St. Valentine's Day... Just Another Stunt (Ink online exclusive article!)

By Sebastian Espinosa (undergraduate FIGRI student)

Thanks to Valentine`s day February seems to be the perfect getaway for the partner who is constantly watering their relationship. For others it is a month where love propaganda and corny street scenes give are just too overwhelming. We all fail when getting to “the one”, I wonder if she really exists…or if it is just another commercial publicity to make us buy more clothing to look interesting or to keep on growing intellectually just to know what to say when meeting  “the one”.

You can`t get enough in love…it`s like if you live to get someone`s approval to behave. From morning text messages to long cheese phone conversations and finishing up with that inevitable phrase “How was your day?”. Mom is wise enough when affirming that logic is lost when shooting up on your love dose. Rumor has it, and experience has taught me that it`s true, we all lose our dignity and even being aware of that, we like to make each other feel stupid, we pledge to the idea of taking the “interesting” mask off and showing our retarded persona (real one).

Psychologists and in some cases psychiatrics determine that there is no better feeling than to love someone…however, do we really know what it is to LOVE? To love someone it`s not only to desperately chat or talk 24/7 or to give gifts or even to have climax sex, let me tell you my dear friend that if you think you love someone because you fulfill any of the three patterns I just mentioned, you are SCREWED! You are just enjoying the moment but not literally loving.

Throughout time we have always thought that “the one” truly exists somewhere but somehow exists. It is relevant to say that as long as you have every aspect of your partner well acknowledged and few things surprise you, then you are on the path of truly loving someone.

We all need to stick in our minds that in order to love and know someone we have to love and know ourselves before. Things like the real interpretation of solitude (single-time) give us the tools to value when finding “the one” or the prospect of the one.

Until now it had all come down to stay true to who you are and remain positive. Social pressure neglects the idea of particularities, however, you gain nothing by living what others want you to live and patience is the wisdom of properly and positively waiting.

A false alarm

By Helena F. Amórtegui B. (undergraduate FIGRI student, level 4 English)

When I was six years old, I had a nightmare journey.  I traveled with my mother, my cousin and my aunt to Gama, Cundinamarca. Gama is a small town with many mountains and it has big forests. Few people live there and in the past, it had little public transport, coaches or motorbikes. At this time, Gama was a violent place because the FARC had arrived.

One day we were going to town when we saw a big traffic jam. My cousin thought that there was a car crash or road works, but the military said that there was an old car on the bridge and the people thought that the car had explosives. Then, we looked at the town people who were running scared. But we had to go to the town urgently because we had to buy medicine for a sick cow. So, we had to cross the river in an enormous digger and, I was really scared of the big river.

After two days, we heard on the radio that the car hadn’t had explosives, but it had been stolen. In the end this was one more bad experience in my life.

Animal trafficking in Colombia

By María Camila García Bodoya (undergraduate Business Administration student)

Who doesn’t love baby animals?  Who doesn’t admire the colorful feathers of a Colombian macaw?  You see them on TV and you want one in your house. However, do you know what happens when you take them out of their habitat? Do you wonder how they arrive to your country?  Of course, you wouldn’t accept the idea of human trafficking in Yemen or you wouldn’t receive illicit substances from anyone. So, why would you like to keep an adorable exotic animal in your house, when it is not even from your country?  The activity you’ll be supporting by buying them is called animal trafficking, which is a global issue that is growing at an alarming rate.

Colombia is one of the countries affected by this activity because of its biodiversity. The saddest part is that the people who buy exotic animals aren’t aware of the many repercussions this activity has on the following: the environment, psychological wellbeing and human and animal health.  When it comes to the environment, nature has its own balance and it depends on several elements, like animals for example. When a species is hunted or taken out of its habitat, nature loses this balance. This also happens when a different species is introduced to a new habitat.  To make this point clear, you should know that in the Caribbean Sea, some of the gorgeous colored fish and coral reefs are disappearing because of an invasive species called the “lionfish”.

When it comes to the psychological aspect, animals suffer trauma because of the way traffickers catch them in the wild and deliver them to illegal pet shops in other countries. These methods are unpleasant and perplexing! The most common way traffickers catch animals is by getting them when they’re babies, so they kill their mothers and put them into boxes. Then, they have to travel a long way in small dark boxes on a bus and then on planes; one conservationist has said that in Bogota, one animal out of ten arrives alive because the others die of stress or malnutrition.

