People may criticize economics because it is too theoretical and the assumptionsit makes are unrealistic. But generally the simplicity and abstractness of economics helps us understand the complexity of reality and it gives rise to different approaches on intractable issues.
I entered the world of economics thanks to a boy in Guatemala. He is a boy from a poor, remote village in Guatemala who I felt compelled to support because of his vivacious smile. He wanted to go school next year but he was concerned that his sister would suffer due to his absence. I wanted to take away this ultimatum for him, and allow for his sister to be taken care of while he attends school.
Erwin’s parents probably did not know his wishes either. It was difficult for me to accept that a simple lack of financial resources deprives those innocent and powerless children like Erwin of the fundamental rights to have food, clean water, and secure shelter. I started to read books and papers on the matter, and eventually I came to the United States to study economics.
While being exposed to a wide-range of economic theories and other relevant topics during my undergraduate studies, my curiosity droveme to delve deeper into ways economics can harbor poverty reduction.
I applied to the winter-break study abroad program to Nicaragua last winter. The program’s goal was to understand the development process, specifically by observing how Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) work in developing countries. I was eager to work with the members of NGOs in Nicaragua and ask them many questions related to their work.However, the reality was slightly different from what I anticipated. Teaming up with local university students and NGO workers, we examined hygiene issues in rural communities, made solar panels, and advertised renewable energy. We focused on these areas because Nicaragua is the second poorest country in Central America, so good hygiene, access to running water and other basic utilities were not standard or present in the village I was in.The living conditions were far worse than I expected. When we first arrived, a guest speaker from a local NGO called Grupo Fenix, came to speak with us about the work the group does in the area and to tell us what to expect. Her name was Susan, and was born in Ohio and moved to Nicaragua 30 years ago after she graduated from high school. She went as a volunteer, but she recognized the necessity of engineering skills during her stay, so she earnedher Master’s degree in electrical engineering. She returned to Nicaragua and foundeda renewable energy NGO and named it “GrupoFenix”. Since I stayed next to Susan’s house, I would stop by and talk to her almost every day. Material things did not concern her; the hardest thing about living in Nicaragua to her was being humble. She transformed one of the poorest villages in Sabana Grande region into the average Nicaragua standard of living.She deserved to be exalted, yet she slept under a white net in a tiny house. …