Guatemala is known for its incredible biodiversity (when a habit or place has a lot of different species). There are so many different microclimates (mini climates), as well as 37 official volcanoes. Guatemala also has rich cultural diversity. There are 24 Indigenous (the first people who lived in a place) languages spoken in Guatemala, and that does not even include all of the different dialects! In Palestina de Los Altos, most people speak the Indigenous language called Mam. I have just started receiving tutoring in Mam! Guatemala is also known for having delicious coffeem and it is the birthplace of chocolate.... yum!
Originally, my mom’s family is from Hudson, Wisconsin, and my dad is Australian. However, I was born in Guayaquil, Ecuador and moved around a lot growing up because my parents are international school teachers. I have lived in Ecuador, Indonesia, Bangladesh, India and Thailand. It was hard moving so often, but I am so grateful for all the different countries I got to explore and for the amazing people I met!
For university, I went to Scripps College, a historically women’s college in Claremont, California, and I studied psychology and legal studies. I loved learning all about people, including why we are the way we are and why we make certain choices, as well as the impacts of our upbringing, culture, genetics/biology and more! I applied for financial aid and got work as a Residential Assistant (R.A.), which is basically a support person who lives in a specific dorm and is there to help everyone else. This enabled me to attend my dream school. In college, I played rugby and sang in an a cappella group, and I also had a couple of jobs on campus.
