The IDS program challenged the way I understood the world before I arrived at Trent and forced me to ask some tough questions about ideas I once thought were common sense. The courses were stimulating and critical. The professors were attentive, available and supportive throughout. My time in the Trent in Ecuador (TIE) program (2006-7) allowed me to grapple with some of the theoretical concepts we discussed in classes, and gain a more intimate sense of what international development actually is. All of us who took part in the year-abroad program agreed that it was one of the most formative years of our lives. The critical perspective and attention to social justice the Trent IDS program instilled in me, has become the basis of my further studies, and the way I see the world in general.
Since graduating from Trent I have worked with various community development and sustainable agriculture projects throughout Latin America and Canada. More recently, I have shifted my focus from the international scope, to issues effecting us here at home. This fall, I completed a Masters of Environmental Studies degree at York University with a focus on Urban Food Insecurity in Canada. My work currently focuses on improving food access in low-income neighbourhoods in Toronto through local food systems approaches. The Trent IDS program laid the foundation for the work I do today, allowing me to understand more fully the connections between local and global dilemmas. I would recommend the program to anyone who wants to better understand and change the world around them.