Post Placement Spotlight: Kyla Goodhand in Matara, Sri Lanka

Working as a Business Communication Skills Officer, Kyla was involved from September 2017 to May 2018 with the Institute for Development of Community Strengths (INDECOS) in Matara, Sri Lanka. She is a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Scholarship Award. During her mandate, Kyla assisted the organization’s ‘Women Entrepreneurship Program’ (WEP). WEP was designed in 2006 to assist Tsunami affected women of the coastal Matara district. The objectives of the program are to increase the income of self-employed women affected by the Tsunami, encourage unemployed women to start a new business, strengthen family relationships, and improve the health of communities. During her mandate, Kyla was able to demonstrate and transfer effective communication skills with WEP employees as well as beneficiaries. She conducted training on business and promotion linkages and also took on a lead role in the creation of the organization’s annual report. She supported all programming run by the organization through advertisement, reporting, and securing funding.

Sri Lanka

Kyla’s research explores the prevalence of harassment on public transportation in Sri Lanka. The research has three main objectives:

  1. To gain insight into the gendered differences in the use of public transportation in Sri Lanka.

  2. To document the occurrence of harassment on public transportation.

  3. To evaluate the effects that harassment has on users of public transportation.

Sri Lanka drink vendor

During her free time in Matara, Kyla spent her free time relaxing on the beach, explored the island, and attended local events with coworkers and friends.