Are you interested in a fun, low-key volunteering opportunity with some fellow LAH-ers? Check out the Micah 6 ESL Project, a weekly English conversation class at the Micah 6 Food Pantry located just off the Drag. We accommodate your schedule, and you only need to be fluent in English to participate. Build your resume, make new friends, and participate in an important service near campus. For more information, please contact either Elisabeth Eikrem (elisabeth.eikrem@gmail.com) or Katy Eyberg (keyberg@gmail.com). Classes start soon, and volunteer spots fill up quickly, so don’t wait!

INTERNSHIP OPENINGS

Democracy and Governance Research Interns

September – December 2012

The Strauss Center is seeking several Democracy and Governance Research Interns on a project researching the effectiveness of democracy and good governance programs in Africa.  The Strauss Center’s Climate Change and African Political Stability program is conducting case studies exploring which democracy aid programs—under what conditions—are most effective in Africa.  The studies will also consider how democracy programming must shift in response to varying degrees of conflict, ethnic division, and human development.  Case study countries include Benin, Burundi, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Malawi, Niger, the Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Tanzania.

Intern responsibilities will include:

• Research and data collection on democracy and governance aid programs in case study countries
• Research on legal texts and political histories in case study countries
• Management of case study research files

Required qualifications:

• Academic or work experience related to public policy, governance, democratic development, international aid, and/or Africa
• Excellent research skills
• Excellent writing and communication skills
• Excellent organizational skills
• A commitment to the mission of the Strauss Center

These are unpaid internships of 10-15 hours per week.  The internship is from September – December 2012, with the possibility of being extended in to Spring 2013.  The exact start and end dates are negotiable.

To apply, please send a resume and letter of interest to Ashley Moran at amoran@austin.utexas.edu.  The first round of applications will be reviewed September 7, 2012.  We look forward to hearing from you.

Funded by the U.S. Department of Defense’s Minerva Initiative, the Strauss Center’s program on Climate Change and African Political Stability aims to assess where and how climate change poses threats to stability in Africa, develop strategies to build government capacity to respond, and evaluate the effectiveness of foreign aid for climate change adaptation in Africa.  For more information, visit www.strausscenter.org/ccaps.