Love the work you do!

Working for Non-Profit organization has always been a dream for me ever since I started my career as a volunteer at a Non-Governmental Organization. My career started way back when I had just completed a college degree from the University of the South Pacific and since then I have been immensely involving myself in a lot of community projects. My passion in serving in the community grew immensely through numerous years of working and involving myself in a lot of community projects.

However, I still need guidance to sort of steer my way and see where the needs lie and apply assistance where ever and whenever I can.

2020 was indeed a tough year for everyone on all corners of the globe. I don’t think anyone was ever ready to comprehend the overwhelming challenges that each and everyone are facing. People losing jobs, economies collapsing, health being compromised and other unforeseen circumstances arising in the midst of a global pandemic.  However, I am grateful to still be alive and to still have a job that puts money into my bank account and provides food on my table.

I re-joined WCS in 2020 to assist in the management team for the follow up engagements in their Koro Island Resource Management Plan activity on the island of Koro. It was such a crucial time for the island of Koro and its resource owners as the time of their funding was coming to an end, so plans for the new year and projects already implemented had been done during this period of time. There were great lessons learnt during this time and people were always looking to improve on their current plans in moving forward.

2021, came dawning in, in the middle of an unstable economy and a Global Pandemic. Amidst the current challenges Fiji was facing, a Category 5 Cyclone greeted our shores a week before Christmas 2020. As Tropical Cyclone (TC) Yasa greeted our shores, the people of Fiji were added with another burden which triggered so much anxiety and caused unnecessary panic. Additionally, Cyclone Ana followed suit in the beginning of 2021, just 2 months after Cyclone Yasa. With two cyclones wreaking havoc in Fiji just few months apart, the people of Fiji had been heavily impacted physically, mentally and financially.

Cyclone Yasa & Ana had severely affected the Bua Province and the country was once again under a state of emergency. These disasters resulted in landslides, damages to vegetations and farms and major devastations to road accessibility around the island of Vanua Levu. At this point, I am still trying to come to terms on what mother nature can do. Cyclone Yasa & Ana, had drastically affected the Northern Division particularly Bua and its Land area and Resources. Providing cyclone relief and building resiliency for the people of Vanua Levu was a mission.

Amazingly, I noticed few things with the people of Bua. It is something that I know that is inbuilt with the people of Fiji, the resiliency and how they come out stronger when they are faced with such crisis. People are either moving on with life whether it be starting from scratch again or making use of what’s left from the cyclone wrath. People are just hungry in trying to rebuild their lives back on track, and I was even blessed to be able to put smiles on their faces when WCS delivered relief items to local villages and settlements in Bua. WCS had once again provided relief assistance to the people of Bua providing them with vegetable seedlings, fisheries equipment’s, wash kits, water purification tablets, farming equipment’s including small farming folks, comic books, information booklets/pamphlets &posters for schools.

During this trying time the people of Bua was in a devastating state of emergency as most of their vegetation and household was completely destroyed. Hearing their stories and providing necessary assistance and to be there physically and show empathy was a great learning experience. In this past couple of weeks and months, I shared their grief & pain and it can only make us stronger if we are able to give wisdom and words of encouragement to help these people get back on track with their lives.  

In the village or settlement people are fond of solesolevaki, a Fijian tradition of working together and building communities. We have women’s group who are also actively participating in such initiatives as a way of working together mainly targeting livelihoods opportunities and just a way to help and encourage each other in the area of “Women Empowerment”.

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What do you most like about the work that you do?

I love serving. Serving in the community is something that I’ve grown into and I have a passion for it.

Working in the communities is inspirational despite the challenges that comes with it. I’ve learnt to be patient and humble and to show empathy by putting myself in the shoes of communities and to better evaluate issues faced within these local settings.

Engaging with local communities is the best part of my work where I connect with local people and see what their immediate needs are and where we can collaborate in terms of projects.

What advise do you have for young passionate individuals that would like to pursue this field of work?

Be authentic, have a humble personality, be ready to serve and have a passion for community sustainable projects. Everyday is a learning journey I must say. Especially the amazing cultures that we are exposed to every day and traditions within different Provinces we work with in Fiji. And the best part is that you get to have fun while you’re at it or make it enjoyable as this work can sometimes take a toll on you if you’re not better at managing your time well. Key deliverables should me a main priority as donors love to hear stories and receive project progress reports to understand if their investments has benefitted the community.

with love Luke!