Sustainable and Ethical Study Abroad
Drawing on a lifetime of involvement in study abroad—as a son of a study abroad director, a study abroad student and participant, an educational tour operator, a steering committee member of an international study abroad institute, a researcher, and a faculty program director—this research examines the promises, challenges, and ethics of study abroad, especially as it discursively distances itself from related form of travel and tourism. The COVID-19 pandemic served as a veritable “reset” on how study abroad is conceived, authorized, and managed—especially considering changing academic cultures surrounding the value of travel abroad and a liberal arts education, volunteerism/voluntourism, and thresholds of risk. The pandemic not only forced tourism and study abroad scholars to think more about ecological sustainability, but also brought to light a strong dependency on study abroad for locals, despite critiques of voluntourism and neocolonial practices. At West Chester University, I have been collaborating with Director of Sustainability Dr. Bradley Flamm, Dr. Paul Sylvester, and Vice President for Internationalization Dr. Angela Howard to help rethink study abroad and how it can be more sustainable. This research has been supported in part by a WCU Sustainability Grant and a WCU Office of Sponsored Research grant.
