This morning I did some research on an organization that I found through researching NGO's in Kenya. ICA Kenya is affiliated with ICA Canada (based out of Toronto). ICA Kenya has an HIV/AIDs prevention program that is running out of a small community in Lakipia district where my partner will be stationed for his field work at the M'pala Research Centre next summer. The project looks amazing - and I put out an email to the Kenyan project director... we will see what happens!  I also put a call in to the Toronto office to see if I could find out some more information about the organization and the Kenya project. I left a message - putting it out there!

Here is the link to ICA Kenya: http://www.ica-international.org/kenya/programs.htm

Here is the link to ICA Canada: http://icacan.ca/

On this page there is a video about the Kenya project: http://icacan.ca/index.html

It is great to spend the time learning about the incredible projects that are out there! There are many amazing groups and people working on incredible projects.

The panic has set in this week. I am feeling the crunch of the semester, the overwhelm of trying to get my work done and keeping my mind ahead of me enough to plan for this practicum. I am moving from Banff to Calgary in December, my partner is leaving to start a PhD program at the University of British Columbia in January and I am contemplating another new city, new life and the final year of my MSW program. My mind is going in a million directions and I have to find new ways to implement self-care into my life. Yes - this will all come together, I know. I just need to keep breathing in the meantime!

Yes, overwhelm is here. I need to become clearer about what I want from this practicum. I have been following some good leads - I am working on the UNIFEM internship application that I will send off to the New York office and some of the other locations. Tiffany and I had a long conversation about the Indian Institute for Mothers and Children outside of Kolkata and I have sent off an email to the program coordinator there for some more information. I have cold-emailed UNICEF offices across India, searched NGO head offices in Geneva, spoken to friends who work with CHF and the Canadian Cooperative Association. I am jumping in interest and focus, and need to rest my mind on the direction that I want to follow.

Right now I am looking for an organization that has a feminist focus, works with women and children, is preventative and proactive in their approach (at least partly) works both at the grassroots and at the policy/systems levels, is in an interesting location and that offers the chance for me to gain skill sets that will make sense for the work that I will do within the Canadian context.

Skills that I would like to gain: group work, health care experience (reproductive/maternal health and rights), work with refugee populations, ‘leadership' skills (how to run an NGO), an understanding and view of policy work/how policy is implemented in NGO's or umbrella organizations such as the UN. I know that it may not be possible to work in all of these areas throughout this practicum, but these are some of the directions that I would be interested in moving in.

Places that I have interest in working in: India, Nepal, New York, Geneva, Kenya.

I have faith in the process and know that this will all come together - I just have to keep myself out there!