The late night group bonding made waking up at 8am really hard, but we did it! Today we were scheduled to go to a social entrepreneurship organization similar to LearnServe called Koga Accelerator. The leader of the presentation tried his best at English and offered us coffee and water, an offer I graciously accepted but later regretted. After pouring my coffee, I picked up a bottle next to it which I assumed was cream. Initially, I poured a little and waited for the coffee to change color. However, it wasn’t changing, so I added more until I eventually gave up. It was only after I returned to my seat that I noticed I was pouring sugar into my coffee. As I enjoyed the bitter yet overly sweet coffee, I became fascinated by the work of Koga.
Ordinary people come to Koga with just a concept, and then Koga turns their ideas into a reality, offering entrepreneurs resources and training. Learning about all of the cool ideas at Koga today made me see the power of creativity and the impact that acting on one idea can have on other people. It made me think about my experience in LearnServe, pitching my ideas in the Fellows program. I thought about how different my life would be if LearnServe’s founder did not act on his ideas. And what would happen if I did not act on mine. Being at Koga today gave me more courage to execute my ideas and believe in my ability to create something powerful, even if it may seem small now.
After our time at Koga, and a delicious lunch at our chef’s home, the group later went to the Peace Corps offices in Paraguay. At the entrance we swapped our passports for cool official looking badges and I instantly felt important. It was interesting to hear the representatives talk about the three months of intensive training the volunteers have before beginning their mission and the different sectors of the program. The presentation from the volunteers allowed me to see the powerful work and impact the Corps has on the Paraguayan community. I especially like the organization’s emphasis on sustainable practices and working with the community to better it. The three months of intense preparation and immediate immersion into the ordinary life of Paraguay revealed the organization’s desire to better the communities they inhabit. The presentation reminded me Peace Corps, like social entrepreneurship, leads to a life dedicated to improving the community, and less on personal gratification.
Visiting these places restored my faith in humanity. Often times the media highlights the negative aspects of society and creates an illusion of a world filled with evil people. Koga and Peace Corps taught me that even though there are bad things happening in the world, there are still good people out there trying to do good things for others.
Peniel O., National Cathedral School