In this interview, we hear from Katherine “Kat” Neal. Kat is a Peace Corps volunteer working as a Agriculture volunteer in Paraguay. What Kat shares gives us a better understanding of the work volunteers do. We learn about the challenges, rewards, and personal growth that happens from volunteering in a new place. Kat talks about living in a different country, working with local people, and dealing with surprise situations. Join us as we learn about Kat’s journey and see how volunteering with Peace Corps can change lives.
Table of Contents
- Volunteer Experience and Motivation
- Living Arrangements and Cultural Integration
- Surprises and Challenges
- Advice and Support
- Practical Tips and Language Learning
- Impact of Media and Final Thoughts
Volunteer Experience and Motivation
1. Can you tell us more about serving as an Agriculture volunteer in Paraguay?
This is such a difficult question to answer because no 2 days look alike even when you do the same activities. Most of my activities don’t focus too strongly on agriculture except working in the high-school garden once a week for a few hours on Wednesdays. I definitely work more on secondary projects than my primary project.
I’d say a typical week of activities for me is teaching several different English classes at the cultural center and having astronomy or physics classes with our town Astronomy Club as they prepare for competitions as well as occasionally having a special activity or presentation. Many of my activities require a significant amount of preparation work whether it’s designing the presentations and classes or translating things to Spanish.
2. What motivated you to join the Peace Corps and choose Paraguay?
The Peace Corps was a long-time dream of mine. I was actually denied medical clearance in 2020 but passed in 2023. I am so glad I ended up in Paraguay and sometimes it feels like it was meant to be. When I applied, I had chosen “any job in any location”. I was shocked to get an agriculture placement with a BA in PolySci/IR and an MA in Science & Technology policy I had never done anything relating to agriculture in my entire life, but it ended up being the best possible place for me.
Living Arrangements and Cultural Integration
3. Tell us more about your home situation:
So I am one of those weird volunteers who has the option to live independently but continues to live with a host family in a fairly urban site. I get along with my host family super well and I will be sad to leave them in a year. Our house consists of me, my host mom, an aunt, my host sister, and her son.
The food in Paraguay, I have to admit and generally speaking, is not among my favorite types of food by a long shot. It can be pretty unhealthy and repetitive with lots of pasta day after day, but there are lots of fresh fruits and I brought a lot of spices from home.
It is fairly easy to exercise here, and we have several gyms at my site offering all kinds of classes like kickboxing, Zumba, other dance classes, personal fitness training, and monthly subscriptions. I am in the Danza Paraguaya group for performing and I love it because, besides exercise, it also helps my community integration and teaches me Paraguayan traditions.
4. Any memorable experiences or interactions you’ve had?
Halloween is not really celebrated in Paraguay and I had a Halloween party for my English classes at the cultural center to share some American traditions with them (like trick or treating, bobbing for apples, etc) that went the best way possible. It was incredible to see all my students getting super excited about face painting and making costumes. It is definitely a repeat activity this year.
Surprises and Challenges
5. What has surprised you most about Agriculture challenges in Paraguay?
I’d say the fact that most of the farms are owned by a small number of companies but there are thousands of farmers with small farms. It is definitely a bit of a weird imbalance.
6. What challenges did you face while working on Agriculture projects?
My biggest challenge was not being well-versed in agriculture. I honestly could not teach the students things about agriculture that they didn’t already know in most areas. Most of what I did was emphasize new ways of seeking out information for improving planting and protecting gardens like using satellite data to try to predict weather trends from historical trends and using current weather forecasts. However, I will add, that weather forecasting in Paraguay is pretty bad. It is extremely inaccurate and that messes with a lot of farmers and activities in general because when rain is forecast, it often doesn’t rain, and when sunny skies are forecast sometimes it rains.
7. Could you share some of the secondary projects you have been involved?
I do many secondary projects, and they make my service what it is.
- I have 4 English classes of all age ranges on Tuesdays and Thursdays at the Cultural Center.
- The Cultural Center also encourages me to do all kinds of special activities each month including cooking classes. Taco cooking class is very popular and made our town news
- Holiday events, like Halloween.
- And hopefully this upcoming year an English cinema club once a month.
- Astronomy club is also a major secondary activity for me and it combines students from several different high schools in my site that all want to learn about space! They all compete nationally in the Paraguayan Olympiad for Astronomy and Aeronautics, and we had quite a few students pass through rounds 1, 2, and 3 this past year and one was placed in the top 5 in Paraguay.
- The co-teacher for the astronomy club wants us to make a competitive chess club this year so we will be working on that in February.
Advice and Support
8. What advice would you give to someone considering serving as a volunteer in Paraguay?
I’m not sure considering the agriculture program was canceled. The newest cohort all became environmental volunteers, and they are very important. Projects are very open to what volunteers know and are good at so nobody has the exact same service. Projects in my cohort range from astronomy to bird monitoring and tracking. There is something for everyone, but you can’t be idle about finding projects. You definitely need to be a bit of a “go-getter” and open to doing projects people at your site really want or are passionate about.
9. How has the Peace Corps training helped you during your service?
Language training was critical during PST and the most valuable resource. Peace Corp also has an allowance for you to pay someone to tutor you at site in Spanish or Guarani if you need it which is can be very important. There are also other important things to learn during training like security, culture, and project knowledge.
Practical Tips and Language Learning
10. Anything that you packed or didn’t pack that you’d like to tell future Paraguay volunteers?
I packed way too much stuff. I brought a big suitcase and two backpacks. Half my stuff has not come out of my suitcase, and it just sits in storage with my host family. The most useful stuff to pack is definitely spices and, for me, tea. For Paraguay, you definitely do NOT need things like a solar battery charger. I bought one and it’s still in its box along with most of my camping stuff. There are lots of opportunities to camp in Paraguay so if you enjoy camping definitely bring camping gear. I also recommend mosquito bracelets.
11. How has learning the language been?
Spanish isn’t too difficult of a language to learn, but Guarani is incredibly difficult. I would definitely recommend practicing Spanish before staging. However, the level of Guarani you need is strongly dependent on site placement. At my site, I do not really need Guarani, but saying random words and phrases always makes people excited.
Impact of Media and Final Thoughts
12. Any last comments or observations you’d like to pass on to future Paraguay volunteers?
I think Peace Corp is what you make it and I know many people say that, but it really is. Also, don’t be afraid to look for projects outside of your official project framework because they can be just as important and impactful. The Peace Corp Paraguay Staff and my program managers/assistants have all been incredibly supportive of the astronomy projects and cultural center activities so don’t worry about seeking projects that you or your community wants.
What are you waiting for? Opportunities like this don’t come often. If you have a passion for service and an adventurous spirit like Kat’s, apply to the Peace Corps today. Expand your horizons, push your limits, and create positive impact as a volunteer. You never know how serving as a Peace Corps volunteer could change your life.
The content of this post does not necessarily reflect the views of the U.S. Government, the Peace Corps, or Paraguay Government.