Page 40 - Old Malvernian Newsletter - Issue 43 - 2020

OM VOLUNTEERING
Helen Kidwell (3.03-08) writes:’
After leaving Malvern College in 2008, I studied Graphic Design at the University of the West of England in Bristol. Between my second and third year of studies, I volunteered for Sustainable Development Charity, Raleigh International. I spent five weeks on an expedition to Borneo to help deliver a Natural Resources Management project in Sabah. This experience was a real step-change in my life; it contributed a great deal to my personal development and ignited my passion for working in the non-profit sector.
After graduation, I was working as a freelance graphic designer when I was offered a full-time position at The Vincent Wildlife Trust (VWT), a mammal conservation charity working across the UK and Ireland. Coincidentally, the VWT was founded by an OM, the late Honorable Vincent Weir, in 1975. It was inspiring for me to learn that Vincent’s journey in conservation started whilst he was a schoolboy at Malvern College. It all began when he saw a painting of a flock of mallards flying over a marsh in a shop window in Malvern. It was this painting that sparked Vincent’s interest in wildlife and led him to become one of the great pioneers in British conservation.
The Trust’s Head Office is located in the grounds of the Eastnor Estate and it was there that I worked for the VWT as their Communications and Design Officer. Currently, the organisation’s work focuses on the conservation of bats and members of the mustelid family. I joined the Trust at a particularly exciting time as the organisation was in the early stages of exploring the viability of restoring the pine marten to
England and Wales. I felt very privileged to be part of a ground-breaking project that has now successfully brought the pine marten population back from the brink of extinction.
By the end of 2017, it felt like the right time for a change and I spotted an advertisement for a position as a Communications Officer for Raleigh International in Costa Rica. Having volunteered with Raleigh before, I already knew what a positive impact the organisation could have, both on their volunteers and the local communities they work with. I now wanted to help other young adults have a similar experience whilst developing my own skills in a completely new setting.
In June 2018, I travelled to Central America as part of the Raleigh Fieldbase Team. Along with Permanent Staff, we lived and worked in the small town of Turrialba located in the Central Valley of Costa Rica. Over the course of the expedition, we helped deliver programmes in Community Resilience and Natural Resource Management. On expedition, volunteers worked alongside indigenous communities to increase access to essential services such as education and healthcare. Our volunteers also assisted national park rangers in improving trails and raising awareness about the local environment in neighbouring communities. Finally, all groups completed a Youth Leadership Trek across the spectacular and challenging landscapes of Costa Rica.
During my time as Communications Officer, I was fortunate to visit many of the projects so I could conduct interviews, collect content for blogs and take photographs. A highlight for me was joining one of the trek groups for three
days, hiking a 70km loop in the San José Province. The trek is designed to develop leadership and orientation skills, whilst encouraging volunteers to work as a team in challenging situations. You build a great deal of comradery with each other in a short space of time and it was heart-warming to witness the group mentally, and often physically, supporting each other along the way.
As the Raleigh expedition came to a close, I was confident that I wanted to continue my time overseas. Since then, I have been travelling through Central and South America, immersing myself in new cultures and meeting people from all over the world. I was very lucky to have some incredible experiences, from trekking through rain-forested mountains to an ancient lost city in Colombia, to sailing around uninhabited islands off the coast of Panama. I’ve also been slowly getting to grips with the language, helped by a two-month voluntary placement at Tico Lingo Spanish school where I received tuition in exchange for my graphic design skills.
Now, I am getting ready to start the next chapter of my Latin American adventure. For the next four months, I will be working as a Team Liaison with Camps International, helping implement community and environmental projects in the Guanacaste and Puntarenas provinces of Costa Rica. I’m looking forward to once again being part of an organisation that is making long-lasting change in a country that I have grown to know and love. I will keep you updated on what is in store for me next!
40 | Old Malvernian Newsletter