Tag Archives: volunteer

My students work and my current life

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Focus Group Discussion with community members

In the shade, under a huge tree of an unknown name (to me atleast), in the courtyard of a school in Paje, Zanzibar, Tanzania, my students begin their practice community assessment. On my side of things, it was a bit of a scramble to coordinate the placements with my Program Director between the students local NGO partner (ZANGOC) and the community leaders.

“Karibuni, you are most welcome to your village. Please come follow. Very welcome” The Sheha (village elder) lead Christine, my partner in crime volunteer buddy, and me to the court yard where the meeting will take place. All the village representatives were there from each part of the village.
“What do you do?” I get asked a lot these days.
In short, I’m in an vulnerable country teaching students about grant proposal writing while coordinating their practicums in different communities on Zanzibar. This will eventually give them the life skills in community assessment and community empowerment. This helps to alleviate and improve several different aspects of their lives in the community. I guess that’s not very short.
Member voicing their concerns

In a larger spectrum of things, my students are taught to solve community issues in their village or a larger town. Usually problems fall under the UN Millennium Development Goals. They are taught:

1) Assess a community for problems: This means gathering data, talking to community leaders, and different stake holders. Problems can go from access clean drinking water to uncontrolled dumping of garbage to accessing under-equipped medical facilities. This is currently where my students are, in the community assessing process.
2) Analyze their data that is collected: They find the most pressing problem in the community and set about a way to solve it.
3) Create a solution for the problem: This can take days, months, and years even to find a solution. And it could continuously evolve when new technology comes out. In the case of energy, finding solar panels as a solution. That technology changes rapidly. Or accessing potable water on Zanzi, they could use a solar de-salinator that can be easily built with pottery. Finding simple solutions with localized industries can take time to research and even more so to implement
4) Create a grant proposal: For funding should it be required, which most projects will. A successful grant proposal usually serves a the blueprint of how the project will be carried out. These are the classes that I taught before they went out to the community.
 
5) Implement the project: If the funding is successful, it would be hopeful that they themselves could implement the project. Not necessarily the case all the time though, although it would be advisable.
My students taking notes from the community members concerns

These are the things that I’m dealing with in Zanzibar. Obviously that procedure isn’t in complete detail, but it’s just to give an idea of what my volunteer job is.

For the next few days, I’ll be going to different communities that my students are sent to and checking up on how they’re doing. A few of my students are also placed in different NGO’s to work on issues they are interested in, which includes malaria, street kids, child marriages, clean water supply, etc.
Oh, woe is me. Time to tackle the worlds problems!

I was sent to volunteer in Africa…

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My students at it again!
  • Malaria
  • Women empowerment
  • HIV/Aids
  • Child marriage
  • Street kids
  • Corruption in government
  • Drug abuse

Encompasses a small list of what my students are interested about. Their average age is mid twenties and they’re all interested in tackling issues of this size. They want to volunteer at their placements and on top of that, observe other class members who have gone into at-risk communities to do their research on community assessments to identify problems and try to find solutions for those communities.

To complete a year long course of “Emerging Leaders” program, they are to complete 2 grant proposals from the research they have done from the previous course in how to assess communities. They find the weakest links of the communities and address those issues. As part of this, I have given them the opportunity to also be placed in another NGO that best matches their interests and to begin working on the issues at hand.

Not one friend I know back home actively pursue the interests of these likes, of course each their own, but the idea of contributing time to make real changes in the world, especially with all the harsh criticism that’s vocalized almost everyday and spewing onto Facebook.

The only thing I see back home are people complaining about what’s wrong with the world. Few take charge to write to their MP’s. Even fewer still goes out to protests. And still, even less – and at this point I’m scratching the bottom of the barrel to say anyone I know – goes out to volunteer time, effort and commitment to try and change anything that they’ve complained passionately about in hot debates while we were hanging out.

Working away!

Why do I feel like we carry this huge misconception in the “West” that everyone else in the world are lazy if they’re not “rich.” It seems the “West” is even lazier and all we know how to do is complain.

It’s not that the people in the country doesn’t want change. Everyone I’ve come across are adamant about it. They want change in the biggest way.

Even more so in the less developed world. I see the most enthusiasm for change here than at home. In fact, they are working toward it starting with the community level. Changes there influence key decision makers that eventually gather momentum. Most approaches and methods include contacting politicians and key decision makers to accomplish change.

I was not prepared for the amount of enthusiasm and energy my students want this change. They crave it. They are so hungry to do something about it. They are so motivated to make the world a better place. If we soak up even just 1% of their motivation and apply it to ourselves in Canada, the impact from that would ripples a thousand times and create change in the direction that all Canadians want.

My students are doing it, how are we as a more “developed” country so far behind?

Hasera – Living on a rural farm in Nepal

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Christa working the plants

“Yololo!” Govinda shouted. Best word ever you’ll hear on the farm, because that meant “Food is ready!” Mito, Govinda’s wife, prepared possibly the best food ever. After a semi-relaxed morning of work, we get pretty much the rest of the day off. Or we could choose to do more work if we wanted to.

We were volunteering at Hasera Permaculture farm. We went through a company called Volunteering to Learn. Rolling hills with huge mountains in the distance surrounded the farm. But their gigantic size makes it seems like we could reach a hand out and touch the top of one of the snow capped peaks. In just over a week, we’ll be working our way up one of those peaks. But for now, we were busy digging up onions, garlic, and feeding chickens and petting the cows.

When we arrived, we happened to jump right into the end of a workshop where we get to design our own permaculture farm from 2 days of workshop. Both of us had a lot of ideas on how to be hippie and in the end our house was bomb-tastic. Urban farming with veritcal gardens and seasonal green houses with a pond inside. Badass.

