Vivienne Talbot's Diary
2008
Monday, February 20, 2008
Bonjour, readers, and welcome to my Earthwatch diary! My name is Viv Talbot, and I was lucky enough to be chosen as an Earthwatch fellow for 2008.
A little bit about me. I joined Alcoa as an intern in 2002, becoming a full-timer in 2005. I’ve worked in Lausanne (Switzerland), Kofem (Hungary), Drunen (the Netherlands), and Geneva (back to Switzerland), where I’m based now. My current role is that of human resources coordinator for Alcoa’s Global Business Services Europe, and I love it. I have the chance to work with great people across a range of functions throughout the region—it’s a stimulating job.
My academic background is in development studies, so I was thrilled to be chosen for an Earthwatch fellowship. This is a unique chance for me to bring together my passion for sustainable development and my work for Alcoa. What has working in the shared services of an aluminum company got to do with sustainability? Not much at first glance, but scratch a bit deeper, and we soon realize that, ultimately, we are all responsible for making a difference toward diminishing Alcoa’s ecological footprint in our jobs. This could be through a simple act of reducing the amount of office waste we generate through recycling of paper, toner cartridges, or packaging materials; conserving electricity in our offices by turning off lights and appliances when not in use; or sharing rides to work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. All of these are individual actions that, when multiplied across our office population, help reduce our ecological footprint.
I have been assigned to an expedition in Costa Rica, assisting researchers on a sustainable coffee production project. According to Earthwatch, coffee is one of the most important agricultural commodities, supporting the livelihoods of an estimated 100 million people in developing countries. Along with the other volunteers on the July expedition, I will be learning more about how different approaches to coffee plantations can affect bean growth and the surrounding ecosystems. For example, ecologists have found that shade-grown coffee (more natural, forest-like conditions) has a beneficial effect on local fauna, which in turn affects other parts of the ecosystem, such as pollination. Understanding these conditions better can improve coffee yields and coffee quality for farmers in Costa Rica.
So the countdown has started. To say I’m excited is an understatement!
Thursday, March 20, 2008
I can’t believe how fast time flies. In less than five months, I’ll be headed out to Costa Rica!
My friends and colleagues have overwhelmed me with kind words of congratulations (and requests for coffee beans) as well as guidebooks about Costa Rica and Spanish-English dictionaries. One thing that has made this experience really special for me so far is the support and “vicarious pride” that my colleagues in Geneva and across the Global Business Services unit have expressed toward me. It’s a huge honor to have been chosen for this program, and I hope to not only be able to share the highlights of the experience with my peers, but also make them proud that someone from GBS gets to help out on a sustainability project. (In the words of a close colleague, I “gotta represent!”)
On my most recent visit to Kofem, I met up with Cesar Zuleta, a colleague from GBS Global Credit who is headed to Australia later this year on the Climate Change in the Rainforest expedition. It was great to talk face-to-face, being able to relate to the sheer “wow” factor of being chosen—and getting this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
The excitement bubbles up every so often as I read more about the project itself, Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve where we’ll be working, and the research that has already been carried out in this field. I think my real challenges now are 1) master basic Spanish phrases and 2) concentrate on my work between now and July 28. The temptation to daydream and pore over the guidebooks is very strong!
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Costa Rica's Sustainable Coffee
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