Friday was a bit disappointing, for my World Wildlife Fund counterpart did not show up to the Peace Corps Counterpart Conference. The purpose of the conference was to have the 23 volunteers meet their counterparts, to learn more about what they will be doing and where they will be living, and to create an action plan for our site visits this upcoming week.
Of the 23 volunteers, I was one of three who did not have a counterpart arrive. So the three of us still have little idea of what we will be doing for the next two years.
The good news is that my counterparts from the WWF were not able to attend the conference for they have been out of town for most of this week. This news gives me the hope that a) they frequently travel throughout Guyana and b) I’ll get to go with them.
On Monday, I plan to find their office and hope to learn more about their expectations of me. I’ll be sure to let you know more about what I might be doing as soon as I find out myself.
I did take the time to search for some more information about the WWF and its presence in Guyana. I managed to find a website for the Guianas, which includes French Guiana, Suriname, and Guyana. Here is the link and a brief description of what they do:
WWF-Guianas, part of the global WWF family, is working to protect the forests, freshwaters and coasts of the Guianas (French Guiana, Suriname, and Guyana).
The Guianas have a rich diversity of coastal mangroves, globally significant marine turtle nesting beaches, fresh and saltwater swamps, grassy savannas, and pristine low and highland rainforests with extremely high levels of species found nowhere else in the world.
Although WWF has supported conservation activities in the Guianas since the mid-1960s, with the launching of WWF-Guianas Program in 1998, WWF adopted a regional approach to conservation in the Guianas. WWF-Guianas is coordinated from a regional office in Paramaribo, Suriname with technical staff based in Cayenne, French Guiana and Georgetown, Guyana.
WWF – Taking Action for a Living Planet
WWF’s mission is to stop the degradation of the planet’s natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature, by conserving the world’s biological diversity, ensuring that the use of renewable natural resources is sustainable, and promoting the reduction of pollution and wasteful consumption.
Since it was founded in 1961, WWF has become one of the world’s largest and most effective independent organizations dedicated to the conservation of nature. It has reached this status through a constant record of conservation achievements.
WWF now operates in around 100 countries, supported by nearly five million people worldwide. Its initials and famous Panda logo have become a powerful rallying point for everyone who cares about the future of the planet and wants to help shape it in a positive way.
Forty years ago, WWF’s work consisted mainly of protecting animals and plants threatened with extinction. Not just because they are beautiful and rare, but because they are part of a complex chain in which the disappearance of even a single species can have far-reaching consequences.
Since then, the scope of the work has broadened. Today, the organization also tackles the many forms of pollution that are harming the soil, atmosphere, freshwater and oceans, which ultimately sustain life. It also looks for new and sustainable ways of using the planet’s natural resources. WWF is taking action to protect the environment for people and for nature.