Senior urban planning major Marino Solorio went to Sri Lanka expecting to help villagers cope with the wreckage left by a 2004 tsunami. Instead he found them to be self-sufficient when given the proper equipment and gained a new perspective from the experience.
"It's important to know that in any profession you sometimes have to change or mold your perspective when traveling to other places," he said. "We changed both as professionals and as people and want to open people's minds to these opportunities."
CapAsia, an immersive learning program at Ball State University, will present their findings from 4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Monday in the College of Architecture and Planning Room 100.
The director of the project, Nihal Perera, said the goal of the trip was to study the recovery efforts of a 2004 tsunami that left villages in the region damaged.
The group of 18 students divided their 11-week trip among five villages collecting interviews and surveys in an attempt to better understand the lifestyles of people in the area before the tsunami hit, Solorio said.
After doing research the team was able to provide hands-on help with projects that included rebuilding a bridge, cleaning up the communities and sponsoring a festival.
Solorio helped to orchestrate the Peacock Festival in the Ya Ya Watte village.
"The best part of it was showcasing the talents and crafts of people from the village," he said. "It was great; really awesome."
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