Josh excited to begin new internship opportunity

This week marked the start of my new placement at the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation.  I am working underneath a man named Kenneth Lukuko.  I was excited that he included me right away in the work he is doing.  Kenneth is one of the heads of the IJR’s “Building Inclusive Societies Programme”.  As part of the program, every 6 months, three communities are surveyed on their understanding and desire for social cohesion – they call the project, “Everyday Peace Indicators”.  So for the first two days of the internship, I entered all the results of the survey for the Warrenton community, and then reprogrammed an Excel file to capture the data in graphs, which we will use for analysis. 

It was interesting seeing how the IJR is set up in comparison with SPP.  The IJR is a research-driven organization.  There are about 30 people employed and based out of the Cape Town office, but on a given day, there will be around 20-25 IJR members in the office.  The IJR is in partnership with the South African Department of Agriculture, they are working on a project called “AfricaBarometer” which involves building inclusive societies across multiple countries in Africa, they conduct workshops specifically for youth, work with disadvantaged youth and women within communities, etc.  What is similar between IJR and SPP is both organizations’ work seems to stretch across a plethora of different focus areas.  What I have enjoyed about IJR though, is their work is well documented.  For someone new to the organization, they have specific booklets on the different programs, making it easier to have a general understanding of what is going on within the organization.  Additionally, although people within the office are certainly working individually on research projects, the office space is set up in a way where 4+ employees have their own desks, but are positioned in a way where they share space with one another.  So those working within the same program sit near each other, allowing for easy collaboration and cooperation.

Although the time at the IJR will certainly be short, I am excited for the opportunity to experience a new group and learn different strategies/approaches in the NGO sector here in South Africa.  I am confident Kenneth will keep me busy throughout my stay, but more importantly, I know he will allow me to contribute and give my own input into the work they are doing!