Hey all, just landed in Zurich. First time in Europe (although I don't think this counts), and I wish I had some time to hike around the section of the Alps that we flew over. While flying, I was able to sketch out a detailed version of the what, where, and why of my internship this summer. Don’t worry, in my next post I will be in Africa, and can talk about my real experiences.
Where am I going?
I will be spending the next three months in Kakamega, Kenya. By looking at the series of maps you can get an idea of where Kakamega is in the great scheme of things. My days will be spent 15 miles outside of Kakamega in a rural village named Lusui. In Lusui I will live for nine weeks with a Kenyan family. This home-stay experience is much like that of high school exchange students who visit America and live with families during that time. Adjusting to life in the village will be an opportunity to learn about the Kenyan culture and development challenges in poor, rural areas.
What will I be doing on a day by day basis?
The internship consists of two basic activities once I am in Lusui, the rural village outside of Kakamega. The first is a consistent work placement related to my development interests. I will be working 35-40 hours a week at a 7th-10th grade school in Lusui. The school is specifically for disadvantaged youth from very poor families or families that have been affected by disease or the loss of family members. The school curriculum is very similar to a middle school curriculum in the US, with Science, Math and English as core subjects. To my knowledge, I will be working with the Business (economics) and English classes to support teachers and lead lessons when needed. I am looking forward to this experience because it will greatly increase my knowledge of education in developing areas. I am also very excited about the chance to form relationships with Kenyan students. I hope to be able to talk to students at length about their lives understand their daily life. I need to achieve a thorough understanding of the community to be at all successful in implementing programs. Plus, I love talking to and meeting new people, especially students, so the relationship building work should be a great deal of fun.
The second part of the internship is a program that I develop with the support of the Lusui community. Throughout the first month in Lusui I will be communicating with community members and observing community problems to develop a village needs assessment. Then I work with the community to brainstorm different ideas to solve issues using the skills and human capital of the community. I see my role as a facilitator in this process, and not the strong leader. This is because to have a project that can continue when I am gone, it needs to be community led and supported. I also realize that my impact on the community will be limited at best because of my lack of knowledge and short stay in the village. I am an outsider in the village and I will only be living in the community for three months, so it will be very difficult to make a substantial impact on the quality of life in the area.
So With All that Said, Why Am I Going?
If I can’t really make a big difference in three months, what is the point of even going? My role in the trip is to learn from the Kenyan community and become informed about their culture and economic situation. I will be asking questions, listening, and doing all that I can to learn about the community and Kenyan culture. This learned knowledge will then inform the decisions that I make for the rest of my life. I always want to be a better person tomorrow than I was today because I have learned from my mistakes. This is why I renamed my blog “A Life of Learning.” Because really, learning is what life is all about. It’s the medium through which an individual or a community can improve their quality of life. It’s the experiential knowledge that helps us improve our future decisions. It’s a process through which we emerge from ignorance and grasp solutions to complicated problems. That’s my goal in Kenya. To learn new things about myself, Africa, and how to inspire change in the developing world.
Another important reason that I am going to Kenya is to get a clearer picture of my future career path. Currently my plans are to work in international development for three to five years following college, spending a large portion of that time in rural, poor areas. Instead of going into that career with no prior knowledge of whether or not I can excel personally and professionally, I am lucky enough to have this three months experience in Kenya. After this experience I will be better able to plan my future work in development and correctly judge my tolerance for living and working for long periods of time in developing areas. I’m trying to push my own boundaries, and follow the Nelson Mandela quote, “There is no passion to be found playing small in settling for a life that is less than one you are capable of living.”
I'll write again and actually be in Africa!
All the best,
Kurt