Eric Helliwell, MSCM Student Offered Internship with Columbian Non-Profit in Bogota, Colombia
KENNESAW, Ga. (Aug 19, 2016) — Eric Helliwell will be traveling in September and October to intern with a Colombian non-profit in Bogotá. This agency, The Foundation for Reconciliation, is working with displaced persons and ex-fighters in Colombia's 50-year civil war. Since he chose the international certificate option in the MSCM program, he felt he wanted to do an international internship to round out the credentials. He's unsure if he will follow this as a new career path, but the opportunity to experience this was compelling.
More about the Foundation can be found at http://www.fundacionparalareconciliacion.org (Spanish site) or http://www.microsofttranslator.com/bv.aspx?from=&to=en&a=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fundacionparalareconciliacion.org%2Fmision.php (English).
Colombia is hopefully in the final stages of ending their long conflict. In June, the initial peace accord was signed, and in July the Colombian Constitutional Court approved moving to a referendum. Hopefully soon the people will vote on its fate. This is evolving rapidly, so it will be an exciting time to be there. Interested readers can follow http://colombiapeace.org/ for useful updates.
Eric is hopeful that he will be able to assist with courseware and observation of the forgiveness and reconciliation principles in action. He also hopes to master his Spanish beyond the functional tourist/intermediate level. All in all, he plans to offer his best efforts to the people of Colombia on their journey during his 2 month stay. Hasta luego!