Diana, 25, works for the Arusha Society for the Protection of Animals (ASPA) – a charity funded by SPANA. Her role takes her across the Arusha region of northern Tanzania, where she delivers humane welfare classes to schoolchildren as part of SPANA’s work to foster compassion and encourage good husbandry practices in the next generation of working animal owners.
My alarm goes off…
…at 5.00am, when I clean my apartment, prepare my son’s breakfast of porridge and milk, and then get ready for work.
I usually walk to the ASPA office at 9.00am, which is in the north of Arusha, next to Mount Meru. I collect everything I’ll need for the day before driving to one of the schools in the countryside with the rest of the team, a journey that can take over an hour. We do school visits two or three times per week.
I got the job…
…four years ago, after completing my studies in agriculture, both plants and livestock. Then I volunteered for a year with a government organisation, tending to animals, before I heard about ASPA through their rabies vaccination scheme. They invited me to interview for their education programme manager position.
I’m responsible for…
…leading the animal welfare classes, teaching 10 to 14 year olds about everything related to the ‘five freedoms’ of animal welfare. I enjoy being with children, working with them and encouraging good relationships and collaboration between children and animals.
Often, if we go very far from Arusha, we have lunch in the field. Then we drive back to the office and I write a report on the work and prepare things for the next day.
The worst part of my job…
…is dealing with the infrastructure problems. We often get stuck on the muddy, rural roads. We are lucky to have a 4×4 but sometimes the roads to schools are still impassable.
The best part of my job…
…is when I see happy animals that are well cared for with food, water, good treatment, and know that the owners benefit from this as well. I know that I’m doing valuable work and it’s very gratifying.
After work…
…I go home and stay with my son. I employ a nanny to look after him in the day because I’m a single mother.
For dinner, I like to cook things like boiled bananas, carrots, onions, and chapatis. In the evenings I watch movies, especially action movies like the Avengers, and I watch Korean and English movies.
My son goes to bed around 9.00pm and I go to bed late, around 11.00pm.
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