Senegal’s Artisanal Fishing Sector Faces a Rising Tide of Troubles

As vaccine rollouts speed up and restrictions loosen, some countries are beginning to piece back together life from before the COVID-19 pandemic. Other countries, like Senegal, have seen just the opposite. 

Fish market in Senegal. Evgeni Zotov. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0. 

For many, a job is just a job—a way to keep food on the table and to pay the bills. For others, the wealth brought from working is deeply cultural, offering up a steady stream of personal meaning supplemented by financial gain. In the West African nation of Senegal, artisanal fishermen and women take great pride in their heritage, with the women standing center stage. 

Senegal is a relatively poor nation, with 30% of households grappling with food insecurity. The fishing industry plays a substantial role in Senegalese society: over 600,000 people are employed by the fishing industry and half of the protein consumed by the country’s residents comes from fish.

The women of Senegal’s coastal fishing villages sustain a matriarchy built on the fishing industry. The women process by hand loads of fish brought in by fishermen. They sun-dry and smoke the fish before selling them in local markets and to foreign fishing companies. Their work done by these women upholds their families, with one income from a fish processor able to feed up to eight family members. 

The Senegalese fishing women possess profound resilience; the COVID-19 pandemic has diminished their income to nearly nothing, which only increased their determination and creativity. By pooling money and taking hold of other resources, the Senegalese women have discovered a way to push through the pandemic.

However, Senegal’s artisanal fishing industry faces other major hurdles besides the COVID-19 pandemic. The rising sea levels brought on by climate change have ravaged many families’ coastal homes, with many unable to build new houses on their income. Additionally, rising sea levels have forced the men to venture much farther off the coast to haul in the same catch. This proved particularly difficult with Senegal’s COVID-19 curfew, which limited how far the men could travel out to sea. The women who process the fish have experienced decreased production as well, with many processing sites closed or greatly limited in capacity.

Lastly, larger industries have threatened the livelihood of this comparatively small field. Nearby construction threatens Senegal’s waters with pollution, while major fishing companies easily outproduce the women selling their catch. In addition, the government permits other countries to fish in local waters within regulation, but failure to effectively enforce these rules has greatly hurt the artisanal fishing industry.

Although there seems to be one hurdle after the next, the fishermen and women of Senegal have proven again their resilience. The country’s fishing women, in particular, stand not just as hopeful examples for their neighbors, but as a sign of strength for the entire world. 

Ella Nguyen

Ella is an undergraduate student at Vassar College pursuing a degree in Hispanic Studies. She wants to assist in the field of immigration law and hopes to utilize Spanish in her future projects. In her free time she enjoys cooking, writing poetry, and learning about cosmetics.

The Pandemic’s Impact On Homelessness in America

In 2020, 580,466 people in the United States experienced homelessness on any given night, 2.2% more than in 2019. COVID-19 is likely a major factor in this increase. 

In 2019, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, over half a million people in the United States were experiencing homelessness each night. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development reports that in 2020, this number increased by 2.2%. Though 2.2% may seem like a small figure, it amounts to an additional 12,751 people experiencing homelessness on any single night. 

Numerous people lost their jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic and struggled to find new ones in the midst of a global crisis. In April 2020, the U.S. unemployment rate peaked at 14.8%, the highest percentage since unemployment data began being recorded in 1948. By December, the unemployment rate had dropped to a still-elevated 6.7%. These record unemployment rates almost certainly contributed to the rise in homelessness. Data collected by the Congressional Research Service shows that in April 2020, unemployment rates in every state and the District of Columbia had reached levels greater than their highest rates during the Great Recession. 

In addition to increasing the overall number of people experiencing homelessness, the pandemic contributed to worsening living conditions for unhoused people. There is more than one type of homelessness; the four main categories are chronic, episodic, transitional and hidden. These four categories are separated by how long a person has been experiencing homelessness and by what types of resources are available to them.

People experiencing chronic homelessness are defined as having been continually homeless for a year or more or having had four or more episodes of homelessness in the last three years. Rates of people experiencing chronic homelessness increased 15% from 2019, with 2020 being the first year since 2011 that the number passed 100,000 people. 

There are also two other subcategories of homelessness: sheltered and unsheltered. Sheltered refers to those who are residing in a publicly or privately owned shelter that provides temporary housing, like an emergency shelter, transitional housing or even a motel. Unsheltered refers to those residing in a place not designed for human habitation, like on the street or in cars, abandoned buildings or other makeshift shelters. 

People experiencing chronic homelessness are statistically more likely to fall into the unsheltered category. Rates of unsheltered homelessness also increased from 2019, by 7%. This rise in unsheltered homelessness is likely a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic, which led shelters around the country to limit their capacity in order to allow for social distancing in an attempt to reduce the spread of the virus. The measure, though reasonable in the context of the pandemic, left many unsheltered. 

