Bunge worked as a photographer during the summer for the ‘Dominican Sustainable Tourism Alliance,’ an NGO in Dominican Republic

Marcella Bunge, a Mercyhurst College senior from Nicaragua, had the chance to work with USAID in the Dominican Republic this summer.

Bunge got the job through the U.S. Forest Service to complete her senior project for her minor in sustainability studies.

“They placed me with USAID, who was starting a project, in the Dominican Republic,” Bunge said.

Because of her major in Studio Art, Marcella served as a photographer providing the USAID/DSTA with marketable photographs for the NGO’s sustainable eco-tourism projects that would be used on brochures, postcards, Web sites, advertisements or whatever they need.

Bunge was able to attend USAID/DSTA meetings, speak with locals, and go to environmental rights rallies. She said it was an exciting opportunity to be able to travel around the country taking photos.

“I learned many things about how to get involved and become aware of local issues and improve an area’s economic situation while preserving its culture and environment,” Bunge said.

She said she was interested in the region because her family had just moved to the Dominican Republic, and she wants to work on environmental issues in Latin America and the Caribbean in the future.

Bunge was the only Mercyhurst student involved in the program, although other students can find other opportunities similar to this. USAID offers many internships and fellowship programs to civil and foreign service positions.

According to their Web site, USAID branches out to provide a better future for many countries by “Supporting Agriculture & the Environment, Expanding Education & Training, Fostering Democracy & Governance, Advancing Global Health, Promoting Economic Growth & Trade, Cultivating Global Partnerships, and Providing Humanitarian Assistance.”

This was not Bunge’s first study abroad experience. “I’m from Nicaragua, and I used to travel with my soccer team around Central America. I’ve also been to Abuja, Nigeria, to visit my family when they lived there, and I studied abroad last year in Florence, Italy,” she said.

With the money Bunge made over the summer, she was able to travel to Thailand as well.

“I went to Thailand because I had made enough money to go and my friend told me I should visit,” she said. “When I was there I just traveled with my friend and explored many areas in Chiang Mai and Bangkok.”

Bunge took this picture inside the the ‘Los Tres Ojos’ (The Three Eyes) cave.: She said is was named this way because of it’s three bodies of water which contain unique biospheres.