Last Friday our NYU program concluded and most students left Ghana. Of the 20 students in my class, there's only three of us left here in Accra. One is working at IPA for the remainder of the summer, another will be here for two more weeks, and then there's me - I'll be here until July 27th-ish (I think).
Reflections on the Hunger and Food Security itinerary in general: The program was extremely intensive. Our call time was around 9am every single morning and concluded with dinner around 6pm each evening. What about the weekends you ask? Yea, there were no weekends, no breaks, and no mornings off! With that said, we were able to pack SO many meetings, site visits, and discussions into our three week itinerary. Visiting Ghana through NYU was beneficial in the sense that we had access to high-profile key players addressing food security in this country. Looking back over the last few weeks, we met with organizations integral to solving hunger and food security issues here in Ghana- USAID, World Food Programme, Ghana School Feeding Program, Ministry of Food and Agriculture in Northern Ghana, and the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) to name a few.
Its crazy to think how quickly the last few weeks flew by. Us 20 NYU kids came from various academic backgrounds - health, nutrition, international policy, food studies, nonprofit management - but undeniably bonded during our time here in Ghana. While it was sad to see them go, I know a reunion is definitely in the works when I get back.
What's even crazier is to think that my trip has only just begun. I still have three more weeks here in Accra, before flying to Cape Town for another four weeks. I'm actually glad I chose to stay in Accra for a few more weeks. With such an intensive program I didn't get much of an opportunity to live the local life. So for now I'm housed at the International Student Hostel on the University of Ghana campus at an extremely cheap rate. Lucky for me I've made some amazing Ghanaians friends here in Accra and look forward to hanging out with them in my free time (and exploring night life!) In the meantime, I have two research papers to write and meetings to arrange with Fair Trade organizations prior to arriving in Cape Town.
So, alone? Maybe. Bored? Nope. Excited for what's next to come? Most definitely.
Reflections on the Hunger and Food Security itinerary in general: The program was extremely intensive. Our call time was around 9am every single morning and concluded with dinner around 6pm each evening. What about the weekends you ask? Yea, there were no weekends, no breaks, and no mornings off! With that said, we were able to pack SO many meetings, site visits, and discussions into our three week itinerary. Visiting Ghana through NYU was beneficial in the sense that we had access to high-profile key players addressing food security in this country. Looking back over the last few weeks, we met with organizations integral to solving hunger and food security issues here in Ghana- USAID, World Food Programme, Ghana School Feeding Program, Ministry of Food and Agriculture in Northern Ghana, and the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) to name a few.
Its crazy to think how quickly the last few weeks flew by. Us 20 NYU kids came from various academic backgrounds - health, nutrition, international policy, food studies, nonprofit management - but undeniably bonded during our time here in Ghana. While it was sad to see them go, I know a reunion is definitely in the works when I get back.
What's even crazier is to think that my trip has only just begun. I still have three more weeks here in Accra, before flying to Cape Town for another four weeks. I'm actually glad I chose to stay in Accra for a few more weeks. With such an intensive program I didn't get much of an opportunity to live the local life. So for now I'm housed at the International Student Hostel on the University of Ghana campus at an extremely cheap rate. Lucky for me I've made some amazing Ghanaians friends here in Accra and look forward to hanging out with them in my free time (and exploring night life!) In the meantime, I have two research papers to write and meetings to arrange with Fair Trade organizations prior to arriving in Cape Town.
So, alone? Maybe. Bored? Nope. Excited for what's next to come? Most definitely.
No comments:
Post a Comment