Global Perspectives & Cultural Awareness

COM 263: Communication Across Cultures and Global Engagement

Communication Across Cultures

COM 263 was one of the most personally enriching courses I took at ASU since it pushed me to think about communication, culture, and identity in ways that my engineering classes never did. I am an international student from Bangalore, India, and growing up in a household where both Kannada and Telugu were spoken gave me a natural sensitivity to cultural and linguistic differences that I had never really stopped to reflect on before this course. Throughout the semester I participated in weekly discussions covering topics like cultural diversity, the role of history in shaping cultural identity, code switching, and the influence of popular culture on society.

One of the most memorable assignments was the ethnography activity where I observed a storytelling session at a Vista Del Sol community center. I watched an elderly Mexican woman tell the legend of La Llorona to a group of senior citizens from completely different backgrounds made me realize that oral traditions are one of the most powerful ways cultures pass down their identity across generations.

I also wrote a research paper on systemic racism in the American criminal justice system which was a topic completely outside my comfort zone as a computer science student. I researched implicit bias, the school to prison pipeline, and the historical roots of racial inequality forced me to engage with issues I had never thought deeply about before. On a much lighter note, I also shared a personal story in one of my discussions about asking for tomato sauce at a McDonald's during my first week in the US and nobody understood me since Americans call it ketchup. The small moment of confusion taught me more about linguistic and cultural differences than any textbook page could.

The course added a layer to my GCSP journey because I thought I was enrolled in it primarily to fulfill a requirement, however I left with a completely different perspective on what it means to be an engineer in a diverse world. The most important thing this course reinforced was something I had started to understand in SOC 334, which is that technical knowledge alone is not enough to make an impact. As a software engineer I will spend my entire career building products for people from different backgrounds and experiences whereas COM 263 made me aware that the assumptions I bring into that work are shaped by my own cultural lens. Ignoring that can lead to building things that unintentionally exclude the very people I am trying to help. Beyond the technical connection, the course made me more confident bringing my Indian cultural background into professional settings since I used to downplay it in team environments. COM 263 showed me that cultural identity is a strength and I carry that confidence with me every time I walk into a new team.

The research paper on systemic racism connected to Joy of Living since a justice system that treats people fairly regardless of their background is a fundamental requirement for a society where everyone can actually live joyfully. Inequity in the criminal justice system does not just harm the individuals caught in it but ripples out to destabilize entire families and communities, eroding the sense of safety and dignity that Joy of Living depends on. Studying this issue made me more committed to building technology that is fair and inclusive rather than just functional for the majority. Overall, the course connects to the Joy of Living in a foundational way because the quality of a person's daily life is shaped by their ability to communicate and connect with the people around them.

COM 263 — Research Paper

STS 332: Global Issues in Science and Technology

Global Problems Through Research

STS 332 forced me to think about global problems in a structured and research driven way. I wrote analytical briefs that required me to identify the goals, problems, and solutions for a major global issue using academic research materials from Google Scholar, Springer, and the ASU Library. I wrote briefs on three major global issues. The first was food insecurity, where I explored economic inequalities that trap people in generational cycles of poverty, the inequitable distribution of food resources, and the long term health consequences of nutritional deficiencies on children and families. The second was climate change where I analyzed political barriers to policy change, the lack of urgency among the general public, and the vicious cycle of climate impacts on food production in regions like sub-Saharan Africa.

The third was big data for sustainable development where I examined the potential of AI and massive datasets to monitor global challenges while also facing problems like unequal data access and the lack of standardization across countries. I had consistent experience across all three briefs by trying to use ChatGPT for research and finding it completely useless every single time. It generated generic sentences with no academic substance and I had to rely entirely on my own research skills. The experience reinforced my belief that AI is a powerful tool but is nowhere near a replacement for critical independent thinking.

As a computer science student I was used to thinking about problems in terms of code, algorithms, and systems. However, STS 332 forced me to zoom out and think about the broader societal systems that technology either helps or fails to address. The shift was valuable because it made me a more critical thinker since I now approach engineering problems with an awareness of the real world consequences. The big data brief resonated with me since I work with AWS, DynamoDB, and large scale backend systems in my capstone project with Qualaces. When I think about the real challenges of data standardization and unequal access to computing resources helped me realize that the technical decisions I make as a backend engineer have consequences far beyond the codebase. A poorly designed data storage system does not just create bugs, but it can also make certain features unavailable to the users and exclude the communities it was supposed to serve.

Food insecurity is one of the most immediate threats to Joy of Living since a person who does not know where their next meal cannot live joyfully. The solutions I explored like expanding food assistance programs, educating communities about nutrition, and encouraging local food donations are all aimed at removing the daily anxiety and giving families the stability they need to thrive. Thus, I can confidently say that STS 332 is fundamentally about analyzing the global issues across the world that prevent people from living peacefully and analyzing these issues and finding solutions for them to help the people and communities is directly related to Joy of Living.

STS 332 — Analytical Brief