Cultivating and Harvesting Opportunity

By Matt Andrew

I often ask myself if it’s really possible for me to change everything in the world that I deem frustrating, wrong or unacceptable. It’s difficult to really tell what is or isn’t possible as possibility relies heavily on not only personal drive and determination, but also politics, the economy and the resources or opportunity available at the time. I have personally witnessed the role that these resources play in making possibilities into realities throughout various parts of the world.

Having traveled to Nicaragua, as well as Guatemala and Kenya, I have witnessed poverty and the struggles people have on a daily basis. Being put into a foreign community that has limited resources is very challenging to deal with at first. It’s hard to grasp the idea of children who can’t go to school because they don’t have shoes, classrooms that consist of a couple of walls made of mud or corrugated tin and women who walk two hours one way to fetch dirty, parasitic water for their families.

I have helped take down these classrooms to build new, better ones, I have interacted with students, talked to teachers and given my time, all in attempt to learn from them and gain more knowledge, while also providing assistance.

Nevertheless, I always still found myself asking why? Where does poverty stem from? Why is there such a struggle for development?

Perspective is a very useful tool when you want to attempt to understand some aspects of poverty and development. It allows you to realize not only what people in developing nations don’t have, but what we have in the United States. It shows that the resources that we have create opportunities, which allow us to be a developed nation.

Opportunity is one of the greatest things an individual can receive to help facilitate development. There’s no reason to say that a child in Kenya without shoes or access to clean water can’t be a doctor who finds the cure to AIDS or a technology guru who revolutionizes the digital age. Everyone on this earth has the same ability and potential to succeed in life. The difference is the opportunity that is provided to them.

I spent time with students in Nicaragua, Guatemala and Kenya. They were all children who were smart individuals, ready to take on academics and fulfill their dreams of becoming a doctor, accountant, lawyer or master of another trade. However, I questioned the reality of the situation when I learned of the conditions they were in. There is a secondary school in Kenya, for example, that has one classroom for 75 students. They expected another 120 students in another 6 months while all sharing about three books per subject.

Now put that into perspective with the resources that we have in the United States.

Opportunity and the idea of development begin to look clearer. Here in the United States, every student has a book, which they open up on a desk in a fully functional classroom. By providing additional classrooms and learning resources to students in Kenya, it essentially brings a greater opportunity for these students to learn, and get a better education while improving their chance of future success and development.

It isn’t difficult to make a difference in someone’s life. Regardless of whether it is globally or locally, helping to provide opportunity will not only help an individual succeed in their particular endeavors, but also change their life. It is important to know that the smallest gesture goes a long way in creating opportunity.

On my first Alternative Spring Break trip to Nicaragua in 2008, I met a boy named Pedro. While painting at the high school, Pedro began communicating with me and the other Quinnipiac students on the trip through broken English. He was able to do this because he studied English out of his cousin’s dictionary that he borrowed three times a week. This was not required for his schooling. He simply wanted to learn English.

As a delegation, we realized the passion and drive Pedro had to learn. As a group we each donated $10 to fund a scholarship for Pedro to attend Alianza Americana, an English speaking school in Leon, Nicaragua. Within a few months Pedro was the best student the school has ever had. Today, Pedro is fluent in English, is attending a university where he is studying Hematology in order to fulfill his dreams of becoming a doctor, and now teaches English at Alianza where he earns money to pay for his studies.

Because of the small gift we gave Pedro, his dreams are becoming a reality. We provided Pedro an opportunity to learn and an opportunity to succeed. As a result, his life is changed.

So regardless of whether you are in Hamden, Conn., or on the other side of the world, remember the importance of opportunity and the significance it can have on someone. Everybody has the ability to succeed, but not everyone is given the chance they may deserve. It doesn’t take much to impact somebody’s life, but when you do, the opportunities are endless.