My name is Arielle Rosenthal and I am a U4 student at Â鶹Çø. I am completing a Joint-Honours Degree in International Development and Latin American and Caribbean Studies. While I am not receiving credit for my internship, I have been interning at two organisations that have greatly helped my goals to becoming a humanitarian worker. I am specifically interested in humanitarian aid and the work that encompasses it, as well as specifically working with migrants and refugees.
I am interning at two NGOs. One is called Nonviolence International NY. I found Nonviolence International an attractive organization due to its focus on nonviolent solutions in areas around the world and in the United States. As a kid, my school system was an almost 15 minute drive to Sandy Hook Elementary School. Thus, when the shooting had occurred we were all in a lockdown, scared of what was happening outside. After that day any opinion I may have had about guns or violence was replaced with one that was so against both of those topics that I wanted to scream every-time I saw a pro-gun ad or article. I was scared that day, thinking that my school was going to be a victim of that shooting that I never wanted anyone else have to feel scared of being a victim of some type of violence. I have always believed since then of finding a peaceful solution to a problem, even without an argument. Thus, seeing one of Nonviolence International's mission on sustainable peace is one that I resonated with and wanted to work with.
Embrace Relief is an organization that deals directly with humanitarian aid to refugees and other vulnerable populations around the world. As I have become highly interested in a future humanitarian career, I was immediately interested in working with a humanitarian organization that is more involved in other regions of the world that I do not have as much experience in, such as Mali and Greece. Further, I liked that they are helping refugees both stateside in the United States with welcome sessions as well as with English classes and other humanitarian aid projects that they can fund. I have become interested in learning more about migration and working with refugees, thus I will be able to gain more experience in this aspect. Thus, this internship is different than past experiences and it will amplify my knowledge in which I can apply to future endeavors. Further, this internship will prepare me for achieving my goal of a master’s degree as I will be working independently and be managing multifaceted projects. Conclusively, I desire to one day have a managerial position and be a mentor to others, thus this internship heightens the advice that I can provide for the mentorship programme that I am a part of now and for any future ones.
For my internship at Nonviolence International New York, I was given the opportunity to work on a variety of projects. I was part of the Civil Society Engagement Team of which worked as a liaison between the organization and the UN. We attended many events that were hosted by partner organizations, including the High-Level Political Forum. I also had the opportunity to represent Major Groups Organization in the response to Panamá’s VNR. Furthermore, I was given the opportunity to write articles, look into grant work, and work on creating a timeline for the United 4 Change movement. I also will be hosting a webinar on the impact of COVID-19 on humanitarian aid. With Embrace Relief, my responsibilities were to create a Monitoring and Evaluating Framework that I developed and implemented in their English language programme for refugees.
To highlight my internships, I would say being asked to read and write the Major Groups’ response to Panamá VNR was incredible as I was inside the video platform that they were using. I also will say creating a social media campaign in response to World Refugee Day and then hosting a webinar on humanitarian aid and COVID-19 is a big highlight as I was able to make connections with officials from UNWFP, UNHCR, MSF, and La 72. With Embrace Relief my highlight has been being able to reorganize the system and then moving forward with collecting the data and setting up classes with refugees and students.
Both of my internships were very insightful in working in the humanitarian sector. I will be applying for my masters this coming fall in International Humanitarian Action and have been given the opportunity to explore my interests in the humanitarian field and with migration. I have developed my research and analytical skills and have learned so much. I know these experiences will be vital to any future career prospects and my further academic career.
I am very grateful for the funding of my internship as it helped me cover many living costs over the summer. I otherwise would not have been able to complete these internships over the summer. I was able to adapt to remote internships by periodically moving to different areas of my house and taking short walks during the day to stretch my legs. I also used my counter as a standing desk and tried to limit my screen use after my workday ended. To conclude, I would like to express my most sincere gratitude to Ms. Martine Vanasse and Mr. Randy Wilbert for allowing me to complete these internships with their generous donations.
