Between May and September 2017, the Adaptation at Scale in Semi-Arid
Regions (ASSAR) Ghana project Team at the Institute for Environment and
Sanitation Studies (IESS) of the University of Ghana hosted Miss Adza Beda during her Summer Practicum
Experience. Miss Adza Beda is a second year student in Masters in Development
Practice Programme at the Emory University in Atlanta Georgia
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| Adza Beda, Emory University |
Adza recounts her wonderful experience with the ASSAR Team in the following blog. Take a read!
My 2017
Summer Practicum Experience
This summer I completed
my final practicum with the Adaptation at Scale in Semi-Arid Regions (ASSAR)
project in Ghana. It started out as a last-minute placement, which I anticipated
to be full of office work however, the experience was so much more. My initial
position description consisted of in-field assistance for two weeks in the
Upper West Region and logistical support for the ASSAR annual meeting. Each
activity lead to multiple pathways for key takeaways for development and deeper
understanding of climate adaptation. This blog entry will highlight my overall
experience.
Field
My in-field
participation in the Upper West was filled with many activities in a short span
of nine days. The first consisted of the post transformative scenario planning
(TSP) session, which is a process that brings together a diverse set of stakeholders to tackle issues around
agriculture and food security that crosscut climate variability and land
tenure. This session was a follow-up from the original TSP meeting to further
establish the most critical issues impacting the local communities and vote on
solutions to overcome them. The second activity we completed in the field was
changing household structure and gender interviews. These helped unpack the current state of gender relations within
a diverse set of households. The third activity was presenting the Climate Adaptation
for Youth Innovation Competition to students and teachers in the Lawra and
Nandom districts. This provided a pathway to engage youth in vital climate
adaptation conversations and invite them to innovatively solve some of these
issues. Each activity fostered a deeper understanding of adaptation and its
ability to crosscut a range of development goals.
Annual Meeting
The ASSAR annual meeting was a five-day event held at the Royal Senchi in
Akosombo. It was a conference that brought together teams from regions around
the world. Logistically, I was able to participate in the planning and execution
of meeting. This was important because I gained skills in how to successfully
coordinate an international conference. This time also provided space to
sharpen my design skills as I helped create posters that demonstrated ASSAR
Ghana research outcomes and stakeholder engagement. This allowed teams from
other regions to see some of the key activities that the Ghana team had done
over the past year. The annual meeting was important as it was a vital time to
discuss research and fundamental messages from the data collected. This was an
opportunity to observe many aspects of data triangulation, as a great deal of
the research was discussed and key themes were pulled out during breakaway
sessions. Ultimately, I observed the process of research being prepared for long-term
use as its generated.
Concluding Thoughts
This summer I was a part of a flexible team that allowed me to easily
integrate in daily activities. This made space for me to offer ideas and explore
many of my hidden talents, which was pivotal for my learning process. It’s important to
be a part of a team short term and be welcomed to an experience of growth and
positive co-creation. The overall experience was not only insightful but
useful. Each activity with the ASSAR
Ghana has given me a better understanding of the adaptation and logistical
skills that I intend to use throughout my career as a development practitioner.
Thank you to everyone that made this summer practicum possible.
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