Friday, March 26, 2010

The 'Real World'

"There's a popular belief amongst anthropologists that you must immerse yourself in an unfamiliar world...in order to truly understand your own" – Anonymous

I have spent a great deal of my adult life travelling through and residing in the developing world. Bathing out of buckets, drawing drinking water from wells, shopping at the local markets, connecting with communities, listening to the locals, learning from them,laughing and crying with them. I immersed myself in their world and I am a better person for it.

Coming back to live in Australia – a country of wealth, political stability, freedom of speech and religion, a country that provides its citizens with infinite opportunities – was, and is hard for me. On arriving home people would continuously approach me asking "how does it feel to be back in the real world?", though all I could do is question if I really was back in the ‘real world’.

To me the streets lined with starving children, desperate mothers and unsure fathers who are all so grateful even though they are literally living hand-to-mouth, seemed extremely realistic. Looking around at home I felt empty and deflated as I realized that the very core of so many issues in the world is that we as humans have lost our humanity.

It has become apparent that many of us have become detached, desensitized and apathetic towards the overwhelming poverty, environmental degradation and the proliferation of bloodshed occurring across the world. Whether we are purposefully ignorant or simply unaware, being inactive on these issues reflects just as poorly upon us as individuals and as a society as it does on the perpetrators.

Despite having next to nothing, those that live in developing countries (which have often been ravaged by years of war) appear to have more soul, more heart and more hope than so many others that I have encountered. Ironically, these people also seem to be more aware and connected to what is truly important than those of us who live in more 'fortunate' circumstances.

In Western society it is easy to become consumed by the minutiae in life, magnifying issues that in the larger scheme of things don’t really matter. We have become so materialistic that our possessions actually possess us - we work to maintain them and to maintain a lifestyle we think we need. However, in spite of all its abstraction we seem to believe that this is the ‘real world,’ I but fail to see what is real about it.

To quote Christopher McCandless, it has become apparent that “...so many people live in unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future” (McCandless,1992). We make excuses and spend our lives trying to ensure we don’t lose this false sense of security. We reinforce fear and laziness, allowing ourselves to become the source of our own demise.

The solution is to understand that fear is universal, there are no ‘small’ fears or ‘big’ fears, no fear is greater than another; there is just fear. Once we take the personal edge off and realize that it is a perfectly normal and healthy human emotion, fear becomes more manageable, something that we can overcome and conquer. Once we achieve this it becomes apparent that we can achieve anything.

I will leave you with the words of the brilliant Professor Muhumad Yunus:

“Each person has tremendous potential. She or he alone can influence the lives of others within the communities, nations and within and beyond her or his own time.

Each of us has more hidden inside us than we have had a chance to explore. Unless we create an environment that enables us to discover the limits of our potential, we will never know what we have inside of us

But it is solely up to us to decide where we want to go. We are the navigators and pilots of this planet. If we take our role seriously, we can reach the destination we seek.”


- Kate

Monday, March 8, 2010

A fork in the road

jour·ney (jûr n )
n. pl. jour·neys

1. The act of traveling from one place to another; a trip.
2. A process or course likened to traveling; a passage: the journey of life.

A journey is a process that takes many forms. A physical journey is one which can present many challenges, one which can take you from one destination to another. Similarly, an inner journey presents many obstacles. These obstacles provide us with an environment to explore ourselves; an environment which enables us to grow and evolve as we traverse from one stage in our lives to another.

A few years ago I broke away from my chosen path, a path which others believed was right for me but in my heart I knew didn’t offer the satisfaction that I seeked. Having studied and worked in the ‘business arena’ I was well on the path to what my friends and family deemed as ‘being successful’ however I sensed that there was something missing. It was then that I came to understand that happiness and success describe something different to each person, that they are words which meanings are very much tailored to each individual.

Having lived and traveled in many developing countries I’ve had the opportunity to build relationships and connect to those living in the ‘third world.’ Seeing poverty first hand and hearing the voices of those touched by it transformed me, changing my outlook and forcing me to rethink my priorities and the way I chose to live my life. With knowledge and understanding came responsibility, and it was then that I chose the path less traveled.

Ask any development worker about a career in humanitarian aid and they will tell you there is, in fact, no set career path - it is one which you must forge for yourself. Many enter the ‘industry’ as naive utopian idealists only to be let down once they realize that you can’t save the world; most retreat jaded with a broken spirit.

It takes more than passion, determination and sparkling ideals to make a difference in the developing world - it requires empathy, understanding, an awareness of global issues as well as key skills acquired through a both experience and education.

To gain the skills and experience required of me to effectively facilitate community and international development I enrolled in RMIT’s Master of Social Science (International Development) course. However, while the lessons I obtained through the RMIT have been priceless, I realized that there is a limit to the knowledge that can be gained within the classroom. To really understand how to tackle issues such as poverty one must go straight to the source.

With the aid of RMIT’s Student Development Fund I undertook a three month journey through the back blocks of South East Asia. A journey that allowed me to learn, as well as transfer my knowledge and skills to constructively contribute to and influence the lives of others within developing communities.

The RMIT Student Development Fund is a funding opportunity that aims to assist RMIT students to benefit from unique learning experiences and to widen their horizons by engaging in transformational learning.

But what is a transformational learning experience?

To me, it is one which takes you beyond what is known to you in order to discover your true potential – what you are truly capable of. A transformational learning experience challenges you, tests your aptitude and opens your mind to new schools of thought. It provides clarity and an education which transcends the walls of any classroom. These learning experiences literally transform you, the way you think and how perceive the world.

My proposed 'learning experience' (as outlined in my application) is summarised below:


My transformational learning experience includes a three month journey through South East Asia. Departing Australia on December 10th 2009, I travel to Chang Mai province in Thailand where I will be spending time with the children who attend the Northern School for the Blind and its director Pikul Leosiripong.

After my time in Chang Mai I will be traveling overland to Pak Kred, 40 minutes out of Bangkok where I will be staying as a volunteer at the Pak Kred Babies Home and being mentored by the organisation’s director, Mrs Wiphawa Udomratana.

The week commencing 21st of December I will travel overland to Siem Riep, Cambodia to visit Sunrise Children’s Village.

After my brief experience in Cambodia, I will be traveling to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, to visit the Social and Medical Centre established by Christine Noble which cares for Vietnam’s street children.


On January 11th I will be flying to the remote Pampanga province in Luzon, Philippines. Here I will undertake a two month unpaid project-officer internship with the Grameen Bank. The internship involves working with the Provincial Government of Pampanga (PGP) to help design and implement a comprehensive multi-sectoral development program. The program is aimed at a significant pro-poor expansion of the provincial economy in a short period of time. The project covers the following eight sectors:

· Economic development; including large-scale access to microcredit
· Health; including reproductive health
· Universal access to education
· Agriculture; including research in livestock
· Infrastructure; including clean water, sanitation and waste management
· Environment /Climate Change
· Governance

The project will involve spending time with the community, understanding and incorporating their needs so that they can take ownership over the project and its outcomes to ensure that it is sustainable.


While the above denotes my ‘physical journey’, through this blog I hope to convey to other RMIT students the lessons I learnt through this experience, how they have transformed me and how I have applied them to my life back in Australia.

Peace, love and salutations,

Kate