job description

18 June 2008
My work currently is: Needs Assessment and Personal Integration.
Yes, I know, it sounds terribly interesting and noble.
The thing is, you can’t do development work if you don’t know what is there already. Well, you could (and people have and probably do), but it’s generally not terribly effective or sustainable. So. Assessment it is. Environmental, Social, Financial, and Spiritual. Because it all applies. What does that look like? Me wandering around, and asking as many questions as I can make understood (easier said than done), and asking to meet with people, associations. I am, hopefully, holding my first community meeting next week. Two, actually. One for the men and one for the women. If you are a praying person, PLEASE pray for this… that I would be understood and understand, that I would get a functional seasonal calendar out of it, and also daily activities… we can even do some gender roles assessment if all goes well, but… that relies on lots of things. Like people coming, for one. Like me getting the proper permissions from the proper people. Like me remembering all the words (cheatsheets!!) and grammar structure necessary. Like the chemistry of the whole thing gelling… yes, I am a little intimidated by it all, but here we go!
What about Personal Integration? Well, that’s learning the language, more wandering around and asking questions in the language, and introducing myself and helping people to get to know me and learning the language. I suppose I mentioned language in there somewhere…
So there you go, that’s what it means to be an environmental educator right now. Sounds an awful lot like figuring out what the blue blazes is going on, doesn’t it? :)