Trent-in-Ghana Participant 2012-2013
I signed up for the Trent in Ghana Program because I wanted to get out of the classroom, to reflect on what I had been studying in anthropology and International development on ‘the ground ‘or in ‘the field’. The program met and exceeded these expectations. I saw how neo-liberal polices, through structural adjustment programs and Poverty reduction strategy Papers, had been implemented, and got to learn first hand the challenges and benefits of participatory rural appraisal techniques. My learning in Ghana, however, was not just an experiential extension of what I had already learned. I started to answer questions I first asked while studying at Trent, and also developed new unexpected questions. The Trent in Ghana program fully immerses you in a different culture. Through daily interactions with Ghanaians, and working with a small community organization my worldview slowly but significantly changed. The Trent in Ghana program allows one to see the micro, to understand that wide, political, economic, and cultural forces shape individual lives but that their lives are more then the conditions that shape them.
Two years on these experiences are continuing to colour my thoughts. I gained a new perspective on what development, and precarity mean, and I have learned first hand that there is more to a story then the outward appearance. The questions I started asking while in Ghana have shaped my current research interests. Among other things, I have started asking what drives locals and ‘humanitarians’ to act and how individuals in different contexts conceptualize a good life.
My nine months in Ghana not only had a lasting impact on my academic life but has also shaped me personally. While in Ghana things often did not go as planned, busses did not come as expected, the power unexpectedly turned off, a campus printer stopped working, and a dog sat in the middle of my community score board. I learned how to be a problem solver. I was not it Ghana alone; my fellow participants supported me and I supported them. The Trent in Ghana program pushed me outside of my comfort zone while providing me with a support network that allowed me to thrive.
The Trent in Ghana program is challenging and rewarding nine months that stays with you for years to come.