Hi all,

This is my last blog post for my summer internship in Cape Town. I wanted to use this last post to reflect on my experience and thank the people responsible for it. I really appreciate everyone who devoted time to make it happen and who dealt with me throughout the summer. Especially Kendall and Dr. Jim Sleight who went above and beyond to support me in my ups and downs and always were there when I needed extra help. I couldn’t have done it without them. My parents and friends were extremely supportive and I couldn't have gotten there or back without them.

In terms of meeting my own learning goals, this experience definitely exceeding all expectations. I was able to learn first hand what it takes to own and operate an international NGO, as well as getting to experience all of the different parts of BEEP’s programming. This will help me in making future career path decisions and will probably influence my near term class choices in that this experience has made me more interested in the Community Development aspects of the NRES program. BEEP has demonstrated to me the value of building up a community through environmental education and has shown the amazing impact that one organization can have.

Through my work in BEEP, I also learned a lot about the environmental issues facing South Africa such as intrusion of invasive species and critical drought risks. I was able to not only learn alongside the kids, but also help to teach new students in the organization. During my off days, I was able to experience so much that Cape Town had to offer in terms of different foods, people and places to see. It was an adventure I will never forget and one I would definitely recommend to others in the future.

Signing off,

Cameron Baller