Active as an intern with fresh ideas
Hey, my name is Anika Syrzisko and I was lucky enough to stumble across an internship advert for the steps for children foundation at the Leuphana Career Fair just in time for the completion of my Bachelor's degree (Cultural Studies, Political Science)! I have now been working for steps for a month and a half and am happy to report on my internship experience.
Completing an internship at a foundation like steps for children was particularly important to me because the unequal opportunities that people face in the world are close to my heart. I find the foundation's holistic approach - opening up opportunities through education, training and setting up businesses, thereby creating prospects for people of different ages - very worthy of support. In addition, the historical-political context in which steps for children operates is a particular motivation for the internship for me personally. It is not without reason that the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development states in its country portrait of Namibia that the extraordinary poverty of parts of the population stems from the country's past, which was characterised by apartheid policies and German colonial violence.* I take the internship at steps for children as an opportunity to learn a lot about German-Namibian history and the present.
My work at steps could be described in the broadest sense as “boosting networking”. For example, I create a range of materials that make it easier for schools, Fundraising campaigns and to contextualise the foundation's work for pupils. The project to set up a junior ambassador programme for steps for children is also in the starting blocks - stay tuned! Otherwise, I create communication materials such as roll-ups and posters - whereby it is important to me to plan new material with a focus on information and language rather than images.
The part-time internship at steps is an ideal practical supplement and change to my very theoretical master's degree programme - because all the joy and inspiration that scientific work gives me is only rounded off by being able to make a difference with the skills from my studies.
The steps team in the Hamburg office offers me a super nice setting in which I can ask and learn everything about the foundation's work - I am very grateful for that!
Dear Anika, we would like to thank you very much for your work and active support. Your commitment and creative thinking have enriched our team and advanced many projects. We wish you all the best for your future and hope that you can take your experiences with us with you as a valuable part of your career.
*https://www.bmz.de/de/laender/namibia/soziale-situation-11754
