"When you find yourself in a place so completely strange, with wonders around every corner, only then can you realize the possibilities that each experience can hold," wrote Allen Chung '07 from New Zealand last semester.

He is one of the some 500 Cornell undergraduates each year who study in one of about 40 countries -- including Botswana, Madagascar, Senegal, Thailand, Turkey and even Tajikistan and Mongolia -- as part of their Cornell education.

"I am constantly surprised by the variety and depth of experiences that Cornell students have abroad," says Kristen Grace, associate director of Cornell Abroad. "Just in the past few weeks one student received national recognition for her research on Argentinian workers who take over and run formerly bankrupt companies, and another student was nominated for a Truman fellowship based on her internship in the Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya. It is inspiring to see how students link their study abroad experiences with their coursework and research at Cornell and then build on the combined experiences in their lives after graduation."

As the world gets smaller and increasingly interdependent, developing global citizens is becoming an increasingly higher priority, says Grace. Even Congress is showing resounding bipartisan support in both chambers for the Simon Study Abroad Act, which aims to increase the number of American students studying outside the United States to 1 million from 200,000 each year.

These photographs, taken by Cornell Abroad students, offer a window into some of the exotic and enriching experiences that students encountered this past year. A full exhibit of Cornell Abroad student photos is on display in Willard Straight Hall's art gallery until April 6. Visit http://www.cuabroad.cornell.edu/.