Training

I'm finishing up my second week of training as a Conservation Education Presenter, and I am EXHAUSTED. 

My brain has been sucking up so much new information, learning all about animals and insects and conservation and memorizing scripts, that it has reached the point of information overload... and there is still so much I have to learn! I feel like I'm never going to be able to learn it all. ... But I felt the same way when I started my CP at Kilimanjaro Safaris, and before long I felt like a pro. So I know not too long from now, I'll be standing confidently in the Oasis with my bug box, telling the world all about the insect inside.

We've been out in the park almost every day of training, literally from one end of the park to the other. We're on our feet all day long, either presenting bugs or staffing animal positions or running the Kids Discovery Clubs (KDCs). Even just holding a bug box makes your arms ache after a while. I woke up today sore from head to toe, but on the bright side, I'm definitely going to stay in shape while I'm on this internship! 

We've been shadowing for a few days, and now we're working in pairs. This Saturday we'll all be on our own! I feel like I should be more nervous, but part of me is totally ready. I love running the KDCs. The kids get so excited playing the games and getting their stamps. When they get all 6 stamps, they become official members of the Kids Discovery Club and have to take the club pledge. I've already inducted 2 new members into the club - they promised to be a friend to all animals and to protect wildlife in wild places. I think they'll do a great job! :)

The best part of this internship is that I feel like I'm really doing something important. In training they gave us figures of how many people the Presenters talk to every year, and therefore how many people we educate about conservation issues and how they can help - that number is in the millions. It's crazy to think that we could reach that many people in just one year. When I visited Animal Kingdom for the first time, I was 12 years old and I was very inspired by their messages about the importance of conservation. Hopefully while I'm here, I can inspire others to care about conservation too.

"In the end, we will conserve only what we love. 

We will love only what we understand. 

We will understand only what we are taught."

- Baba Dioum, Senegalese conservationist