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Tucson-Mexico Sister Cities

Fall 2005 was the first semester in which UA HCET interns worked with the Tucson-Mexico Sister Cities Organization. We had a bit of a rocky start; however, we have made significant headway with these members of the board and are looking forward to a much more productive semester this spring. Our projects so far have mostly been focused on increasing the efficiency and level of organization of TMSC-- essentially helping to lay the groundwork that will allow it to have a more significant impact in the community.

Nonetheless, we learned a great deal from our experience: how to earn the trust of the board members, to proactively seek our role in the organization, to analyze the functioning of the organization, to make specific suggestions for improvement, to present those convincingly to the board, and to work effectively as a team. We also participated in the end of a project which TMSC had started before we became interns: the donation of hospital beds to border communities in need of medical supplies. Because Sonoyta has no local clinic, the beds were put in a “bed bank” for local residents to borrow free of cost and use in their homes for bedridden family members.

This Spring, we are working to continue to implement our ideas to help the organization become more streamlined. Additionally, our goal for this semester is to build up more youth participation within the organization, especially at the university level.

By Emilie Brill Duisberg

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