Other support systems for people experiencing homelessness were limited by the pandemic as well, especially in the early months. Amid national lockdown orders, charities that offered food and warmth to the homeless shut down, and many volunteers at places like soup kitchens were afraid to work due to the risk of contracting COVID-19. Time magazine reports on this phenomenon of a social safety net shutdown in West Virginia, but similar things happened nationwide. Most indoor spaces were shut down, and unsheltered people living under a shelter-in-place order had nowhere to go. 

Cities around the country reported increasing death rates among their homeless populations. Some of the deaths resulted from COVID-19 itself, as many people experiencing homelessness have preexisting conditions that make them fall into the high-risk category for the disease. The lack of social support systems also contributed to the high death rates, as people had nowhere consistent to turn in times of freezing cold, or even when looking for basic resources like food. 

The pandemic has drawn attention to the severity of the homelessness crisis in the United States and to the necessity of social support systems, as well as programs designed to get people into housing. Some such programs, like California’s Project Roomkey and Project Homekey, were developed during the pandemic. However, government funding for these programs is often limited. There is hope that in 2021, governments will finally invest the money necessary to work toward ending homelessness. President Joe Biden has signed an executive order directing that the Federal Emergency Management Agency should fully reimburse what states spend to house people in non-congregate shelters through September 2021. 

To Get Involved: 

To learn more about America’s homelessness crisis and how to solve it, visit the website of the National Alliance to End Homelessness here.

To find resources to support a homeless shelter in your area, visit the Homeless Shelter Directory here.

Rachel Lynch

Rachel is a student at Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, NY currently taking a semester off. She plans to study Writing and Child Development. Rachel loves to travel and is inspired by the places she’s been and everywhere she wants to go. She hopes to educate people on social justice issues and the history and culture of travel destinations through her writing.

How Not to Volunteer Abroad: An Interview with Author Pippa Biddle

In her new book, “Ours to Explore: Privilege, Power, and the Paradox of Voluntourism,” Pippa Biddle asks travelers and volunteers to look at the ways their actions affect the global community.

Philippa (Pippa) Biddle is the author of “Ours to Explore: Privilege, Power, and The Paradox of Voluntourism.” Her freelance work has been published by Guernica, The Atlantic, Wired, BBC Travel, AMC Outdoors, Maine magazine and more. You can preorder “Ours to Explore” here. 

Biddle sat down with CATALYST Sarah Leidich to discuss her latest book and offer her take on voluntourism.

Q: What inspired you to write this book? 

A: For me, so much of working on the book was trying to call people into a conversation and call out the industry and not the individual. With voluntourism, so much of the critique has been focused on specific people. 

It actually wasn’t my idea. I wrote a piece called “The Problems of the White Girls” that went viral and a literary agent reached out who suggested that there was a book in it. I spent about a year working with them on a proposal before I realized the book they wanted me to write was not the book I was interested in writing. They really wanted me to write a how-to-do-it-better, and I didn’t want anyone to do it. So why would I take an entire book to do that? But the process of working with them really showed me that there was a book in this—that there was enough material, enough research, enough interest to have a book. 

Q: Before we talk about avoiding it or preventing it, can you define contemporary colonialism? How does it function today?

A: To me, contemporary colonialism is the continuation of colonial ideologies and empires into today. The reason that I use the phrase “contemporary colonialism” as opposed to neocolonialism is because oftentimes, the way we think about colonialism today is informed by and yet somehow held separate from the colonialism of the past and empire-building of the past, specifically empire-building done by Western European and North American powers. In North America, primarily the United States. To me, that differentiation between past and present is completely false. 

It actually allows us to de-implicate ourselves, and by ourselves I mean people who are residents of powerful nations, beneficiaries of power dynamics, and travelers and voluntourists. Contemporary colonialism is simply a different phrase that refers to colonialism that I hope better amplifies the fact that there is that unbroken thread between past colonialism and present colonialism—it’s just modified itself for the present-day environment. 

Q: Is it possible for volunteers to travel abroad without engaging in contemporary colonialism? 

A: I don’t think it’s possible for anyone to travel anywhere without engaging in contemporary colonialism, but engaging with something isn’t in and of itself necessarily problematic. However, you have to recognize it to begin to address the problems with it when it is problematic. Just the fact that some people can travel for leisure and some cannot is an engagement with contemporary colonialism. The fact that I can, pre-pandemic and probably still right now, go to Tanzania and arrive and get a tourist visa for probably $100 and be in the door, but someone from Tanzania cannot reciprocate that action in the United States, is an example of contemporary colonialism, regardless of whether I’m going there to be a volunteer or go on a safari. 

Q: What steps can travelers, especially privileged travelers, take to avoid acts that perpetuate the harmful side effects of travel? 

A: I think that one of the biggest things we need to ask ourselves before booking a trip somewhere is “why are we going there?” I think a lot of travelers don’t take that moment to ask themselves “why do I need to go to this place?” And once they answer that question, to make decisions that fulfill their “why” in the most respectful way possible, which sometimes means not going. For example, if I were to say I really want to go to Ecuador because I’m really fascinated by Ecuadorian cuisine, then if I were to go to Ecuador, I should be focused on eating at restaurants that are owned and run and staffed by Ecuadorians. This sounds like an obvious thing, but most tourists don’t do that extra step. They go somewhere and eat at the places that are easy, that have the menu in English, that the resort has on their short list. The resort is probably foreign-owned, so the restaurants are probably owned by people associated with the resort. 

