Queen Elizabeth Scholars Internships in Ghana Student Experiences

Resilience and Community: An Internship in Ghana 

Keesha Atitsogbui is a fourth-year Criminology student at Laurier’s Brantford Campus. In the summer of 2025 she had the opportunity to complete a two-month internship with the Green Africa Youth Organization (GAYO) in Accra, Ghana. From the moment she arrived, she was struck by the warmth of the people and the energy of the city. Although navigating and being immersed in a culture that is nothing like Canada can be intimidating, the experience became one of the most transformative of her academic and personal journey. 

Interning with GAYO allowed Keesha to engage with real-world issues at the intersection of climate action, waste management, and youth empowerment. Her workdays were spent contributing to community-based environmental projects, assisting with media campaigns, and supporting educational outreach that encouraged sustainable practices. She witnessed firsthand how grassroots organizations mobilize to create meaningful change, even in the face of limited resources. One of Keesha's fondest memories was visiting the Material Recovery Facility in Accra, where she saw community members actively engaged in recycling and composting efforts. She found it inspiring to see how small daily actions, when multiplied across a community, could contribute to both environmental sustainability and economic opportunity. She left with a deeper appreciation for resilience, collaboration, and the power of collective action. 

Coming back to Canada, Keesha finds herself reflecting on the values she experienced in Ghana: resourcefulness, togetherness, and a commitment to progress despite challenges. These lessons have not only broadened her academic perspective but have also shaped how she wants to contribute to her community here at home.

Keesha encourages other students to take advantage of international opportunities. Stepping into a new environment can feel uncertain, but it is in those moments that you grow the most. Her internship in Ghana gave her more than professional experience; it also gave her a renewed sense of purpose, perspective, and possibility.

Step outside your comfort zone and say 'yes' to new opportunities

Eden Potocic is a fourth-year Sociology major looking for opportunities to travel and gain hands-on experience working in the non-profit sector. She learned about the QEScholars program and was immediately hooked by the new goals targeted towards environmental sustainability and migration. She was intrigued by the opportunity for travel in a location so different from her own in Canada. The Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Program provided funding that enabled Eden to travel to Ghana for just over two months. 

The adjustment from being a student in Canada to being an intern in Ghana was steep. She departed from Toronto in late May of 2025 and arrived in Ghana just as rainy season was beginning. “Our first few weeks were so hot, we were grateful when the weather got a bit cooler and cloudier”. She travelled with two other students from Laurier which provided a good sense of support upon embarking on such a far journey.  

Although it was difficult being so far away from home, she was pleasantly surprised by the level of community and friendship she was able to foster in such a short period of time. Eden and the other students had housing accommodations on the University of Ghana campus in an international student dormitory, which provided her with opportunities to meet other students from around the world and locals her age. “We found a sense of home and comfort in the people around us so quickly, everyone was so kind and helpful as we were adjusting to life in Ghana”.  

The University of Ghana’s International Programmes Office provided Eden and her fellow students with an immense amount of support and even invited them to participate in some summer programming and excursions during their stay. “We had the opportunity to travel with the school to various other cities and villages during our first month in Ghana. Once we’d experienced travelling through the country with the help of IPO staff and other international students, we felt confident enough to embark on our own adventures the following month”.  

The differences in infrastructure, economy, politics, and general social norms took some getting used to, but eventually Eden began to feel a sense of comfort in her friends and routine. “I remember initially, the markets were the most jarring experience for me. They were chaotic, loud and bargaining prices was not my strong suit… but after a while we learned to embrace and navigate the organized chaos and I grew to really enjoy them”.  Eden got the chance to travel to various regions in Ghana filled with rainforests, waterfalls, and diverse cultures with incredible histories.

In addition to hard skill development interning for Green Africa Youth Organization, being in a cultural context so different from her own also provided Eden with a lot of opportunity for personal growth. She developed a much deeper understanding of global citizenship and gained first-person experiences of many challenges faced by countries in the Global South. “I was consistently considering my own identity factors, checking my privilege, and fostering a deep sense of empathy as I navigated so many different peoples and contexts in Ghana”.  

Learn more about this internship and apply here.