Part of a series of posts from Bachelor of Commerce student blogger, Danny Hertz, written during a Loran Scholarship outreach project in the Philippines.

As many of you know, I’ve accepted an internship working this summer based out of Manila in the Philippines. I am currently in my second week working for a wholesale microfinance institution here, and am planning to send out updates on a bi-weekly basis. Your comments and questions are appreciated, and I will try to respond to them when I have internet access and a computer nearby.

Background Information

Q: Why on earth are you working in the Philippines this summer? Wouldn’t it be much easier to stay at home in Canada?

A: As part of my Loran scholarship, I am required to do three summer experiences: public policy, international personal and community development, and enterprise. Last summer was my public policy summer where I worked for the Canadian Embassy in Washington, this will be my international personal and community development summer, and next year will be my enterprise internship. After looking into a few different possibilities throughout the school year, I decided to pursue a position in the microfinance field this summer and wanted to spend some time in Southeast Asia. I had the good fortune to receive an offer from Seed Finance, and haven’t looked back since.

Q: What is microfinance?

A: Microfinance is the provision of basic financial services (lending, savings, insurance, money transfer) to the lower-income segments of society that the traditional, formal finance sector does not serve. Microfinance is being used as a tool to combat poverty in the developing world, and in my opinion, has the potential to make a greater, longer term impact than other types of development funding. Microcredit, the loans aspect of microfinance, has largely been a private sector initiative that has been proven that it can be self-sustaining and does not necessarily rely on continual external sources of grants or subsidies.

Q: How is microfinance used to help the poor?

A: By providing the financial services that we in the western world tend to take for granted, microfinance allows for individuals and families to increase their financial security and increase both their income and their wealth levels. Loans are provided for entrepreneurs to start or grow their own small businesses to provide for their families, savings products allow for families to put aside funds for sudden demands for cash that everyone faces (sickness, weddings, education expenses, etc.), while microinsurance helps reduce the vulnerability to external shocks that would otherwise devastate the family’s financial security.

Part of a series of posts from Bachelor of Commerce student blogger, Danny Hertz, written during a Loran Scholarship outreach project in the Philippines.

I left the Calgary Airport on a clear and cool, -2° C morning, and stepped out of the plane into the 38°C heat of a Manila afternoon some 40 hours. After arriving at the office, I was briefed on Seed Finance (SF), the organization that I am interning with, and given a full schedule of my itinerary for the following three weeks by Mr. Jun Perez, the CEO of the for-profit financing company. To my surprise, they had already organized a busy three weeks worth of activities for the duration of May, including meetings with some of Seed Finance’s loan providers, business partners, and clients. As a wholesale financial institution, SF provides loans worth a total of $9 million and training services to 70 retail microfinance institutions who then provide financial products to over 1.2 million people throughout the Philippines. Mr. Perez discussed the four main projects that I will be working on for the duration of the summer, which will be discussed in more detail in future updates.

Living in the Philippines

At least for the first month, I will be staying at a hostel in a residential (read: non-touristy) area of Metro Manila. The place is only a few steps down from first-year residences at Queen’s, but is working well for me so far. The most important thing is that it has an air conditioner, as I would probably not be able to sleep without one (night time temperatures only dip down to 25°C). I’ve only seen two cockroaches in the building and a handful of other bugs since checking in, which is actually not too bad. The price is right though, and I only pay $7.50 per night for a single room. Eating regular meals here has been an ongoing adjustment for me, and I try to eat a mix of Filipino food and “normal” fast food from good ol’ McDonalds and Pizza Hut. It’s customary to eat rice at least two times a day here (and often for breakfast), as it’s the replacement for bread products that we would normally have back home. People here eat a lot of fish, which has also been a pretty big change for me having grown up on a cattle ranch. Last week I had one stretch of 6 meals in a row with only fish as my meat product, I don’t think I would have had more than 6 meals in my entire life that had fish in them up until that point.

