work

My tasks at IÖW included

• literature research
• writing paper abstracts
• content analysis
• event organisation
• designing publications and presentations
• smaller webdesign tasks

With a fellow intern, I worked for the department’s strategic unit (»Leistungsschwerpunkt«).
My most important projects during this time were:

• designing an Excel tool that aggregated and structured financial and project information from several sources, thus providing the department’s controlling an improved overview
• researching and writing a background paper on the economic consequences of climate change on economic development in Sub-Saharan Africa
• analysis of the department’s projects and products for the for the integration of green economy
• preparation of a mission to offer GTZ’s expertise on Social and Ecological Market Economy in Nepal (check this)

I had developed the concept for the »MikrofinanzWiki«, a data hub on microfinance based on the idea of a Wiki, during my internship with OID.
After my internship, I was tasked with:

• setting up the homepage on Drupal and implementing all necessary functionalities
• supervising a team of interns at OID to work on initial contents for the wiki
• reach out to potential project partners and interested individuals

When the concept was eventually shifted from the wiki-principle to a more institutionally-based way of working, I dropped out of the project.

I assisted the team of OID in many, many different minor tasks. More memorable jobs included:

• compiling and translating donor reports from client statements from Ghana and the Philippines
• developing a concept for a German-language information hub on microfinance (»MikrofinanzWiki«)
• analysing telecommunication costs and proposing optimization scenarios
• booth supervision at Evangelischer Kirchentag 2009

In response to an application with KfW Entwicklungsbank, I was offered a position as a working student with the Inhouse Consulting. As part of a project that overhauled the process and document management of the KfW’s IT department, my tasks were:

• adjusting process manuals and other documents to a new template
• serving as a thinking aid for my boss
• writing a general introduction to ITIL, a concept of organisation for IT departments which our reorganisation was based on
• writing a manual for the combination of AdoIT, intranet pages and document management system that our solution employed

This internship was mostly about getting to know the structure of government business development services, so my work output stayed rather low-key:

• generally overhauling and updating my department’s web pages
• creating websites for the chamber’s business mentoring service, including interviews with business coaches. (It’s still there!)
• event organisation
• survey preparation and processing
• visiting several businesses

My job at the Faculty of Law was mostly about meda design, with extremely flexible work hours:

• periodicals like the Juranova newsletter or the Schlaglichter collection of guest lectures
• lots of posters and flyers
• occasional updates of the faculty websites

My job with the chemists had two components:

• updating their ancient HTML-based homepage whenever needed
• doing weekly rounds of the public PCs, reporting and/or fixing any problems

As a conscientious objector, I had to serve 9 months at a school for physically challenged childrend — which I extended by 2 months to finish the school year.

I was assigned to a sixth grade with twelve children and three class teachers. In class, I helped some children with writing, handicraft or going to the bathroom. I also taught single children, took care of lunch and cleaning, supervised them in the yard, changed diapers and fed the severely disabled.

Another part of my duties was repairing stuff, cleaning fallen leaves and snow, moving furniture and the like.

I was also elected ombudsman of the civilian servants which meant additional coordination and representation functions.

I established a company with my brother to publish books from and about Nepal (in the division called Lahure Kitab | Edition Kathmandu).Additionally, we used it as a vessel for our respective media design work.Until I transferred my duties to my brother’s wife in 2009, my areas of responsibily were:

• business management, accounting & controlling
• shipping & logistics
• PR & event organisation

I arranged this intership right after leaving highschool. Thus, my tasks were mostly menial work.

Memorable experience were:

• conception and execution of an improved document management system
• sorting and archiving older files (thus reading through years of project correspondence)
• intern trips to development organisations in Frankfurt and Brussels

With my friend Peter, I realized a few web design and programming jobs:

• nandox.com for a chemistry start-up (still partially available at the WaybackMachine)
• lyngdals.de for a private cattery
• a bed capacity management software for a private clinic in Cologne