About This Blog

About Me

Welcome to my blog! My name is Erin and I’m from Canada. I was a Venture Leader in the agriculture sector for Engineers Without Borders Canada from 2010-2013. I worked in Tamale, Ghana with the district and regional offices of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA). My work revolved around making MoFA’s Agricultural Extension Agents (AEAs) more farmer-focused and effective in their work. This included one-on-one coaching with AEAs and their managers, workshops on skills like facilitation, group dynamics and empowerment, as well as designing strategies to institutionalize this approach within MoFA. I also worked on organizational capacity-building within MoFA to improve the quality and efficiency of their work.

I graduated from Mechatronics Engineering at the University of Waterloo in 2009. During university, I spent time as a co-op student in China, Germany and Ghana working in a variety of industries. My passion for international development flourished through my involvement in the student chapter of EWB at Waterloo. I now live in San Francisco, where I’m working on improving my skills and gaining experience in the tech sector.

About the Blog Name:

What am I doing here?

Through my blog, I hope to ask – and answer – this question on a regular basis. This blog is designed to give updates on my life in Ghana, both work and play. If you’re ever wondering “What is Erin up to these days?”, you should be able to come here and find out.

But on a deeper level, I am regularly asking myself “What am I doing here?” as a question of purpose. What am I working toward? Am I making progress and having a positive impact on rural Ghanaians? Am I sure that the goal I’m working toward is the right one, or do I need to change it? By stopping and asking myself this question, I will make sure that I’m always moving in a positive direction. I hope to use this blog to share some of my reflections on the tough questions that inevitably come with this line of work.