I'M GOING TO FIJI!

I'm leaving May 18th! This is some information from the packet I just got in the mail today:

I've been invited by the Peace Corps to serve in Fiji as part of their Integrated Environmental Resource Management Project. My title will be Environmental Resource Management Promoter. Here's some information about what that means:

Peace Corps has been asked by Fiji to be a partner in providing technical assistance and educational awareness activities to communities involved in both terrestrial and coastal projects. Volunteers build capacity in environmental project planning and monitoring, as well as provide education and awareness on environmental preservation issues. Volunteers work cooperatively with Ministries, Provincial and District Offices, NGOs, and community members. In addition Volunteers also work with business community partners to provide alternate income generating opportunities; thereby taking pressure off of marine resources while improving basic business skills of host country national partners. Volunteer activities may include:

• Teaching conservation concepts...
• Conducting environmental impact studies
• Monitoring, assessing, and evaluating coral reefs, mangroves, and the upland forest
• Improving the technical skills of staff at government agencies and introducing new information, methods and ideas regarding natural resource conservation
• Assisting with the planning and administering of locally managed marine protected areas and forest reserves
• Providing disaster preparedness and mitigation training in local communities
• Designing sustainable marine tourism training programs to increase the number of Fijians trained in marine tourism and ensuring an environmentally-sustainable industry
• Building the capacity of community members -- especially youth and women -- in effective and environmentally sound ecotourism and other income-generating activities

I don't know if I'll be living in an urban or rural area. I probably won't know until the end of training, which will be the first 10 weeks in country. So I could have electricity and indoor plumbing or I could be collecting rainwater with no electricity.

Here's a list of potential challenges of serving in Fiji:

Heat and humidity 6-8 months of the year, isolation, the occasional hurricane, the incessant ants, cockroaches, toads, and mosquitoes, the "island fever" than can arise from living in a relatively small community where everyone knows what everyone else is doing, the seemingly laissez-faire attitude that some people exhibit towards work and change, and lack of work-related resources and materials

And here are the potential rewards:

The good-will and hospitality of the Fijian people, the richness of their culture, the beauty of the environment and the challenges offered by your work.

Yes, I did notice that the list of rewards is significantly shorter than the list of challenges...

The rest of the stuff in the packet is all logistical stuff, and a letter from the President dated July 2001.