My Day to Day with CorpsAfrica
- katlynsaley
- Mar 23, 2018
- 4 min read
After providing some information about the organization I'm now working with- CorpsAfrica/Malawi- in my last blog post, I now want to explain what my role has been for the last several months and what my day to day work life looks like as a Peace Corps Response Volunteer.
Let me start by saying that once our Volunteers headed to site, back in mid-November, our team settled into a new office in Lilongwe, and has also recently brought on a new Country Director. With all of these transitions, and still sort of being a start-up organization (with this only being our 2nd year of Volunteers), working with CorpsAfrica has certainly been challenging at times. Knowing what my role is within this organization has been strugglesome, as I'm not supposed to be filling a role of a potential staff member, but instead building capacity. However, working with this organization also has had it's perks, as I feel like I've gained new skills and had great networking opportunities.
Since CorpsAfrica (CA) has built their model off of Peace Corps (PC), and continues to do so, this is where my role can be very helpful to the organization. Because I still have access and internal knowledge about the PC program in Malawi, part of my job is to take what I feel like they are doing well, and adapt and transform it to use within CA. Whether this is creating documents from PC templates, connecting PC and CA Volunteers to work on projects together, or linking our CA Program Coordinators to safety and security update platforms, the collaboration of this partnership builds capacity, better supports our Volunteers, and improves the overall CA Malawi program.
One thing that I've taken from PC and implemented within CA is a Volunteer Advisory Committee (VAC). VAC is a communication liaison giving Volunteers a collective voice when coming to staff with challenges. The mission of VAC is to find solutions, clarify policies, and reach agreements that benefit both Volunteers and staff.
Above: CA Staff and VAC Representatives in the new CA office.
Another big role, and skill I've gained while being in this position is in communications. Currently I am running both the CorpsAfrica Headquarters and CorpsAfrica Malawi Facebook pages, as well as the program's Instagram page (click on the links to like us)! This is an awesome job because I'm able to share with the world the amazing work CA Volunteers are doing in their communities. This also allows me to be creative with different posts and how I highlight the awesomeness of the organization!
Follow us on Instagram @corpsafrica :)
Along with bribing Volunteers to take photos of their projects so I can post on our online social media platforms, I spend a lot of my time reading Volunteer blogs, making edits, and providing feedback. It is one of our goals at CA for Volunteers to gain skills that will help them in their professional lives, including their English writing abilities. I love this responsibility because it really allows me to know exactly how Volunteers are doing in their communities, the projects they are implementing, and the successes and challenges they are facing. Some of our Volunteers are already excellent writers and the blogs they have written only confirm why I stayed in Malawi a 3rd year to work for this organization (and for these Volunteers). If you're interested in reading some of our Volunteer blogs, head to our website by clicking here!
Recently a project I've been working on is establishing a partnership between CA and Grassroot Soccer (GRS). GRS is a program that aims to educate youth about how to engage in healthy lifestyles (in Malawi it focuses a lot around HIV), and is an intervention that I implemented during my Peace Corps service in Chipoka. To first create this collaboration between CA and GRS, I wrote a proposal to Peace Corps to fund a GRS Training for our CA Volunteers, to train them and their counterparts on how to implement the GRS curriculum.
Everyone who was trained in GRS!
Below: One of the fabulous GRS Master Trainers, Henry, leading a session.
While heading up this training- with another PCV, Torey, and two amazing Malawian GRS Master Coaches, Henry and Pauline- I also had the chance to learn how to make a video using the program Final Cut. With tutorials from the Communications Specialist at PC, and three full days of sorting through footage and editing, I created the short video below! I hope you enjoy watching it as much as I enjoyed putting it together :)
Finally, having been a Peace Corps Volunteer myself (which in some ways is similar to a CorpsAfrica Volunteer) I also take the role of "the cool aunt" for our CA Volunteers. Our two Program Coordinators, Tusa and Sarah, have taken the role of mom (their main job being to manage and support all Volunteers ALL THE TIME)....so, I decided since I also provide support in another form, I better be the cool aunt. Volunteers often reach out to me for advice, to help them create solutions to challenges they are facing, or just to chat. Supporting our Volunteers is probably my favorite part of CA (and getting back out in the field to visit them!). The Volunteers are why I am here, and the change they are empowering their communities to make by being catalysts in development is a beautiful thing!
This second cohort of CorpsAfrica/Malawi Volunteers will serve until their Close of Service (COS) Conference sometime in early October 2018. Currently, I COS myself as a Peace Corps Volunteer on the 5th of September. However, I hope to stay on to see and support these Volunteers through :)...but more on my future life plans next time.
Until then, I'm sending my love.
Comments