I am currently enrolled in Capilano University's Global Stewardship Program in Vancouver, BC, which is a program that teaches young people how to work for NGOs, do international development work, and most importantly, make a change that they want to make. I have always had a heart for development work, but since 2006 I have been involved in education work in Sierra Leone (Salone), West Africa. I have raised funds for and volunteered at a primary school in Salone, and this year, I am volunteering with a Christian NGO in Sierra Leone for 4 months.
As described before - Salone, West Africa. There is something about Africa as a whole that just lifts my spirits and excites me - maybe because I can see the change that is so desperately needed here, and I get thrilled when I see that change taking place. I first visited Salone in 2008, and this year I am back 'home' in Salone for 4 months doing development and education work with an NGO, Christian Extension Services. Since the moment I stepped foot in Salone I knew it was where I wanted to be. About a year or two ago Salone was the lowest ranking country on the UN development index, and had the highest infant mortality rate. The country was also ravaged by a terrible civil war from 1996-2002. However, despite all the painful stories that are present in this country, that wasn't what I saw when I first arrived here - I saw hope. I saw the hope in the kid's eyes as they were going to school, the dedication that the elders here have to build up their country again, and the unspeakable courage everyone in Salone demonstrates by getting up after their fall, even without a helping hand.
There are many changes that I want to happen in this world, but there are 2 that I feel incredibly about in my 'home' country Salone. FIRST, I want to see every child recieve a GOOD education. Nearly all of the schools in Salone are overcrowded, lacking in teaching materials, lacking in proper facilities, and most heartbreakingly, lacking in qualified teachers. Because the teaching salary is so low here, few people who want to become teachers bother to undergo any training before they go into the classroom. Unfortunately, this is severely affecting the kids - especially when there is 120 kids packed into a tiny classroom, listening to one teacher who doesn't really want to be there and doesn't even know what he or she is teaching about.
SECONDLY, I want to see the youth of this country RESPECT themselves and realize how much value they have, and not give that value away easily. It is heartbreaking to see so many teenage girls getting pregnant and having to leave school by the time they're 12 or 13, all because a man promised he would marry them and get them out of poverty - if only they had sex with him. The young women of this country HAVE to realize how immensely unique and valuable they are, and realize that they have OPTIONS to be independent - they don't have to rely on a man to get them out of poverty, or compromise themselves because they think they can't support themselves!
I started the Global Stewardship Program at Capilano University in 2008, and will finish in spring 2010. After that I plan to get my teaching degree and come back to Salone to teach in a primary school here, as well as working for or starting up an NGO.
