Marieke Smits

Salama everybody! I was very surprised when TNT asked me to participate as a TNT-GEPper for the second time. After having had a great experience last year, I didn' t have to think twice about accepting this opportunity and said yes right away. I wil introduce myself once more: My name is Marieke Smits, I am 27 years old and am based in Madagascar with my GEP-buddy Guido. Whereas Guido mostly works in the capital Antananarivo (like I did last year) I changed Tana for the little southern city of Ambovombe this year. My interest for other countries and cultures goes way back. When I was younger I was always looking up far-away countries in the atlas and was already fond of learning foreign languages. The first time I experienced living in another country was during a Spanish course that I took during the summer of 2001. I lived in a little apartment in the centre of Alicante with other international students, a really positive experience. That's why I decided, after obtaining my bachelor's degree in Language –and Cultural Studies, to go and study in Paris. During my time as an Erasmus student in France -where I brushed up my French at the famous Sorbonne University and taught English to French children- I made the decision to go study International Law after returning to the Netherlands. My first study had been rather “general” and I felt the urge to obtain knowledge in a more specific field. Next to my study, I have been active for the National Youth Council, for which I gave workshops on Child's Rights. I furthermore worked at the Schiphol Application Centre as a volunteer for the Dutch Refugee Council. This being the first place refugees are being transferred to after being stopped at the Dutch border, I got to experience the poor conditions lots of people live in out of first hand. This strengthened my will to go and work for an international organization and contribute to development. Having studied International Law, working for the UN is a great opportunity for me to put in practice what I've learned. Next to that, I am very interested in public-private partnerships and I adhere to the idea that multinational corporations can contribute to development by bringing in their expertise. The GEP-programme combines both, gaining valuable work experience at the world's largest humanitarian agency and gaining an insight into corporate social responsibility. I will keep you posted through the TNT-GEP website on everything Guido and I are experiencing in the beautiful country of Madagascar. Don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions about our stay or the programme, I'll be more than happy to inform you on our activities and whereabouts. Hope to see you soon! Mandra-pihaona!