Eric Raimondi, Still I Rise, Greece
My work this summer is coming to an end. When I first envisioned interning with Still I Rise as a Gallatin Global Human Rights Fellow, I was excited to return to this organization because I know the work they do consistently has a positive impact on the people they serve. I wanted to assist Still I Rise in the areas of research and communications, and thanks to the flexibility of the organization agreement, I was able to do that.
![Still I Rise Logo](https://bpb-us-e1.wpmucdn.com/wp.nyu.edu/dist/e/935/files/2022/08/download-300x143.png)
As my past blog posts demonstrate, my work has involved a range of tasks, including drafting press releases, researching data and legal developments related to migration, and writing internal and external reports. I wanted to have an impact on the organization while at the same time learn from the work in order to guide my future endeavors. For example, my most recent project was to research and draft a report on the parallels between the EU and Greek asylum legal frameworks. While this experience allowed me to contribute my skills and previous knowledge to Still I Rise, this was also exposure to working alongside human rights researchers.
Due to unforeseen circumstances, my work ended up being a blend of remote and in person work in the field. For about a month and a half, I was based in Greece to collect testimonies and engage with people involved in the asylum process on the Aegean islands. However, for the remainder of the internship timeline, I was based in other locations and completed the work remotely. When I wasn’t in Greece and worked remotely, I found it more difficult to schedule my time and coordinate all my tasks. Although I was still successful when I worked remotely, I largely preferred the in person work because of the face-to-face interactions with colleagues it offered.
Overall, I am pleased with my experience with Still I Rise and am more knowledgeable about the human rights field. In the future as I consider other career and academic opportunities, I hope to draw from this informative experience.