I learned many things through my time interning for Coast2Coast, but not necessarily in the ways I was expecting. I came in to the experience expecting to learn about sustainability and community impact (and don’t get me wrong, I did!), but I certainly didn’t expect to learn how to drop into a skate ramp, how to overcome my phobia of caves, and most importantly, how to be more adaptable.
My time working with Coast2Coast was, in many ways, defined by a myriad of constant changes. I began this summer excited to go to Lobitos for a traditional Coast2Coast internship. Everything started out exactly as I had expected. I spent lots of time in May and June working remotely, primarily with Emi. I got to learn about the process of finding and applying for grants, and in doing so I learned some important lessons about how NGOs run. I got to do some graphic design, familiarized myself with the multifaceted ways that Coast2Coast makes an impact, and laid the groundwork for my time in Lobitos.
Everything seemed to be in place for an epic internship. However, after a few emergencies, Emi and Nico left Peru and I had to postpone my trip to Lobitos indefinitely. It was certainly stressful, and in many ways I felt like the internship I had envisioned was crumbling away. However, in a true testament to the dedication of Coast2Coast, Nico helped me find a way to make it happen. In the midst of travel and chaos, we were still able to work out a new plan. I would extend the remote portion of my internship, take on some new tasks, and once things settled down a bit, we would reassess if it was possible for me to go to Lobitos.
After a few stressful weeks where I wasn’t sure if I would be able to go volunteer in Lobitos at all this summer, we finally settled on the beginning of August. In the meantime, I got to learn all about the world of impact research. It was a field I knew basically nothing about before I started working with Coast2Coast, and I got to do hands-on work designing surveys, researching best practices at other organizations, and talking with impact research specialists. I got to be involved in projects for Coast2Coast’s partners at The Nature Conservancy, and gained practical knowledge of a side of NGO work that I didn’t even know existed.
Finally, after lots of remote work, August came and I was able to go to the beautiful town of Lobitos. Now, I’m a midwestern girl who had never surfed in her life, so it was definitely very different. Emi and Nico still weren’t in Peru, exacerbating some of the feelings of isolation and culture shock. Luckily though, Coast2Coast has a strong network, and I had support on the ground. Henry from the organization WAVES (who also helped run the Festival Somos Mar) was there to show me around, to help me acclimate, and to translate when I reached the limits of my high-school level spanish education. He even gave me a surf lesson! We drove through the desert to Castellenas, where I overcame my fear of caves to crawl through a small tunnel to get to a gorgeous and secluded beach at sunset. Over heaping plates of Ceviche, we talked about the impact of organizations like Coast2Coast and WAVES on the Lobitos community, and especially on the kids helped by both organizations. I didn’t get to work directly with the kids, but I got to meet some of them at a WAVES skateboarding workshop, and they even sang parts of “El Amanecer” to me. When they heard I was working with Coast2Coast, they got excited to tell me all about the different art, surfing, and photography workshops they had done. It was great to meet them, laugh together as I clumsily attempted to stay upright on my skateboard, and to overcome our language barrier and get to know each other.
Though this internship forced me to be more independent and adaptable than I was expecting, it was still a valuable experience in so many ways. Although the plans and projects I was working on changed several times (due to circumstances outside of anyone’s control), there was one constant: the support and flexibility from Coast2Coast. Nico was able to work with me to make sure I still had a fulfilling experience and was still able to learn so much. I got to see a cool new place, do work I was passionate about, learn new skills, and work with awesome people.
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