Travel with a Purpose – A summer in India for Dr. Interns

Travel is one of the most rewarding experiences a person has in their life. Whether it is a family vacation, a semester abroad or a backpacking trip with friends, these experiences not only stay with us our whole lives, but shape who we are and how we see the world.

In today’s age we are lucky enough to have easy and affordable means of travel to just about anywhere in the world and with technology and the internet we can book these arrangements from anywhere with a press of a button. It is no doubt remarkable and in a lot of ways makes our planet a much smaller place. Where we could once only read about or see on a screen we can now visit ourselves, embarking on great journeys and having exciting adventures of our own.

It is a wonderful thing to see so many people of our time going out in to the world to see, touch, taste and experience first hand the wonders of different cultures and while it is breaking down barriers that once made us feel so different from one another, it is also an  opportunity for us to become better global citizens.

Our neighbors are not just the people on our street or in our city, they are in the bordering country or opposite continent where most of our products are produced and services provided. We depend on each other so much more than we realize, not just for business, but for assistance. There are so many organizations out there doing great things to assist our global neighbors in need and yet there is still a great need for more help.

Instead of just visiting these amazing places, taking cool photos in front of a monument or pristine nature scene, I have sought out to be an active assistant to the communities I visit. Even if it means collecting garbage from a popular hiking trail or beach, I want to be a positive impact, not just another tourist stopping by for a photo op. In each trip I take I look for a different cause I am passionate about and an organization I would be a good fit to volunteer with.

Dr. Interns is one of those organizations. With a mission of bringing sustainable healthcare solutions to very capable, developing parts of the world they are connecting college students interested in the medical field as well as travel to experiences in the world outside their own neighborhood. Dr. Interns is creating a new kind of world traveler; a traveler who is making a difference.

I am excited to begin my first experience of India, where I will be assisting with the marketing campaign for Dr. Interns at their first international program at the Kailash Cancer Hospital in Gujarat, India. I am joined by Ketan Patel, the passionate and intelligent organization director, and 15 incredible college students dedicating their summer to assisting at the hospital as well. We will be recording our story with the goal of inspiring many more to travel and to be active global citizens. Changing the world is easier than it looks. Don’t believe me? Try it.

-Lindsay M Hawley

Dr. Interns Marketing Director

 

Protect our Coast with Live Music and Margaritas at Sunset at the “Baja Bash” June 2

I was born here in San Diego 23 years ago to Park Ranger / Lifeguard / Surfer parents who, at the time of my arrival lived in a beach front condo in Imperial Beach, about as close to the water (and the border) as anyone can be. Before I could walk I was on a boogie board and almost every day of my childhood was spent playing in the waves. My dad taught me about the currents and to ride the waves. He showed me how to catch sand crabs, the magic hidden in tide pools, the birds, fish, mammals and plants that depend on the ocean and unfortunately, on us, to keep it clean and safe. From an early age I understood that mother nature ruled our planet but without our help to keep it clean it would not be a safe place for any living thing.

Now as an adult I want to be apart of the movement to protect our nature and to preserve it so that my children can swim in the same waters I learned to surf in without fearing for their health.  I participate in every beach clean up and water shed clean up I can, I collect trash when I visit the beach or see something in storm drains that will end up in the ocean. I educate my friends about ways we can keep our coast clean and beautiful but that is not enough. There are things out of our control like pollutants being dumped into the ocean by big companies and developments up and down the coast that threaten our oceans and many species that share the coast and oceans with us.

That is why I am a supporter of WiLDCOAST. Not only am I a proud daughter of a board member, but this organization of  strategic, smart, passionate and relentless conservationists are doing more to change legislation, monitor and protect water ways and conserve land by purchasing it before it becomes developed and educating people about our need to conserve coastal and marine ecosystems and wildlife.

• In 2011 WiLDCOAST protected 4,371 acres and 2.3 miles of coastline along the Valle de los Cirios Pacific Coast through direct land purchases and conservation easement agreements.

• WC has conserved 77.7 miles of shoreline around Laguna San Ignacio through an innovative partnership with Mexico’s National Commission for Protected Natural Areas.
• To date, WiLDCOAST has conserved more than two million acres of coastal wildlands and wildlife habitat

• In 2012, WiLDCOAST is expanding their reach by building Chapters throughout Baja California to continue to work with local communities to clean up, restore, and conserve the amazing coastal and marine resources.

For $75 you can support their work and have an amazing time at the WiLDCOAST “Baja Bash”on June 2nd at the Broadway Pier in San Diego . Your ticket includes a show by Nortec Collective : Hiperboreal (a song by them below) delicious sustainable culinary treats, wines and margaritas. A trio of rochstar chefs are preparing the menu, including internationally known chef and restaurateur Javier Plascencia, of Mision 19, who has been featured in the New Yorker and the Food Network; Diego Hernandez, the lead chef at Corazon de Tierra in the Valle de Guadalupe; and Benito Molina and Solange Muris, from Manzanilla in Ensenada. You won’t want to miss their creative culinary creations!Along with their tasty and sustainable menu, the Baja Bash is featuring the wines of the Valle de Guadalupe, including Adobe Guadalupe, a premier winery from the area. They are also serving wines from Casa de Piedra, Paralelo and other unique wines from the wine country of Baja. Peligroso Tequila has created a special ‘WiLDCOAST margarita’ for the toast during the sunset cocktail reception.Parties for a purpose are what I live for and this one will be a blast so don’t miss out.

Nortec Collective: Hiperboreal performing “Mexican Madness” at SXSW