Joelle Ireland
Prime Minister’s Scholarship for Asia, Global Internship in Mumbai
Introduction
Kia ora! My name is Joelle Ireland, I’m nineteen years old, and I am Auckland born and raised. At the moment, I have just completed my first year at the University of Auckland, pursuing a BA/BC conjoint degree. My majors are Communication in Social Change and Drama, which is definitely a unique combination (I haven’t met anyone else doing this yet), but I am loving every minute of it so far.
I applied for this programme in Mumbai initially on a whim. I figured I would just give it a go, not expecting anything, so you can imagine my surprise when I was accepted. The further through the process I got, the more excited I was to apply my studies to real life in a place that is far outside my comfort zone.
I have been placed with GAURAV, which promotes health and safe sex practices, especially within LGBT+ communities. I will be able to apply my study of social change and drama in a way that helps people and disseminates important information in a digestible way while building my communication skills.
I am most looking forward to experiencing a new culture and learning about the differences between Aotearoa and Mumbai, especially in the work I will be doing. I can’t wait to update you during my time in Mumbai 🙂
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Checking My Privilege
It’s at this point in the trip that everything starts to hit home a little differently. We’re at the halfway point – we’ve been here for three weeks, and there’s no way we can go back to the people we were at the start, but we still have three weeks to go. Everything starts to…Continue…
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Sonder
Sonder – noun. “The realization that each random passerby is living a life as vivid and complex as your own—populated with their own ambitions, friends, routines, worries and inherited craziness—an epic story that continues invisibly around you like an anthill sprawling deep underground, with elaborate passageways to thousands of other lives that you’ll never know…Continue…
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FOMO: The Fear of Missing Out
Namaste! Welcome to Mumbai, India! It has been nearly a week since we landed in the sunny state of Maharashtra, and began our journey of six weeks abroad. To say it has been a culture shock would be an understatement. In my first steps out of the airport, a wave of heat and smell hit…Continue…