Embracing the Unknown: A Transformatve Journey of Self-Discovery

Uncertainty filled my heart as I stepped onto the plane to Cape Town: what was I getting myself into? I was never an adventurous, thrill-seeking person, but in around sixteen hours, I would find myself in a new place, surrounded by new people, and participating in a tangible consulting experience. I knew, however, that it was within my full power and authority to make the best of this opportunity.?

Upon initially reading my project brief, I assumed I had been placed on the wrong project. My project brief described the Two Oceans Aquarium Foundation’s Turtle Conservation Centre and the struggles of the center to have a centralized community engagement strategy. I had no experience working with marine life, and I felt out of place to effectively understand the needs of this project. I then elected to become the Client Liaison, the person responsible for directing communications between our client and our group and began to have an introspective shift in attitude. In aspiring to understand my client better, I began to see the real issue of community engagement as intrinsically complex and challenging.?

Turtle conservation was the surface-level thumbnail headlining this project, but upon deeper inspection, this project revealed a need to connect various stakeholders across this ecosystem of volunteers, staff, corporate partners, and the larger local community to promote care for our oceans and marine life. In the case of my project, turtles were triumphantly unifying in bringing together various members of society to care for the oceans. I was definitely on the right project, and I would not trade it for another one. Whether creating events for the Princeton campus community as Co-President of the African Students Association or playing piano for my local church, my biggest motivation is to aid in the creation of community. My project here at diiVe, in coming up with a community engagement strategy, perfectly aligns with those same motivations to allow for the creation of robust communities that unify all people.?

Community was also built through my experience living in Cape Town with fellow peers in my cohort. I was surprised to find how many similarities I had with everybody I spoke with; I found myself being filled with so much joy and fulfillment after having long conversations about shared passions. I especially enjoyed conversations with my roommate. We both attended school together but had never come across each other. We immediately found ourselves bonding over shared interests like breakdancing.?

Professionally, Cape Town was a much-needed adjustment. After 5 pm, I found work truly ended, and I walked back to enjoy what the city had to offer. This was quite different from my experience in the United States, with such a fast-paced, grind culture that rarely left me with free time.?

I also adjusted well to my group project, finding that I meld well into teams as a mediator/middleman. I found myself empathetically doing my best to extend a bridge of connection between my group mates in conflict. That was a realization of my purpose in my future ventures: I work best within the nuances of understanding people. The challenge of uncertainty when it comes to dealing with people and their complex interests is a challenge I am excited to tackle for the rest of my professional journey.

This realization was a result of taking the bold step onto that plane to Cape Town, and I am so excited for a future of more realizations as I continue this journey with diiVe this summer.

Jerry Atunku is an Economics Major at 美国普林斯顿大学