Just one of many photos Shanthi Purushotham ’12 has shared of the gorgeous Ethiopian countryside where she volunteers.
Most people are aware of the important work Peace Corps volunteers do to support development efforts in countries around the world, but I think fewer people realize just how diverse the work of a volunteer can be. From healthcare to economics to justice to education and beyond, opportunities in the Peace Corps truly run the gamut of interests, passions, and experiences applicable to virtually any career.
Shanthi Purushotham ’12 is currently in her second year of service with the Peace Corps in Ethiopia, and her blog provides an amazing glimpse of the abundant and varied projects and experiences taken on by volunteers like her all over the world. Recently, Shanthi applied for and received a $5,000 grant to help a group of HIV/AIDS victims in her community start their own small businesses by providing startup capital and support. Earlier this month she also presented at a summit on maternal and neonatal health in Arusha, Tanzania.
Shanthi (front and center) poses with a group of fellow participants at an International Development & Design Summit on Maternal and Neonatal Health in Tanzania.
Shanthi has also led workshops teaching women how to make items they can sell to supplement their household income, participated in a 7k race in Hawassa, and initiated a project with local schoolchildren to build a community garden enclosed by a fence made of repurposed litter. Her work has allowed her to travel throughout Ethiopia and its neighboring countries, serve on a Peace Corps national committee, and form strong bonds with members of the local community where she spends most of her time.
Shanthi gets her hair braided by a neighbor.
Ethiopian girls attending a Peace Corps-sponsored summer camp Shanthi helped facilitate.
Volunteering with the Peace Corps is a 2-year commitment filled with both rewards and challenges, as Shanthi aptly demonstrates when she describes the problems posed by water scarcity in Ethiopia and her epic search one evening for a glass of milk. It is recommended that interested students apply at least one year in advance due to the extensive application process. Meg Springer, a former Peace Corps Thailand volunteer herself, is available at Career Planning to provide information and support to students throughout the application process.
This guest post was written by Kaylee Wolfe ’15, Career Planning intern.
All photos used in this post are courtesy of Shanthi Purushotham ’12′s blog, “ethiopian encounters.”