UWA student Eleanor Barnett has helped Kanyana Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre secure partnerships with Kalamunda Woolworths and Bunnings to provide valuable support for their conservation efforts.
The Bachelor of Philosophy (Honours) student, who specialises in Mathematics, Statistics and Economics, contributed 100 hours at Lesmurdie-based Kanyana through a McCusker Centre for Citizenship internship, with a desire to give back to the community and gain experience in a not-for-profit organisation.
Eleanor completed a wide range of projects at Kanyana to help raise critical funds and increase community awareness, gaining valuable insights into the challenges faced by volunteer-run not-for-profits such as Kanyana.
“Kanyana is a volunteer-run organisation. This means that extra thought must be put into every suggested action and I quickly learnt that there was a lot to consider,” said Eleanor, who created a tailored fundraising plan in addition to engaging with local businesses for new partnerships.
“It was very difficult to reach corporate organisations. However, this made it even more rewarding when I successfully arranged partnerships with Kalamunda Woolworths and Bunnings Kalamunda,” said Eleanor, noting that securing the partnership with Kalamunda Woolworths was a standout of the internship experience.
“They are being extremely generous and are donating food for the resident animals at Kanyana, as well as catering for many of the training days Kanyana runs. It is just so rewarding to know that my work facilitated this,” she said.
“The Kanyana Marketing Team were most impressed with Eleanor's persistence in attempting to gain valuable much needed funds for its operations. It would have been easy for her to be discouraged by the lack of interest by some of the businesses she approached. She has left us with a comprehensive fundraising plan for the future for which we are most appreciative,” said internship supervisor Christine Bazen.
Eleanor, who is from Albany, was humbled by the generosity of Kanyana’s volunteers, sponsors and the Perth Hills community.
“There is a real community spirit in Perth Hills that I never knew existed. It reminds me so much of the community I belong to in Albany and it puts a massive smile on my face knowing that there are people everywhere who really do care about these organisations and not-for-profits,” said Eleanor.
Eleanor hopes to continue volunteering and recommends the McCusker Centre for Citizenship internship program to other students looking to be involved in the community.
“I loved my internship. In my opinion, community work is much more rewarding than sitting through tutorials and lectures every week. It was quite amazing how much I could achieve in 100 hours,” said Eleanor.