Jeepneys and “Balut”

The two most memorable completely new experiences that I’ve had so far have been riding jeepneys and eating the local delicacy in Southeast Asia, balut. Jeepneys are the main form of public transportation for local Filipinos, and are essentially a really off-road, low-cost looking version of a van. So far I’ve been the only North American that I’ve seen ride one, and judging by the looks I get from fellow passengers, I very well could be the first white person ever to climb into one. During rush hours, it’s common to squeeze 14 or 16 people into one that should normally hold about 8 comfortably. No seatbelts, no padded seats, and I pretty much go on a hope and a prayer that it’s travelling in the right direction. However, I’ve found that people here are always willing to point you in the right direction when you’re completely lost and in a different part of the city than you’ve ever seen before (which has happened to me on numerous occasions).

Last week, I travelled to Ormoc City with some colleagues from Seed Finance for a dialogue to hear what their suggestions and concerns with the business were. After our meetings one night, we went out to a karaoke bar and then proceeded to find some local “street food”, and in particular “balut”. Apparently it’s quite a popular thing to do here for Filipinos to try and get Europeans and North Americans to try to eat balut, but few manage to convince them to do so. I did not have the distinction of being told exactly what it was prior to opening up the egg, and it took me a while to find out. After drinking the juice (which I had to put a ton of salt on to be able to choke down), I then decided to eat the yolk because it looked like the next safest thing in comparison to the dark mass at the bottom of the shell. Upon closer inspection, I then realized that there were feathers on that dark mass. It was at that point that I was informed that balut is actually a fertilized duck egg that is 17 days old. They can hatch as young as 25 days, so you can imagine how developed they were at that point (feathers, beak and feet all intact). Thankfully I didn’t eat that part of the egg, but I was the only one in the group who took a pass on it.

“Social responsibility- the business issue of the 21^st century”   -Forbes Magazine

QSB is quite unique as it offers students the option of pursuing the Certificate of Corporate Social Responsibility (CCSR). I am a CCSR canidate, but rather than make a blank pitch for the program, I’d like to share a story. During reading week this year, 53 students from the Commerce program at Queen’s set out for an international outreach trip to Tijuana, Mexico. Boardwalk was a very generous sponsor and covered 75% of our costs. We were divided into team blue and team red, and were able to build 2 homes in the span of 4 days. We lived in the Youth With A Mission (YWAM) campus. YWAM is a Christian missionary organization which operates internationally: www.ywam.org

DAY 1

We hopped off the plane in San Diego. There were PALM TREES. After a few months of Kingston winter, I was ready for some sun. After meeting YWAM, we hopped into some vans and drove down to Tijuana. It was my first time being so close to the Pacific Ocean. My first impression of Mexico were the colours-rich greens and spots of flowery colours. The roads crossed through many valleys. The sky was so blue. At orientation, we were presented with several safety hazards and warnings, and met the rest of our building team.

DAY 2   

Waking up was interesting. No cell phones or e-mails or watches or textbooks. At breakfast, I savored a cereal not yet available in Canada- chocolate crispies. mmmmm. After we cleaned up, we drove off to the colonial (the construction site). It was a very bittersweet drive. The view was magnificent, but you notice the underlying disease of poverty. Everyone waved “hola” as we drove by- absolutely everyone we passed. Everything was a really big team effort. The QSB staff worked with us. The family worked with us as well. The 2 kids of the family, Nani (2 year-old supermodel) and Alex (4 year-old soccer champion) were of the cutest kids I’ve ever met. We continued to paint and hammer and enjoy each other’s company. No one had to check their watch or fix their make-up or pour over facebook. After dinner, I was amazed at how close I felt with some of the commies on my building team.

