Update from Kira

Hello! I must first say thanks to Jaz for putting this blog together! I think that it is a fantastic way for all of us to keep in touch and help each other out!

I am doing well, I arrived back in the US two days ago, so I am still decompressing, acclimatising, culture shocking, etc. I hope to get used to it eventually... I am currently in Colorado visiting friends and family and will be traveling to Oregon and California over the coming weeks to visit my dad and mom (respectively).

For the moment as I told some of you about, I have a job in Belize and I am planning on starting there in the end of November. The job will entail assisting in the management of an agroforestry research farm in the southern part of Belize. I am excited for the experience as I will receive training in things such as permaculture, which is of high interest to me and also will be able to participate with some local Maya communities and carry out bird surveys in the area. There will be a strong mix of conservation, development, and sustainable living mixed together with research and hands on experience in a very remote part of the country. I will keep you all posted as I have more information about it.

I think that is all for now, but I will be in touch soon!

Love and hugs to all of you,
Best wishes,
Kira

Update from Danni

Hello everyone!

This is a brilliant idea Jasmin, thanks for setting it up! I'm still living in Herne Bay and am working at the Good's Shed to keep myself occupied and get some money coming in. Apart from a few interviews not much is happening on the career front, I'll start worrying after the new year. Adam is back at uni and enjoying his course.

Can you believe they already put up Christmas lights outside my flat?! It's really weird not having you all here. This year has been amazing and I miss you all so much already! I wanted to say thank you for all the memories (and photographs). Jasmin is right, the key to good conservation is communication and seeing as we all come from different backgrounds and places this is definitely something we should use to everyone's advantage!

I hope you're all keeping well and are settling into the path that was waiting for you after DICE. If you're ever in Kent or even England please know you're welcome to stay with us anytime or even just drop by for a drink!

Love always,

Danni xxx

Update from Jasmin

Hello everyone! I hope that you are all well and that your dissertations turned out great. Many of you probably read this message in an email I sent earlier. Due to a positive response from several people, decided to start a blog where we can all keep in touch. You aren't expected to write here all the time, its just a place you can come to say hello, or get our opinions and share news or things you are excited about. I hope that you all utilize it. I am going to start this blog off by posting the update I sent earlier. It would be great if others could update us with what you are up to now that we completed our year at DICE.

I am back in Maine, USA. Right now, Robbie and I are living in his parent's basement. We went to Ireland before we came back to the US and basically spent the last of our money. So we are laying low and staying in his parents house, probably until the end of the month, to save some money and spend time with family. We have been very lucky because Robbie was able to keep the job he had in England. He works for a small company (only 4 people in his office including the owner) testing websites as a software developer. Now he is able to stay home and work in his pajamas on the new computer his company bought him. We really are so lucky that both of us are not unemployed.

I am still trying to find a conservation related job. It is really difficult, because Maine is a pretty rural state and there isn't very many job opportunities. Especially right now because winter is coming and there isn't much field work that can be done in the winter (most of the animals are hibernating, plus its really difficult to do field work in freezing temperatures and tons of snow). So, I may end up working in a coffee shop until spring, when some more seasonal jobs open up. Meanwhile, I have been studying to retake my GREs. In the US, in order to go to graduate school you have to take these Graduate Record Exams (GREs). They are really annoying, and in my opinion, a poor reflection of people's capabilities. I only scored average on them in the past, and in order to get into a PhD program, I think I need to do better. So I am retaking the general GRE and the biology subject GRE in November. Its kind of nice not working right now because it gives me a lot of time to study and think about what I want to do for a PhD program. I will be applying this fall to hopefully start a doctoral program Fall 2009.

Besides all that boring stuff, I am so happy to be home. I missed my family, friends, and cats so much. My cats, Pi and Theta, were really happy to see us. Robbie's parents gave them too many treats and Theta got really fat. But since I've been home, he's been really active and playing a lot, and already he's lost like 5 pounds and almost back to his trim self. They are such happy kitties and sleep with us at night. You have no idea how much I missed them.

Our friends have been really happy to have us back. They threw a huge welcome home party for us, which was so much fun. There was like 30 people there, and although I thought it was going to be overwhelming, if felt as though we never left, and I was really comfortable and happy to be surrounded by good friends. We have been spending a lot of time, especially on the weekends, hanging out with our best friends. This past weekend we went for an art walk. Every first Friday of the month in Portland, Maine they open up all the art galleries so people can check them out. There are a ton of art galleries in Portland, all with unique exhibits, and each one serves some wine. So its a good way to spend an evening with friends and see some great art. Portland is a small city and has a really great sense of community where it seems like everyone knows everyone else. This sense of community is especially apparent during the first Friday art walks.

The best part of being home is being back in the wilderness that is Maine. Maine is covered in forests, mountains, lakes, and is right along the sea. We live in a community in the woods next to a big lake, and I have been going canoeing all the time. There are lots of little island on the lake that are fun to explore and to go swimming off of. A couple of times Robbie and I took Pi and Theta to go canoing with us. They don't mind the water at all, and they love to run around and explore the islands with us. I've been also going for lots of bike rides, and we've been hiking a few times. Yesterday, we hiked Mount Monroe in the White Mountains. Right now, it is absolutely gorgeous here. The trees all all sorts of shades of reds, yellows and oranges. The air is pleasantly crisp, and it is almost always sunny. Autumn in Maine is amazing. It was so beautiful hiking in the White Mountains because all of the mountains are so colorful. We were surprised because we had not realized that it already snowed in the mountains. So all of the mountains had snow caps, and we hiked from a beautiful autumn forest, to a winter wonderland above the treeline. It was a breathtaking experience. We've also been having campfires outside, and cuddling up to a warm cup of tea and wrapping ourselves in blankets during the crisp, autumn nights. I really hope you all can make it to Maine someday, it really is my favorite place to be.

So that's what I have been up to. I am looking forward to hearing what you all have been doing. Miss you all and hope to hear back from you soon!