Exploring to Understand
Patrick Kapche, MBA 2018, Travels the World Seeking a Greater Understanding of Economic Challenges in Developing Countries
If you had eight months to travel the world alone, where would you go? Which continents would you visit? Which countries? What experiences would you seek? How would you expect to change?
Foster MBA graduate Patrick Kapche was one of seven UW graduate students selected, as part of the University of Washington Bonderman Fellowship 2018 cohort, to answer these questions by exploring the world.
The Bonderman Fellowship offers UW students at the graduate, professional, and undergraduate levels the opportunity to engage in independent exploration and to travel abroad. Administered by the University Honors Program and the Graduate School, the Bonderman Fellowship enables students to undertake independent international travel in developing nations.
Since January, Patrick has traveled across the South American continent. So far, his journey has taken him Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia. Patrick looks to better understand globalization’s impact on less industrialized parts of the world. He documents his experiences along the way by interviewing locals. He studies and analyzes each of the local markets, economies and applied solutions that he comes across.
Early in his travels, Patrick interviewed a specialty coffee roaster in Buenos Aires and spoke with locals about the US dollar’s role in Argentina. He later hiked across the border to Chile, exploring remote communities along the way. Once in Chile, he helped local house fire cleanup efforts. Most recently, Patrick learned about the alpaca wool industry in Peru.
Before returning home to Seattle in the fall, Patrick will travel to Vietnam, Cambodia and India. In Asia Patrick plans to continue engaging with local communities, examining economic responses to the challenges of globalization and investigating wherever his curiosity takes him.
Follow Patrick and his global adventures in his blog: People, Places and Thoughts.
Patrick Kapche is a 2018 Foster Evening MBA program graduate. He has worked in several finance, accounting, and international business roles in his career. While studying at the Foster School of Business, he served on the board of the Foster Global Business Association. Patrick aims to apply his international experience from the Bonderman Fellowship in future career endeavors.
