Wrap Up and Hand Off

I ended my internship a couple of weeks ago. Since then I have seen six airports, relaxed, and started my second year as an MBA at the Darden School of Business.

In retrospect, writing a business plan for a protected area in Cambodia was a difficult challenge.

The draft I handed off to CCIF was, I felt, well-researched but incomplete. The most rewarding work was done in Phnom Penh with my coworker Sarah, bouncing ideas off people and organizations that have a stake in the Cardamom Mountains, and I wish I could have collaborated more with the CCIF team on refining the plan based on those conversations.

Thanks to everyone who has been reading this blog and vicariously working as a conservation financista in Bali, Indonesia.

Lembongan seaweed cultivation (island close to Bali)

Terraced rice-farming on the road to Bedugul, Bali

Bedugul, Bali

Phnom Penh by Cab

(**Click on collage to enlarge**)

Off to Phnom Penh

So, my input to the draft business plan is finished (the presentation I gave to my boss well-received) and I have been busy preparing for a series of face-to-face interviews that start Wednesday in Phnom Penh. It will be great to be in the field to talk directly to people about our ideas concerning trusts and financing strategies for conservation in the Cardamom Mountains.

I write the final wrap up of my blog next week when I back in the US. It promises to be introspective and long--I will try to break it up with photos!