STEP Signature Project in Fiji

During my STEP signature project, I volunteered abroad in a remote village in Fiji.  During my time volunteering I helped implement a waste management system that helped the locals better fulfill the three ‘R’s’; reduce, reuse and recycle.  Also, during my time in Fiji, I helped rebuild and paint houses that were destroyed by Cyclone Winston a couple years ago.

During my signature project my view of the way of life in America was greatly changed.  In Fiji, the local people lived off their land.  They fished the ocean for food, harvested crops from their farms and even made their own clothing.  The local people didn’t need money to satisfy their lives.  I thought this was really cool.  Another thing that was very different in Fiji compared to the United States was the culture.  The local people in Fiji were the nicest people I think I have ever met in my life.  They always greeted you with a very warm smile and generally cared about how you were doing.  This was very different that my experiences in the United States.

One of the local people, Roni, that I got really close with is one of the reasons that I was transformed during my STEP signature project in Fiji.  Roni was the leader of our community development crew and helped us complete our volunteer work.  During our time together he shared many stories about how thankful the locals were that we were doing this work for them.

The natural beauty of Fiji also shaped my experience when I was on my trip.  During my trip we adventured all over Fiji.  One of the days, some of the locals took us to visit a waterfall that was close to their village.  This was one of the coolest things I think I have seen.  We swam in the pool that formed beneath the falls and it was all around a good time.  Over the weekend, we traveled to a small island resort called Leleuvia.  In Leleuvia we snorkeled and explored the ocean during low tide.  It was very cool to see all of the different sea life in the water.  We saw so many starfish, hermit crabs, fish and even an eel!  The stars in Fiji were amazing as well.  You could see the entire milky way galaxy.  The natural beauty of Fiji definitely helped enhance my experience and was very transformational.

These are some of the starfish we saw!

During my time building the recycling point for the waste management project, we talked to the locals about the benefits of recycling and how bad it is for the Earth if recycling is not occurring.  During this project, I found out that most of the locals just throw away their trash in the ocean when they are out fishing.  We explained how bad this was for the sea life and how it impacts the entire environment.  We built a recycling point for the village and they were super thankful that we did so they could help keep the Earth clean!

This is the recycling point foundation that we built!

This correlates to my personal goals of one day becoming a doctor.  During my time in Fiji, I fully got to understand the way of life of people that live among a differing culture.  This will help me in the future because this is a start at understanding how people live out their lives.  If I can fully understand how my patients live their lives, then I will be able to better treat them and help them.