Yanko Dzhukev

1 - WHAT PROMPTED YOU TO APPLY FOR A POSITION?

While I was growing up, the mountains played a very important role in my life. I lived in the foothills of the Rila Mountains, the highest mountain range in Bulgaria. As I come from a country located in “the Balkans”, with a territory half covered by mountains, I witnessed the mountain communities’ immense vulnerability, bounded by extreme rates of poverty.  

What prompted me to apply for this position was my engagement with sustainable mountain development initiatives at Utah Valley University (UVU) during the last few years, where they offered one of the few opportunities worldwide to make students responsible for the implementation of specific aspects of United Nations (UN) agenda. I grew professionally, and I am grateful to the advocates of the mountain agenda at UVU, such as Dr Rusty Butler who supported me in many ways, including financially, in order to become the first intern from UVU at the Mountain Partnership Secretariat (MPS). All of this also strengthened my desire to advocate for the mountain agenda and to assist in bringing the topic of mountains to the policy makers, and to make sure that mountains receive the necessary recognition.

In addition, one of my tasks as an intern was to ensure that my country, sooner rather than later, would join the Mountain Partnership (MP). I would like to help not only people from Bulgaria but also other mountain communities around the world and to contribute to global sustainable mountain development.

2 - HOW WAS YOUR EXPERIENCE AT THE MOUNTAIN PARTNERSHIP SECRETARIAT?

While I was able together with my colleagues at UVU to contribute to the MP activities in the State of Utah and North America, being a part of the Secretariat allowed me to acquire knowledge and gain experience about the range and depth of the issues that the Mountain Partnership is dealing with at global level. While I have a strong interest in politics and diplomacy, the MP provided me with a great potential for networking and future professional growth. I was able to learn how to approach specific delicate issues and how to advocate for a specific UN agenda on the highest level.  

It was also interesting for me to find out how the MPS helps members to build joint activities because, as our experiences in Utah also showed, team efforts usually help to achieve greater understanding and better results towards sustainable mountain development.

During my internship and still now, I am impressed by how the MPS does a great job of promoting and mobilizing support for SMD globally from the private sector, governments, NGOs and universities, like UVU. 

3 - WHAT DID A NORMAL DAY AT WORK LOOK LIKE FOR YOU?

A normal day at MPS always involved working on multiple assignments. I was glad to be a liaison with MP members in addition to preparing news article for the MP website and conducting research for reports and social media campaigns. As one of my main assignments, I was responsible for organizing, preparing and disseminating the MP’s monthly newsletter, Peak to Peak, in addition to conducting research for photos and illustrations for publications and assisting in drafting and editing the 2015 Annual Report.

I was also involved on a daily basis with every aspect of work – communications, advocacy, capacity building and joint action of the MPS.

While it was important for me to contribute to the efforts of the MPS toward developing collaborative partnerships and relationships between MP members, I was also ready to assist anyone from the MP team in urgent situations and when they needed support.

4 - WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE SOMEONE SEEKING VOLUNTEER EXPERIENCE?

I would like to share thoughts in particular with students at UVU, next interns at MPS. Join the MP team if you are passionate about mountains and helping mountain communities.  In order to benefit as much as possible from the very short time of the internship, you need to have initiative and not wait for orders from advisors. While interning, I never had a quiet moment to rest, I was always working on an assignment. It was also a time for me to learn from the amazing people at the MPS, how they are always ready to assist younger colleagues and treat their intern as an equal. In four months, I learned more than I learned during four years of academic studies.

Interning at the MPS allowed me to gain additional knowledge and professional experience about the MP activities and contribute to SMD-advocacy globally.