentation.

Why we need you - the most essential part of any It Gets Better video is the real-life testimonies of LGBTQ individuals coming forward and telling their stories. What I am also hoping is that our own video can include the voice of allies who also step forward with words of support/love, with their own tales of speaking out (or being a bystander) and how that made them feel; we want the video to show that UM, despite its conservative reputation, is united on this issue. But we need folks who are willing to share.

If you personally would like to share your story, words of wisdom, advice, or any other testimony, please let us know as soon as possible so we can try and arrange filming day (faculty, students, and general University of Miami affiliated representatives are all welcome). Also, if you know of anyone else who would be interested, or would like to send this message along to others, please go ahead and do so. My email is roberthupf@gmail.com and I'll be happy to take any inquiries, suggestions, or general criticisms =).

Mr. Hupf's full contact info is listed below:
Robert Hupf

Social Justice Week Member     

Roberthupf@gmail.com

786-449-0372

 

P.S. - Here are a few It Gets Better videos

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJWtvwALxQo - UF's version
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RMunYfzlGs - San Francisco Police Department

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYLs4NCgvNU&feature=related - Google Employees
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEoCyLQgdCU&feature=related - Kermit the Frog

POLITICS PHD STUDENTSHIPS AND MA BURSARIES AT NEWCASTLE UNIVERSITY, UK

The School of Geography, Politics and Sociology at Newcastle University have the following funding opportunities for postgraduate courses being offered in 2012-13: Over $80,000 in Studentship and Bursary funding for incoming MA or PhD students available to UK, EU or International students. Please see the following link for further details:

 

http://www.ncl.ac.uk/gps/postgrad/funding/

 

 

We have eight MA programmes in Politics, including programmes in ‘International Studies’, ‘Global Justice and Ethics’ and ‘Globalization, Poverty and Development’, ‘Critical Geopolitics’, 'World Politics and Popular Culture', ‘European Union Studies’, ‘International Political Economy’ and ‘Politics (Research)’ – for details see:

 

http://www.ncl.ac.uk/gps/politics/postgrad/taught/

 

We would particularly welcome applications from students wishing to study for a PhD in any area of Politics.  You can find details of staff interests and student blogs by following the link above.

 

If you have any queries, please contact Amanda Baxter (amanda.baxter@ncl.ac.uk) or Karyn McCloud (karyn.mccloud@ncl.ac.uk).

W&M Policy Review Call for Papers

The William & Mary Policy Review is now accepting submissions and subscription requests for the Spring 2012 issue. 


Submissions from professors and students from all disciplines will be accepted and should discuss timely topics in public policy.  These submissions will be reviewed on a rolling basis.


Papers should be submitted via email to: 
POLICYREVIEW@WM.EDU


For more information please visit the following Web page: WWW.WMPOLICYREVIEW.ORG

So You Want to Be a Diplomat: A "How To" and Stories from the Field

Lara O’Neill (UM Law Grad ’05) is a U.S. Diplomat current serving at the U.S. Embassy in Nassau, The Bahamas.  Just prior to joining the State Department she was the Miami Law Director of International Public Interest Programs and took students to Namibia for human rights coursework.  

Ms. O’Neill will meet with students to discuss the process of becoming a Foreign Service Officer for the U.S. State Department as well as share stories from her experience in the Bahamas.

 

So, come and learn more about the Foreign Service and how you can use your educational skills to help forge U.S. foreign policy.

 

Date: February 20, 2012

Time: 9:30am – 11:00am

Location: Law School Faculty Lounge – 4^th Floor Law Library

 

Pastries & Coffee will be served.

 

The first 50 students to RSVP by Sunday, February 19 at midnight will be able to attend.  RSVP for this event at https://sites.google.com/a/g.law.miami.edu/so-you-want-to-be-a-diplomat/

United Nations Tokyo University Post-Doc Fellowships

The United Nations University in Tokyo is currently accepting applications for its post-doctoral fellowship program.

Applications for the next round of post-docs (starting 1 September 2012) are due end of this month: 29 February 2012. The post-docs are 2 years, research only, and based in Tokyo. One of the streams for the program at UNU-ISP is ‘Peace and Security’ (there are also ‘International Cooperation and Development’ and ‘Global Change and Sustainability’).

The Peace and Security section develops research on threats to the peace, such as violent conflicts, human rights abuses, proliferation of weapons, terrorism, but is gradually expanding its analysis, within the globally changing geopolitical context, to integrate other aspects of human security - challenges of climate change, poverty and under-development, economic globalization and interdependence. The section places particular emphasis on how to address such new challenges in vulnerable post-conflict situations, looking at sustainable, long-term approaches to peacebuilding and human rights, aiming to prevent state's failure and communities falling back into violence. The JSPS Fellow will conduct research that fits broadly within the themes above.

Required qualifications:

• PhD degree in social sciences generally, or international law/international relations in particular

• Fluency in English is essential, working knowledge of another language is desirable

• Applications from women and candidates originating from developing countries are encouraged

Full details of the application process can be found here:

http://www.ias.unu.edu/sub_page.aspx?catID=6&ddlID=143

Further questions may be addressed to Dr. Christopher Hobson whose contact information is listed below.

Dr. Christopher Hobson
Research Associate
Institute for Sustainability and Peace
United Nations University
5-53-70 Jingumae
Shibuya-ku
Tokyo 150-8925
Japan