The whole idea that travel should be something leisurely is really off-base. Travel is not a leisure activity. Travel is an activity that demands conscious engagement and thoughtful consideration, and as long as we treat it as something that is in the same realm as a relaxing day on the beach in your hometown—if you happen to live by the beach—we’re going to be doing it in ways that are disrespectful. 

Q: You write about the tension between communities sometimes believing that voluntourists and missionaries are actually doing good work and then the harmful reality of this kind of travel, volunteering and missionary work. Is there a way to reconcile the relationship between intention, perception and outcome?

A: In the book I use the term “pathological altruism.” Pathological altruism really speaks to this tension, because it is the inability to see that something you are doing with the intention of the impact being positive is having a negative impact, and through that inability to see it, insisting on continuing to do it regardless. I think that the intention to do good is a very good core intention and stripping back to that core intention is a really positive thing, but the idea that intention should be immediately followed by action is misguided. 

I used to work for the Jane Goodall Institute doing educational programming, and one of the things that we brought into classrooms a lot was a thing we called the “Knowledge-Compassion-Action Cycle.” The Knowledge-Compassion-Action Cycle is basically the idea that when we learn about something, we begin to care about it, and once we care about it, we are able to act in the best possible way, and through action you will learn more knowledge. I think a lot of people are skipping that middle part of true, deep knowledge and care. For example, with children in orphanages, if people who chose to volunteer in an orphanage cared about child welfare, and they’re jumping to the idea of volunteering at orphanage, that shows me that they haven’t gone through the knowledge procession and they haven’t gone through the compassion process, because there is no way you go from child welfare to orphanage if you’ve actually gone through that process. It’s trying to integrate more time and education and slowness into what we care about so that we have that time for knowledge and compassion to develop before we choose to take action. 

Q: So if knowledge is developed and compassion is developed, and travelers are moving through the communities with intent, are there changes to the voluntourism industry you would like to see? 

A: Something that makes me nervous about suggesting changes to the voluntourism industry is that it could be misconstrued as me saying that if the industry were to make those changes, it would be OK. That is not what I’m saying. However, there are things that can be done to mitigate the harm as we slowly dismantle voluntourism. The first thing, hands down, is to stop working with kids. Unfortunately, a lot of the trip providers that have stopped working with orphanages have simply pivoted and now take volunteers to work with youth groups, so the only thing that’s changed is that it’s not a residential environment, but so many of the same issues still exist. Honestly, if voluntourism stops working with kids, a fair amount of the market for voluntourism will dry up because the number one thing people want to do on these trips is work with kids. If that is not an option, the industry will shrink. 

Parallel to that, I am adamant that prospective voluntourists deeply engage in the education around what they’re taking part in. One of the things I write about in the book is the “EdGE” platform by Omprakash, which is a nonprofit. EdGE is their learning platform, and EdGE is not perfect and Omprakash is not perfect, and Willy Oppenheim, the founder, is the first to admit that. But it provides trip providers and educational institutions that are facilitating voluntourism, as well as individual travelers that are going on their own, with a curriculum that attempts to educate them on some issues like White privilege and the White savior complex prior to them getting on the ground, so they go through the learning curve that I had years after going before they even go. Does that mean they will not be part of the White savior complex and White privilege? No, but it is a really important step. 

Q: How would you encourage people who are looking to be philanthropic or looking to help? What would you say to them? 

A: Think global, act local. Learn about global issues, engage in global conversations, learn about places, travel as a tourist who is respectful and thoughtful, but you have to remember that even the opportunity to travel is a privilege. If we have this idea that the only way to help is by going somewhere else, we are discounting billions of people on this planet who simply don’t have access to that opportunity. So think global, and then when you choose to act, look locally. 

Sarah Leidich

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

Sarah is currently an English and Film major at Barnard College of Columbia University. Sarah is inspired by global art in every form, and hopes to explore the intersection of activism, art, and storytelling through her writing. 

Belgium’s Centuries-Old Procession of the Holy Blood Suspends its March

For over 700 years, Catholics have been gathering in Belgium to watch the Procession of the Holy Blood. The event features reenactments of biblical stories and centers around a holy relic, a scrap of cloth said to be stained with the blood of Christ. 

Each spring, thousands gather in the streets of Bruges, Belgium, to witness the Procession of the Holy Blood. The procession centers around a vial containing an ancient cloth said to be stained with the blood of Christ, which is paraded through the streets by more than 1,700 religious leaders who sing, dance and act out biblical scenes. 

The “Relic of the Holy Blood,” as the cloth is known, has been kept in Bruges’ Basilica of the Holy Blood since the 1200s. According to legend, the blood liquefies on Fridays, the day of the crucifixion. The church is open on Fridays for believers to come through and worship. Once a year, the relic is removed from the church and paraded through the streets. 

The Procession of the Holy Blood takes place 40 days after Easter, on Ascension Day, which is marked by Christians as the day that Christ ascended to heaven before his disciples. The first Procession of the Holy Blood took place in 1304, and the story of the relic itself dates back even further, to when the cloth stained with Christ’s blood is said to have come to Bruges. 

According to the story, Joseph of Arimathea used a cloth to wipe drops of blood from Christ’s body at the crucifixion. During the Second Crusade, Count Thierry of Flanders came into possession of the bloodstained cloth and brought it back to Bruges in around 1150. There is no record of the relic until the mid-1200s, however, leading some to believe that it actually came to Bruges following the sack of Constantinople by the army of Count Baldwin IX. Regardless of how the relic made its way to Bruges, it has become the heart of an annual procession for over 700 years. 

In modern times, the Procession of the Holy Blood is divided into four parts, intended to tell the story of the holy relic to observers. First, volunteers perform stories from the Old Testament, then from the New Testament. The third part of the procession details how the holy blood came to Bruges. Finally, at the end of the procession comes the Relic of the Holy Blood itself, held in a shrine and accompanied by the members of the Noble Brotherhood of the Holy Blood. 

Though the subject matter of the procession is somewhat somber, the event itself is a festive one, with costumes and music reminiscent of medieval times. The Procession of the Holy Blood draws anywhere from 30,000 to 45,000 spectators from around the world eager to catch a glimpse of an important religious relic. In 2009, the procession was added to the UNESCO List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. 

In 2021, for the second consecutive year, the centuries-old Procession of the Holy Blood did not take place. Though the event was initially scheduled for May 13, it was canceled due to the ongoing pandemic and the large crowds the procession typically attracts. The last time the procession was unable to proceed for more than a year at a time was during World War II. 

Rachel Lynch

Rachel is a student at Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, NY currently taking a semester off. She plans to study Writing and Child Development. Rachel loves to travel and is inspired by the places she’s been and everywhere she wants to go. She hopes to educate people on social justice issues and the history and culture of travel destinations through her writing.

Chernobyl Becomes a Symbol of Resilience, 35 Years After Disaster

Time and time again, humans have been ravaged by disaster, only to successfully prove their resilience. Thirty-five years after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, Ukrainians appear eager to rewrite their story. 

The abandoned streets of Chernobyl, Ukraine. Pedro Moura Pinheiro. CC BY-NC-SA 2.0. 

The Chernobyl nuclear disaster of 1986 marked chaos for the Soviet Union and still influences modern-day Ukraine. The accident was caused by a series of technical faults, resulting in a nuclear explosion that spewed radioactive substances into the air. Chernobyl stands as the most devastating nuclear incident to have ever occurred, with 31 deaths as a direct result of the meltdown, 4,000 cancer deaths from exposure to radiation and millions affected in various other ways. 

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that Chernobyl will now function as a nuclear waste site.

Now, at the 35th anniversary of the Chernobyl disaster, Ukrainians are determined to move forward. Life has slowly begun to return to the area; the “exclusion zone” stands as a prime example of the resilience of nature. What was once a deadly zone, marked as a no man’s land, now abounds with life. Radiation levels in the area have decreased over the years, creating a nature preserve of sorts—elk, deer and other wildlife graze throughout the empty space. 

As frightening as Chernobyl may seem, locals have moved back. Elderly residents have returned to the surrounding area despite being advised against it; for them, the comfort of home outweighs the peril of living in the region. These residents stand as a reminder of the power—and the risks—that follow one’s determination. 

Officials in Ukraine hope that Chernobyl will be added as a World Heritage Site, as many residents believe that the outsize influence of the site merits its inclusion. 

Once wholly abandoned, Chernobyl and the nearby town of Pripyat allow visitors today. Travelers come to the site and find an unconventional experience; the disaster has created a reflective tone, as Chernobyl’s tragic history sheds light on the lows of human struggle and the highs of human triumph. 

On April 26, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced that Chernobyl will now function as a nuclear waste site. It is projected that the nuclear waste site will save Ukraine about $200 million per year. 

Zelenskyy also promised to “transform the exclusion zone, as Chernobyl is referred to, into a revival zone.” While it won’t be easy, Ukraine intends to move on from the past and head toward a stronger future.

As time passes, many tragic incidents of history dissolve from the spotlight. With revival on the horizon, Ukraine hopes for a triumph at Chernobyl.

Ella Nguyen

Ella is an undergraduate student at Vassar College pursuing a degree in Hispanic Studies. She wants to assist in the field of immigration law and hopes to utilize Spanish in her future projects. In her free time she enjoys cooking, writing poetry, and learning about cosmetics.

COVID-19 Slows Africa’s Progress Against Poaching

Poaching is a last resort for villagers who lost their jobs due to COVID-19 lockdowns. Conservationists now struggle to preserve endangered species. 

A valuable commodity. valentinastorti. CC BY-NC 2.0.

They march through the field with chainsaws, the rhinos sedated. What follows is no gruesome act of poaching. It’s the exact opposite. Workers at the Spioenkop Nature Reserve in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province rev their chainsaws and go to work sawing off the rhino horns. “It has a face mask put on it to cover its vision, it has earplugs put into its ears [...] so that reduces trauma to the animal,” says Mark Gerrard of Wildlife ACT, a nonprofit that protects African wildlife. “We’ve got to remind ourselves that this [a rhino’s horn] is just keratin—this is really just fingernails.” 

These rhinos’ horns will grow back in 18 to 24 months, but in the meantime, poachers won’t hunt them for the priceless commodity. Armed with only chainsaws and sedatives, the conservationists at the reserve are combating Africa’s interminable poaching problem. If a rhino has no horns, poachers have no reason to kill it. This fact doesn’t make the job any easier. “It is a traumatic experience for us,” Gerrard says, “not for the rhino.”

Spioenkop Nature Reserve has fared unusually well in its fight against poaching. Out of 15,600 rhinos in South Africa, 1,175 were killed by poachers in 2014. In 2015, the country began dehorning rhinos to considerable success. By 2019, the number of dead rhinos had fallen to 594. By 2020, it was 394. Nevertheless, Gerrard defines a truly successful dehorning effort as “zero animals poached.”

Two big cats, two big trophies. DappleRose. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.

It will be a hard goal to reach. After COVID-19 effectively shut down international travel, tourism revenue in Africa plummeted, leaving conservationists cash-strapped in their anti-poaching campaigns. Spioenkop Nature Reserve has struggled to patrol its vast territory, but the issue goes beyond just South Africa. Wildlife tourism generates $29 billion each year and employs 3.6 million workers across Africa. The lack of sufficient funds for anti-poaching efforts is a continent-wide problem.

In Zambia’s Kafue National Park, poaching takes place at the edges of the park, where patrols have been cut back. In 2020, the park reported a 170% increase in snares, which snag wild cats. That same year, two lions were killed while none had been slain the year before. More disconcerting, patrollers increasingly find poached animals gored for “buck meat.” Poor local villagers, desperate from COVID-19 lockdowns, have joined poachers in the hunt to earn a living and put food on the table.

By and large, however, poaching is the work of international crime syndicates working in the black market. Some conservationists advocate legalizing the sale of poached items such as rhino horns and ivory to lower the market value, reducing profits for poachers. In Kenya, courts have buffed up their prosecution efforts, leading to a precipitous drop in poaching. Dedicated legal teams actively pursue convictions for poaching, and those caught red-handed face long prison sentences and fines of up to $200,000. Still, the black market provides lucrative opportunities for locals willing to break the law in hopes of amassing a fortune. A 35-pound black rhino horn can be worth up to $2 million. For poor Africans, the opportunity is often irresistible. 

Confiscated rhino horns. USFWS Headquarters. CC BY 2.0.

At Mpala, a research center in central Kenya, patrols have adopted a digital approach to combat rampant poaching. They use the SMART app (spatial monitoring and reporting tool) to track every animal a patrol encounters—alive or dead. It also allows them to track people seen infiltrating the parks. Conservationists are attempting to make up in brainpower what they lack in manpower; less tourism revenue led to slashed budgets, which meant fewer patrols. However, park managers agree that addressing the root cause of poaching, poverty, is the best solution to the problem. In this regard, nobody seems to have an answer.

So the traumatic work of sawing off rhino horns in Spioenkop continues. “We cannot let our guard down,” says Elise Serfontein of the organization Stop Rhino Poaching. “The kingpins and illicit markets are still out there, and even losing one rhino a day means that they are chipping away at what’s left of our national herd.” With one rhino’s horn sheared to a nub, the team moves on to the next. The rhino sleeps in the field as they approach. One member revs the chainsaw and begins cutting. White flakes flutter through the air like dust. 

Michael McCarthy

Michael is an undergraduate student at Haverford College, dodging the pandemic by taking a gap year. He writes in a variety of genres, and his time in high school debate renders political writing an inevitable fascination. Writing at Catalyst and the Bi-Co News, a student-run newspaper, provides an outlet for this passion. In the future, he intends to keep writing in mediums both informative and creative.

Mud Madness: Getting Down and Dirty at South Korea’s Mud Festival

South Korea’s Boryeong Mud Festival is popularly known for the mud’s enriching properties for skin, resulting in a messy yet enjoyable experience for all its visitors. 

Giant mud bath at the Boryeong Mud Festival. Hypnotica Studios Infinite. CC BY 2.0

Although South Korea is widely renowned for its frenetic cities and for birthing K-pop, many people may not know that it's also home to many unusual festivals, from body painting to bullfighting to ice fishing. However, among them all, the Boryeong Mud Festival, better known as the “Mudfest,” stands out as one of the most popular.

This festival was first established in 1998, when it was meant to spread awareness about the unique qualities of the mud at Daecheon Beach. Although initially intended to promote beneficial skin care products made from the mud, the festival’s mission soon transitioned from a marketing scheme to a more pleasurable and exciting experience.

Inflatable playground at the mud festival. Hypnotica Studios Infinite. CC BY 2.0

The mudfest takes place in the city of Boryeong on the western coast of South Korea, and can be experienced across two weeks in mid-July. With an amusement park-like vibe, visitors can purchase a one-day ticket where they can experience everything: “mud pits, mud fountains, mud pools, mud massage zones and even a mud prison.” On top of this, attendees can enjoy obstacle courses, mudslides and races, and even inflatable playgrounds. In the mud self-massage zone, visitors apply mud on themselves and wash it off after 10 minutes once the mud turns white. Applying the mud onto one’s body is believed to result in more radiant and clean skin. The mudslide, on the other hand, provides visitors with a thrilling experience which can be accentuated by applying mud on one’s body beforehand to increase speed. 

For those looking to further show off their athleticism, the Beach Mud Football Competition is an event held at the Citizen’s Tower beach on a specific day every July, where one can put their soccer skills to the test while fighting through the mud. However, as a break from all this mud madness, visitors can also enjoy the beautiful fireworks show and live performances during the festival’s opening and closing ceremonies. 

Swati Agarwal

Swati is a sophomore at University of California, San Diego, where she is studying Environmental Sciences and Theatre. Although born in India, she was raised in Tokyo, which gave her the opportunity to interact with diverse people from distinct cultures. She is passionate about writing, and hopes to inspire others by spreading awareness about social justice issues and highlighting the uniqueness of the world.

A Look at Germany’s Quirky but Quaint Ore Mountains

Germany’s Ore Mountains offer bucolic scenery and countless Christmas traditions, all wrapped up into one charming package.

Seiffen, Germany. abejorro34. CC BY-NC 2.0. 

Along the German-Czech border lie the Ore Mountains, one of nature’s grand masterpieces. Stretching over 100 miles, the Ore Mountains appear like a scene out of Narnia: long strips of deep woods sit sprinkled among patches of bright wildflowers, often blanketed in thick snow. The area’s splendid scenery presents itself as the ideal inspiration for painters in search of inspiration.

The history of the region is just as fascinating. Up until their expulsion after World War II, German miners worked the mountain range for its many minerals such as copper, silver and lead. Thus, the range gained its name: the Ore Mountains. After World War II, the small towns that peppered the range lost most of their German populations. These towns were later filled by Czech residents who developed uranium and coal mining. Now, the range’s travel industry has brought much attention to the quaint lifestyle found today in these small towns. 

For guests eager for a gorgeous view or photographers looking for the perfect shot, Fichtelberg Mountain stands as one of the Ore Mountains’ top stops. Fichtelberg Mountain is the second-tallest peak of the Ore Mountains; it sits in the middle of the range and stands nearly 4,000 feet tall. The icy conditions found in the winter attract throngs of alpine skiers, bobsledders and other snow sporters. When the weather warms toward summer, the crowds of snow sporters are replaced by hikers and photographers; trails through patches of woods make for calm hiking opportunities, while the peak itself provides a 360-degree view of the surrounding mountain range.

Snow in the Ore Mountains. VicunaR. CC BY-SA 2.0. 

Another destination sure to pique anyone’s interest is the small town of Seiffen, Germany. Seiffen holds only around 3,000 people, but its influence as a stronghold of local culture makes up for it. The town is famous for its role in the toymaking industry, with over 100 craftsmen living in it alone. Seiffen often appears like something out of Christmastime folklore, as it is known for its top-notch toymaking and stellar artisan Christmas decorations. For the woodmakers of this town, their craft is far more than just a profession. It is common that the artisans of Seiffen pass their craft down from generation to generation, making their work not just a form of income, but a lifestyle. 

Although at first glance the Ore Mountains may appear to be just another mountain range, the wide variety of activities and rich history make it a fascinating spot to explore. 

Ella Nguyen

Ella is an undergraduate student at Vassar College pursuing a degree in Hispanic Studies. She wants to assist in the field of immigration law and hopes to utilize Spanish in her future projects. In her free time she enjoys cooking, writing poetry, and learning about cosmetics.

LGBTQ+ Intolerance in Ghana Reaches Boiling Point 

Tensions within the West African country have risen following the recent restriction of LGBTQ+ rights, resurfacing the decades long discussion regarding the criminalization of same-sex conduct.   

Pride flag waving in the sky. Tim Bieler. Unsplash. 

The newly established office of nonprofit organization LGBT+ Rights Ghana was raided and searched by police last month, endangering one of the only safe spaces for LGBTQ+ people in the country. This raid came mere days after Ghanaian journalist Ignatius Annor came out as gay on live television, and many have speculated that the raid was in retaliation of that moment. 

Given Ghana’s criminalization of same-sex conduct, it is not a stretch to say that homophobia runs rampant and unchecked, especially when considering the widespread opposition from both government officials and religious figures regarding the construction of the center for LGBT+ Rights Ghana.   

The building has been under scrutiny since it first opened back in January. Only three weeks after opening its doors to the public, the organization had to temporarily close in order to protect its staff and visitors from angry protesters. The director of the organization, Alex Kofi Donkor, explained how the community “expected some homophobic organizations would use the opportunity to exploit the situation and stoke tensions against the community, but the anti-gay hateful reaction has been unprecedented.”   

This unprovoked suppression of basic freedoms indicates that LGBTQ+ intolerance in Ghana has reached a boiling point and is about to bubble over. 

Aerial shot of Accra, Ghana. Virgyl Sowah. Unsplash. 

News of the situation reached a handful of high-profile celebrities such as Idris Elba and Naomi Campbell, who joined 64 other public figures in publishing an open letter of solidarity with the Ghanaian LGBTQ+ community using #GhanaSupportsEquality. While prejudice has only recently garnered public attention due to the letter, blatant and widespread homophobia in Ghana has run rampant for years. 

According to a study conducted by the Human Rights Watch in 2017, hate crimes and assault due to one's sexual identity are regular occurrences in Ghana. Dozens of people have been attacked by mobs and even family members out of mere speculation that they were gay. Furthermore, the study found that for women, much of this aggressive homophobia was happening behind closed doors through the pressures of coerced marriage. 

Consider 24-year-old Khadija, who identifies as lesbian and will soon begin pursuing relationships with men due to the societal pressure for women to marry. Or 21-year-old Aisha, who was exiled by her family and sent to a “deliverance” church camp after she was outed as lesbian. 

Marriage pressures and intolerances are certainly prevalent in other countries as well, even in those often deemed progressive. The big difference is that in many countries, homophobic beliefs are slowly becoming less and less common. In Ghana, it seems as though these sentiments are normalized and held by the majority of people. 

The precedent for discrimination based on sexual orientation was set as early as 2011, when former Western Region minister Paul Evans Aidoo called for the immediate arrest of LGBTQ+ people in the area. The stigma that actions like this produced in Ghana have only been amplified over time when coupled with religious and cultural tensions. 

A rainbow forms above a home in Kumasi, Ghana. Ritchie. Unsplash. 

Many victims of hate crimes or abuse in Ghana reported that because of the codified homophobia in the country, they are unable to report their experiences to local authorities without putting themselves in danger. As a result, LGBTQ+ Ghanaians find themselves stuck in a perpetual cycle of making slight progress just for higher authorities to snatch it away. 

There have been countless opportunities for legalized discrimination to be addressed, and ever since current Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo assumed office in 2017, he has been under immense pressure to announce his official position on homosexuality. Four years later, he has still not done so.

Instead of embracing the shift toward more inclusive policies supported by LGBT+ Rights Ghana, the Ghanaian government appears to be succumbing to public pressures in an attempt to keep peace. What it fails to realize is that sweeping inequalities under the carpet doesn’t make them go away. It actually does quite the opposite. It heightens inequalities until they become absolutely impossible to avoid. Celebrity involvement in dismantling Ghana’s current system has caused quite the public reaction. It may end up being the spark that causes the Ghanaian government to reconsider its policies and begin to offer LGBTQ+ people the respect and protection they deserve. 

Zara Irshad

Zara is a third year Communication student at the University of California, San Diego. Her passion for journalism comes from her love of storytelling and desire to learn about others. In addition to writing at CATALYST, she is an Opinion Writer for the UCSD Guardian, which allows her to incorporate various perspectives into her work.

7 of the World’s Most Beautiful Libraries 

These libraries demonstrate some of the world’s most jaw-dropping examples of architecture, ranging from Gothic and Renaissance to contemporary. 

Libraries are havens of information. They are key in preserving the written history, culture and heritage of an area, and are often intricately designed, with architecture that is sure to impress visitors. Libraries are sometimes just as impressive from an architectural standpoint as they are from a literary one, and these seven libraries provide prime examples of stunning architecture. They are all widely different, some dating to medieval times and some opening as recently as the early 2000s. Each one, though, has a style that will make patrons eager to get lost in the stacks, from translucent floors and floating shelves to ancient frescoes and sustainable construction. 

1. Biblioteca Vasconcelos, Mexico 

Mexico City’s Biblioteca Vasconcelos spans over 400,000 square feet and has a unique, whimsical design that mimics the feeling of being lost in a book. Photographer James Florio described Biblioteca Vasconcelos as “like entering an alternate universe.” The library, which opened in 2006, features translucent walls and floors, multistory windows, mismatched levels, and a labyrinth of balconies and pathways that seem to float above the ground level. Often referred to as a “megalibrary,” Biblioteca Vasconcelos holds hundreds of thousands of titles. In addition to the stunning interior architecture and endless books to browse, the grounds of Biblioteca Vasconcelos are home to an extensive botanical garden. Architect Alberto Kalach designed the building and grounds to promote ecological regeneration, turning a barren plot of land into one overflowing with plants and information. 

2. The Library of El Escorial, Spain

The Library of El Escorial is located within the Royal Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial, a vast building complex located about 30 miles from Madrid. The complex, which includes a monastery, church, royal palace, college and library, was conceived by King Philip II and built during the mid-to-late 1500s. Each building in the complex reflects the ornate architecture of the Spanish Renaissance, and the interiors are decorated with sprawling frescoes, paintings and sculptures by notable Spanish and Italian artists from the 16th and 17th centuries, like El Greco. The library itself, also known as the Royal Library, is made up of many rooms, but today only the Main Hall is open to visitors. The Main Hall is 177 feet long, 30 feet wide and 33 feet high, and gives visitors a good look at the stunning frescoes, woodwork and ancient books. El Escorial Library holds more than 40,000 printed books, as well as 4,700 manuscripts, many dating back to the era when the library was constructed. El Escorial was the first library to do away with book bays, instead placing bookshelves up against the walls where the collection could better be admired. 

3. Tama Art University Library, Japan

In the Tokyo suburbs, on the campus of Tama Art University, is the Tama Art University Library, a two-story building with massive arches and floor-to-ceiling windows. These arches are made of steel but coated in pure concrete, offering up a unique look developed by the building’s designer, Toyo Ito. Inside, the library is mostly one continuous space on each floor, with the only divisions between areas coming from shelves, study desks, glass partitions and more arches. This way, the library is divided into sections in a way that doesn’t interrupt the flow of the room. The windows allow library patrons to gaze out over one of the campus’s lush gardens, and the library is full of reference books for the university’s students. It was added to the campus in 2007 as a common space. 

4. Royal Portuguese Cabinet of Reading, Brazil

The Royal Portuguese Cabinet of Reading is located in the center of Rio de Janeiro and contains the largest collection of Portuguese books outside of Portugal, with over 350,000 titles. Three towering stories of books rise above the library’s open floor, leading to a stained-glass dome overhead. The library was built in the 1880s, after a group of 43 Portuguese immigrants and political refugees living in Brazil decided they wanted a way to preserve their written culture and heritage. Statues of important Portuguese figures, including writers and explorers, are placed throughout the library. The exterior of the building similarly preserves Portuguese history; Rafael da Silva e Castro, the library’s architect, designed the building in the style of 16th-century Portuguese architecture, and the library’s facade is made of Lisbon stone brought to Rio de Janeiro by ship. The library is open for visitors, publishes a journal on Portuguese literature and culture, and offers college-level courses on literature, history, anthropology, the arts and the Portuguese language. 

5. Bodleian Old Library, England

The Bodleian Libraries are a group of 28 libraries across Oxford, England, that are all part of the Oxford University system. Bodleian Old Library is the principal university library and the oldest of the group, having been in use since the 1300s. Bodleian Old Library houses over 12 million printed works, including first editions of Charles Darwin’s “On the Origin of Species” and Jane Austen’s “Emma.” The historic library looks like a castle, with magnificent, grand-scale Gothic architecture that has been featured in films like the “Harry Potter” series. As well as housing a jaw-dropping number of books, Bodleian Old Library contains the Divinity School, Oxford’s oldest teaching and examination room. Visitors to the library need to purchase tickets for a tour, where they will see the Divinity School, Duke Humfrey’s medieval library, and the library’s stunning Upper and Lower Reading Rooms. 

6. Beitou Public Library, Taiwan

The Beitou Public Library in Taipei, Taiwan, was the island’s first certified “green building,” constructed in 2006. The library is on the grounds of the Beitou Park, which is famous for its hot springs, and was designed to look like a large treehouse. It is built mainly of wood, boasts large French windows and fits seamlessly into its surrounding environment. Beitou Public Library qualifies as a green building under Taiwan’s “Ecology, Energy Saving, Waste Reduction and Health” (EEWH) certification system, which aims to reduce the impact of buildings on the natural environment. The wood used for the library was harvested from managed forests rather than primary rainforests, the windows allow for natural lighting and cooling, part of the roof is covered in solar panels, another section is covered in a layer of soil to improve thermal insulation, and the roof’s slope allows for runoff from rain to be collected and used in the library’s plumbing. Views from the Beitou Public Library are gorgeous, as it looks out onto Beitou Park, and the library contains over 20,000 English and Chinese titles. 

7. Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Egypt

Billed as the “New Library of Alexandria,” Bibliotheca Alexandrina sits along the harbor of Alexandria, Egypt, and contains six specialized libraries, 12 academic research centers, a planetarium and several museums. The library opened in 2002 and aspires to “recapture the spirit of the original library of Alexandria,” which was destroyed centuries ago. The complex receives about 1.5 million visitors each year, all flocking to experience the incredible volume of knowledge the library offers and to admire the beauty of the complex itself. The library stands 11 stories high and is notable for its circular and tilted shape, as well as its surrounding reflecting pool. Bibliotheca Alexandrina mixes a contemporary exterior design with an interior that holds thousands of years of knowledge.

Rachel Lynch

Rachel is a student at Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, NY currently taking a semester off. She plans to study Writing and Child Development. Rachel loves to travel and is inspired by the places she’s been and everywhere she wants to go. She hopes to educate people on social justice issues and the history and culture of travel destinations through her writing.