Another point is human and animal health. In general, animals tend to carry microorganisms that can be really harmful or lethal to human health – and this happens the opposite way as well. There’s the case of a Colombian child who got a lethal virus - which his doctor couldn’t help him with - from an ape that lived with him at his house.

In conclusion, despite the government's actions with the environmental police and law 84 of 1989, like drug dealers, animal traffickers are hard to track down and stop because they're part of a multi-million dollar industry. A sloth can be sold for 400 US dollars and a macaw for 600 US dollars. So, maybe the best way to stop the growth of animal trafficking is to generate awareness in consumers, through big advertising campaigns, conferences in universities or schools as well as educational TV programs.

Inside Colombian Films

By Laura Marcela Santiago (undergraduate FIGRI student)

When you hear about Colombian movies, there are two types of films that come to mind. The first one and not my favorite, is the type of movies that involve drugs and terrorism, for example the movie: "María llena eres de gracia", and the second one is the type of movies that satirize Colombian people. The second type of movies usually show the traditional customs of a typical Colombian family, but maybe their mistake is that they display the culture in a way that isn’t well appreciated, like in the movie: "Mi gente linda, Mi gente bella".

In the end, these Colombian films try to represent Colombian lifestyles, but with a huge lack of meaningfulness in their stories, and this does not make them interesting to watch. Why is the industry making these movies? My hypothesis is that they are afraid to show Colombians as normal people, who go through many troubles in life; people who have to deal with delinquency but that can also have good values, morals and ethics. 

When you go to theaters in the main cities of this country, each year they present a typical film that most of the time is about laughing at how Colombians live. We can find many examples like "In Fraganti" or "El Carro", where they stereotype a family from this country as people of low education, but having high incomes, and make reference to Colombians as easily impressed by luxury. 

Furthermore, the way they show these families is highly wrong, and it is very rude, because it gives the wrong idea to the international audience of how we are. Additionally, the industry continues to make these movies, despite the fact that they have not been successful in theaters.

Colombians do not want to be mocked on at the cinema; instead, we would like to watch stories about how we fall in love, why we are recognized for being very good friends, passionate and kind people.

It would be nice to have a movie at theaters with well-recognized actors and a huge budget that shows why Colombians are considered to be people who have a great commitment to society, and have a great sense of patriotism for their country. Just like that, it would demonstrate to the world our essence as Colombians.

It is interesting how the cinema industry has made very good films that have been best sellers, with beautiful landscapes and excellent actors from Colombia. Nevertheless, these ones have not been written by Colombians, but by foreign writers. As an example of these movies, we can find "La Cara Oculta" or "Gallows Hills", which are thrillers and drama films that truly represent families in everyday situations. However, this is an ironic topic of discussion, because foreigners are indicating that they can write better stories about Colombian culture than Colombian screenwriters.

These examples leave us with the reflection of how anxious we are to show the world that we have issues with delinquency but that we also have good stories about challenges, love and drama, like any other country around the world. It’s important that people around the world start to consider our country as one with great potential. One way we could demonstrate this is by making movies with purposeful and relevant stories that are not about drug dealers, trafficking, etc. 

Getting Over Your Ex!

By Nicolas A. Moreno P. (undergraduate Social Communication & Journalism student, level 4 English)

Everyone has been through disappointments in love. In movies and books they are always telling us how to love, how to have a good date, and how to manage every other aspect of our relationships, but they never give us the answer to the big question: “How can I get over my ex?”

It must be mandatory for everyone in the whole world to make a list of steps to get over your ex successfully. Let’s do it.

1. You will never get over your ex if you don’t spend time with your friends. They’re like your family when you’re out of your house, so try to keep your mind full of funny thoughts with them.

2. You have to shake off all the bad things that you’re keeping inside. This is why you need to have a drink and dance with somebody else, but after you’ve made sure that you won’t call your ex when you’re drunk. WhatsApp messages are not acceptable either!

3. Block your ex on every social network in the world. If you see their updates on Facebook or Instagram, you’ll probably just get depressed. So let’s be “immature”, because it’s okay.

4. Let’s take out the trash! What was treasure in the past, is trash today. Put your ex’s gifts, love letters, and everything else they gave you, into a bag and take it out of your life. In fact, burn it if you can!

