It's a small world...and I'm not talking about Disneyland

Hello! My name is Dani Lichliter and I am a junior here at Penn State. I am California-born and raised, and often wonder (especially in the winter) how I ended up smack dab in the middle of Pennsylvania. But regardless, I am one of those people that has overflowing amounts of pride for the university that I attend. I am involved in many organizations across campus and like to stay busy.

During the Spring 2011 Semester, I studied in Granada, Spain. While I was there, I traveled to 11 countries, including a life-changing trip to Morocco. After Morocco, I decided to change my major, change my summer plans, and essentially change my life plan. So now, I am amidst the process of figuring out what in the world I want to do with my life. I spent my summer traveling for a month and then volunteering with other international volunteers in Poznan, Poland and Copenhagen, Denmark. Here's a picture of me with what is called a Hairy Coo--essentially a very hairy and adorable cow--outside of Edinburgh, Scotland.

Ever since my trip, my outlook on the world has changed completely. Places that used to seem so distant now seem as close to me as my hometown. I made friends with people from all over the world and that made the world seem so much smaller. It opened my eyes to the fact that the world we live in really is a small world, after all.

So I'm taking this course on Globalization and World Trends to gain as much knowledge as possible about the world we live in. I've decided that I want to be a global citizen and I think do that I need to understand as much as possible about the most recent technology, the most up-to-date policies, and the most pressing topics.

In high school, I followed current events very closely as I was involved in the Speech and Debate program. Since coming to Penn State, I feel as if the amount of world news I've been exposed to is generally limited. It is time to pop that little bubble and get excited about understanding the current events that are occurring around the world.

This blog is intended to address the material that we discuss in IST445H, but also things that inspire me and interest me in the news throughout the semester.  Hopefully through this class my opinions will be questioned, changed, and developed. I'm excited to share my ideas with you, and I'm looking forward to reading about yours as well!

Dani