Off to Brazil!

By M. Shapna Islam

My name is Mousumi Shapna Islam, and I just go by Shapna. I am of Bangladeshi descent, and my name in Bengali means “dream.” I grew up in Southern California and transferred to Arizona State University to attend the School of Sustainability. I study issues that involve the triple bottom line: people, planet and profit. Sustainability is the narrative towards critically analyzing and finding solutions to problems that affect the environment, economy and social equity.

I am currently pursuing a bachelor’s in international development and sustainability from the School of Sustainability and a minor in urban planning from the School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning. I am committed to finding sustainable solutions so that in the future, as many people as possible are leading better lives. It may seem like a vague mission statement, but I believe this can be achieved by ensuring access to clean water, affordable nutritious food and quality education opportunities. Reduction in global greenhouse gas emissions is another challenge faced by my generation. We owe it to future generations to actively fight for these rights so that our children and children’s children do not have to struggle.

My study abroad experience to Brazil with 20 fellow classmates will explore the nexus between human rights and sustainability. Securing basic human rights perfectly aligns with sustainability’s pillar of social equity. Equity is not to be confused with equality. Equality would ensure that everyone has a pair of shoes; equity strives to make sure that everyone has a pair of shoes that fit their feet. Several Brazilian cities deliver equity through their public services. We will visit one such city, Curitiba, which offers Bus Rapid Transit (BRT). Curitiba’s cost-effective BRT system services over a million passengers every day, and the city has seen a great reduction in automobile usage. This has done wonders for air quality in the regions. Also, Curitiba residents on average only spend a fraction of their budget on transportation compared to other large cities. As students in the School of Sustainability, we learn about Curitiba at the beginning of our first semester. It will be especially exciting for us to pay pilgrimage to this mecca of sustainable initiatives. It will be exhilarating for me as an urban planning student to experience Curitiba’s transportation system firsthand.

I also look forward to our visits to São Paulo, Brasilia and Amazonia. We will be meeting with several organizations and agencies to further inform us of Brazil’s environmental movement and the fight for indigenous peoples’ rights. The study abroad trip will be an overall enriching experience in which we will learn about Brazilian culture, global sustainable solutions and the protection of human rights.