Michelle Bovee

Michelle Bovée studied at James Madison University in Virginia, where she graduated with a BA in Political Science with a focus on international and comparative politics. She is currently attending the London School of Economics to get her Masters in International Relations. Michelle has been a Program and Research Intern with the SISGI Group since summer 2011, and is now a featured writer. She will post every fourth Monday on international economic development, the political and economic ramifications of the Arab Spring, and sustainable tourism.

Most commented posts

  1. Myanmar and the Politics of Tourism — 5 comments
  2. Voluntourism: the Good and the Bad — 4 comments
  3. Voluntourism Certification — 4 comments
  4. Responsible Tourism Reaches Egypt — 4 comments
  5. Abortion-Included Tours — 4 comments

Author's posts

Ramadan: New Hope or New Obstacle?

August 1st will mark the start of the fasting month of Ramadan, as well as a new obstacle for the countries involved in the Arab Spring.  Ramadan, for those of you not on top of Muslim practices, is a month-long fast during which devout Muslims cannot eat or drink during the daylight.  The fast is …

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Encouraging Ecotourism in China

When you think “ecotourism” China is probably not the first place that comes to mind.  No, China brings up images of massive crowds of people and heavy smog clouds, not things that are very compatible with environmentally and economically friendly ecotourism.  However, with 41 UNESCO World Heritage Sites and 28 UNESCO Biosphere Reserves, the ecotourism …

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A Stock Exchange Without Stocks

In an interesting move to encourage economic development, Cambodia recently opened its first stock exchange, the Cambodia Securities Exchange (CSX).  What part of that is interesting, you may be wondering?  Well, currently there are no stocks to trade, no companies listed, which makes this the smallest stock exchange in the world.   It’s sort of …

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Tourism Ethics

The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) announced on July 7th that it will be coming together with Spain to organize the First International Congress on Ethics and Tourism.  The conference will be held on the 15th and 16th of September in Madrid and will cover issues such as responsible tourism, fair tourism and poverty reduction, and the role of the …

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The Arab Spring Reaches Eastern Europe

It seems that the revolutionary spirit of the Arab Spring has spread from North Africa and the Middle East all the way to troubled Belarus in Eastern Europe.  Belarus has been called “Europe’s Last Dictatorship” ever since 1994, when the “Last Dictator” Alexander Lukashenko came to power in a highly contested election.  In a distinct …

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Microfinancing Myanmar

The president of Myanmar (formerly Burma) announced an interesting way to fight poverty and increase economic development in the countryside: a sustainable microfinance system.  Microfinance, for those of you that don’t know, is a system in which low-income clients and others who do not have access to banking services are given loans with the assumption …

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Voluntourism in Rural Laos

Since this is a holiday weekend, I thought I would post something a bit more lighthearted: a Youtube video about voluntourism and sustainable travel in Laos.  Voluntourism, or volunteer tourism, has gained a lot of popularity in recent years as tourists search for ways to have a unique vacation experience and give back to the …

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School Ecotourism Police Force: Cute or Creepy?

Every now and then I read an article that I simply have to share with someone; so, today I share it with you!  The article in this case is about Lapu-Lapu, a city in the Philippines which has taken an interesting route to promote ecotourism: recruiting students to act as ‘ecotourism police’ who report people they …

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Debate Over Libya Rages on Capitol Hill

News on our involvement in Libya has taken a backseat recently after all the drama with Congressman Weiner and President Obama’s announcement about the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, but the conflict has been raging on despite the lack of US news media interest.  It’s been raging on here in the states, too; specifically, the …

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Brilliant Partnership or Potential Disaster?

The University of Oregon and the Global Oregon Initiative recently announced an interesting—and controversial—partnership: a partnership with the government of Gabon. This one-of-a-kind cooperative agreement has a noble purpose: to establish joint research centers in Eugene and Libreville in order to study sustainability, economic development, and natural resource management. However, the union is problematic because of …

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