131
had a number of opportunities to join and become a member an APIEL unit, which
has provided her with valuable experiences and practical knowledge.
First, the author had a chance to join the Oasis Unit 2010, which was held in the middle
and lower reaches of the Heihe River basin in China. The fi eld trip was fruitful, as the
author learned many things and practiced leadership skills throughout the whole unit. The
fi eld exercise was very challenging and stimulating in the sense that it gave her a unique
chance to carry out and pursue her own interests with real practice. It has changed and
strengthened her views and knowledge towards the environment and human relationships,
and has motivated her a great deal to contribute to environmental conservation. The lessons and skills the author has acquired are very much essential to her current work as an
environmental specialist and as an activist in her home country, where there are many
similar stories to the story of watershed management in the Heihe River basin.
The experiences the author has gained through fi eldwork has broadened her understanding and knowledge of water environments and made her confi dent to apply the
same approach and methodologies to her own research. A specifi c example of a
knowledge application from the Oasis Unit was a water quality measurement analysis
and assessment for her master’s thesis fi eld research. Before joining the unit, the
author worried about her weak knowledge and understanding of water environments
as the author is from a social sciences background. However, the author was always
interested in becoming familiar with water quality issues and the author was longing
to conduct research using an interdisciplinary methodology, especially for water quality sampling in the fi eld. Luckily, with the support and valuable guidance of the professors and experts in the fi eld throughout the unit, the author overcame her concerns
not only through the fi eldwork, but also it made it possible for her to realize interests
in practice later on by applying water quality measurement analysis into her own fi eld
research in the Zaamar goldfi eld in Mongolia.
Most importantly, environmental leadership education exercises have motivated
her to contribute to fi nding solutions for environmental problems by taking the initiative and doing her best in her future career. Experience from the Oasis Unit has
directly infl uenced her thoughts and actions in helping to preserve the water environment in her home country. After returning to Mongolia, the author has reorganized and activated NGO activities and has launched a small project for creating
a drinking water quality database at the provincial level in the South Gobi Province.
From the project, environmental offi cers at 15 soums (districts) in South Gobi were
provided with simple water quality testers and some knowledge and training for
drinking water quality testing. Local people are now able to conduct monthly measurements at major sources of drinking water and submit their results to the monitoring database at the provincial center. The project is a pilot program; it has being
implemented in only one province, however, it is a pioneer in the country where
there was no permanent and long-term database for drinking water quality.
Second, as an APIEL alumna, the author was fortunate to join the Coca-Cola
Young Environmental Leaders Summit in Hokkaido on March 2012. The lessons
learned and skills acquired from the week-long intense workshop on corporate
social responsibility and the practicum on the project design matrix are very much
essential to her current work in Mongolia for the Japan International Cooperation
8 Resonance in the Asian Program for Incubation of Environmental Leaders
had a number of opportunities to join and become a member an APIEL unit, which
has provided her with valuable experiences and practical knowledge.
First, the author had a chance to join the Oasis Unit 2010, which was held in the middle
and lower reaches of the Heihe River basin in China. The fi eld trip was fruitful, as the
author learned many things and practiced leadership skills throughout the whole unit. The
fi eld exercise was very challenging and stimulating in the sense that it gave her a unique
chance to carry out and pursue her own interests with real practice. It has changed and
strengthened her views and knowledge towards the environment and human relationships,
and has motivated her a great deal to contribute to environmental conservation. The lessons and skills the author has acquired are very much essential to her current work as an
environmental specialist and as an activist in her home country, where there are many
similar stories to the story of watershed management in the Heihe River basin.
The experiences the author has gained through fi eldwork has broadened her understanding and knowledge of water environments and made her confi dent to apply the
same approach and methodologies to her own research. A specifi c example of a
knowledge application from the Oasis Unit was a water quality measurement analysis
and assessment for her master’s thesis fi eld research. Before joining the unit, the
author worried about her weak knowledge and understanding of water environments
as the author is from a social sciences background. However, the author was always
interested in becoming familiar with water quality issues and the author was longing
to conduct research using an interdisciplinary methodology, especially for water quality sampling in the fi eld. Luckily, with the support and valuable guidance of the professors and experts in the fi eld throughout the unit, the author overcame her concerns
not only through the fi eldwork, but also it made it possible for her to realize interests
in practice later on by applying water quality measurement analysis into her own fi eld
research in the Zaamar goldfi eld in Mongolia.
Most importantly, environmental leadership education exercises have motivated
her to contribute to fi nding solutions for environmental problems by taking the initiative and doing her best in her future career. Experience from the Oasis Unit has
directly infl uenced her thoughts and actions in helping to preserve the water environment in her home country. After returning to Mongolia, the author has reorganized and activated NGO activities and has launched a small project for creating
a drinking water quality database at the provincial level in the South Gobi Province.
From the project, environmental offi cers at 15 soums (districts) in South Gobi were
provided with simple water quality testers and some knowledge and training for
drinking water quality testing. Local people are now able to conduct monthly measurements at major sources of drinking water and submit their results to the monitoring database at the provincial center. The project is a pilot program; it has being
implemented in only one province, however, it is a pioneer in the country where
there was no permanent and long-term database for drinking water quality.
Second, as an APIEL alumna, the author was fortunate to join the Coca-Cola
Young Environmental Leaders Summit in Hokkaido on March 2012. The lessons
learned and skills acquired from the week-long intense workshop on corporate
social responsibility and the practicum on the project design matrix are very much
essential to her current work in Mongolia for the Japan International Cooperation
8 Resonance in the Asian Program for Incubation of Environmental Leaders