Center for Public Service: Gettysburg College

Much has happened since our last post! The library is now fully carpeted and painted a beautifully sky blue. The library furniture has also been made and delivered by a local carpenter and a few boxes of books have also arrived. The library is finally starting to take shape and just in time for the book writing workshop!

 We selected the sixth grade class (all forty students) to participate in a book writing workshop. Altogether there are six workshops held Fridays and Saturdays for the children to explore different art mediums and writing as means of self expression. The first workshop was just an hour of games to break the ice. The next week we started intensive workshops where the kids got to create five different pieces of artwork using crayons, pastels, colored pencils, paint, and cutting paper. The next day was a mixture of reflection, writing, and drawing. This day, the kids discussed which mediums they enjoyed using the most, the winners were: colored pencils and paint! Then we shared what makes us sad and afterwards the children got the opportunity to write more in depth about this topic. Next, the kids drew what makes them happy. The drawings had a lot of detail and were very diverse in topics. After a lunch break, the kids finished their drawings and wrote about what they drew and what makes them happy. We will use these writing samples next week to help them decide what their final topic and picture will be for the book.

Another aspect of our project is writing, illustrating, and publishing two of our own children’s books so that a percentage of the royalties can go back to the library over a period of five years to help it grow. We have decided on the themes and topics of both books and now are in the process of illustrations. One will be an environmentally based book with animals looking for a new home because of dirt, pollution, deforestation, etc. The other one will be a picture book with different professions. Sneha, the photographer, will be taking real-life pictures to illustrate this book! We have lots of work to do and not that much time, but if Gettysburg has taught us anything it would be how to work under pressure.

Sorry our blog post is a little behind. We wanted to gather some good tales before we shared with everyone!
 
Wow.. where to begin. It's great to be back in Grahamstown, I don't think we've stopped smiling since we've landed up! (We did our semester abroad here back in Fall 2007). Since our 2 week workshop and orientation in Rwanda, things are finally starting to move here with our One Laptop Per Child initiative. There's so much to share, but the main thing is that our new partnership that we set out to establish here in South Africa is now underway. GTECH - Grahamstown/ Gettysburg: Together Empowering Children.
 
Check out this article, we made it to the local news! http://www.grocotts.co.za/content/laying-down-groundrules-early-education-02-07-2009
 
Our shipment of 100 laptops is still stuck in customs... oh bureau-crazy. Even though they're all donations, the actual value of the laptops is setting us back in terms of paperwork. But, we're making do with whatever we can. Right now, it's the 3 week school holidays in the local primary schools. So, with the 8 XO laptops that we have, we're getting the kids to come to the school in groups of 8-15 at a time. That way, we at least get the kids using the laptops while they aren't too busy with schoolwork and in time, they'll become our first 'leaders' of the pack. As you'll see in the article, those kids are hovered over one laptop for now, but in time they'll all have their own!
 
Hope everyone's enjoying their host sites and creating experiences to cherish!

(If you have the time, check out our project's blog at gtech-olpc.blogspot.com) 

Aimee George '09 & Anna Springer '09

Throughout the week, we have been working mainly on testing various kerosene stoves in order to provide the refugees with the best burning stove. We have three options now: the one that most people use throughout the developing world, a small green stove produced in China, another Chinese stove that is very large and stable with 18 wicks, and a smaller Indian made stove. We are testing each of the stoves with a water boiling test and simmer test to see which stove is more appropriate. The water boiling test allows us to see how quickly each stove brings water to a boil, while the simmer test measures the amount of fuel burned. We are conducting each test three times on the stoves and are in the middle of the testing, and the office constantly smells of kerosene!! We will soon hopefully choose the best stove for our project, although not the stoves we want to be using, and talk to UNHCR to buy the stoves and the kerosene. As soon as this is done, we can travel to the refugee camps and implement our training program on using the kerosene stoves safely, as they are much more dangerous than ethanol stoves.

Overall we have had a good glimpse of development work and the difficulties of trying to get the Ethiopian government to create a larger flow of ethanol. The government, like many other governments, has put all their effort with ethanol into fuel blending for cars. This means that petroleum is now mixed with ethanol, and no ethanol is left for household fuels. It is very difficult to convince the government to move resources that benefit the elites and provide the poorer communities with ethanol. We are trying to import the ethanol from Sudan, but that also proves to have obstacles because ethanol has never been imported for fuel in Ethiopia. There are many barriers, taxes, and ministries that are against the importation of ethanol and do not understand the necessity of ethanol as a household fuel.

