ANTARCTICA?!?

Brooke Nelson Start Date: Aug 25, 2018 - End Date: Dec 15, 2018
  • Educational/Research Trip
  • Professional Development
  • Study/Degree Abroad
  • Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego Province, Argentina
  • Antarctica
  • Punta Arenas, Chile

My Travel Story

by: Brooke Nelson Start Date: Aug 25, 2018 - End Date: Dec 15, 2018
  • Educational/Research Trip
  • Professional Development
  • Study/Degree Abroad
The word "Antarctica" must have caught your attention, bringing you to this page. The same thing happened to me when I was walking through my school’s study abroad fair as I stumbled upon the table for Antarctica, along with one of my professors who is facilitating the trip.

When I was a child, I had set the goal of visiting all 7 continents. I’ll admit, I thought Antarctica was a stretch. It just seemed so “out there”; I was not sure how it would happen. That was until I went to that fair.

As I talked more with my professor, he explained the details and how ASU will be one of four schools in the States to have a program for studying abroad in Antarctica. It is actually the second study abroad trip hosted by my school, the School for the Future of Innovation in Society at ASU. (My trip to Ecuador was the first!)

To prepare for our trip, we have a class this fall to learn about the complex social and political issues involving Antarctica. In this, we will be learning from professionals about various things such as Antarctica’s ecosystems, geology, glaciology, history of exploration, international cooperative research and treaties, as well as environmental management policies. (If you have any special knowledge or ideas involving this, please send let me know!)

To start the trip, we fly to Argentina to board a boat that will take us to Antarctica’s peninsula. While on the boat, we will get to learn even more from scientists and naturalists about this frozen continent and what’s to come. Not only will we get to see whales, seals, orcas, and penguins, we might get the chance to spend a night on the continent and even do a polar plunge!!

Once we return from our time abroad, we will revise our research papers based on our own personal experiences while there (sort of like field research). On top of developing my research skills and this being an opportunity of a lifetime, I think this experience would pay off for me in more ways than I could even begin to consider.

If you or someone you know is a fanatic about Antarctica or has ever dreamt of going, perhaps this is a chance to live vicariously through me!
  • Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego Province, Argentina
  • Antarctica
  • Punta Arenas, Chile

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