From Beijing to San Francisco:
Jordan Metoyer’s Summer Abroad
Emily Nielsen, Public Affairs
Classes are officially back in session and another summer has come to an end. Liberal Arts students know how to make their time away from Austin count, and economics and urban studies senior Jordan Metoyer is no exception.
In addition, I reaffirmed my belief that social capacity building is impossible without meaningful partnerships. In order to continue legacies of sustainable community development, partners in host countries must not only have a seat at the table,
Where did you go this summer and what did you hope to accomplish?
I was lucky enough to return to the U.S. and intern for an organization that implements this model of community partnership, specifically in its work on local control school funding and a Bay Area redevelopment plan.
For the first half of summer I traveled to Beijing as a Division of Diversity and Community Engagement Fellow under the direction of Drs. Ge Chen and Leonard Moore to compare social enterprise strategies in China and the United States. I chose to focus on housing access for rural-to-urban migrant families, which is regulated by the hukou system. In addition to conducting research, I also taught English at the Dandelion School, an elementary school for migrant children. Once I arrived back in the states, I traveled to San Francisco for a summer internship with Public Advocates Inc., a nonprofit law firm and advocacy organization fighting the systemic causes of racial discrimination and poverty by empowering community voices and achieving tangible legal victories. Public Advocates’ commitment to advancing education, housing and transit equity has resulted in its reputation as “the small but noisy law firm.”
Did you come away with any important insights? Whenever I travel and intern during the summer months, I discover new insights about myself, the nature of human interaction and leading discussions in fields of personal interest. This summer continued to fit that mold. Primarily, I learned about the many privileges I hold in an international context. When I listened to the students in China describe their living situations during the migratory transition from rural villages to Beijing, I became increasingly aware of the links between safe, sanitary, permanent housing and opportunity. But also an appreciated voice in the conversation. The disparity in educational outcomes between children who have a place to call home and others who face conditions of homelessness is astounding.
The world’s largest and most complex issues. This was undoubtedly shaped by my experiences traveling to Beijing and interning at Public Advocates.
What was your most memorable moment this summer? This summer, I set a personal objective to lend myself to as many new experiences as possible. After photographing a staff attorney discuss inequitable transportation options during a town hall meeting, climbing 1,500 feet to the peak of a Jianshanling mountain, navigating the halls of the California Capitol, bartering with a Beijing antique vendor and gaining a cherished glimpse into the lives of human beings who share my same span of history, I can confidently say that I exceeded my goal.
How do you think your research experiences abroad will be helpful in the future? During summer internships, students connect the theories they learn in the confines of the classroom to a vastly different setting.