RE: Peace Corps-type orgs for P2?

Hey Jordan, next time ask me a hard one! J

To find the P2 organizations in Peace Corps type countries go to

http://www.uneptie.org/pc/cp/ncpc/home.htm

There are about 25 national Cleaner Production centers, many in very neat places where the Peace Corps works. Any of them would be very happy to have you there I am sure. There are several in Central America which is nice because it’s real development work but not too far from home.

And good for you – a year abroad doing the Good Thing and getting great results – the low hanging fruit is not even noticed in many of these places – you will come back a happier person with great experiences.

If you need personal recommendations for contacts in Philippines, China, Vietnam, Thailand, India, Honduras, Peru, or Indonesia, email me, I worked there on P2. I would have added Nepal and Sri Lanka but those poor countries are in civil war now L . Too bad, they were great assignments back in the day… Also I have contacts at the South Pacific Regional Environmental Programme that supports the whole South Pacific, where P2 in small communities makes a huge difference. Imagine doing P2 in Bora Bora – it’s possible! I would take those assignments myself but I have got 1 million Freq Flier miles on NW Airlines alone, and have been gone for 4 years of my 14-year old daughter’s life. I am staying home now…

Burton Hamner

Cleaner Production Int’l

www.cleanerproduction.com

wbhamner@cleanerproduction.com

From: owner-p2tech@great-lakes.net [mailto:owner-p2tech@great-lakes.net] On Behalf Of Jordan Munn
Sent: Monday, October 30, 2006 6:12 PM
To: p2tech@great-lakes.net
Subject: Peace Corps-type orgs for P2?

I've been a lurker on this list since the mid-1990s when I worked for the Great Lakes MTC and this list was young (!). I met a few of you at meetings in Chicago years and years ago, but evolved out of classical P2 into Lean Six Sigma, and "evolved" through several places to an insurance company in DC.

My periodic sense of ennui about the corporate world and desire to "make a difference in the world" have got me *seriously* thinking about applying for the Peace Corps.

Before I make that leap to potentially digging ditches, I'd like to investigate whether there are ways to use my years and years of experience doing process improvement and pollution prevention at factories and other businesses.

What are the other organizations where Industrial/Chemical engineers can help the world environment, preferably abroad? I'm at the place in my career/life where I'm willing to trade the cushy salary for the opportunity to really make a difference, and I'm sure you guys have got the goods!

Many Thanks!
Jordan