Development Roast Giving international development a proper roasting
As part of continuous growth, INESAD and Development Roast are bringing on board a host of new interns. Join us in welcoming our newest addition Valerie Giesen:
Valerie is currently studying Social Anthropology and Politics at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London. Before starting her degree, she facilitated informal education projects with the Instituto Politécnico Tomás Katari for children on the outskirts of Sucre for 15 months. Engaging with her Bolivian colleagues’ perspectives and being an outsider herself led her to question the effectiveness of external development actors. Also, living and participating in the social microcosm of the Mercado Campesino for over a year was a formative experience which sparked her interest in the issues that labor migrants face and the country’s current identity politics. This also led her to study Quechua at the University of Chuquisaca and learn how to spin wool, which opened many doors. During countless weekends on the market discussing the week’s events and listening to tales from the countryside, she decided to study Anthropology – hoping that it would allow her to repeat similar long-term stays abroad.
Back in Germany, Valerie coordinated fundraising activities for Bootschaft, an organization that builds floats from recycled material and hosts film screenings and workshops on the rivers of Berlin. This equipped her with the invaluable lesson that it is possible to build up viable projects even with few resources.
In London, Valerie combines her interests in studying community life and challenging inequalities by supporting the SOAS Spanish-English Language Exchange. Over the course of one and a half years, she organized the exchange which brings together Latin American immigrants and university students to facilitate mutual learning and workers’ action against exploitation by providing a free opportunity to learn and practice English.
During her internship with INESAD, Valerie hopes to explore the ways in which academic research can be used as a tool for social change. She looks forward to collaborating with a critical platform which gives ‘international development a proper roasting’.
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