Introduction Kiribati (pronounced, Ki-ri-bus) is a smattering of small coral atolls scattered across an area of ocean the size of the continental United States and is one of the poorest, and least visited countries, in the world. With a maximum elevation of 3 metres above sea level the tiny atolls are very susceptible to sea level rise and indeed some communities have had to be abandoned in recent years. South Tarawa South Tarawa is in the Gilbert Islands, and more than 50,000 people (over half the country’s population) live on the atolls. The land area of South Tarawa is 3,896 acres (1,577 ha) or 15.76 square km. However, much of this land is not available for use including the water reserve and runway, the causeways, and a large area of reclaimed land at Temwaiku while the eastern corner of the atoll is too swampy and low-lying for settlement. If these areas are excluded, the land area of South Tarawa is only just over 1,000 hectares (10 square km or 2,500 acres) ...

Oct 14th  For the past four days I've been in Wellington participating in a Volunteer Service Abroad  briefing. I've thoroughly enjoyed the experience, it's been a full on four days but I found each of the sessions very useful and I hope have better prepared us for our placements. It was a big group of volunteers, and for many their accompanying partners, and a chance to meet some of the VSA staff that will be supporting us in the field. The volunteers were going to the four corners of the Pacific including Timor Leste, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, the Cook Islands, Samoa and in my case Kiribati. Just as the placements varied so were the backgrounds and skills of the volunteers but we were all united in a common purpose, to leave our regular lives, family and friends behind for the chance to travel to a far flung corners of the Pacific to share our knowledge and skills in what will no doubt be a life changing experience. VSA Offices n Wellington For me the highlight ...

Oct 1 st 2017 I got an email about 4:30 on Friday afternoon confirming that I would be heading to Wellington in just over a weeks time to attend a training workshop/briefing with Volunteer Service Abroad, a New Zealand based NGO involved in development work throughout the Pacific region. It was confirmation that I’d be accepted to head to Kiribati as a volunteer English Language trainer. I was elated. The late afternoon sun streamed in through the lounge windows looking out towards the distant Kakanui mountains as I cranked up Leilani by the Hoodoogurus. Somewhere on a South Pacific island  Sits a young man staring at the surf.  His native girlfriend died a death quite violent  A tribal sacrifice made to the earth. Woo oo woo oo oo…   Okay, so Keribati is a coral atoll and not a volcanic island but hey, the thought was there!   I had been waiting all week for the news that I’d made it through the first interview and was really stoked that ...

Welcome my new blog about my journey, the trials and tribulations as work towards becoming a volunteer working on South Tarawa in the South Pacific country of Kiribati. I envision this blog to be a dumping ground for all sorts of random thoughts, experiences, highlights, and possibly lowlights, of my journey to becoming a volunteer working on one of the most densely populated islands in the poorest country in the South Pacific. So welcome aboard, I hope you enjoy the blog and my journey of self discovery. The question is, where to start? Why Volunteering? I guess the obvious question that must be answered as we begin this journey is why volunteering? And that is the million dollar question! Altruism, a sense of adventure, wanting to change the world (hopefully for the better), to give a little back to the planet. All these are admirable reasons to choose the life as a volunteer working alongside the peoples of the Pacific and being able to offer one’s own skills and hopefull...