I was lucky enough to spend the summer at the Millennium Village in Ruhiira, Uganda.   I was placed in the education sector, giving me the chance to spend most ever day in several of the schools.  MVP donated computers to four of the schools, but the teachers had received very little or no training on computer literacy.  One of my goals was to start training rotations where the teachers could become familiar with spreadsheet, word documents, presentation software, and internet.  Another intern also helped me in installing some educational software on the computers, so now the pupils in the schools can begin to learn computer skills alongside the teachers.

The experience though, was shaped by the immersion opportunity that opened the door to create awesome relationships with both MVP staff and community members themselves.  Getting the chance to sleep in the village was remarkable.  I would wake up to the sound of roosters crowing and brooms sweeping outside, then roll over for a few more minutes (or hours) of sleeping before the smell of fresh chapatti (fried dough) woke me up for good.  I would share breakfast with friends, then stroll to work, where I stay until the evening, then spend the night time playing cards, watching movies, or just chatting amongst friends and learning the beautiful local language.  It was a lifestyle I will never forget and treasure forever.

By Chris Saxon [MVP Internship Summer 2008]

Who is Chris?

I’m Chris Saxon, a senior International Studies and Economics double major.  I’m from Rome, GA, and I transferred to Carolina my sophomore year after spending one year at Wake Forest.   I heard about MVP when Jeffrey Sachs came to visit Carolina.  My interest in global poverty was sparked and since then I have look to better understand this critically important problem and know my role in fighting it.  The opportunity to work at a Millennium Village appealed to me mainly because of the immersion it offered.  We will best learn how to approach global poverty when we work with those living in it; their understanding of the problem has been developing their entire lives.  So I have Carolina to thank for exposing to the most important issue that our world is facing today and giving me the chance to become deeply engaged in working against poverty.