Leaving for Sri Lanka

Posted by Tyler Morden on January 19th, 2010

It is the middle of the afternoon on January 14^th and I’m sitting in my parent’s basement, waiting. After moving out of my apartment in Winnipeg and back to Morden, the small rural Manitoban town I grew up in, I continue to wait. I have been checking the mail eagerly every day and anxiously reassure myself that it will be here soon. My name is Tyler Morden and I am waiting for my visa to work in Sri Lanka!

I am a graduate from the University of Winnipeg with a double major in International Development Studies and Politics. As a part of my degree, I studied International Relations and Middle Eastern Politics at Bogaziçi Üniversitesi in Istanbul, Turkey. Learning in a new environment from professors with different teaching methods and expertise, as well having to learn a new language proved to be an extremely rewarding cultural and educational experience.

Gathering with students from around the world in Norway, trekking through jungles in India, exploring Kosovo during the struggle for independence, and wandering through maze-like souqs throughout the Middle East, my most memorable experiences have been while abroad. I am enthusiastic and ready to add a new chapter to my life and take on the adventures that wait for me in Sri Lanka!

I am going to be spending the next six months with the WUSC-SL team in Batticaloa Town, working as an intern with the Youth in Transition Project (YITP). The YITP is an empowerment program for war-affected youth, including former child combatants. As an intern, my main responsibilities will be to create monitoring and evaluation tools to document progress and lessons learned. I will also be involved with program delivery, writing reports and proposals, and possibly creating a film about the project.

For the past year and a half I have been working as a Children and Youth Program Worker at the Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization of Manitoba (IRCOM) and as a Dialogue Facilitator with the Youth Peacebuilding Project through the Institute for Community Peacebuilding. The experience I have gained from these positions has prepared me for this internship by building on my cross-cultural communication skills as well as my ability to interact with youth whom have experienced trauma. I am passionate about working with youth and my academic interests are in peace and conflict studies which is why I chose to apply for this position.

I know that this internship will provide me with a very valuable perspective which will be highly beneficial to my work with newcomer youth in Canada. My work has been focused on building on the skills and knowledge the youth bring to help facilitate their integration and to help overcome the challenges and barriers of the immigration process. This internship would give me with a chance to experience the “other side”, allowing me to gain knowledge on how life is for conflict-affected youth in their home countries and the struggles they face in integrating and re-establishing relationships in their communities.

Although I have spent time in post-conflict regions before, this will be my first time working in one. The day-to-day uncertainties and possible routine interruptions will take some time to get used to, but it is all a part of the experience! I know that when I leave Sri Lanka, my experiences will have contributed to my growth as a person and as a professional.

I hope you keep an eye on my blog because the updates are coming!

Posted in Pre-departure, SWB