Three speakers addressed the issue of balance in international humanitarian work during a panel discussion entitled "International Activism: Dartmouth in the World." The panel, held Thursday night in Filene Auditorium, was the third event in a series of programs held to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the John Sloan Dickey Center for International Understanding.
The panelists included two Dartmouth alumni and one current Master of Arts and Liberal Studies student, all of whom have committed their professional lives to activist efforts throughout the world. Despite the speakers' differing backgrounds, their talks all converged on the importance of finding an equilibrium between working with overseeing organizations and servicing the affected communities.
Panelist Sarah Charles '02 explained that the conflict between these two initiatives was particularly evident during her work with the International Rescue Committee in Sudan. Charles recounted the difficulty workers faced in reporting the truth about genocide in the area while placating the Sudanese government that controlled their occupancy in the country.
"It's something that I don't think any humanitarian organization working in Sudan has really figured out -- where that balance is," Charles said.
Anne Bellows '06 focused on this friction on a smaller scale, addressing her activist work as a student at Dartmouth.
Bellows now works as an investigator for the Southern Center for Human Rights, a non-profit law office that addresses prisoners' rights in Georgia and Alabama. On Thursday night, however, Bellows focused her comments on her work with the Dartmouth Darfur Action group during her time as an undergraduate. In 2005, the group's efforts motivated Dartmouth to divest from companies that do business with the Sudanese government.
Bellows questioned, however, whether the group could have had a larger effect.
"That's one of the ideas that I've come to. Conflict is really, really necessary for activism if you're going to get anywhere," Bellows said. "I worry that we did ourselves a disservice by pursuing too bureaucratic a method."
Panelist Shannon Martinez, a current MALS student who previously worked as a USAID local representative in Iraq, said that she carries a copy of an article entitled "The Road to Hell is Paved with Good Intentions" with her in order to remind her of this conflict.
"Theoretically I live my life trying to help people. But am I always doing the right thing?" Martinez asked the audience.
Martinez also stressed the importance of creating policy that is influenced by the needs of the community, a subject addressed several times throughout the discussion.
"My big message is that we have to figure out a way to get the message up," Martinez said. "[We need] policies that make sense for the local population."
Both Bellows and Charles are past recipients of the Lombard Post-Grad Fellowship, a fellowship awarded through the Dickey Center. During her presentation, Charles praised the program as an integral part of her career as an activist, calling the fellowship a "gift."
"It was the catalyst for my initial involvement with international activism," Charles said. "It was the start of a career and a life journey that I've been on for five years now, and plan to be on for the rest of my life."
After the panelists finished their presentations, audience members were invited to ask questions. Much of the resulting discourse focused on the need to maintain a feeling of hope while performing service.
Dr. James Strickler '50 DMS '51, who moderated the panel, shared an anecdote from his fieldwork as a doctor during this discussion.
After a particularly long and tiring day of medical work, Strickler returned home and said to his wife, "'I can't solve all the problems out here, but I saved a baby's life today,'" he recounted.
Kenneth Yalowitz, director of the Dickey Center, also stepped in to address this point.
"I don't mean to argue for incrementalism," Yalowitz said. "[But] if you save a baby a day, that's a hell of an achievement. If you can make someone's life better, that's a heck of an achievement."