Outside of work things have been going very well in Addis. We visited Addis Ababa University, which has an absolutely beautiful campus. It reminded me of a larger, Ethiopian version of Gettysburg College, with students chatting in the shade under trees. Our other stop for the weekend was the Merkato, which is said to be the largest market in Africa. Being with Project Gaia, we of course stopped to look what kinds of stoves are sold to the local people, but we also explored the spice market, where women sit enthroned on huge sacks filled with any kind of spice or incense you could imagine. You can just see those same spices being brought from China or India thousands of years ago. At the same time, of course, the Merkato is littered with cheap, imported plastic goods. It’s quite a contrast.

Read more at http://www.pgupdatesethiopia.blogspot.com/

Megan Graham '09 and Kate Vrendenburgh '09

Before I touch upon today´s topic, I just wanted to let you guys know about IXCHEN´s tragedy. This morning our building was burnt to the ground. The nighttime guard managed to get out the computer and the multifunction printer, but nothing else. 10 years of archives, their whole library, their furniture, patient records, personal items (including quite a bit of money, equipment, books, etc) was all destroyed. They´re working on rebuilding already-- they´ve had some potential places to rent, and since there are 10 different IXCHEN facilities across Nicaragua the others are pitching in, some came from Granada to help us clean up. Even the doors had been burnt to a crisp, you couldn´t tell that anything was ever there. They work with a lot of different townships around the area, doing outreach events for free, and they´ve all offered to help pitch in with desks, chairs, tables, etc. Also, the former director of IXCHEN is the vice mayor of Masaya, so they have total support from the local government. While it´s rough, and they´ve lost so much, they were very positive today after the first initial shock. There was no mention of them closing, it was clear from teh start that they were going to reopen as soon as possible.

So onto the environment. My experience with the environment today was dumping all the charred remnants of IXCHEN into the street, but it was cleaned up by the township, either by their environmental commission or because of their connections with the mayor, I couldn´t tell which. Also, this morning I ran out to the grocery store to get everyone crackers and juice, I´d gotten there at 5:30 in the morning but a lot of them had been there since 4. I put my trash in the bag, but 2 of them just threw their trash into the street. Since the bag was there, the other women yelled at them to throw it out properly, but I have a feeling that if the bag weren´t there, they wouldn´t have cared. I¨ve already seen all of them littering all over the place. On the wall in the office, there was a poster distributed by the government saying "protect the forests!" It was up for the last 2 weeks or so, and every time I looked at it I thought it was silly. Because it´s so easy for them to hop on teh bandwagon, and say "let´s protect the forests!", when really, they want to protect the forests as long as it doesn´t inconvenience them. If they have to hang onto their trash for a moment longer, or walk 10 feet to the trashcan, they don´t care.

I think that there is a bit more of an effort on the part of different organizations to teach children about environmental consciousness. I was at a fair/festival last week (or two weeks ago, how the time flies) that IXCHEN had a booth at, and the theme was environmental consciousness. They township that was hosting the festival had preschool to school aged kids doing traditional dances, reading poems, and dressed up as little trees and flowers. I noticed that during this festival, it was the first time I saw the nicas actually using trash cans. Whether or not this was just a useless gesture, I couldn´t say, but considering how centered it was around children (and that the theme of this year´s International Kids Day, on June 1, was a Healthy Environment for a Healthy Childhood), I think that an effort is being put forth.

A very tired, dirty, bug bitten,

Hannah Kane '10

This summer, the Heston house is full of interns working with different organizations and populations. Every day, we hear stories from our peers and housemates about migrant issues, senior citizens, and the homeless shelter. We're definitely working to bring voices to those in the community who may be accustomed to isolation or exploitation. Sara and I are working together through Campus Kitchens to serve some of the groups with whom our fellow Heston interns are working. But interestingly enough, we have the unique opportunity to expose community volunteers to some of the issues that the people we serve are facing. Just the other day, we worked with a group of middle schoolers who just didn't want to get dirty in the kitchen. They wrinkled their noses at our pot of beet and turnip soup (which we made with produce from the farmers' market!) and weren't particularly excited about washing dishes; normal behavior from middle schoolers, of course, but after our shift Sara and I got to thinking about dialogue in the kitchen. Our volunteers don't always like to get their hands dirty, but we already have a great time taking our volunteers to play cards with folks at the senior center. What about the specific individuals for whom we serve meals? The truth is that everyone eats--and if we share our food, we can share a sense of hospitality, community, and cultural integration. In an ideal world, our volunteers could sit down and share a meal with Campus Kitchens clients, exchanging viewpoints and cultural values. But for now, I'm hoping Sara and I can help to build and foster the link between groups that don't really interact with each other, and who have developed stereotypes based on what they don't know about each other. In the next few weeks, we hope to develop an ongoing conversation, and maybe we'll be that much closer to building community connections.

