My ideas :
1) The long-term effects of colonization on the Philippines – As a Filipina, I feel that it is important for to learn more about my country’s history. Although some long-term effects are well-known, like the similarities between Tagalog and Spanish, there is still so many others that I may not be aware of. For example, was the Philippines was always Catholic? I also want to know what impacts it had on our culture and societal norms.
2) Animal testing – I want to know if wide-scale animal testing is still being done nowadays and/or if it is still as bad as it was before. I have always been concerned about the safety of animals, and with all the technological advances now, animals should not have to suffer for a mere beauty product or supplement. I also think that people tend to forget how unethical this practice is, and it should honestly be banned if the animals are harmed in any way.
3) College/University vs. Vocational schools – I know many people who prefer going to vocational school after high school rather than college, and I am curious as to why that has start to become more common nowadays. There are many perspectives surrounding this topic, as there are those who believe that a bachelor’s degree should be your goal, while others believe that securing a job is better, and that those 4 years are just a waste.
Article for Idea #2 – https://www.wsj.com/podcasts/google-news-update/eu-animal-testing-calls-threaten-to-derail-cruelty-free-cosmetics/345c1860-d67a-4c30-bdfa-87390887357e
This article talks about laws that could force many companies to go back to animal testing in Europe. Due to a certain law regarding the amount of time employees can be exposed to chemicals compared to consumers, the testing on animals has to be done to make sure that the ingredients are safe for consumers. But there is a law that is directly conflicting with that, which is the law that bans animal testing on cosmetic products. This contradicting laws have been met with lots of resistance, and the future of a world without animal testing seems to be uncertain, as this issue is also tackled from a global standpoint. Rather than country by country certifications, it is rather one global certifications, so these laws will make it even quite difficult to obtain one for European countries.
Juicy quote from this article – “So essentially it’s one global certification, which is why this ruling has really big implications for many companies that have brands that are owned by European companies, but essentially sold all over the world.”
Article for Idea #3 – https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2024/may/15/america-needs-more-people-to-attend-trade-schools/
The article shares the opinions of the author towards trade schools and why it is very important to pursue for certain reasons. She believes that there should be an option to go to a school that allows you to start in the workforce, being the plumbers, welders, etc. Trade schools would also allow those whose cup of tea wasn’t college to be able to succeed, making a name for themselves while also keeping the U.S. economy stable. She then goes on to speak upon a legislation by Sen. Tommy Tuberville that would allow people to save up for vocational schools and other things they would want to pursue instead of college. This will hopefully improve our society, as it would give students motivation to graduate from high school because there is a brighter future awaiting them that is better suited for what they want to do.
Juicy quote from this article – “It’s not that they are not smart enough or will not be successful in their careers. They would be far better off taking the money you set aside for college and allowing them to learn a skill other than funneling a beer while standing on their head.”