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Not to miss events in August: Peace Corps career conference and the Third Goal Summit

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Peace Corps Career Conference: Aug 19-22 at PC headquarters in DC

Each Returned Volunteer Services career conference draws over 200 RPCVs from all around the U.S – make sure you’re one of them! At this four-day intensive conference, you’ll learn in-depth strategies to make yourself stand out from other job-seekers. We hope you’ll join us and take advantage of this opportunity to boost your job-searching skills while networking with other RPCVs and RPCV-friendly employers.

Registration now open!

 

Third Goal Summit: Aug 23-24 at PC headquarters in DC

Join Peace Corps for the first-ever Third Goal Mobilization Summit! This two-day interactive Summit will bring Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCVs) together to exchange ideas and acquire new tools to help Americans better understand our countries of service.

Sign up today and help us elevate, redefine, and reinvigorate Peace Corps’ Third Goal.

 

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Life after the PC: Getting the balance right

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If you happened to miss it going around social media this past week, the Daily Muse had a great article on Life after Peace Corps. The tips and points resonated with my own experience visiting home in Michigan two-thirds the way through service and then returning to the US after three years as a PCV in Ecuador. I’m sure the tone and topic rings true for many other RPCVs.

Give yourself some time to read through the full article for more thoughts on readjustment State-side. And then compare notes with the Peace Corps recommendations on the “transition home“.

Give Yourself Some Time, But Not Too Much

Basically, you need a little bit of time to relax, enjoy being home, and come to terms with the new world—but you don’t want to be sitting around feeling useless for months on end. The time needed is different for everyone, but I would recommend two to three months of resettling before jumping into anything big. The Peace Corps gives you enough cash to put money down for an apartment and get yourself back on your feet until you find a job or start school, so take advantage of that.

Carry Your Experience With You Everywhere

Sometimes it’s hard to imagine how what you did in the Peace Corps transfers to the “real world.” But in reality, there are endless stories and attributes that not only should strengthen your self-worth, but are also valuable tools to use in interviews and on your resume—whether or not you enter a field that’s directly related to the work you did. Quantify what you can, but know there will be a lot that you can’t. So think about how it applies to what you want to do: your commitment, loyalty, determination, initiative, courage—I could go on and on.

 

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Controversy, Quantity, and Quinoa

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You might have seen some news reports reflecting on a controversy about the beloved Andean quinoa, the superfood of the gods that is a wonder to vegetarians because it is a complete protein. The Huffington Post had a provocative and largely mistitled post “Is Fair Trade Quinoa A Real Thing, Or Has The Superfood’s Popularity Hurt Those Who Grow It?”

Actually, if you read the piece, it is pretty clear that rising prices may be tough for some quinoa consumers but is a boon to producers. But, the challenge may be that production cannot expand to keep pace with demand, which may be a mixed bag for growers, higher prices for the quinoa that is sold but some money on the table for unmet demand (though too much production might mean cheap prices for consumers and low incomes growers). It’s unclear what the ethical sweet spot is for fair trade quinoa but here is news from recent stories about the quinoa market and  …

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Peace Corps Worldwide: Call for Contributors

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Marian Haley Beil (Ethiopia 1962-64) and John Coyne (Ethiopia 1962-64) in the late 1970s published a newsletter RPCV Writers & Readers that developed by early 2000s into the website:www.peacecorpsworldwide.org. They sent us this message with a request for submissions for Third Goal-related activities:

Today, this is an online community and resource for RPCVs, Peace Corps Volunteers, their friends and families, and all who share a desire for international understanding. Peace Corps Worldwide is not officially connected with the Peace Corps or the National Peace Corps Association.

As the publisher and editor of this site, we are continually impressed by the Third Goal activities of RPCVs back in their host countries, the projects that RPCVs have developed in-country over the last fifty-plus years, from school and community libraries to health initiatives, to peace keeping efforts, to scholarships for students, and many other such efforts on behalf of their former hosts and the lifelong friends that  they have made.

We would like to add our support to all these efforts by featuring the Third Goal work of RPCVs. If you would request that your RPCVs send us photos and narratives of their projects, we would be happy to publish them on our site. It is, we think, one way RPCVs can draw attention, and perhaps financial support, for their efforts. Thank you for considering this request and we hope you might publish our offer on your website or in your newsletter.

All narratives and requests for further information should be sent to: John Coyne at: jpcoyne@optonline.net

Thank you.

Marian Haley Beil, Publisher

John Coyne, Editor

www.peacecorpsworldwide.org

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Keteka – Adventure Travel Guide

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Hi,

My name is Jason Kreiselman, and I’m an RPCV from Omnibus 99.

