Peace Corps World Wise Schools

Peace Corps Coverdell World Wise Schools - Spotlight on Asia and the Pacific Islands

TSUNAMI.

The word conjures images of walls of water stories high, flooded banks, and widespread destruction. Last month, Asia and the Pacific Islands came to the forefront of international concern when a 9.0-magnitude earthquake, one of the most powerful ever recorded, generated the Honshu, Japan tsunami.

In 2004, when an earthquake of the same magnitude occurred off the coast of Indonesia under the Indian Ocean, Peace Corps Response sent Volunteers to the country of Sri Lanka to aid in the tsunami’s aftermath. Five other Peace Corps countries were also affected: Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, India, and Bangladesh. However, this is not the only part of the world that can be affected by tsunamis and wild weather: the seismic sea waves from the Honshu, Japan earthquake traveled hundreds of miles an hour, reaching Hawaii and the Northern California coast.

Peace Corps Volunteers have actively worked to preserve ecosystems, improve health conditions, education and business practices in this region known for its enticing coastlines, mouthwatering cuisine, and dynamic cultures. In addition to resources focusing on tsunamis and hurricanes, Coverdell World Wise Schools has slide shows, videos, stories, and lesson plans based on Volunteer experiences from Peace Corps countries in this region.

Explore a part of the world rich in ecological and cultural diversity where Peace Corps Volunteers have served since 1961 in countries such as China, Fiji, India, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Mongolia, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Republic of Palau, Samoa, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Tonga, and Vanuatu.

April 2011

Ask a Volunteer

Q: Which celebration of heritage or culture from your host country have you found most interesting?

A: The celebration I have found most interesting is Tsagaan Sar, the Lunar New Year/White Moon Festival. Once the Buddhist authorities have identified the last moon of the year, Mongolians celebrate Bitguun on the night of the new moon. As the first sliver of the next moon appears we wake up and climb a mountain to greet the sun. Then we gather with our immediate family to eat meat dumplings, drink milk tea, and exchange a few presents. During the first day of Tsagaan Sar we visit and greet our elder family members. On the second day we visit our younger family members. On the third day we visit friends. The celebration inevitably
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Fast Fact

Celebrate Asian Pacific Heritage Month with "Island Ghosts," a story from Micronesia; Papua New Guinea’s "Legend of Cassowary;" or learn "How the First Coconut Came to Efate" in Vanuatu.

Sri Lanka

Rebuilding Sri Lanka after 2004 tsunami

Bicycles distributed to Sri Lankan people as relief effort

Tsunami! Examining Earth’s Most Destructive Waves
How is a tsunami created? How does it travel and how fast? What does it look like? Why can it cause such enormous damage? This lesson is designed to help students research all of those questions and, in the process, learn about the geography and cultures of places affected, about plate tectonics, and about the physics of waves.

Sri Lanka: Asian Tsunami
Returned Peace Corps Volunteer Amelia Sparks spent three months in Sri Lanka working on everything from database entry to construction projects. Gain a unique perspective on the effects of the tsunami from her own words and pictures.

Crisis Corps Sri Lanka
Due to recent news coverage, most students will be familiar with the word tsunami. A returned Peace Corps Volunteer recounts his experience helping with relief efforts on the island of Sri Lanka after the 2004 disaster.

Peace Corps Volunteer in Vanuatu

What happens to your Correspondence Match partnership now that the end of the school year is fast approaching? For most of you, nothing will change; the matches are designed to last the Volunteer’s entire service, usually two years. We recommend that you stay in touch with your Volunteer over the summer, just to keep your correspondence active and ready to start again in earnest when the new school year starts.

If you know that your Volunteer is ending Peace Corps service over the summer and you would like a new Volunteer, please let us know by sending an email. Coverdell World Wise Schools can then connect you with another Volunteer as soon as possible so the new connection can get established now, in preparation for the upcoming school year.

Not participating in Correspondence Match yet? Now is the best time to enroll for the upcoming school year and avoid the September rush.

Asia and the Pacific Islands

China: A Taste of Tongren Practice your Mandarin language skills and join Peace Corps Volunteer Amy Throndsen on a culinary tour of Tongren City in China's Guizhou Province. Lesson plan
Fiji: The Coral Reef A valuable teaching tool for any classroom studying coral reefs, the video covers topics such as the biology of corals, community relationships, feeding behaviors, defense adaptations, and the effect of humans on coral reefs.
Palau: Tracking Turtles in the Western Pacific For two years, Peace Corps Volunteer Sarah Klain helped lead efforts for sea-turtle conservation in Palau. With local partners, she researched and tracked the marine reptiles and encouraged educational efforts to protect turtle populations. Lesson plan
Philippines: One Day in the Rainy Season Thunderstorms and the force of nature take on a whole new dimension in this reflective story by returned Peace Corps Volunteer Noah Jackson. Podcast
Tonga: Bringing Business to Farmers Peace Corps Volunteer Jeannine Hurrish describes community life and work in Tonga, where she built business skills with the Future Farmers of Tonga organization.

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