It used to be that when senior Drolma Gadou wanted to return to her hometown of Choni in Tibet, it took her two days. By horse cart. These days, she says, it takes her two hours by rental car over newly paved roads.Gadou, who is majoring in international comparative studies, is all too aware that her country is changing rapidly. Unfortunately, she says, many of her people are being left behind.

Heather Heenehan M.E.M. ’11 still remembers a certain trip to the beach quite vividly. She was only three at the time, and caught a glimpse of dolphin fins in the water. “My little legs kicked off, and I ran into the water,” she says, “and I stood there screaming, ‘I’m in the water with them!’”