Interview with Sara T. Thompson, May 18, 2022

Interview Summary

Sara T. Thompson served as a Girls' Education and Empowerment Peace Corps volunteer in Burkina Faso from 2010-2012. She grew up passionate about travelling around the African continent, and after studying French and criminal justice, she decided that Peace Corps would be a great opportunity to learn about local community interaction with the environment. As someone with a disability, she also wanted to fully embrace the experience of being a complete outsider. Upon arrival in-country, her three month training was disrupted due to terrorist threats against westerners, and she endured three different training location changes. After Peace Corps placed her in a small village, Matiacoali, located in the eastern region, she focused on planting moringa trees with the women's garden and helped to establish a library with locally sourced books. While she shared many of the similar issues that volunteers regularly confront, proper medical service for her hearing aids were a point of friction with the Peace Corps administration. Since successfully completing her service, she merged her educational background and Peace Corps experience by working on international criminal justice issues.

Interview Keyword

Criminal justice Conservation Girls' empowerment Girls' education Gardening Libraries Burkina Faso Mali Dogon country French language Ouahigouya, Burkina Faso Ougadougou, Burkina Faso Kedougou, Burkina Faso Gourmanchéma language Goumanché language Matiacoali, Burkina Faso Hearing impairment hearing aids Volunteer health audiologists Holidays vacations Togo Mali Benin Moringa trees Millet beer Camino de Santiago Elephant poaching Volunteer with disability Peace Corps staff training

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