Tess Murray

Tess Murray

Tess Murray is a senior majoring in International Relations and Global Business and minoring in Accounting at the University of Southern California. Tess has spent time in Madrid, Spain and Beijing, China studying different educational systems. Tess’ research interests include human rights, the political economy of the developing world, European foreign policy and business. On campus, Tess was the Vice President of Advocacy for the Residential Student Government, a member of Teaching International Relations Program and a member of the National Residence Hall Honorary. She has studied both Spanish and Mandarin. 

Reconciling Spain’s Religious History

Convivencia Destroyed For much of its history, Toledo, Spain was “la ciudad con tres culturas,” the city with three cultures, and the embodiment of convivencia, a time in which Christians, Muslims and Jews lived harmoniously throughout Spain. The period of ...

Green Gold: Avocados and NAFTA

Avocado Obsessed Avocados have become one of the most adored fruits in America. Used in salads, smoothies, sandwiches, sushi and even ice cream, the versatile food has taken over social media with more than 30,000 hashtags across Twitter, Instagram, Facebook ...

China’s Risky Business

2008: Financial Armageddon For years, America’s financial sector was thriving. Low interest rates and stable growth had many Americans feeling optimistic about the state of the economy. Before 2008, deregulation allowed for investment banks to make risky investments with stockholder ...

A Reflection on America’s Gun Epidemic

Sandy Hook, Connecticut December 14, 2012. I remember the day so vividly. I was sitting in my 11th grade Spanish classroom when over the loudspeaker, we were told that my school was on lockdown. Naturally, my heart sank, like it ...

No Real Action from the World Humanitarian Summit

“One Humanity: Shared Responsibility” In February, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon announced the launch of the first ever World Humanitarian Summit (WHS) “One Humanity: Shared Responsibility,” which was held on May 23-24, 2016 in Istanbul. In his remarks, Ki-moon acknowledged ...

Haiti’s Election Crisis

While much of the world is caught up in the heated, controversial presidential race in the United States, citizens of Haiti are far more concerned with having their first fair, democratic and uncorrupt election. This year, former Haitian President, Michel ...