Welcome to barbhowe.com!
I'm actually a classically trained visual artist originally. I got to college on an art scholarship and I still do some figure drawing and painting in my spare time. I switched to English and was immersed in reading and writing about the great books when I decided it wasn't enough to use art to create a better world; one had to get one's hands dirty as well. That's when I decided to try to make a career of working for human rights.
I have worked and traveled all over the Americas, providing international accompaniment of civilians in rural Colombia and doing research as a graduate student for Habitat for Humanity studying the impact of housing in low-income communities in Chile. In the U.S. I have been involved in campaigns to raise awareness of homelessness, end the death penalty and stop the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. I have spent the past three years doing communications and advocacy work for a small nonprofit organization that works for migrant and seasonal farmworkers in the U.S..
I speak English and Spanish and have worked in bilingual environments both here in the U.S. and abroad. My B.A is in English Literature and my M.A. is in International Relations.
I'm currently discerning the next stage of my career and look forward to new challenges and opportunities. I hope this website represents a more complete picture of my life's work and who I am because I'm very proud of both. Here, in addition to my resume, you can find a sampling of my writing and photography. Thanks for visiting!