In the words of Anujin Battulga,

“I remember that on my application, I wrote the EAAFP will bring me one big step closer to my goals and I believe it did. I can confidently say that EAAFP was the best place to start my career. When I first started my internship, everything was different than I expected. I had much more responsibility than I expected and working here challenged me on every step. It really helped me to grow as a person and to learn what it is like to work at international organization.

Working as an External Relations Assistant at the EAAFP Secretariat gave me on-the-ground experience and gain a deeper understanding of what it takes to work for biodiversity and habitat protection. I learnt what it takes for diverse organizations and nations to work together for a shared objective, and I had the privilege of participating in the delicate process of bringing the public and private sectors together. One of the main projects that I took part of was the Regional Flyway Initiative (RFI), coordinated by Asian Development Bank (ADB), BirdLife International and EAAFP Secretariat. I get to be in high-level meetings with country representatives, attend webinars and work with wonderful people who are dedicated to nature conservation. Through this initiative, I learned how much the nature is connected at the international level and conservation of migratory waterbirds and its habitat will not only benefit the waterbirds, but it will also benefit the whole nature, biodiversity, and local communities. I was personally glad that Mongolia was one of the countries in RFI and I was glad that I could be helpful.

© Anujin Battulga

I never actually saw waterbirds except passing by them with a car. The bird watching was a wonderful experience. One of my new goals is to visit Flyway sites in Mongolia and go for birdwatching. When I was plogging (a combination of jogging with picking up litter) in the wetland, I realized why EAAFP and its work is important for our nature.

I gained valuable skills and perspectives over my six months in the EAAFP Secretariat. Every lesson I acquired throughout the internship will be an asset in my career path. Before I become a part of EAAFP, my goal was to work at an international organization which dedicates for environmental issues. But now, I have a clear aspect of what should I do in my future and on-hand experiences helped me to find my inspiration. It was an honour to begin my journey at a place where everyone was so enthusiastic and respectful of one another. Working with colleagues who are more than eager to listen to my thoughts and concerns was a delight.”