Hello! My name is Ryan Schreyer and I am currently a sophomore here at the University of Pittsburgh. I am majoring in both Accounting & Finance (with a possible Spanish minor) and seeking a certificate in International Business. When I’m not focusing on my classes, I support the Soccer for Social Change Club as the Business Manager through fundraising and event organization. I also am an avid Wisconsin sports fan rooting for the Packers, bucks, and the Badgers. Additionally, I volunteer 1-2 times a week and coach local children and refugees on a U15 soccer team. I also have an interest in data and analytics. I will be working as an audit intern this summer so I can learn more about this passion!

I am very familiar with Pitt’s study abroad programs considering I traveled to Costa Rica with Pitt’s Plus3 program last spring. The experience was incredible and it has led me back to Pitt’s abroad programs to now be a part of the Global Service Learning experience in Trinidad and Tobago. Studying abroad is something I am becoming very passionate about the more I learn about it. The opportunity to not only learn about international concepts in a classroom but apply them directly by traveling across the world is one I can never pass up on. I find the differences in ethics, face-to-face meetings, priorities, management and so much more incredibly fascinating. I specifically chose to study in Trinidad and Tobago because of the appeal of traveling to an island country and because of the work, we will be doing with turtles. However, I decided on the Global Service Learning Experience because of how the program is structured. We spend the first nine weeks of the semester preparing to go abroad by meeting virtually with partners, drafting our scope of work, and learning about the culture of the place we are going. All of this preparation leads to us going in-country over spring break where everything we have prepared for gets applied. We work hands-on with the nonprofit to achieve and deliver our stated outcomes. After the trip, we reflect on the work we completed by creating a report and having follow-up meetings. This specific structure of having the visit in the middle of the semester specifically grabbed my interest. We are able to come prepared and leave with time to reflect! Studying abroad also helps to set up my career considering I hope to pursue my passion and work internationally in either Accounting or Finance.

The Global Service Learning specifically has my interest because we are working directly with a Nonprofit in Trinidad named NatureSeekers. Working directly with a nonprofit will allow us to better understand how nonprofits operate in comparison to for-profit businesses. This, in turn, could also open opportunities for us to work in the nonprofit sector in the future. NatureSeekers is an amazing nonprofit with three major areas of focus; Sea Turtle conservation, ecotourism, and community outreach. Their Sea Turtle division protects turtles that come on the beach of Matura from being poached or killed in any other random way. Turtles have been around for millions of years and recently have become endangered due to things like poaching. NatureSeekers efforts help prevent the extinction of turtle species like Leatherback and Green turtles. NatureSeekers is not just saving a beautiful animals by preventing the poaching and protecting the turtles, they are giving people jobs. Previously, there was a lot of unemployment in Matura considering there wasn’t much of an economy. However, with NatureSeeker’s efforts to save the turtles, came the opportunity for ecotourism. Tourists love to see turtles in their natural environments and it is very rare to find such a location, making Matura a highly sought-after place to visit. The growth in ecotourism created a huge job market considering Patrol jobs and tour guides were needed for the tours. Many of the people who took on the jobs were even poachers themselves! Finally, NatureSeekers also provides food for those in need. They offer subscriptions in which food can be received and members of the community can also get involved and donate food.
Now you may be wondering what role our team at Pitt plays throughout this project.

NatureSeekers spends almost all of their time working hands-on with both ecotourism and the turtles. This leaves them a little bit unorganized when it comes to inventory records, meaning they don’t have all of their assets listed in one place. Our job throughout this semester and while we are in Trinidad is to create a soft copy inventory record for NatureSeekers. With this record, they will be able to respond to data requests and have a paperless management system. Additionally, we will be aiding in NatureSeeker’s marketing by creating social media posts that will effectively advertise their nonprofit in a way that will attract engagement and ecotourism. Lucky for us, we have been given some help with our task. Another organization, Amizade, is working with us and NatureSeekers to ensure that we are entirely accommodated for whilst in the country. They also have been very helpful pre-departure considering we have met with them and gone over plenty of logistics.

We currently sit at the end of week 4 which means we have a little over a month until our departure to Trinidad and Tobago. As of now, our team is on track to be more than prepared upon our arrival. Through meeting with both Amizade and NatureSeekers, we have gathered all the information and data we need in order to craft our deliverables. Now, we will start work on our inventory record system and plan social media ideas. A huge thank you to everyone at NatureSeekers and at Amizade for their help along the way, our work wouldn’t be at the point it is right now without their help. Another huge thank you to our professors in the class who have also helped throughout the start of our project. We are incredibly excited to get to Trinidad and Tobago and there are plenty more blog posts to come!