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TEXT BY ウルフ ジャスティン
研究科:国際公共政策研究科
専攻:国際公共政策専攻
専門分野:国際関係論(安全保障政策、紛争防止、平和構築)

超域イノベーション博士課程プログラムの「プレインターン」という授業を通して、今年の春休みに約3週間ヨーロッパに行く機会を得ました。この「プレインターン」にはいくつかの目的が組み込まれ、4~5年次の超域インターンシップを有意義に実施するために必要とする能力を身に付けるほか、現地で様々な仕事を直接見聞することによりキャリア形成のための知識を増やし、大学院一年次から十分なネットワークを築き始めることを目的としています。私は、将来、紛争解決や平和構築に関わるような仕事に就きたいと考え、そのため、それに関連する国際機関、研究所、ローカルなNGO(非政府組織)を訪問するアクションプランを立てました。スイス、オーストリア、フィンランド、そしてスコットランドの他に、紛争の傷からまだ立ち直っていないコソボまで行き、平和構築や社会再建に関わっている組織を訪問しました。以下がその経験を通して得られたもの、そして超えられた「領域」についての報告です。この経験がより多くの方に届き、そして訪問した方々にも伝えられるため、今回英語で発表することにしました。

New Aspects in Career Building and Research:
2013 Pre-Internship in Europe

Purpose and Goals

Between the months of February and March, I was given the opportunity to travel to Europe for three weeks for the ‘Pre-Internship’ course in the Cross-Boundary Innovation Program (CBI Program). The purpose of this course was several-fold; by visiting multiple organizations in several countries of the region we (cross-boundary students, otherwise known as CB students) selected, we would be given an opportunity to not only expand our understanding of the various types of career paths available to us by observing such work careers first-hand, but at the same time gain valuable advice and make contacts in the field, thus allowing us to begin shaping our future careers. Within the designated time period (Feb. 20th to Mar. 9th), I was given the freedom to design my own action plan, starting from the countries I would visit to the organizations and specialists I would meet with. As someone who envisions their future career revolving around conflict resolution and peace-building in some way or form, I made appointments with several relevant organizations, such as the United Nations and local NGOs.
Altogether, seven CB students chose Europe as their destination for their pre-internship, and aside from the group work we took part in at the beginning and end of the trip, each of our action plans took us to all ends of the continent. While preparing for this activity, I set the following goals for myself:

  ●To successfully contact and schedule interviews at organizations
  I have a general career interest in,
  (at least one organization in each country);
  ●To visit a variety of organizations and compare their differences
  in working style and operations;
  ●To inquire about future intern possibilities at each organization;
  ●To gain insight and knowledge at any possible opportunity
  into my Master’s research topic and field of specialty.

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Schedule

After consulting with several of my professors, doing background research on different career options, and reflecting on the goals I had set for myself, I designed the following schedule with the help of contacts in Japan and abroad:

Feb. 20th to the 23rd: Geneva, Switzerland
– The Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies (Group Activity)
– UNAIDS
Feb. 24th to the 26th: Pristina, Kosovo
– OSCE (Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe) Mission in Kosovo
– Nansen Dialogue Centre Kosovo
– Ministry of Internal Affairs, Republic of Kosovo
– Community Building Mitrovica
– Humanitarian Education Recreational Center
– Advocacy Training & Resource Center
Feb. 27th to Mar. 2nd: Vienna, Austria
– OSCE Secretariat
Mar. 3rd to the 5th: Helsinki, Finland
– Crisis Management Centre (CMI)
– The Finnish Institute of International Affairs (FIIA)
Mar. 6th to the 9th: Edinburgh, Scotland
– The University of Edinburgh (Group Activity)

Transcending Boundaries: Experiences from Kosovo

As CB students, we endeavor through all activities we participate in to transcend ‘boundaries’ in research, society, our daily lives, and so on. These ‘boundaries’ are not tangible objects, and therefore makes this task extremely challenging. However, through the CBI program, we are trained to identify problems in society that cannot be solved with traditional methods and patterns of thought. Through group work and guidance, we strive to assemble a toolbox of skills, not normally acquirable from a traditional PhD course, which will allow us to come up with unique solutions to these problems. The CBI program has identified several ‘boundaries’ it desires us CB students to attempt to cross over (see Mission of the Program). We CB students understand that this is not something we can achieve overnight, but courses and activities such as this pre-internship provides us with the perfect opportunity to move one step in that direction. During my pre-internship, I found myself tackling with the “boundary of stereotypical thinking patterns.”
My visits to organizations in Geneva, Vienna and Helsinki had provided me with extremely valuable professional advice and information. Not only was I able to compare different career types, but I was able to directly inquire into how a graduate student should best prepare for such a line of work, as well as receive tips on making an internship successful. What was particularly interesting during my trip was the different type of discoveries I had made in Kosovo. Even though my visit was short, I found myself constantly coming up against the two boundaries I mentioned above. First off, I had two reasons for visiting Kosovo; one, I wanted to visit conflict resolution and peace building missions as well as local NGOs in the field; two, I wanted to witness first-hand and hear directly from people on the ground about the struggles a post-conflict society faces. I believed it would be the perfect opportunity to see peace building work in the field while at the same time expanding my knowledge on the topic.
pl_justin_03 During my trip to Southern Africa a week earlier, I believed I had successfully transcended the boundary of stereotypical thinking patterns. What I hadn’t realized was that overcoming ones stereotypes on poverty and conflict on one continent wouldn’t automatically mean it would apply to stereotypes about another. My first walk through the capital Pristina clearly demonstrated this to me. I was surprised to see a whole different type of poverty than what I had seen before. The capital of Pristina was a combination of old and new infrastructure, the newer more notably government offices and building. One would think that the rebuilding of the city was a positive sign of recovery, but according to locals, Pristina alone faces an unemployment rate of over 40 percent, and only so much construction can take place with a struggling economy. A different situation for a different country, I realized they types of economic assistance for Kosovo would differ from those possibly offered to Zambia or Tanzania.
Another stereotypical thinking pattern I was forced to transcend was my understanding of post-conflict ethnic struggles. After several of the interviews I had conducted with local organizations and conversations with both Albanian and Serbian groups, my understanding that ethnic conflicts are extremely difficult to resolve was reinforced. Both parties experienced different things throughout the conflict, and therefore place importance on different problems. What had caught me off-guard was the overall willingness to forgive and move on from a population that I had assumed would still be in shock, especially after all the tragedies I had read about. I am sure opinions vary depending on who you talk to, but overall, people had a much more positive outlook of the future. Through these experiences, I found myself coming to the conclusion that there is only so much you can learn without visiting the ground and talking to its people. By doing so myself, I believe I had come one step closer to overcoming this boundary.

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Overall Results

Thanks to the most generous cooperation of individuals in both Europe and Japan, I am proud to say that my pre-internship in Europe was a success. Over the three weeks I was in Europe, I had visited ten organizations and interviewed at least 19 individuals (specialists) in four countries (excluding Scotland). I was able to visit various types of NGOs, visit the field mission office and headquarters of a regional organization, visit different research institutions, and even visit a UN organization. I inquired into the internship opportunities offered by most of the organizations and received valuable career advice, as well as held intensely interesting conversations on topics in my specialty. Based on the knowledge I had acquired through this course, I am currently in the process of forming an action plan to successfully carry out my long-term internship during the 4th and 5th year of the Cross-Boundary Innovation program. I am confident these experiences will provide deeper insight into my research and allow me to make more skilled career decisions over the next couple of years.