I’m working with a few other RPCVs on an online, community-based adventure travel guide that leverages the Peace Corps network to promote underdeveloped communities as tourist destinations. The website is www.keteka.com if you want to check it out. It’s still in the development stages, but it’s slowly coming together. Right now, one of the Keteka founders is in Ecuador and he’s trying to connect with current PCVs to identify sites that could potentially benefit from responsible tourism or would otherwise like to help the effort in any way.

If you are a current PCV or know of any current PCVs living in an interesting community that has some tourism potential, could you get in touch with Jack at jack@keteka.com or on his local cell at 095-885-6172 (feel free to just ring and he’ll call you back so you don’t waste your saldo!). Also, if you are an RPCV with strong connections to a community that you think has tourism potential, please get in touch with Jack!

PLEASE feel free to forward this message along or post it in any other PC

Ecuador forum that you know of.

THANKS SO MUCH!!

Jason

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Heartful Giving Project – Crowdsourcing Campaign through August 1st

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The Heartful Giving Project recently launched their campaign on the crowdfunding site Crowdismo in order to raise funds and awareness about international folk art.

Their campaign runs until August 1st and you can donate to their cause by visiting www.crowdismo.com.   Their first project takes place in Sua, Ecuador where a group of artisans formed the association “Manglares de Sua.” Their current structure is in dire need of repair! Project directors Julia & Maryanne Chiriboga wish to help this group fulfill their dream of building a functioning art center where they can practice, teach and sell their traditional handicrafts. …

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Heartful Giving Project – Crowdsourcing Campaign through August 1st Read More »

Engineers Without Borders Request for Help

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RPCV Suzanne Mills sent us this request for help with a water project in Cotopaxi. Spread the world and contact Suzanne if you can help.

Hello Ecuador PCVs and RPCVs!
I am a hydrogeologist with Engineers Without Borders (EWB) currently seeking support for small business development related to a recently constructed drinking water project in the village of Tingo Pucara, Cotopaxi Province. The project is an extensive pumped system that provides high quality water that is more than enough to supply the village for current and future needs. The system won an EWB Premier Project award in 2012 because of its success, in large part due to the participation of an Ecuador RPCV and the strong leadership and unity of the community itself.

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Engineers Without Borders Request for Help Read More »

New PCV Fundraising Request – $3500 Audiovisual Laboratory

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Peace Corps Partnerships fundraising appeal from PCV Catherine Heimsoth. $3500 is needed to support an audiovisual laboratory. As of July 29th, the project still needs about $3500.

The objective of our project is to implement an audiovisual laboratory that will serve the needs of our educational community by strengthening the linguistic skills of our English teachers and students. Furthermore, the laboratory will be used as a training center for the educational community with the contribution of the following groups: the committee of school authorities and teachers, the student council, the committee of students’ parents, as of course the English area. Everyone will contribute in terms of materials, labor, finances, and through in-kind donations. We believe this project will help not only the students currently in our institution but will serve future generations of students. This laboratory will help the students of our institution reach new academic levels, forming better people capable of working in a professional environment with an adequate use of the English language.

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New PCV Fundraising Request – $3500 Audiovisual Laboratory Read More »

RPCV Dana Rasch and the Las Mercedes Project

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RPCV Dana Rasch (2009-2010) founded the Las Mercedes project in 2009 to support the construction of a health clinic in the community Las Mercedes, located in the city of Huaquillas, Ecuador. Friends of Ecuador helped in the initial stages of the project, until it obtained its own 501c3 status. Here is his recent post about how the project is doing:

Monday, May 27th, 2013

I arrived in Ecuador on May 13th and, fortunately, I have hardly had a moment to rest over the past couple weeks.  Most of my time has been dedicated to the preliminary project evaluation that was completed last week by Engineers without Borders (EWB), an international NGO that carries out infrastructure projects around the globe.  The first step for EWB in any new project is to complete an on-site evaluation to determine which project they will carry out, and if that project is feasible.  This evaluation includes a survey of the land as well as the completion of a community-based needs assessment that consists of house-to-house interviews.  Overall, their visit was a tremendous success!   If we can put all the pieces together, then our non-profit, EWB, the local government, and the residents of Las Mercedes can execute a collaborative project that will have tremendous impact in the community.   I’m excited to share the details of the proposed project, but let me start from the beginning… …

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RPCV Dana Rasch and the Las Mercedes Project Read More »

40th Anniversary of Where There is No Doctor

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Celebrate 40 Years by Joining Friends of Where There Is No Doctor!

Where There Is No Doctor turns 40 this year, and RPCVs have formed a group called Friends ofWhere There Is No Doctor to celebrate. Over the past 40 years, Peace Corps Volunteers have used Where There Is No Doctor to teach and practice community health in their host countries, saving lives and improving health along the way. After completing their time in Peace Corps, many volunteers feel moved to continue to improve access to Where There Is No Doctor.

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