DAY 3

Everyone was pumped to get back to building. After putting up the walls, we started to assemble the roof and install the drywall. Francesca (the mother) spent 3 hours making tamales for us. She’s 22 years old. I was so touched. It was all delicious. We moved a bunk bed, a table, 4 chairs, a small fridge and a stove into the house. The QSB staff shopped in Canada to bring them other household goods (towels, toothpaste, pencil crayons, checkers, watches, shoes, paper, broom etc) and laid it all on the bed. Once the house was done, we all assembled outside in a circle. Each person said a few words to the family (with the help of our translator, David) and the keys to the house was passed around. The family thanked us and Francesca said to all of us through genuine tears “thank you for everything you have done for us. This is our house, but this is also your house. This is our house- all of us.” We watched as the family walked into the house as closed the doors. Someone knocked on the door and we were greeted with smiling faces. We took pictures in front of the house and said goodbye to the family. Francesca invited us to visit anytime “so long as the lights are on”. Alex gave me a big hug and kissed me on the cheek, “hasta luego” (see you soon).  

DAY 4

The reality of leaving Mexico was starting to kick-in, but everyone ignored it for the most part. Mexico has made a huge impact on my life. It feels like an entire year’s worth of memories was crammed into a few short days. Along the border, there are many different ”shops” and merchants walking up to your vehicle to sell a variety of different goods- ukeleles, carpets, wrestling masks, unidentifiable fruit juices, tacos etc.

So all-in-all, I had a spectacular reading week and completed my CCSR outreach hours at the same time. If you are interested in international opportunities, I’d recommend that you check out these websites:

Gap Adventures: http://www.gapadventures.com/ (eco-tourism)

WUSC: http://www.wusc.ca  (students without borders)

Volunteers for Peace: http://www.vfp.org (outreach, work camps)

AIESEC: http://www.aiesec.ca (international internships)

 Cheers,

Even though I’m only one week into my exchange experience in Norway, it’s been an incredible journey so far! Things like navigating grocery stores, turning on a stove, or trying to read a bus map has been a bit of a challenge, but I’ve been able to ask people for help and they’ve been very receptive. A few days ago, I was lost trying to find a bank so I stopped to ask a local Norwegian for directions. The woman pointed the correct streets out to me, and I kept on walking. Unfortunately, being so directionally challenged I still managed to take a wrong turn somewhere. Thankfully, the woman had noticed, chased me down and walked with me the rest of the way!

The International Student Association (InSA) at BI School of Management has been instrumental in helping exchange students get around. From arranging sightseeing tours (I’ve included a few pics in this post), to concerts and pub crawls, to intercultural workshops, it’s through these events that I’ve been able to meet people from all around the world. I’ve made friends with students from Norway, Spain, Germany, Finland, France, Singapore, Australia, Austria…and of course, a few other Canadians!

Last week, another student from Queen’s approached me as I was on the bus and introduced herself. She’s attending another university in Norway, but I was blown away by how strong the Queen’s network is to be able to meet another Queen’s student over 6000 kilometres away from Kingston! I guess it really is a small world.

Until next time!

Katherine Wong Too Yen, BCom’12

To start, for anyone who hasn’t viewed their meal plan options yet, you can see them all by going to http://housing.queensu.ca/hospitality_services/maincampusoptions.asp

If you just want the conclusion and don’t care about the explanations, scroll to the bottom paragraph, stopping to look at the table on the way.

Before we start to breakdown the value of each plan, let’s discuss what you can actually do with a meal plan. It’s highly unlikely that you’ll be eating most of your meals in the caf. Fortunately, your meal plan allows you to buy food at the venues across campus with meal equivalencies and AMP dollars. These venues include any place found in Queen’s buildings like the Goodes Cafe, Lazy Scholar, Mac-Corry, and the basement of Botterell (I think the Timmies in the Biosci Complex is an exception, but as commerce students, you’ll probably never go there). Then in the new ARC, there’s Pizza Pizza, Teriyaki, Booster Juice, a Grill, and Timmies (substantiating the fact you’ll never go to the one in BioSci). There’s also a Quiznos in the JDUC. Assuming you won’t be eating all your meals at the caf, I’m not going to talk about the Freedom Plan.

The key is meal equivalencies. You can trade in one of the given meals on your plan for $8.75 at any of these locations, tax-exempt. That’ll give you whatever you want on the menu, and more than enough at Timmies. Furthermore, you can buy drinks and snacks with your meal equivalencies. Last year, they raised the number of meals that could be claimed as equivalencies from 100 to 200, essentially raising the cash value of these to $1750. At this point, the $290 AMP on the 320 is much less significant.

