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Submission information
Submission Number: 448
Submission ID: 1582
Submission UUID: 67b5059b-219d-4b3c-ac3a-0d9afc36278d
Submission URI:/center/mortenson/form/webform-1367
Created: Tue, 03/11/2025 - 22:03
Completed: Tue, 03/11/2025 - 22:03
Changed: Tue, 04/08/2025 - 01:05
Remote IP address: 2605:b40:1512:0:35f4:f675:9276:a409
Submitted by:Anonymous
Language: English
Is draft: No
Flagged: Yes
Locked: Yes
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Isaac
Berka
He/Him
Fort Collins
Colorado
United States
80526
Electrical Engineering Major
English (5), Spanish (5), Japanese (3)
My first international trip was a very tourism focused experience, I hit the major landmarks in Paris, Barcelona, Rome, and Florence. However, it was upon my visits to places much less traveled, such as rural Wales, the Masai Mara reserve in Kenya, and the northern and southernmost islands of Japan, Hokkaido and Okinawa respectively, I began to gain a deeper appreciation for the varied cultures of the world.
While I anticipated communication to be easy in rural Wales with a shared language, due to accents and cultural differences it was one of the most challenging countries to converse in. By contrast, the Masai Mara was exceedingly easy to communicate in due to the locals eagerness to share their culture. Their knowledge of my culture made me realize the importance of understanding the significant aspects of a group I am visiting with.
During the year in between my trip to Kenya and studying in Japan I took as much time as possible to prepare myself by learning about the culture, language, and customs of Japan. Second quarter of my junior year of high school, I lived in Tokyo for 12 weeks studying Japanese at a language immersion school in Tokyo and made a point to travel somewhere new in the country every weekend. For the first time, I experienced what it was to be an outsider. Not just ethnically in Japan, but also culturally among other foreign students. When I met European students at the school, they approached me with all the preconceived notions of Americans. My housemates were all twenty-somethings, at a different stage of life than me as a 16 year old. Prior to my travels, I considered myself a social person. This was challenged by the Japanese cultural identity I found living there. I was clearly not one of them, which made it more difficult to break the ice in many situations. I found that outside of Tokyo, connecting with Japanese people was easier. They weren’t as solemn or distant as those in Tokyo and they were much more excited to converse with me. These jaunts to more rural areas bolstered my efforts to meet more people back in my hometown.
I gained a deeper understanding of how cultures can resist oppression and maintain their identity in Hokkaido and Okinawa. Both islands were sites of major wars and experienced discrimination towards the indigenous populations yet persisted.
I anticipate the Global Engineering RAP cohort attracts a variety of people across different engineering disciplines with different focuses. I am excited to explore and exchange my knowledge of unique cultures with these students in our pursuit of engineering solutions.
While I anticipated communication to be easy in rural Wales with a shared language, due to accents and cultural differences it was one of the most challenging countries to converse in. By contrast, the Masai Mara was exceedingly easy to communicate in due to the locals eagerness to share their culture. Their knowledge of my culture made me realize the importance of understanding the significant aspects of a group I am visiting with.
During the year in between my trip to Kenya and studying in Japan I took as much time as possible to prepare myself by learning about the culture, language, and customs of Japan. Second quarter of my junior year of high school, I lived in Tokyo for 12 weeks studying Japanese at a language immersion school in Tokyo and made a point to travel somewhere new in the country every weekend. For the first time, I experienced what it was to be an outsider. Not just ethnically in Japan, but also culturally among other foreign students. When I met European students at the school, they approached me with all the preconceived notions of Americans. My housemates were all twenty-somethings, at a different stage of life than me as a 16 year old. Prior to my travels, I considered myself a social person. This was challenged by the Japanese cultural identity I found living there. I was clearly not one of them, which made it more difficult to break the ice in many situations. I found that outside of Tokyo, connecting with Japanese people was easier. They weren’t as solemn or distant as those in Tokyo and they were much more excited to converse with me. These jaunts to more rural areas bolstered my efforts to meet more people back in my hometown.
