Report

When I first heard from the Coca Cola World Citizenship Program that I was chosen to go work with the Red Cross in Grenada I was very exited. Being from the Caribbean myself, I knew that living in Grenada was going to be a great and beautiful experience. And I was right!

The Coca-Cola World Citizenship Program is definitely a type of program I would recommend to other students. It provides with the opportunity to work with NGOs around the world and work with projects that really mean something to the people and communities you work with. The work you do in those three months does not go to waste. It is really appreciated by the organization and people you work with. The satisfaction you feel after completing your assignment is great.

My most fulfilling experience was to be part of the development of a program that will help business and communities prepare and respond to disasters more effectively, therefore saving lives and minimizing the economic impacts of disasters in the region.

Grenada is the southernmost island of the Windward Islands. It is known as "The Spice Island" due to the variety of spices grown in the island and being the second largest world exporter of Nutmeg. The island is surrounded by beautiful beaches and filled with tropical rain forests. Grenadians are great people and their culture results from a blend of Indian, French, English and African influences. This is reflected in their language, food, music, dances, and architecture. Today, Grenada enjoys the benefits of a sovereign country and is a member country of the British Commonwealth of Nations. Agriculture and tourism are the biggest economic sectors in the country.

Under the supervision of Joseph J. Eisen, Regional Operations Development Delegate stationed in Grenada, I was assigned to work with the Caribbean Delegation of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. My project was to broaden the scope of the Hotel and Safety Program, to provide disaster preparedness services to other businesses outside the hotel industry, and to develop a marketing toolkit for the Program. As a result, the new "Building and Occupational Safety Program" was developed to assist businesses in the creation of a disaster management program and train personnel in workplace safety techniques. Also, a marketing toolkit was created to provide Caribbean National Societies with guidelines as to how to successfully implement and develop this program within their countries.

Besides the mosquitoes and sleeping without air conditioning in a tropical island in the middle of summer, my biggest challenge was how to approach this project. I had no experience at all in disaster management, had very little experience in marketing. Moreover, I had no idea in my mind as to how to restructure a disaster management program and create a toolkit that would compile everything needed to successfully launch a program of this nature in a National Society.

So, from day one, I started working on the project, read everything available from the Hotel and Safety Program, and spent much of my time doing research. Thanks to the support of my supervisor and the hard work, by the end of the second month we had the Building and Occupational Program set up and the toolkit ready for production.

My third month was spent doing minor revisions and on the production and distribution of the toolkits to about 20 National Societies in the region.

Accepting this internship with the WCP was an important decision for me. My assignment was not related to my graduate studies in Real Estate and Urban Analysis and, unlike many of the other interns in the program, I was graduating this summer. Accepting this internship meant that I had to put off my job search for another three months. However, I always wanted to have the experience to work and share my skills with an NGO in helping communities in need and I knew that working with the development of a disaster preparedness program in the Caribbean Region would certainly make a difference for these countries. So I decided to enjoy Caribbean life and at the same time contribute in the development of a program that will help save lives and promote economic development in that region.

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