I think I just might have a subject to study! Of course, I'm holding my breath a bit until this is actually legit. One of the things I'd like to study is the work of NGO's based in McLeod Ganj, and how they help refugees adjust to life in a new territory.

In my IAS 220 class we discussed how some people receiving aid tend to degrade themselves because of the opinion that donners have towards them (ex: I want to help you "little people"). Here you have people in need, who suffer from a "little people" syndrome, and therefore lack additional confidence. No wonder it becomes easy to depend more on foreign assistance. How can you believe that you can get on your feet and prosper, when everyone looks at you as a poor refugee. So, here's my question: do the host families used by Tibetan NGO's help refugees to have more confidence and make better community connections? What is the influence of a sud-o family upon refugees? It's just an idea at this point...but it may work.