O Canada- Final Reflections

With my year abroad in Toronto drawing to a close, I have some final reflections.

Firstly, I have come to love Canada so much. It is a brilliant country with friendly people; an overall positive idea of a Canadian identity; and a new liberal government that seems to be moving in the right direction towards social and environmental justice. Drawing back to my very first blog post, I feel I have become closer to understanding what it means to be Canadian and have a Canadian identity. I have also seen plenty of maple, but alas no moose.

In terms of studying at the University of Toronto, I am very happy with the knowledge I have gained. From the regional geographies of Canada, the USA, North America generally, and Latin America, I have critically covered a whole two continents that I had never studied in depth before.  I developed my GIS skills and also took a course "Multicultural Perspectives on the Environment" that looked into environmental problems in the developing world. I appreciate having had the opportunity to study under a continuous assessment system, as I hope that the good habits I've picked up here (studying more intensively throughout the week from the very beginning of the term) will continue back at UCL. I also have come to appreciate both the advantages and disadvantages of the UK/UCL academic system.

Quite a few of my blog posts have focused on aspects of the global warming threat which is a reflection of the fact that I was deeply engaged with the material we were learning on the causes of global warming, the potential impacts and what people can do to help. Coupled with the other module that had a lasting effect on me -Culture, History, Landscape-, has led me to be far more critical of capitalism's role in producing social inequality and exacerbating the potential global warming impacts. As a result, I have finally found a potential research and career route that I want to follow- global warming and how we can productively frame and communicate the threat to the public, governments and large corporations.

Lastly I must add that I have met so many interesting exchange and domestic students from all over the world. From Canada and the USA to Brazil, Chile and Argentina, Japan and South Korea, Israel, New Zealand and a whole bunch of countries in Europe, I have made many international friends who have all given me wonderful memories filled with laughter and fun.

source: ecanadanow.com