5. It’s time to make a change! Go shopping, try a new hairstyle, travel to the place that your ex never wanted to go, but you did. Have fun, and get better.

Finally, if you’re ready (and only if you’re ready: please don’t make another mistake), and if you’re feeling good and like you’ve finally got over your ex, start dating somebody new. The relationship world is even better than the last time you visited it, and the big difference is that you’re single now, so enjoy your free time!

If I Stay

By Larissa Tovar (undergraduate Tourism & Hotel Management student, level 4 English)

If I Stay is a drama movie, which is based on a novel written by Gayle Forman and was directed by R.J. Cutler. In the cast, you can see as the stars of the film Chloë Grace Moretz and Jamie Blackley, as well as Mireille Enos, Liana Liberato and Lauren Lee Smith. This film’s premiere was on August 22^nd, 2014, in the United States. It was nominated for a People’s Choice Award.

Chloë Grace Moretz plays a student called Mia Hall, who is 17 years old and loves to play the cello. She lives with her parents and her little brother. Jamie Blackley plays Adam, who is Mia’s boyfriend, and they both live in Portland, Oregon. Adam is a rock star and he always needs to travel around the USA with his band.

In the movie, Mia competes to study playing cello at Juilliard, but if she goes to study there she will need to leave her family, her friends, and her boyfriend. One day, a snow storm invades Portland and all the schools close so Mia’s family decides to go on a short vacation. During this trip in just a few seconds their lives change forever, and now Mia has to decide if she wants to stay in this world or go away.

I think that this movie has a really good plot because it is a romantic story, and so many interesting things happen between the couple, and with Mia’s family. I learnt about family unity and romantic love from this film, but I also entertained myself watching it. I recommend this film, because maybe your thoughts about family and love will change in a positive way, and because it’s my favourite movie, I will always recommend it.

NYC Fashion Week

By Camila Agudelo D. (undergraduate Economics student, level 4 English)

New York City Fashion Week is one of the most important weeks every year for all the designers in the industry. It was created in 1943 by Eleanor Lamber, who was trying to show the work of American fashion designers to their French counterparts and avoid the criticism that American fashion innovations usually received. After the Second World War, this fashion week became a success, and has become one of the most important in the world after Paris Fashion Week.

Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, which is part of New York Fashion Week, is when top designers like Carolina Herrera, Michael Kors, Hugo Boss and many more show their collections to the world. 

There are also Latin American designers and new designers who make their debut in the industry.

This week could bring many benefits to Colombian textile industries. Colombia is well known in the textile sector because it exports very good fabrics and for this reason, this sector is responsible for 7.8% of the country’s GNP, and gives much-needed jobs, therefore decreasing the unemployment problem. Many Colombian designers need to start going to this fashion week to show how competitive we are in this industry and this could help to increase fabric exports worldwide, which would be a great help for our economy.

This is not only a fashion week, but also a way to see new trends in the industry. It is a way that countries can improve their economies by bringing new opportunities. Many people think that this won’t change anything, and that it’s only a way for brands to show their collections, but even the smallest thing can make a big change for our country.

Some Facts about the Post-Conflict Period

By Daniel Ospina (undergraduate Economics Student , level 6 English)

There have been more than fifty years of armed conflict in Colombia, which is why it is urgent to make projections about the country in its post-conflict period. Now, the intention of this document is to show some conclusions and deductions from diverse points of view that many theorists have been working on, and especially focusing on economic, political and social issues.

It’s good to know that on a large scale there are 5 items that constitute the general agreement where the Colombian government and the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia -hereafter FARC -are trying to use as the basis for the construction of a stable and lasting peace. The items to negotiate are: rural development, political participation, demobilization, drug trafficking and victims.

Social scientists can evaluate the same problem from different points of view, thus giving a more comprehensive solution. About rural development, many economists are discussing if this is or not the fastest way to improve the standard of life of many Colombians. The other option that opponents have suggested is the urban education way, where everybody should have access to higher education, which would also improve average conditions. Even though rural development is the most equitable way to have an optimum standard of life reflected in consumption and growth, if more people work in local production of basic goods, the market share captured by domestic industry will be higher. Then, if there is any surplus production this could be exported and thus increase international reserves (foreign exchange) and GDP (Gross Domestic Product).