Given this flexibility with meal equivalencies, the question is not how many meals you’re going to eat at the caf each week, but how many meals from your meal plan are you going to use each week? Assuming you eat regularly (if you need 6 full meals a day, there’s that Freedom Plan) you’ll use between 2-4 on the weekends and 8-15 on the weekdays. Side note: if you’re having 15 meals on weekdays, that means you’re eating breakfast at the cafs each morning, and I think there’s better alternatives. Buy simple stuff like cereal, milk, bread, waffles, etc (your residence has a kitchen). My Don bought us cinnamon buns and we made them for breakfast each week =).

So that’s anywhere between 10-19 meals used a week; with most people probably sitting around 13-16. The website linked above is nice in that they provide weekly and yearly frequencies that allow you to compare plans. Unfortunately, there aren’t 32 weeks in a school year for the typical student; assuming you stick around to near the end of both exam periods (likely for commerce students) and go home/away for Christmas and Reading week, there are 29 school weeks. This means the 320 is 11 meals/week and the 384 is 13 meals a week. So from a frequency perspective, Weekly 18 seems the best.

But, how much is each meal plan actually worth? I believe from your residence fees, about $4,000 is charged for the meal plan. Whether you actually get $4,000’s worth from your meal plan depends. Assuming someone tries to use their meal plan to the fullest extent, the table below shows how much each can be worth up to. I’m assuming that for meals used at the cafs, 20% are for breakfast, 40% for brunch/lunch, and 40$ for dinner, which averages out to $9.35. I also assumed that those on 320/384 only end up using half the meals for equivalencies, as you still have to eat at the cafs time to time (this actually raises the values of the plans, though insignificantly).

So you can see the Weekly 18 is worth way more than the others, and the only one materially above $4,000. Even if you don’t end up using 18 meals every week, which you won’t since you’ll go home or be at conferences a few weekends, it’s still worth more than any other meal plan.

However, the 320/384 plans have more AMP…does this matter? The short answer is “No.” If you have the 320 and spend the extra $250 (The Weekly 18 still comes with $40) purely on meals, you can get around an extra 35 meals, which is about 1 more a week. That being said, I think there are circumstances where the annual plans would be better suited. Much of the value derived from the Weekly plans comes from using up all the meal equivalencies to make sure you hit 17/18 most weeks. If you can’t be bothered to do this or don’t really care because you’re going to have an endless supply of snacks/drinks anyways, then an annual plan might be more convenient. If you are a coffee/tea fiend and regularly buy low-dollar items, using a meal equivalency isn’t worth it in those cases and the high AMP might be better suited (though you could just have a coffee maker in your room in that case). I think the most justifiable circumstance where you would go for an annual plan is if you live on West Campus. You won’t eat as many meals in the cafs, it might be inconvenient to use up your equivalencies on Sunday evening, and the 320+ plan comes with $525 AMP, which will easily cover whatever you’re going to buy when you don’t’ want to use an equivalency. If you’re going for an annual plan on main campus though, 384 is clearly better.

I didn’t really talk about the Weekly 15, but there really doesn’t seem to be a reason to take it instead of the Weekly 18; the extra $50 AMP is 6 equivalencies. My post also really seems against the 320 plan, but I really don’t see the point of getting it if you’re on main campus, since you can use equivalencies anywhere. I had many floormates and classmates who had the 320 run out of meals and AMP, and had to buy extra meals near the end of the year at ridiculous prices. Some realized in February that they were down to 6-8 meals/week for the rest of the year. Then again, there were also some people on the 320 who seemed to get along fine.

So in conclusion, meal equivalencies are very significant. The Weekly 18 provides the best value and ample flexibility. However, if you don’t really care about exploiting the Weekly 18, or your habits or circumstances just don’t align with the idea of the Weekly 18, then get the 384 if you’re on main campus and the 320+ if you’re on West.