IMPORTANT: This Advertiser has requested that applicants MUST be National Residents / Valid Work Permit-holders. Other applicants need not apply.
Posted: July 2010
Closing Date: Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until December 31, 2010
Term: January 2011-August 2011
Start Date: January 2011
To apply please send your resumé and cover letter to:
Claudia Ho Lem, International Project Manager
Tél./Phone: (514) 398-7743; Fax: (514) 398-7972
E: cholem@reap-canada.com; W: www.reap-canada.com
REAP-Canada has two Ecological Farming Systems Development Intern Positions available, one for The Gambia and a second position in Senegal.
Internship Description:
REAP-Canada Youth Internships are made available through the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) IYIP (International Youth Internship Program). The goal of the program is to give young Canadians international work experience and develop their skills in the fields of sustainable agriculture and international development. Successful applicants will start and finish their work experience with REAP-Canada, an Environmental NGO (ENGO) based in Ste. Anne be Bellevue Quebec. The internship will include an 8 week term in Canada, and a 5.5 month overseas placement. Additionally, there will be a pre-departure orientation workshop and a debriefing workshop, both held in Canada.
These positions require determined, self-starting, committed individuals willing to work under extreme conditions. Successful applicants will be given a moderate financial stipend and a unique opportunity to gain experience in a demanding international environment.
Eligibility:
To quality you must:
- A Canadian citizen or permanent resident;
- A post-secondary graduate - graduate of a degree or diploma program from a university, college, post-secondary school of technology, post-secondary institute or a CEGEP (collège d'enseignement général et professionnel);
- Out of school;
- Between the ages of 19 and 30;
- Unemployed or underemployed in their field of study;
- Legally entitled to work in Canada.
Qualifications:
- Education or equivalent experience in environmental / sustainability issues
- Knowledge / experience in ecological agriculture, resource management, community development or climate change
- Self-motivated, creative and able to work with limited guidance and supervision
- Excellent organizational skills with an ability to integrate information
- Proficient on the computer and skills in report /proposal writing and office management
- Ability to work in a multidisciplinary team environment under stressful conditions and achieve results
- Long-term commitment to international development
- Leadership and decision making skills with the capacity to motivate others
- Ability to communicate effectively
- Ability to work under rustic conditions (intense heat, basic diet and accommodations, etc.)
- Strong constitution, good health and ability to work in rustic conditions (heat, basic diet and accommodations, etc.)
- Open to cross-cultural exchange of information and ideas. Experience working with other cultures an asset, as is an enthusiasm for learning foreign languages
- The Senegal intern must be fluent in French and the Gambian intern fluent in English
Job Description:
In Canada, successful applicants will start and finish their work experience in Ste. Anne de Bellevue, Quebec with REAP-Canada, where interns will support REAP's ongoing program on energy crop development and bioenergy systems and do background research on West African farming systems. Interns will learn about participatory on-farm development, sustainable agriculture, bio-energy and climate change mitigation strategies through research, fieldwork and program outreach and development. There will also be a one week orientation / pre-departure workshop to prepare interns for their overseas activities and a debriefing workshop in Canada to complete their experience.
Overseas, the intern will further this knowledge where they will be based with the either at the Njawara Agricultural Training Centre (NATC) in the Gambia or in Senegal with the Association pour la promotion de la femme sénégalaise (APROFES). The overseas term will begin with 4 weeks of intensive language training and cultural immersion. The interns will then work with local farming communities on ecological farming systems development to improve farm production and profitability while promoting sustainable natural resource management. Interns will work to expand local farmer-to-farmer training networks, and develop farm planning and farm demonstrations exhibiting diversified ecological farming and food production systems. Ecological Farming Systems Development Interns will be involved in farmer-to-farmer trainings and learning farm development exhibiting demonstrations for food self-sufficiency and gardening, plant improvement and seed conservation programs, nursery management, , soil fertility management and erosion control, reduced tillage, Bokashi organic fertilizer production, live fencing, agro-forestry and orchard and woodlot management and sustainable livestock management and fodder production.