The view from the farm

We got to experience local rural village wedding as well. It was an arranged marriage and a simple one. Nothing flashy. We took a stroll down the road and then down through other farm fields. It lead us to the family’s farm where the wedding was held. Colours decorated the trees and incense filled the air infront of the family’s Shiva temple. The couple sat side by side while family members on both sides took their turns blessing them while someone recited incantations and prayers.

Few days later, we got to celebrate Hanumans birthday, the monkey God who rescued Shiva’s wife, Parvarti, from Sri Lanka. We walked with Govinda, our host father, to the village Hanuman pagoda. People were already in deep incantation, burning incense, throwing blessings onto the Hanuman and into the fire sending it up to the Heavens for him to receive it.

Traditional village wedding

These experiences were something few people get to do. To live right in with the family in a rural village in Nepal. We were expecting hard work and hours in the sun. However, what we got was more of becoming part of the family and local community. After the wedding, when we arrived at the temple, we recognized many people from the wedding and they recognized us (Wasn’t very hard).

Vishnu’s commerical potatoe fields needed to be harvested. He was one of the lecturers at Govinda’s farm during the workshop. We got a chance to repay his kindness by helping him harvest his humungous farm. Just fields and fields of potatoes. Even though he  lectured at the permaculture farm, he needed commercial farming and so used chemicals. He knows the detrimental effects, but it’s the only way to provide locally grown potatoes in the local region. Otherwise, potatoes aren’t naturally grown in Nepal. We got to work alongside family and friends of Vishnu. It was quite a humbling experience as people older than us tear up the ground as we struggle to keep up with the work.

Vishnu’s fields

After our 2 weeks of living at the farm, we exchanged very bittersweet goodbyes. Our experience was over, but not forgotten. It was a very rewarding experience that will sit with us through our lifetime. Our eyes turn over to the peaks in the Everest mountain range. Onward, journey!

Birth Place of Buddha to the Kathmandu Valley – sacrifices and host families

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The birth site of Buddha in Lumbini

Lumbini. Not so shortly after we crossed the border, we settled in a quiet town where Buddha has been proven to be born in. Nothing spectacular. A few temples all very dedicated to Buddha from each Buddhist country in the world. We saw China, Korea and Nepal before we decided it was too hot to bike around anymore. Here it was still 40 degrees. Not what we bargained for, weather-wise.

We retreat back into our room play in the shower, aka wash our clothes. It was about time we had fresh clean clothes again. All hand wash, courtesy of the hotel shower. Just don’t tell them. Shhh… We head to Kathmandu 2 nights later.

Trinkets in the market

It was a 10 hour bus ride starting from 7:30am and arriving at 4pm. Kathmandu, Thamel. One of Ian’s favourite city so far in the trip. It trumps Varkala and Jaisalmer. The gear stores, for one, and secondly, lots of swanky restaurants, bars, and other establishments, straight up our alley. We were starving for meat. We found a Korea BBQ restaurant. How fitting! We’re fresh out of Korea, we know the dishes, and we know how to eat it. We had sam kyap sal, and so gal bi. *Drool*

Afterwards, we found a live band playing in the local pub. It happened to be Nepals New Year, and people are still out celebrating. We met a couple of nice Indians and hung out with them for the better part of the night.

The next day, we head out to meet our trekking

Our host family in Kathmandu

guide, Pema, for our 19 day trek to Everest Base Camp (EBC from here forth). We finally get reunited with our climbing gear. 40kg total, including ice axes, harnesses sleeping bags, shells, down jackets, snow pants, boots… etc. The total list is extensive. We organize all our paperwork and discussed about how to arrange the visa extensions that we need and where to meet. We also bought our tickets to South Africa, after much anticipation from Christa’s mother. We started all this first because we won’t see Pema until after our volunteership.

Monkey temple

This volunteership, we’re heading out to Kavre, just a few kilometers away from Kathmandu, but still a small remote farming town. Some nice mountains out there supposedly. Before we get shipped out there, an awesome host family welcome us into their house for 3 nights. We prepared traditional Nepalese food with the family and they taught us some basic Nepalese.

The volunteer organizer, Sujan, showed us around many many temples. “City of Temples” is Kathmandu’s name. And it certainly lives up to its name. “Oh, it’s a live sacrifice”, the Sujan said as we walked by a puddle of fresh blood on the ground. Hindu’s in the city were celebrating a festival. We came in when they were getting the cow ready. The goat had already been sacrificed.

Biggest and oldest temple in Kathmandu

The legs were tie up first and then the cow was shoved onto the ground. They made sure the legs were securely fastened. A Hindi Nepalese pulled out a pokcet knife and lifted up the chin. Makes the first slice and the crowd takes a step back as blood sprayed everywhere, his shirt, the temple, his arms and right around the crowd. The cow didn’t make a sound, but you could hear it screaming from the eyes.

The Nepalese man took a cup and collected the blood the was spraying from the jugulars and splashed it on the temple. He did it twice. The neck was still attached, but the esophagus clearly exposed and the blood gurgles out as the cow desperately tries to breath. As the cow inhaled, it drew more blood to the lungs and was trying to cough it out. Finally, the Nepalese man fully decapitates the head as he jams the knife into the neck and rips off the head. He places it on the temple alongside the goats head. Cow has been sacrificed.

For more pictures of our trip in Nepal, check out:

India Nepal border, Lumbini, and Kathmand Rd. 1

Below is a picture of the sacrifice. Warning: Graphic content.

Freshly sacrificed cow and goat