However, this is not the only item for which the dialogues have become more extensive. In terms of political participation restrictions may be higher, as many Colombians are unwilling or hate the possibility of granting political power to people who were the biggest actors in violence, in addition to arms and drug traffickers. The participation of the FARC in making decisions for the nation can be more than an act of political inclusion; its effects can be counterproductive to the extent that it can be perceived as an act of victory by an armed group outside the law whose Machiavellian scheme is based on the destruction of others to encourage their minority.

After all, this may hurt the fifth item of discussion, victims, because a demobilized group who becomes an authority means that hundreds of martyrs were an effective way to get some power in society. It will probably not happen, but the creation of a political party by the residue of this demobilization is more than a possibility.

Nevertheless, the monopoly of legalization for the marketing of hallucinatory substances should be transferred to the state. We have seen recently that countries like the US and EU members have shown that health, control and revenue for the treasury is the best alternative. By now this idea as well as the demobilization of all fronts is not unanimous in the FARC. Many subdivisions have become independent as groups outside the minority law, such as the birth of BACRIM (Bandas Criminales) dedicated to organized crime and drug marketing.

In conclusion, the Colombian government believes strongly in the early finalization of the dialogues in Havana, not as a radical solution to the conflict, but as the elimination of the group outside the country's largest law, besides being a reference and example to achieve a stable and lasting peace that will bring greater growth and hopefully economic, political and social development indices. Three quarters of the points in the negotiating agenda have now been agreed on. Also, President Santos recently announced the creation of the -Fondo Multidonante Paz y Posconflicto- founded by Sweden, the World Bank and the United Nations, whose first amount of money is 9,400 million pesos for reparations to victims. The country is waiting for future contributions to perform the birth of a new society. 

Rich Teenagers vs. Poor Teenagers

By Katy Barón (undergraduate Social Communication student, level 5 English)

It’s easy for us to judge people just on their appearance and invent answers to questions like: where are they from? Why do they look like that? Or why are they here, and close to me?

We live in a complicated world with many people and no one is the same as anyone else, so it is difficult to be okay with everyone, but that isn’t a reason to make their lives impossible. Nowadays it’s common to see teenagers being rude or annoying others and this happens because they are from different kinds of backgrounds. I mean, is that right? The worst part is that this happens close to us in silence, because we know that these things happen but we don’t do anything about it.

We are too young and immature to recognize the power of words and how they affect people, so I ask myself: what will happen when we understand this? Maybe the world will be better, and maybe many teenagers will see life in a more optimistic way and won’t try to kill themselves.

It isn’t hard for us to be more sensitive when we judge someone. Just take the time to see more than the person’s appearance and try to see that this person comes from their own background.

Maybe if we could do this, we would finally understand and appreciate the variety of humans that are around us, and tolerance could actually exist between us.

Single fathers vs single mothers in Colombian society

By Maria Paula González Avila (undergraduate Business Management student)

Families in Colombia have followed a model where the father is the one in charge of earning money to sustain the family, while the mother needs to be at home, making food and raising children. In this patriarchal society men cheat on their wives, while they’ve been doing their jobs at home. It was difficult for them to be separated from the source of their economic resources. However, with globalization and modernity, mothers have managed to study and find a job. Thus, they could finally get divorced and with this, it suddenly became common for mothers to raise their children alone.

If you ask a Colombian about this situation, he might have been raised by his mother or at least, he might know someone who has been raised mostly by his or her mom. The right to raise children has been reserved only for mothers, while it has been removed for fathers. In court, if a girl decides to be with her dad instead of her mom, people judge and think that the father forced her. However, when she decides to be with her mom instead of her dad, it is seen as something good. Even if there’s mutual agreement about custody, Colombian law always protects and gives privileges to mothers.

Fathers can do more than provide money. They can teach calmness to children, as well as clear thoughts and wise actions that characterize most fathers, in my experience. For example, I’ve been raised by my father, and I’ve noticed differences between me and “normal” girls of my age: I don’t add as much drama to my life as others do. I can easily forget about past problematic situations with someone, so I move on and I focus my attention on living in the present. I believe this is the result of having a strong male influence in my life, although I know not all men have these characteristics. These are just a few of the “characteristics of men” that I have, and it’s similar with the other girls I’ve met who have been raised by their single father too. Even if it’s not scientifically proven, I think it has a lot to do with the way we’ve been raised.

