Please describe any travel or experiences that have prepared you for the Global Engineering RAP. This can include international travel and study abroad or any travel or experiences within the US that have showed you new perspectives, cultures or languages. If you have not had the chance yet to travel, please share where you would like to travel and why. In my travels, I've enjoyed exploring the non-tourist-area culture and practicing my Spanish skills amongst the locals. For example, when my family and I went to Puerto Vallarta, MX last year we traveled throughout downtown and the outskirts by bus, explored open markets together, and sampled street wares and food. In doing this, I had to rely on my Spanish speaking skills to communicate and I immensely enjoyed having the opportunity to practice with and listen to people in a real-world context outside of the classroom.
Besides relevant travels, for my entire life, my family has been involved with the NGO humanitarian organization known as Embracing the World, inspired and founded by Mata Amritanandamayi, better known in the West as “Amma -- The Hugging Saint” from Kerala, India. Amma is recognized throughout the world as a preeminent humanitarian and spiritual leader whose primary mission is to inspire selfless service, in a wide variety of ways, to help uplift suffering humanity, as well as to aid in restoring balance to the natural environment. Before the necessary COVID-19 restrictions, Amma has been visiting much of the world (27 countries) for over 30 years, has embraced over 36 million people, and has inspired substantive volunteerism to address the world’s most challenging problems -- from fulfilling basic needs such as food, shelter, and healthcare to providing education, livelihood, environmental sustainability, and emergency aid following natural disasters.
For the first decade of my life, my family was fortunate to live in New Mexico, where Amma would visit for several days each summer, amongst more than a handful of other U.S. cities. Alongside numerous volunteers, my family participated in helping bring Amma’s visit and programs to the general public where 12,000-15,000 people would participate in the collective mission to foster service initiatives and aid those in need. Since relocating to Colorado, my family continues to volunteer for Amma’s yearly New Mexico visit every summer as well as helping with various other initiatives throughout the year, such as planting trees and feeding and clothing the homeless. Seeing Amma inspire inclusivity and selflessness has impacted my worldview and has sparked my commitment to be of service in the world.