Interview with Michael "Mike" Roman, November 20, 2021

Interview Summary

Mike Roman served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Primary Education in Kiribati from 2000-2002. He worked as a teacher trainer but mainly taught English as a Second Language to students needing extra help. As a secondary project, he developed after-school programs and activities for children. He describes with great affection the challenges of living in a hot equatorial Pacific Ocean climate while being severely prone to motion sickness, despising hot weather, and being allergic to fish. He recalls families and friends he still maintains contact with. He speaks of the pain of ending his service four months early, and the enduring sadness felt years after. But, he says, “The day my service ended to the country was the day my commitment to the nation began.” He explains that he has returned to Kiribati many times to work on HIV/AIDS projects and research for numerous degrees related to climate change and the nation.

Interview Keyword

Peace Corps (U.S) Kiribati (Country of service) 2000-2002 (Date of service) Peace Corps Volunteer Job: Education (Primary School) Mexican American Suva (Capital of Fiji) Miami University, Oxford, Ohio Peace Corps Recruitment Fiji Global Warming (Impact on Kiribati) Coral Atoll (Ancient ring-shaped coral reef) Tarawa Atoll Abaiang Island Tamana Island (smallest island in the Gilbert Islands chain) Climate Change Humanizing Climate Change King Tide (Exceptionally high tide that occurs when the moon is closest to the earth) Collectivist culture Kiribati Protestant Church Catholic Church Margaret Field Primary School TESL (Teaching English as a Second Language) Maiana Island (An atoll in Kiribati and one of the Central Gilbert Islands) HIV/AIDS Oregon State University Medical Anthropology COP26 Fulbright Scholarship Marshall Islands Tuvalu Maldives Pacific Climate Warriors Citizen’s Climate Lobby (International grassroots environmental group) Climate Reality Project (Non-profit organization involved in education and advocacy about climate change) U.C. Sustainability (University of Cincinnati organization) Greenpeace www.350.org (An international ecological organization addressing the climate crisis) Nydia Velazquez (Member, U.S. House of Representatives) Ed Markey (U.S. Senator) H.R. 2826 (U.S. House of Representatives Bill addressing climate change) U.S. Senate Bill 1335 Energy Innovation Act Biden Administration Lapita (Prehistoric Austronesian people whose presence on several Pacific Islands is known by ceramic objects dating ca.1,600 BCE to ca. 500 BCE)

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