Why did you decide to do an internship in South Africa? What goals did you set for your stay, what experiences did you hope to have?

I knew I wanted to do an internship in a country in Southern/Eastern Africa and was looking for placements in different countries. Then one of my friends told me about live&learn since she came to South Africa for a different project and when I started looking into it, the country and placement at 9Miles Project really resonated with me and I started to become curious about the culture and life here, as well as the work I could be doing. I wanted to gain work experience in social work to see if it would be something I’d like to pursue.

I expected to get hands-on experience by working directly in contact with local communities, learn how a non-profit organisation is run, what strategies they use to build trust with communities that face systemic marginalisation and how they measure their outcomes or the success of their goals.

Moreover, I also hoped to be able to connect this practical work with what I have learnt and discussed at university and be able to apply my theoretical knowledge in real life situations. Other than this I expected to get to know and live a different culture, work environment and context than my own. I wanted to get to know new places, improve my surf and meet new people. All of which I think I managed to achieve 🙂

What were your specific areas of work / tasks?

I worked in different areas within the organisation. I helped run and tried to improve the junior education program (grades 1 and 2) where we helped children afterschool with homework, maths and reading, and even though it was challenging at times, it was also really rewarding to see some of the kids finally understand what subtraction was or how to do maths without help, or even seeing changes in their attitude.

Additionally, I helped in the life skills programs at the clubhouse where different topics were discussed, such as gratitude, confidence and overcoming challenges. During some of these sessions I also helped teach/coach some of the kids with surfing and swimming, which was also amazing to see them stand up or take a few strokes and swim some meters without help.

After a few months I also ran a project on identity, culture and belonging (basically what I study), where I explained these concepts to the older kids and we had discussions about what all this means in their lives. I connected this to a pen-pal program where after they wrote letters about themselves and aspects that form part of their identity and sent the letters to a school in Argentina to have a sort of old-school cultural exchange. They then got letters back and replied again. It was really nice to see them excited about it.

Other than this we planned the holiday programs with different activities and learning sessions for the kids. I helped with fundraising, donation distribution and content creation for social media. I managed to also find a sponsor to take the older kids to a rugby game in the city.

I also helped with community stats, where we went into the community, house-to-house and asked questions that could be used for community mapping and identifying the basic needs of the community. I then also conducted and analysed an anonymous survey with 40 kids to be identify what is working and what could be improved in the different programs the organisation has, giving them a voice to participate in the development of the project.

So it was a mix of being in contact with the kids, teaching, connecting with the community, and admin tasks related to social work.

What was your best or most unusual experience?

I think for me what made it such an amazing and special experience was all of it as a whole. I really liked the connection I managed to make with the team I was working in as well as the trust I built with the children, and being able to see the everyday impact that was being made. I also loved exploring some parts of South Africa, the road trips, hikes, surf sessions, the cities and beaches, and all the people I met. One thing that I found very special and unusual though was living in a city where you can see both the sunrise and sunset from the ocean.

How has your view of South Africa and/or changed? Has your view of your home country changed? If yes, how?

Honestly I didn’t have a clear expectation or view of South Africa before coming here. I now know a lot more about the country and the people, one thing that surprised me was how similar it is to the city I grew up in, which made it kind of feel like home and I felt so welcome here, so much so that I don’t want to leave and I’m already planning my return. I don’t think the view of my home country changed, rather how I view myself and my life maybe changed. I learnt to appreciate and enjoy more the small day-to-day things, like going for a coffee and a walk, or waking up to have a sunrise surf. I hope I can take this with me after I leave, finding small things you can do every day that make the day a little more exciting.

Did your participation in the project inspire you for your career choice?

Yes, I think this internship has made it clear to me that I have a strong interest in youth development and community work, particularly work that involves direct contact with people and communities. Without even expecting it to, this internship also brought my academic interests together (social work, outdoor education and ethnic relations). I was not 100% sure what I wanted to do after by bachelor’s but after working at 9Miles it was made clearer to me since I was able to experience what working in the field of social work could look like in practice and not just in theory.

Were you able to achieve your personal goals?

Yes! I think I grew so much during my internship here, both personally and professionally, probably more than I expected. I was able to get confidence in working independently and contribute my ideas, work in a setting and context that I am not used to working in and adapt to a different culture. I think I also improved my communication skills a lot, as well as my problem-solving and conflict resolution skills.

How was the living situation in South Africa and how did you like it?

I love living in South Africa, especially in Muizenberg. I really felt so welcomed by the people and the environment straight away. I really liked living by the ocean and the mountains, and the relaxed lifestyle. And you can never be bored, because there is always something going on haha

Are there any tips you would like to pass on to future volunteers / interns?

Come with an open mind and prepared to learn from the local organisations and people you meet, they really have such amazing insights and experiences that will help you develop both personally and professionally. You can really learn and grow so much if you are open to it so just go with the flow and enjoy the amazing experiences you’ll have 🙂

The preparation and support by live&learn: What did you like about the pre-departure and on-site advice and support? What further support or information would have been helpful?

I felt really supported by live and learn. I had quite difficult requirements from my university for the internship to be approved and they really did their best to help me out with that as well as giving other useful information before departure. And then once I was in Cape Town I really liked that there were meetings once a month at the market, I feel like it was really useful for the reflection process to talk to Antje and Alex as the internship and experiences were happening, rather than just having a talk or reflecting at the end of my stay. I also felt like I could talk openly about anything I needed advice or help on. Also the help for the visa application was so useful, I think I would’ve felt so lost otherwise Really thank you so much for everything and see you next time! 🙂