Week Ten: And I'm Homebound
Week ten! Where did the time go? It is my last day at NCSC and one of my last days in D.C. before heading home for a few weeks and then ultimately back to classes in Williamsburg.
This week comprised of a few different projects, many continuing from assignments earlier in the summer. I worked on finalizing the Bangladesh report I compiled earlier this summer. It highlighted the tasks in the thirteen pilot districts and their efforts to increase access to and understanding of the courts. Many of the districts utilized the same techniques, such as operating a hotline number for information on how to obtain government legal aid services, while only some had implemented certain plans, such as access to alternative dispute resolution services. I worked on this report earlier in the summer so much of the information was not new to me, but it was interesting to see the transition and changes throughout the editing process.
Another small project I have been working on this week was for the CBSI (Caribbean Basin Security Initiative). NCSC plans to host a workshop on sexual assault in the OECS (Organization of Eastern Caribbean States) and the Barbados. These small countries face unique challenges that are different than many of the crimes that the larger islands face. For example, in OECS many of the sexual offenses are from incest and domestic violence, rather than violent sexual crimes like rape. Aside from the obvious problems with sexual offenses, this type of crime is often not reported or there are not efficient mechanisms to deal with the crimes. The workshop aims to delve into how to deal with this type of salacious content and identify solutions to the preposterous crimes. While the countries requested NCSC to lead the conferences, the proposal must still be budgeted and approved. I was in charge of writing the basis of the technical proposal, which will be finalized and hopefully implemented later this summer.
I'll be honest, it does feel strange to be writing my final blog. This summer has flown by, and am glad I got to spend my first summer as a legal intern at NCSC. I learned a lot about rule of law implementation and international assignments that aim to ensure access to justice. I worked on projects spanning throughout the world which involved a variety of topics, ranging from court management to juvenile crime and justice. Other things I learned at NCSC: where tiny countries in the world are located (and their flags), obscure acronyms, and how to implement challenge words. I acquired quite the variety of skills.
Finally, thank you to my coworkers and bosses throughout the summer. I had a very positive experience at NCSC and learned a lot about international rule of law projects. Although I am still unsure about what I would like to do in the future, who knows, maybe I'll be back in the blogging sphere.
Until then,
Bryony
