I’m one semester from my bachelor degree in Development Communication, and today I can for the first time say that I have gained experience in the field. For the last couple of weeks I have been working together with the Auroville Bamboo Centre, designing information panels for them to bring to a national Bamboo exhibition. 

Working practically has been a great experience. For the first time I have been forced to put some of my skills to practice. Three weeks ago I had almost zero InDesign knowledge but today I sit here with three complete panels that actually look good. There have been obstacles on the way here, but I guess that’s just how it is when working with other human beings who are not a 100% sure of what they need or want. I have been forced to adjust the content a couple of times because of misunderstandings or misinformation. It is not easy joining an organization as a complete outsider, having no knowledge at all about bamboo or the goals and missions of the organization. You really have to start from scratch and collect all the little details. I had several problems in the beginning and often felt that I did not have the necessary skills.
However, there is nothing that a couple of extra meetings won’t solve, and after the last meeting I really felt that I understood what the final product was supposed to look like. It also helped that I conducted a more detailed target group analysis. When I left Sweden for Auroville I had one goal, I wanted to work on a project that could bring me personal growth, and today I feel that that goal is accomplished.  I definitely feel that my communication skills have been given a real boost, and just the mere knowledge of that I am able to produce products on a tight schedule in real organization feels good. This is far from writing papers or handing in group assignments, the Auroville Bamboo Centre is a real functioning organization and hopefully they will profit from my work.