From Guelph to Somarelang Tikologo-Botswana
Posted by Vanessa on August 4th, 2008
My name is Vanessa Palleschi and I am a third year Environmental Science student majoring in Earth and Atmospheric Science at the University of Guelph. Since first year I have been a member of the Guelph WUSC local committee. My main role has been to provide support to new students coming to Guelph. Being a part of the Guelph local committee has allowed me see some of the challenges that face people when they travel to new countries. However, you can never fully appreciate those challenges until you experience them yourself. Trying to better understand these challenges, and to experience and learn about another culture, are some of the reasons that I am volunteering with Students Without Borders.
My position this fall is in Gaborone Botswana with an environmental organization called Somarelang Tikologo (Environment Watch Botswana). The goal of the organization is to promote a healthy environment by involving the community and raising environmental awareness to ultimately improve the lives of people in Botswana. Some of my tasks will be to assist in acquiring funding, to write and edit newsletter articles, and to liaise with media events.
While I am still not sure what I would like to do after university, I think that an experience overseas may help me to decide. In Botswana I hope to learn about and experience as much of the culture as I can. I have never traveled overseas before and I don’t really have any idea what to expect, but I am very excited to find out!
