For my leadership-in-action project, I went to Dakar, Senegal. I worked with a local social entrepreneurship business, called Imadi World. Imadi sells baskets locally woven by villages on the outskirts of Dakar. Imadi provides literacy programs, women's aid, and stable work for the inhabitants of 15 disadvantaged communities. Imadi is a small business, and has a low amount of resources and employees that work on the business side. My goal for Imadi, was to assist in increasing the publicity of the community engagement the business does, and in turn increase the efficiency and success of the business as a whole - so more good can be done for the communities they work with. My personal goals were to create connections and relationships with the local communities we worked with, learn as much as possible and to further hone my leadership skills through being in a new environment. 

Throughout my LiA I faced many challenges that I had to overcome (as I had expected). Initially, I struggled with the timing of my LiA, because I have an internship at the end of the summer. I had to find an LiA that allowed me to come back to Dublin for my work. I also faced issues due to the political stability in Senegal. In January/February there were widespread protests within Dakar because the president at the time was postponing the elections. In concern for the political situation I shortened my stay from 6 weeks to a month, and then I will do 2 weeks of online work for the business. The new president was then elected, and there was no further trouble. Once I got here, my phone got stolen! This was extremely frustrating because I was very cautious about it. My phone, and my coworkers' (a local) phone got stolen from within the shop we were working in by a 'customer'. This was a big setback, but it all ended up okay as I just bought a cheap replacement to get by before I left. I think I dealt with this as best as one does, and didn't let it ruin my whole trip whatsoever. 

Going into my LiA, I had never been to Senegal or even Africa before. There were a couple aspects to this new environment that presented unique shocks. Firstly, the country has a majority muslim population, so I had to be particularly conscious of ensuring my actions were culturally respectful. For example, Friday is a holy day and I would make sure to wear more conservative clothing. Secondly, most people spoke French or Wolof, where I just speak English. The people I was working with mainly spoke Wolof which is the local popular language (not officially). Throughout my time I made a lot of effort towards learning Wolof greetings, and also practising my French. This taught me a lot about how to make connections with people without verbal communication. I am very pleased that I managed to properly create lasting and meaningful relationships with the local villagers, weavers and leather workers. I had to learn to become comfortable in an environment where English is not commonly spoken. Lastly, the city of Dakar was less developed than Dublin (where I currently live). This was perhaps the least cause of culture shock, because I grew up in Manila, Philippines. While more developed than Dakar, it was similar in many aspects: unlimited mango, population-dense, practically non-existent driving rules, and never-ending traffic. 

My LiA taught me a lot both about myself and the world around me - and most importantly how to weave a basket! I hope in the future that my projects with Imadi can help the organisation further spread the word about the extremely important and meaningful work they do for the local communities. As time goes on, it would be amazing to see Imadi expand globally to promote Senegalese craftsmanship and people. Dakar is an amazing city - even though my phone was stolen - and I encourage everyone to learn more and maybe even experience the rich and beautiful culture and people that Senegal has to offer.