Blackrock native volunteers to spend 12 months in Kenya

A FORMER advisor to the Irish delegation at the United Nations will depart next week to live and work in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi for the next 12 months as an Advocacy Advisor with the Pan African Climate Justice Alliance (PACJA).

Maeve Glavey, from Blackrock, is a volunteer with international development organisation VSO Ireland. She will support the climate alliance and its membership of over 1,000 organisations across Africa to campaign for poor climate change and sustainability projects.

VSO is committed to working with communities to build their resilience to the threats caused by climate change. Rural communities and those dependent on subsistence farming and fisheries, urgently require assistance to develop long term coping strategies.

As communities are threatened with the effects of climate change, organisations such as a PACJA are working with community groups and rural communities to limit its impact.

Maeve has worked with a wide variety of organisations since her graduation from Trinity College in 2009 and the London School of Economics in 2011. In addition to working as an advisor at the United Nations, Maeve has worked in the European Commission’s External Action Service, the UK Cabinet Office in London and as a caseworker with the Migrant Rights Centre in Dublin.

“I am really looking forward to this opportunity to volunteer and make a long term impact in the fight against poverty,

? said Maeve.

“For the most part, low income countries are not responsible for the causes of climate change, but the majority of people who are feeling the effects of
climate change are living in
these countries. There is a fine balance between economic growth and sustainable development.

?

She added:

“We need to ensure that communities, especially rural communities, have the
knowledge and skills to build resilience to the effects of climate change.

?

The PACJA has an important role to play and a strong role in enabling African community groups and NGOs to find the right solutions to the issue of climate change for their communities.

“We are incredibly grateful to volunteers, such as Maeve, for taking time away from their paid careers in Ireland to work with us in Kenya,

? said Megan
Munsell, VSO Ireland Executive Director.

“The skills and experiences Maeve will bring to this role will lead to greater sustainability in how communities farm the land and greater resilience to the effects of climate change.

?

VSO is an international development organisation that works through skilled, professional volunteers to fight the causes and symptoms of poverty.

VSO is actively recruiting doctors, nurses, teachers, community and business leaders to volunteer and help it achieve its vision of a world without poverty. For more information, visit www.vso.ie