Reef Protection and Cultural Immersion Internship in Fiji

I always thought that intern-ing in Fiji would be very challenging to me. I have little knowledge about the country and I did not even know that they speak English there. I only knew about that when I lived with the families there. English is the primary language of instruction in schools and most villagers can converse in the language. It was helpful for me because English is the only language I know.

After we finished our training, we are appointed to different research locations.... As far as I know, some were assigned to the Taveuni Island and some were in Beqa Island... As an advocate of the protection and conservation of coral reefs, I so love the tasks designated to us. Also, we lived with a very sweet Fijian family, that taught us about their lovely culture and stunning traditions... My Social Science teacher would be super proud of me for having this kind of immersion....

IGS prepared our accommodation at the South Seas Hostel and we had to commute a short distance to the training site. I don’t mind the commuting time though because that was actually the best time to explore the city and visit botanical gardens and cultural museums. There are plenty of them near our hostel that we sometimes forget to go home before dinner time!

My IGS mentor was adorable. He made sure I was having the best experience by having an up close and personal immersion into the Fijian way of life and marine ecosystems. Miss Sykes was very well-informed about her craft. She trained us on how to lay transects and how to observe and record species they will encounter on the reefs. Fiji was awesome!

Since Marine Biology is my college degree, this internship became the perfect option for me. IGS took care of our travel to the islands of Fiji and prepared our programme in learning about coral reefs, island customs, and cultural ecology. Ever since I got back from Fiji, I’ve been telling my Marine Bio friends how they are missing a part of their lives if they would not intern here! This is probably the best career decision I did for this year.

I had the opportunity to explore the city and visit botanical gardens and cultural museums. And, learn a lot about coral reefs, island customs, and the cultural ecology that links them together. I made so many friends. This is realy amazing experience. My supervisor was great, she always had tasks to give me, but also was open to me asking her for assistance, which I did a lot. At the office, i felt always welcomed.

Before this internship, I had never travelled alone. I lived in Votua Village, which lies in the middle of the coral coast. I lived in a little house with a wonderful family. As soon as I walked inside, I was greeted with firm handshakes and open arms. I worked in a dive shop while I was there. The dive shop is part of the village and is run by people who live there. A percentage the profits goes to the village. I also did MPA (Marine Protected Area) surveys. Our job was to survey the MPA area calculating the percent of live coral and dead coral. Our data was then compared to surrounding areas that were not protected. I made so many friends. I cannot communicate with them due to the remote area, but the one thing they said to me is, “Eric whenever you want to come back, you just come straight to the village because this is your home.” Not only have I made so many friends…I’ve become family.

Actually helped the office in the northeast with tsunami relief operations and helping refugees with soup kitchen and non-food item delivery. I also got to represent the NGO I was working in at a NGO networking meeting in the U.S. embassy! My supervisor was great, she always had tasks to give me, but also was open to me asking her for assistance, which I did a lot. I felt very welcomed and accommodated at the office.