#southern africa

Ngoni man, Zambia, by Philip Powel

San woman, Namibia, by Eric Lafforgue

Kalanga woman, Zimbabwe

For MONTHS my to-do list has been plagued by a singular word acting as an imperative action verb: “blog”.  I’ve had relatively good reasons for ignoring it: completing my final semester of university, applying for and getting a full-time job, traveling for projects and fun, and then beginning said job and moving literally half way around the world.  However, none of these add up to good excuses, because they are exactly what I should be writing about!  In the end, procrastination and laziness are the true explanations.

Motivations for writing again are because of both personal desire and realizing that others have a desire too!  I like the blog as it helps me go through my thoughts, learn to write better, and give updates to friends and family around the world.  Similarly, even though no new material has been up there has been many new followers and between 800-1,100 visitors each month. 

Regardless of why, I’m here now- at least for today- hopefully for good!  So let’s start with a quick update and then a bit on what to expect coming forward.

Update: I’m currently writing from Saudi Arabia, where I am working on an engagement for the management consulting firm I joined last month.  I live in Abu Dhabi but travel four days a week to wherever the study is (currently Saudi) and spend one day a week at our Middle East headquarters in Dubai.  Though I’ve always been quite mobile- it has never been this constant… and it is just getting started. 

In the months since I’ve written, I spent the Fall back in New York, completing my undergraduate career. I wrote a graduating paper on The Political Economy of Regionalization- using MERCOSUR, the Gulf Cooperation Council, the East African Community, and the Caribbean Community as case examples.  I also defended my major, Culturally Sustainable Development, to a group of interlocutors (including the President of my university), on the topic of “The Expansion of Culture and Development.”  

I also applied, prepared, and interviewed for this job (a much bigger commitment than it sounds), and then once I was offered the position, I made the decision and did an office visit to Dubai.  The Fall also saw, of course, the US and Venezuelan Presidential elections, which I watched very closely, my evacuation from New York (relocating to D.C) because of Hurricane Sandy, and my last pre-Christmas in the City. 

I then spent the holidays with family in Texas and Indiana before heading to the small island of St. Kitts and Nevis to complete Trail of Seed’s third project with Shannon.  Stopovers in Puerto Rico and Miami on the way there and back, respectively, would have also made good posts (and still may).  A quick three days back in the States to pack up my stuff went by with lightning speed, as did a short day in the UAE, before I was off to Southern Africa for my self-described graduation trip with my friend Jil. 

We visited some of my UWC friends as we traveled around South Africa, Namibia, Zambia, and Botswana before making our way to Mangula, Tanzania- the village where Shannon and I did Trail of Seed’s first project in 2011.  We spent a week there and then headed to Dar es Salaam to meet another one of my UWC friends.  Jil then flew back state-side as I returned back to Mangula for two more weeks of being with a slew of old friends (Ramazan, Dimoso, Jasmine, Mrisho, and others).  I purchased a farm, explored Islam, and tried to fix a few issues that arose with the grants we gave last time.  Overall it was a great trip- though my goal of it being full of reflection was not completely fulfilled.

I then headed back to South Africa, this time to Johannesburg, for training for my current job.  It was an intense but fantastic week where I met many colleagues who became friends, learned the Firm’s tool-kit, and started the path to being an impactful consultant.  Not wanting to leave the continent too fast, I spent two days in Rwanda- visiting some more historical sites and meeting the sister of one of my Rwandan friends to learn more about the development in the beautiful nation.

Upon landing back in Abu Dhabi I started the process of becoming a resident, finding an apartment, and getting adjusted into the Firm.  It ended up taking significantly longer than expected with huge delays on visas, contracts, and more- but now all is well, so I’ll try not to dwell.  Instead, I’m moving forward optimistically and very eager to learn as much as I can from this region, this organization, and myself.

What to expect: I hope to be sharing as much of this learning on the website as I can.  Of course, I have to abide by very extensive and strict (though 100% justified) rules on confidentiality from the company, so those insights unfortunately will be kept completely out.  That said, there will be an enormous amount still to share as I begin my journey as a (sort-of) adult.  However, I want YoungGlobalCitizen.com to be less about me move towards more insightful commentary on issues in the world, trends of globalization and identity, and analysis of development.  These are the things more people come to the site to read, the discussion of how to define ‘global citizen’ for example is the most read post by far.  

We’ll see how it goes!  Stay tuned.