Support South African Water Conservation Interns

Dear Chris Buckley Memorial Internship Donors,

It has been an exciting few months as we continue to lay the foundation for The Chris Buckley Memorial Internship.  If you are receiving this progress report, you are among those who have reached out and donated so generously through GlobalGiving in response to our launching of this initiative.  We are so very  grateful for your support!

Internship applications have begun to come in, and we are inspired by the vision of these wonderful young people.  The application asks them about the source of their motivation for pursuing work in the water sector and about their aspirations for where they might be in five years.  Their answers reveal the kind of energy, abilities, and determination that The Chris Buckley Memorial Internship intends to seek out and uplift:

“Water scarcity… worsens inequalities, as poorer communities suffer the most. We need better water management and conservation to ensure everyone has enough water.”

“ [E]xperiencing periodic water shortages in my community highlighted the importance of water accessibility and quality, motivating me to help address these challenges. I am eager to apply my skills and knowledge to contribute to the sustainable management of water resources.”

“In Five years from now I would like to have my own water treatment Company, that will also generate it's own water treating chemical. I am willing to learn in this industry and collect as much knowledge as I can, dedicate myself and do whatever it takes….”

Meanwhile, we continue to build the mechanics of the internship placements.  In particular, we are working closely with the directors of Work Integrated Learning at Mangosuthu University of Technology, the local institution offering the work-integrated qualification that our first interns are pursuing.  Through these and other door-opening collaborations, we are working to ensure that The Chris Buckley Memorial Internship will have a meaningful impact on individual young people and their broader communities, thereby honoring and extending Chris Buckley’s extraordinary legacy. 

We look forward to keeping you updated as this project continues to unfold.  We truly could not be doing this without your amazing support and we hope you will feel a sense of excitement and pride in seeing what your generosity makes possible!

The 2024 school year is well underway in South Africa, and The Umkhumbane Schools Project has opened applications for The Chris Buckley Memorial Internship.  We are pleased to provide this update to you and our other GlobalGiving donors, with tremendous gratitude for your generous contributions to this internship funding.  

The USP is working with two of South Africa's leading technical universities to recruit strong candidates to be supported by internship funds, the Durban Universtiy of Technology and the Mangosuthu Unversity of Technology.  These are universities that grant a full range of technical degrees that incorporate the in-service training component that the  Chris Buckley Memorial Internship funds support.  We expect that most of the applicants for the intership from these two schools will be pursuing degrees or diplomas in civil engineering, with an emphasis on water management, water engineering, or related fields.

At this moment, the total internship fund is valued at approximately $8500.  We intend to disburse approximately $3000 of this amount in 2024 and will continue welcoming donations to help grow the funds in order to reach more interns and to provide for the internship's long-term sustainability.

Many thanks again for contributing to the Chris Buckley Memorial Internship as a founding donor.  We look forward sending you further updates so you can see the reach of your generosity in action!

Sincerely,

Martha Bishai

Martha Fitzptrick Bishai

Director

SPARK/The Umkhumbane Schools Project