The Caribbean Regional Representation Office (CRRO) of the International federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) welcomed Cornelia Schwenk, Master’s student in Global Change Ecology at the University of Bayreuth in Germany for an internship from July 26th to September 6th. Connie, as she prefers to be called, came on board to assist in the CRRO’s Climate Change programme support to the Disaster Management unit and by extension to national societies.
During her very first week of internship, Connie participated in the Caribbean Red Cross Youth Camp in St. Vincent and the Grenadines where she made a presentation on Climate Change. The response was very enthusiastic . Youths had many questions on the impact of climate change on their countries and what they could do to redress or address the situation. They were also eager to share their observations about changes they had seen in their respective countries over the years.
After a hectic start Connie engaged in more sobering in-office tasks such as project proposal writing, web based research, and compilation of reports. One of the fond highlights of her internship was the weekly staff meeting in which she participated. “I’ve never seen an organisation like this where the staff share so much. Everybody knows what the other is doing and they’re all making connections to other people’s projects. It’s a very communicative office” Connie recalled with a smile.
Connie opted to pursue an internship in Trinidad thanks to one of her university professors who had close ties with the Red Cross movement and her interest in the Caribbean region thanks to a Trinidadian classmate in Germany and the research she had been doing on hurricanes in the past years. Another strong motivating factor in her own words is, “I see the Red Cross as a potential employer in the future. Doing this internship now might help me get a job with the Red Cross when I’m finished with my studies as they offer great opportunities”.
While in Trinidad, Connie has been an avid practitioner of kayaking off the Chaguaramas coastline; an activity she will surely miss when she leaves our shores. Frequent beach limes and trips along the coasts with some friends will also be a lasting memory. Upon her return to Germany, Connie attends summer school in Mitigation & Adaptation at Thurnau Castle before moving on to the final year of her Master’s programme in October.
The staff of CRRO wish Connie every success in the completion of her studies.
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| Conny on her last day of work |
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