Interview with Mark Culliton, September 30, 2021

Interview Summary

Mark Culliton served as a Peace Corps Diversified Farming volunteer in Thailand from 1989-1992. During the 1960s, his father served in India, and his aunt and uncle were country directors in Dahomey, so he was familiar with Peace Corps from a young age. In spite of past struggles to learn languages, he learned Thai quickly and befriended another like-minded volunteer and they immersed themselves in Thai culture. As his site in Sukhothai, he focused on fulfilling the second and third cultural goals, finding mixed success with projects including a misguided fish pond while enjoying opportunities to socialize through snooker and basketball.. Still, he extended for a third year and enjoyed travel adventures in southeast Asia before returning home, earning an MBA, and turning his attention to urban non-profit work.

Interview Keyword

Thailand (Country of Service) Peace Corps India University of Michigan Thai language student protests critiques of Peace Corps San Francisco Bangkok, Thailand Agriculture volunteers language learning pisciculture sericulture cultural assimilation basketball snooker (pool) cultural adaptation Laos Cambodia Burma Vietnam Sukhothai, Thailand Phuket, Thailand Peace Corps training homestays food culture community development rural development 1989-1992 (Years of Service)

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