Prindle Intern Spotlight: Colleen Whiting

Colleen is a junior intern from Indianapolis, Indiana. She studies Political Science at DePauw.

1. Tell us about an ethics/social justice issue that is particularly important to you.

One social justice issue that is particularly important to me is the idea of equality in law. I am currently taking a Philosophy of Law course and the linguistic as well as moral dilemmas surrounding equality really intrigue me.

2. What has been your favorite Prindle event so far this semester?

I have loved Conflict Kitchen because I liked how they used a comfortable medium, i.e. food, to discuss uncomfortable topics. I am really looking forward to the Act of Killing screening coming up as well.

3. Which class(es) at DePauw has most challenged and expanded your worldview?

I would have to say that my Intercultural Conflict class with Rebecca Goldberg and my International Ethics as well as International Security with Deepa Prakash are the top three classes at DePauw that have challenged and expanded my worldview. Political science classes in general have truly forced me to analytically look at the world around me, which will benefit me in the long run.

4. Tell us about the coolest thing you’ve heard about in the past week. This could be something you read, listened to, watched, talked about, etc.

The coolest thing that I have heard about in the past week was a Ted talk called “How painting can transform communities”. It’s all about how a group of people in Rio painted the favelas, or the slums of Rio, in beautiful designs. These buildings took up the entirety of the favelas, which was so cool. The murals became a way for the favelas to turn into communities of dignity and beauty. They also did murals in North Philly, which is one of the poorest regions in the U.S. I just think it’s so cool how little things like painting a house can turn a community into something beautiful and amazing.

Read more about Colleen here.