Iona’s summer internship at GreenShoots
Iona, has just completed her 6 weeks internship with Green Shoots! She is currently pursuing a bachelor’s in economics and management at Dauphine University in Paris. Although her field of study is business oriented, she is interested in the environmental and social impact of economic activities. Here is what she got up to!
From the end of May to the beginning of July, I had the privilege of interning with Muneezay at GreenShoots Foundation. I was warmly welcomed into the team, making me feel like I belonged from the start, so I quickly began referring to GreenShoots as “we.” During my time volunteering, I discovered the various altruistic programmes that GreenShoots is involved with, ranging from sexual health education to food and agricultural education.
My main focus was on the Food, Agriculture, and Social Entrepreneurship programme. GreenShoots, with the help of partners, has established the AgriTech centre with its diverse garden to educate children on sustainable farming. This year, a new project is being launched to educate high schoolers about agroecology practices. I actively participated in the Monitoring, Evaluation, and Impact aspect of this project. Under Muneezay’s guidance, I worked on identifying the most appropriate indicators for success, the methods, and tools needed to implement the project effectively. Then, I designed a presentation which collated the work I had done the past few weeks, in order to present the process to the team in Cambodia.
To immerse myself in Cambodian culture, I visited a temporary exhibition called “Cambodia: Then and Now,” which covered the past 70 years of Cambodian history. This display introduced me to Cambodian culture, which I previously knew little about, and I learned a lot from it.
Furthermore, I partook in the Plant Planet Plate project, which aims to create a database for Cambodian plants, with essays dedicated to them. It was fascinating to discover the characteristics of certain plants, such as the national Cambodian flower, which has different romanised spellings: Rumduol/Romdoul.
I also helped transfer local Cambodian knowledge of plants and their uses globally by translating essays into French, hoping to attract French speakers to these works. Being part of conservation work was very inspiring. Reading the transcripts of conversations with locals about the edibility and medicinal uses of plants helped me grasp the importance of passing on this precious knowledge.
These projects enlightened me on the true work that goes on in NGOs like GreenShoots, with translation and monitoring being just a glimpse of it.
At the end of my internship, Muneezay and I discovered a Cambodian-oriented restaurant in London, Mamapen,at The Sun and 13 Canton. The food was delicious. We shared spicy (at least for me) tofu knots, and I ordered the chef’s most popular dish on social media, a chicken burger with pickled carrots and pickled radish.
These “out-of-office” experiences, combined with my internship work definitely enriched my understanding of Cambodia.
In short, this experience has deepened my admiration for the commitment to various causes of those who work in GreenShoots Foundation.
I was thrilled to be a part of GreenShoots for a short time and trying play my part in making a difference.
Thank you so much!