Colombians tend to say that I’m a good girl and such a good daughter. However, they tend to judge me when I tell them about my situation. They always ask about my mom, and they can’t figure out how I could choose my dad instead of her, because for them, as members of patriarchal society, mothers are the ones supposed to raise children. If a mother that can go through this world with her strength and courage can raise a child and teach him or her how to do that, then fathers can teach a child how to stay calm in moments when it’s necessary, and teach him or her how to improve their protective instinct. I’m neither suggesting that moms don’t play their part, nor that their jobs as single mothers can’t be valued. No. I’m saying that single fathers’ work should be valued too, because it’s important enough to deserve it.

Two Apps to enjoy using!

By Alisson Cantor (undergraduate Social Communication & Journalism student, level 4 English)

Sometimes you need something to distract you, because you are bored and want something to do. I am bringing to you here two apps that will make you happy and maybe someday will be very useful for you. In some apps you can communicate with other people, and in others you can show or edit your photos, or you can play. Apps show you a world of possibilities that you will enjoy and I will show you some of this magic.

Quizup: This is a game where you answer different questions, and the best thing is that you can choose the topic. For example, if you’re good at sports you can answer all the questions about sports that you like, but if you only like football, or if you only know about Bayern Munich, there is a category of questions for every team. If you love rock music, you can search for that category and you don’t need to know about other types of music, or if you know so much about Michael Jackson, there is of course a category just for him.

In this game you have a world of possibilities and you can play with people all over the world. You can know the most about fashion design in your country, or you can be in the top ten of the Formula 1 category.

Duolingo: This app lets you learn different languages. The best thing about the app is that you can choose the language that you want, like English, Italian, French, German, or other possibilities.

It’s an incredible app because you can learn on your phone, and the app gives you different exercises with sounds, writing and images, and if you know a little bit about a particular language, you can avoid doing the basic levels.

Don’t hesitate to download these amazing apps: I know you’ll enjoy them!

Watch what you eat!

By Jenny Cortés (undergraduate Accountancy student, level 4 English)

Throughout history, some changes have benefited mankind. They have made our lives easier, but at what cost? The eagerness to discover and change what we have has blinded us. We are not aware of the damage that we are causing to ourselves and to the environment.

It’s not hard to see that fruits are less natural than they used to be. Consumption and scarcity means that the market requires more and more merchandise to sell as fast as possible. This problem has resulted in the use of fertilisers and genetic modifications, and it’s difficult to know how these methods are applied to crop growth.

Nowadays, the fruit that we eat is not totally natural, as its structure is artificial and we have grown accustomed to the taste. In fact, we can probably no longer remember the real taste, and only our grandparents who came from the countryside can. The reality is that this change has happened because of the use of fertilisers. Some of these are natural, and some are artificial, but most farmers use artificial ones because these are the most effective to promote fast growth.

The market only cares about transactions and not about people’s health, and for this reason farmers use these fertilisers, or in so many current cases, genetic modification. We could say that, if the problem is caused by high demand for fruit, then why don’t we expand our fields and farms? The problem with this is that we don’t notice that we have damaged many possible fields. Our cities are full of buildings and houses and if we need more space, we take “a little bit” of nature, so there is less and less space for agriculture.

It is really hard to find a solution to this problem, but it is not impossible. I think that the first thing that we can do is to be aware of the damage caused by these changes, and do something in order to fix it. The second is to show this problem to other people, and the third could be to require a policy that puts our health over the market, as difficult as that might be. Other things that we can do are to grow our own food or do some research so we find information about the products we eat and where they come from.

We can also look to the past. The people then didn’t use these techniques and they got their food and the things that they needed because they learned to be patient and to love and value nature and this process. Nature is perfect, and it has given us all the things that we need, so why are we so ambitious and obstinate that we feel the need to change it?

The Women’s World Cup

By Carolina Castrillon V. (undergraduate Economics student, level 4 English)

As we know, football is one of the most important sports in the world. Traditionally, it is played by men, but recently we have seen that women have shown increasing interest in this sport.

As the efforts of women growing in this sport have been recognised, today just like men, the best female football players receive the Golden Ball award each year. Besides this, it’s important to know that the FIFA Women’s World Cup is also held. This year this will take place in Canada, and involves 24 teams, including Colombia.

It is important that, as we supported our men in Brazil, we support our women in Canada, because these girls are also working towards a dream. They have trained hard for this world cup, and want to prove that football is not just for men.