Although it was organized to mark the end of the program, this week’s Global Learning Opportunities (GSO) Celebration was just that: a celebration of the tremendous success of a groundbreaking international student mobility and intercultural initiative at Saint Mary’s University.

In 2021 and 2022, the Studio’s Office of Global Learning and Intercultural Support was awarded GSO funding totaling just over $875,000 to support student mobility and innovative practices under the Federal Government’s five-year International Education Strategy (2019-2024). The successful funding application, led by Miyuki Arai, proposed responding to the pervasive gap in international mobility opportunities for all Canadian undergraduate students but especially Indigenous students, low-income students, and students with disabilities. “It’s always wonderful to see our students take their studies to all corners of the world, but tonight I’m reminded that over the past four years we’ve been able to support many students for whom international exchanges would otherwise have been out of reach,” said Miyuki. Indeed, more than 70% of the grant funding directly supported students from these backgrounds who traveled to some of Saint Mary’s 130+ partner universities around the globe and beyond.

The GSO Celebration included a Student Expo featuring a dozen interactive presentations hosted by students who benefitted from GSO funding. Many of the visitors from the university community in attendance were students considering future study abroad options, so they had the chance to speak directly with peers and hear about study programs in South America, Africa, Europe, Asia, and Australia. Complementing the student presentations, representatives from Saint Mary’s Career & Experiential Learning Office were in attendance to describe how students can use what they learn on international learning programs to open new doors upon their return to Canada. And finally, Dr Cathy Conrad and Prof Greg Baker (still feeling the effects of jet lag after a long journey home from West Africa) brought the evening to a close with a lively presentation describing their latest highly successful field school in The Gambia, supported in part by GSO funding.

The GSO projects could not have been possible without the support of a dedicated team of GSO ambassadors. They facilitated many activities and workshops to provide wraparound supports for GSO awardees in all stages of international learning. They themselves were on their own intercultural learning journeys through their involvement in GSO and cultivated much needed skills and competencies in the area of leadership, cross-cultural communication, teamwork, problem solving, empathy and more.

The journey from writing the grant proposal to celebrating the life-changing opportunities it brought to so many Saint Mary’s students was a long one, and the challenges of administering this program were formidable. For this reason, the roaring applause in appreciation for the vision and dedication of Miyuki Arai were well deserved!

To learn more about the GSO program and its legacy at SMU, please visit our website.

This Project was funded by the Government of Canada through Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC)