Study Abroad and Domestic Excursions
The Heravi Peace Institute strives to provide students with opportunities to build and apply the skills they learn through experiences beyond the classroom. The following programs and opportunities along with a variety of others expose HPI students to real-world issues and peacebuilding approaches, pushing them to put their knowledge to the test. Experiential learners may also consider applying for the Heravi Peace Scholarship, opening the door for students of all backgrounds to become promoters of peace.
There are many ways to get involved with peace-related work outside the classroom, and the opportunities on this page are just a few examples. If you are working towards a HPI Certificate and have an experiential learning opportunity coming up, don't forget to apply for the Heravi Peace Scholarship!
Opportunities
HPI Semester in Vietnam: Communication, Culture, & Global Peacebuilding
February 11 – April 27, 2027 (In-Country)
Application Deadline: 10/01/2026
Leaders:
Charles Waugh, Professor, English, Charles.Waugh@usu.edu
Jennifer Peeples, Professor, Communication, Jennifer.Peeples@usu.edu
This study abroad program with USU's Heravi Peace Institute (HPI) will visit Vietnam’s major cities and several World Heritage sites such as Ha Long Bay and the My Son temple complex. The centerpiece of the trip includes 8 weeks in the coastal city of Da Nang, where students will stay at the American University in Vietnam. There, USU students will learn and collaborate with Vietnamese college students, exploring Vietnamese culture, literature, history, food, and environmental issues while gaining important communication and conflict skills. Courses can apply to a Global Peacebuilding Certificate or Global Communication Practicum.
Applicants are eligible to apply for $2250 in travel expenses from the Heravi experiential Scholarship
Read Landri's blog on her experience as a Heravi Global Peacebuilding Certificate studying abroad in Vietnam
Diplomacy Simulation: Brussels European Forum- Belgium
March 5 – 13, 2027
Application Deadline: 01/15/2027
Leaders: Shannon Peterson, Professor of Social Sciences, shannon.peterson@usu.edu Bruce Hough, Adjunct Professor of Business, bruce.hough@usu.edu
The Brussels European Forum offers students from across the world a chance to bridge the divide between spectator and actor — and to take an active role in understanding the institutions that shape our lives.
Through simulations of the roles of politicians, foreign ministers, and world leaders, and by meeting decision-makers and experts in Brussels, participants gain a rare view of how diplomacy actually works.
Applicants are eligible to apply for $1,750 in travel expenses from the Heravi experiential Scholarship.
Reconciliation and Peacebuilding in the Balkans - Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia
May 10 – 23, 2027
Application Deadline: 02/01/2027
Leader: Austin Knuppe, Professor, Political Science, Austin.Knuppe@usu.edu
The purpose of this study abroad program is to help USU students understand that building peaceful and prosperous societies is a complicated and fragile enterprise that requires constant protection, promotion, and work, particularly in diverse societies. Understanding the regional tragedy and conflict of the 1990s in the former Yugoslavia, and efforts since to promote justice, peacebuilding, and reconciliation, provides us a rich opportunity to explore the questions: can diverse, multi-ethnic, multi-religious societies build peace and cooperation after violent conflict? What has been done in the Balkans to promote peacebuilding and reconciliation since the conflict? How effective have these various efforts been?
Applicants are eligible to apply for $1,750 in travel expenses from the Heravi experiential Scholarship.
Globalization and Identity Negotiation – Tunisia
May 10 – 24, 2027
Application Deadline: 02/01/2027
Leader: Sidi Becar Meyara, Professor, Communication, Sidi.Meyara@usu.edu
This two-week study abroad program provides students with an immersive exploration of Tunisia’s cultural diversity and the ways communities negotiate identity, heritage, and modernity in an increasingly globalized world. Through community engagement, field visits, and collaborative discussions, students will examine how different groups in Tunisia—including Arabs, Amazigh (Berbers), Jews, and other communities such as rural women—navigate the preservation of their cultural heritage while adapting to contemporary social and economic change. The program will also explore religious and cultural coexistence on the island of Djerba, where Jewish, Sunni Muslim, and Ibadi Muslim communities have lived together for centuries. Through visits to places of worship and meetings with community leaders and the youth, students will examine how these groups maintain their identities while sharing the same social space.
Applicants are eligible to apply for $1,750 in travel expenses from the Heravi experiential Scholarship.
Local Solutions, Global Challenges: Sustainability & Interfaith/Intercultural Communication – Morocco
May 23 – June 4, 2027
Application Deadline: 02/01/2027
Leader: Mehmet Soyer, Associate Professor, School of Social Sciences, mehmet.soyer@usu.edu
This immersive course explores sustainability, religion, environmental sociology, global communication, and community resilience within the Moroccan context. Students will engage firsthand with Morocco's pressing water and resource management challenges, exploring how indigenous approaches, local associations, and grassroots solutions address these issues. The course will emphasize the importance of global communication in understanding cross-cultural environmental solutions and fostering collaborative approaches. The trip emphasizes ethical cross-cultural engagement through university lectures, NGO collaborations, field visits, cultural exchanges, and multi-day excursions across urban, rural, and desert regions.
Applicants are eligible to apply for $1,750 in travel expenses from the Heravi experiential Scholarship.
Swords and Silk: Power, Conflict, and the Legacy of the Mongol Empire- Mongolia
May 23 – June 6, 2027
Application Deadline: 02/01/2027
Leaders: Clayton Brown, Professor of History, clayton.brown@usu.edu Shannon Peterson, Professor of Social Science, shannon.peterson@usually.edu
In the thirteenth century, Genghis Khan and his mounted Mongol warriors burst from the steppes of Asia in bloody conquest, forging the greatest land-based empire the world has ever known. At its height, the Mongol realm stretched from Europe in the west through the Middle East and China to the Pacific Ocean. In this course we follow in the footsteps of the great Khans with visits to historical sites, museums, and monuments throughout the vast Mongolian countryside while experiencing contemporary culture and society. With a history professor, Mongolian guides, and Mongolian students, together we will experience this history from camelback in the Gobi desert and horseback in the steppe. We'll meet a Mongol family, stay in traditional gers, and engage in community service with our Youthlinc partners.
Applicants are eligible to apply for $1,750 in travel expenses from the Heravi experiential Scholarship.
Narratives, Culture, and Community- Ireland
June 19 - July 2, 2027
Application Deadline: 02/01/2027
Leaders: Jason Gilmore, Associate Professor of Communications Studies & Philosophy, jason.gilmore@usu.edu Dustin Crawford, Senior Lecturer, English, dustin.crawford@usu.edu
Learn about how history, culture, and narrative shape identity and community through a study abroad in Donegal, Ireland -- a place renowned for extraordinary landscapes and seascapes. Explore the complex history of Ireland and the use of narratives in the construction of reconciliation across the divides of modern Irish society. While in Ireland we will learn from organizations like the Irish Traveller Movement, Black and Irish, the Bogside Muralists of Derry (Northern Ireland) and more to learn about the incredible work that so many in Ireland (both North and South) have done to bridge divides.
Applicants are eligible to apply for $1,750 in travel expenses from the Heravi Experiential Scholarship.
Peacebuilding and Sustainable Development – Colombia
June 19 – July 3, 2027
Application Deadline: 02/01/2027
Leader: James Patton, Professor, Religious Studies, James.Patton@usu.edu
Explore how societies recover from violent conflict and work toward sustainable peace. Colombia experienced decades of armed conflict followed by ambitious peace accords and community-driven reconciliation efforts.
From national historical context (Bogotá) to rural and Indigenous post-conflict communities (Manizales and Santa Cecilia), and urban transformation and peacebuilding (Medellín), students can examine peace as a layered and ongoing process. The program emphasizes sustainability as peace infrastructure—recognizing economic inclusion, environmental stewardship, education, and community resilience are essential to long-term stability.
Applicants are eligible to apply for $1,750 in travel expenses from the Heravi experiential Scholarship.
Genocide, Reconciliation, and Peacebuilding - Rwanda
July 12 – 15, 2027
Application Deadline: 02/01/2027
Leaders:
Julie Stevens LCSW, Social Work Julie.Stevens@usu.edu
Patrick Mason, Professor of Religious Studies and History patrick.mason@usu.edu
This course seeks to help students understand genocide and its lasting impact (psychological, social, economic, and political) on a country and its people and, more importantly, their unique and continuing path towards justice, reconciliation, and peace. Over a two-week period, students will travel to key national sites and meet with governmental, academic, and NGO representatives to learn about the Rwandan genocide and local and national efforts towards justice, reconciliation, and peacebuilding. Key themes will include: the roots and nature of genocide, “ethnic” and national identity, the role of external actors in fostering division and peace in the country, and the role of community, NGOs, and government in the effort to create peace, stability, and sustainable development in the aftermath of violent conflict.
Applicants are eligible to apply for $1,750 in travel expenses from the Heravi experiential Scholarship.
Cultural Humility, Genocide, and Reconciliation - Armenia
July 19 – July 30, 2027
Application Deadline: 02/01/2027
Leader: Sara Boghosian, Clinical Professor of Psychology, sara.boghosian@usu.edu
This program endeavors to allow students to immerse themselves in Armenian culture through food, dance, art, history, religion, and nature. Students will learn about the ancient and recent history of the region. Students will be guided in exploring conflict in the region and reconciliation processes through the lens of the lived experience of the faculty advisor. Students will interact with regular citizens in rural and urban areas of Armenia and learn about the experiences and needs of the communities they visit. Students will learn skills in the realm of cultural competence and humility. They will have a rich opportunity for community-engaged experiential learning.
Applicants are eligible to apply for $1,750 in travel expenses from the Heravi experiential Scholarship.
Domestic Excursions
UN Commission on the Status of Women - New York City
Spring Break – March 2027
More information TBD