I decided to start the application process for Teach For America. This past month I’ve been thinking and rethinking my next year. I will be graduating from college, and want to move in a productive direction, of course, that’s left me scared out of my wits — “what am I going to do?!”
After doing more course work and traveling, I’ve realized that I want to play a role in development; be it planning, education, or organizing. Planning in the sense that I want to be the voice that makes sure that local environmental and social impacts are top priority and will remain so for generations and generations to come — making sure that local ecosystems are left unaffected, and that the local people are receiving the full benefits of development without negative externalities. All of this done in a manner that sustains itself for the long-term and at lowest monetary and social costs. I also want to play a part in education. Sharing and facilitating the things that I’ve learned to empower others is one of the greatest rewards I could get from higher education. And lastly, being that cohesive piece of building partnerships, gathering resources, and gaining trust is such an important role in what I’m going to school for (environmental sustainability and social justice).
Of course each of these things would be at its optimum if it also allows me to pursue my passion of traveling. I have such a great interest of seeing the rest of the world. I’ve spent most of my life on the sunny California coast, and a significant amount on the east coast, but there are so many more places I would love to experience; from Centro America, to South America, South East Asia, the Middle East, India, Africa, and on and on. I must also not forget that seeing the rest of the U.S., i.e. Hawaii and Alaska, and the South would be awesome as well. By going to these places, I would learn so much from how things are done in different parts of the world, then take those experiences and add them to my mental toolbox so that I could use them with the other “parts” that I have gathered.
Anyway, I started this blog talking about Teach for America. There is still much I need to learn about the organization, but I love what they stand for: providing quality education to underprivileged schools around America. What an awesome opportunity to spread my wings and put this mind to work.