I gained a deeper understanding of how cultures can resist oppression and maintain their identity in Hokkaido and Okinawa. Both islands were sites of major wars and experienced discrimination towards the indigenous populations yet persisted.
I anticipate the Global Engineering RAP cohort attracts a variety of people across different engineering disciplines with different focuses. I am excited to explore and exchange my knowledge of unique cultures with these students in our pursuit of engineering solutions.
An engineer who only understands one group can only engineer that group's solutions. Different groups face different issues which require different solutions, especially in a world as geographically divergent, meteorologically diverse, and with varied cultures and customs throughout.
Hokkaido, Okinawa, and Tokyo all have coastlines vulnerable to erosion, only one has to worry about the major subway lines beneath and engineer multi billion dollar solutions to natural disasters. Okinawa’s concerns may lie more in line with fears of impact to agriculture and tourism while Hokkaido’s bustling fishing industry may suffer under emerging climate issues. Engineering solutions to these issues require an intimate understanding of each individually. These three regions have entirely different customs and climates that may affect or interfere with how an engineering solution to their problems might be developed.
As I embark on my engineering career I am not yet sure on where my technical skills will lead me. However, I know I will have a positive impact on the community I join.
Hokkaido, Okinawa, and Tokyo all have coastlines vulnerable to erosion, only one has to worry about the major subway lines beneath and engineer multi billion dollar solutions to natural disasters. Okinawa’s concerns may lie more in line with fears of impact to agriculture and tourism while Hokkaido’s bustling fishing industry may suffer under emerging climate issues. Engineering solutions to these issues require an intimate understanding of each individually. These three regions have entirely different customs and climates that may affect or interfere with how an engineering solution to their problems might be developed.
As I embark on my engineering career I am not yet sure on where my technical skills will lead me. However, I know I will have a positive impact on the community I join.
The Global Engineering RAP will give me more experience working in cross-discipline groups of engineers on large scale problems. This will contribute to the development of my engineering judgement and program management skills. Studying abroad is one of my goals for college. I am excited that I will be able to maintain and advance my foreign language skills as a member of the Global Engineering RAP.
My extended family is ethnically diverse. We have strong cultural identities rooted in Eastern Europe, Southeast Asia and Britain. My maternal grandmother has been very involved in my day-to-day life. I’ve seen what it means for her to be Asian in ethnically homogenous Northern Colorado. Her immigrant experience and struggles to assimilate, even after 50 years as a US citizen, are something I’ve witnessed first hand.
I come from a family diverse in education and professional experiences too. I know first hand that intellect is not determined by a degree or job title. It is all of this context that I carry with me when I approach others. I will bring a high level of empathy, understanding, and compassion to my engineering work due to my innate background and the community that raised me. From this space, I’ve fostered a curiosity for other cultures that has led me to study abroad in Japan, pursue a seal of biliteracy in Spanish, and travel to 5 other countries steeping myself in their rich customs. I am excited to engage and work with the other members of the Global Engineering RAP.
My extended family is ethnically diverse. We have strong cultural identities rooted in Eastern Europe, Southeast Asia and Britain. My maternal grandmother has been very involved in my day-to-day life. I’ve seen what it means for her to be Asian in ethnically homogenous Northern Colorado. Her immigrant experience and struggles to assimilate, even after 50 years as a US citizen, are something I’ve witnessed first hand.
I come from a family diverse in education and professional experiences too. I know first hand that intellect is not determined by a degree or job title. It is all of this context that I carry with me when I approach others. I will bring a high level of empathy, understanding, and compassion to my engineering work due to my innate background and the community that raised me. From this space, I’ve fostered a curiosity for other cultures that has led me to study abroad in Japan, pursue a seal of biliteracy in Spanish, and travel to 5 other countries steeping myself in their rich customs. I am excited to engage and work with the other members of the Global Engineering RAP.
Global Engineer RAP Isaac Berka.pdf(50.39 KB)