Batuhan Saridede

Winter Break Internship!

When I returned home for winter break, I quickly realized how long Dartmouth's winter break is compared to most US colleges. On top of having plenty of time for resting and spending time with loved ones, I was able to pursue an internship in my hometown community, sponsored by the Dartmouth Center for Social Impact (DCSI).

All my friends from back home study all over the world now, so it was refreshing to catch up with them about their college experiences while subsequently reflecting on my fall term. Moreover, after not having seen my family for three months, I had so much to tell them about the new chapter of my life at Dartmouth!

This winter break, I was among the group of students who participated in DCSI's "Winterim Impact Winter Intensive," which provides funding for students to work in collaboration with a local Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) on a challenge faced in their respective local communities over winter break. The internship lasts three weeks, over which all students and DCSI staff in the program meet every week to discuss our progress.

I worked in collaboration with an NGO called Imece on bolstering interfaith dialogue about voter disenfranchisement in Istanbul, Turkey with a focus on minority and low-income populations. With the funding provided by DCSI, I conducted interviews at a local church, synagogue, and cem evi (place of worship for the Alevi-Bektashiyyah sect of Islam). For appropriate context about the history of ethnoreligious minorities in Istanbul, all three houses of worship advised me to visit certain historical buildings and museums in Istanbul, which I was able to accomplish by using DCSI funding.

Picture of Hagia Sophia

To think critically about the respective issues scholars tackled, the program incorporated a process called "Systems Mapping," for which we carefully outlined an overview, root causes, stakeholders, and solution proposals. We were given constructive feedback by DCSI staff every step of the way, which helped to ensure the thoroughness of my exploration of voter disenfranchisement in Istanbul.

My Final Draft of Systems Mapping!

I feel extremely grateful that DCSI trusts students' intellectual curiosity and autonomy in making a meaningful impact on their local communities. I never imagined I would be able to get funding from a Dartmouth organization to pursue a project of my choice with no limits. Coming back to campus after spending six wonderful weeks in Istanbul with friends and family, I feel rested enough to start a new term with new classes and feel empowered to further reflect on the impact (I hope) I had in my local community!