Author: Kyla Clouthier | Major: Agribusiness | Semester: Summer 2024
City view in Antwerp, a mix of old and new
From the moment my study abroad cohort left the Brussels Airport in Belgium, it was a surreal experience. Cobblestone streets and gothic architecture gave the impression we had traveled back in time while on the flight, but this observation was juxtaposed with brightly colored advertisements showcasing the newest products and policies, often social justice oriented.
Being an agribusiness major, my future job security lies in utilizing resources in a sustainable way, with my personal attachment to the environment being an added bonus. These two driving forces lead me to apply for this program. The title immediately stood out to me. All the keywords that sparked my interest were there, and I knew I had to apply.
Not only did this program touch on sustainability, food access, and agriculture, but it was also the perfect length, during the May intersection of the summer semester, or “Maymester” as I call it. Though the program is substantially shorter than a typical study abroad program, I still feel as though the education received was top-notch, and I feel I retained more information due to the lecture and experiential mixed learning approach than I would have from a semester-long lecture based course.
The moment that stands out to me in particular is the artificial wetland lecture and tour. We had the opportunity to hear from the founder of HelloWater, a Belgium company that will be expanding to more European Union countries in the coming year, that focuses on a neighborhood-by-neighborhood solution to the waste water problem through artificial wetlands. In my environmental law course I took in the spring 2024 semester, we discussed all sorts of problems related to waste water, as well as water treatment options in municipal areas. This solution is innovative, effective, and not cost-prohibitive. Furthermore, the water is cleaned so well it could, in theory, be injected back into the aquifer to help replenish. As someone who grew up in a desert area, when I was in second grade I would try to shower as fast as possible as I interpreted the nightly news reports of droughts as meaning I was directly responsible for draining the aquifer. Though I am happy to report I now understand the water cycle more, having an economically and environmentally viable solution to droughts is exciting.
Flower fields and windmill my great grandfather grew up next to
An exciting aspect from a personal perspective while on the trip was the opportunity to reconnect with my heritage. My great-grandfather immigrated from Bruge, Belgium to the United States around 1912. He then was drafted into the Great War, before returning to his adopted homeland of the United States. My grandmother supplied me with the address to his neighborhood, as well as a picture taken circa 1970 when she and my grandfather had traveled to Belgium. On a day trip to Bruge, some of my classmates and I walked to the neighborhood. Beside the entrance to the neighborhood was the big windmill my grandmother had described, as well as the walking path my great grandfather had taken to school as a boy. Beneath the windmill was a rolling hill, carpeted in a confetti of perfumey flowers. The sun came out from behind the clouds, and we laid in the flowers for a while. It was such a surreal experience, one I like to think I now share with my great-grandfather. Perhaps he used to do the same when he was young. The tours of the Great War battlefields, museum, and cemeteries was sobering, as well as gave context to the man my great grandfather became. He suffered because of the war, but now I like to imagine him running along the path, untouched by the ugly scars of war, stopping after school to lay in the lush grass and flowers with his friends. I am ever grateful he gave his youth so some hundred years later, I get to enjoy such simple pleasures.