Interview with Michael "Mike" Roman, November 20, 2021
Project: Peace Corps: The Returned Peace Corps Volunteer Oral History Project
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 Accession
Interviewee Name
Interviewer Name
Interview Date
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)Interview Rights
All rights to the interviews, including but not restricted to legal title, copyrights and literary property rights, have been transferred to the University of Kentucky Libraries.Interview Usage
Interviews may only be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries.Restriction
Interviews may only be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries.
All rights to the interviews, including but not restricted to legal title, copyrights and literary property rights, have been transferred to the University of Kentucky Libraries.
Add this interview to your cart in order to begin the process of requesting access to a copy of and/or permission to reproduce interview(s).
Roman, Michael Interview by Carl K. Cheney. 20 Nov. 2021. Lexington, KY: Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries.
Roman, M. (2021, November 20). Interview by C. K. Cheney. Peace Corps: The Returned Peace Corps Volunteer Oral History Project. Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries, Lexington.
Roman, Michael, interview by Carl K. Cheney. November 20, 2021, Peace Corps: The Returned Peace Corps Volunteer Oral History Project, Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries.
You may come across language in UK Libraries Special Collections Research Center collections and online resources that you find harmful or offensive. SCRC collects materials from different cultures and time periods to preserve and make available the historical record. These materials document the time period when they were created and the view of their creator. As a result, some may demonstrate racist and offensive views that do not reflect the values of UK Libraries.
If you find description with problematic language that you think SCRC should review, please contact us at SCRC@uky.edu.
Persistent Link for this Record: https://kentuckyoralhistory.org/ark:/16417/xt7g0pm0g891p