Olivia Haddad, '11

Being in Uganda has been quite an experience so far. It has had its challenges- some of which I expected and some of which met me with surprise. However, I have experienced so many meaningful moments so far and I have really enjoyed being here and experiencing that which is Uganda. Some things I have observed that the typical Ugandan loves: Celine Dion, country music, Obama, matooke (a staple food made of plaintain bananas which is quite similar to mashed potatoes), and Second Chance, a Spanish soap opera dubbed in English which I am liking more and more each time I watch. Some things that have been hard to get used to: being the only person of my skin color in a small village, eating dinner after 9 pm, starch in all of the food on my plate, bucket showers, the big drop (how they go to the bathroom here- a small box which seems to go down to the core of the earth), my cockroach roommates, and slow internet. Some things that haven't been as hard to get used to: friendly people welcoming me with open arms, the adorable children (and those that wave and yell to me as I walk by), paying $.25 for a 15 minute ride to the Masaka town, the beautiful green countryside, living on the equator, the Ugandan music, and the fresh fruits served with freshly squeezed juice.

I have really enjoyed my host family, and in particular my host sister. She is my age, 19, and we will often sit down and talk about everything from our favorite movies to culture differences. We laugh about how different we are, and the different lifestyles we live. She is amazing and such a hard worker- she stays home all day cooking (she is an amazing cook!) and cleaning the house and the compound. We also have many similarities, like loving to laugh and play games, and I have loved getting to know her.

I have been working at Kyabakuza Primary School. It has been very interesting to see how the school system works here. I have enjoyed meeting the 450 students, 3 of which are my amazing cousins that live with my host family. I have been teaching English to a Primary 5 class made up of 50 kids! They range in age from 9 to 15. It has had its own challenges such as trying to engage the children and keep them from copying, and trying to understand their English while they work to understand mine. Something I am adjusting to is the schedule- the school doesn't have enough teachers to fill the schedule they are supposed to follow, so consequently they need to be very flexible and I often must teach for a 3 hour block of time. In this way, writing lesson plans can be hard because I never know how long I will be in the class for. I have had fun thinking of creative ways to get everyone involved, such as teaching them "My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean," and some American pop songs. They are always really interested in hearing about the United States, and we even did a vex diagram once to show how similar and different weddings are in the US vs. Uganda. They proved to have quite a few similarities, such as the bride wearing a white dress. Additionally, I had them each make me a craft one time for homework and got some really interesting dolls and games made out of local materials like banana fibers. At the end of some lessons I will have a short period for the kids to teach me some Luganda, their local language. They all get really into it and laugh at my pronunciations of their names and words.

There is so much poverty within the village of Kyabakuza. This is shown throughout the school, through the students that can't afford uniforms, shoes, socks, pens, or notebooks, and also the many whose guardians cannot afford to pay school funds. Over 40% of the children have lost at least one parent, and many of those don't have either of their parents.
 
For my project, I'm going to be helping to start an after school program to build a kitchen. They have been using a classroom for a kitchen, which does not have proper ventilation and consequently the cook, her children, and all of the students are at risk for respiratory problems. There are so many problems with the school and it's discouraging that I will not be able to raise enough money to cover their daunting electrical bill nor their monthly water bills, but I'm really excited to start this project. We are going to be training the students in practical knowledge, and in addition will use parents to engage with the community. We are going to use cassava as an alternative to cement, which is a local food much like potato (actually, a lot of the foods here are similar to potato). The starch in cassava, when mixed with hot water and sand, is very durable and strong. It is cheaper than using cement, more environmentally friendly, and has been developed within the past 10 years. The way I found out about cassava is through one of the other interns here through FSD who is working at St. Jude's, where there is a building that was made using cassava. I'm excited to partner with her organization and learn more about how to build this kitchen, and my appreciation for cassava is growing every time I eat it.

I am here to develop community, and help Kyabakuza Primary School to build a new kitchen. I am also here to teach my vibrant 50 student class. However, I am also here to learn. Being surrounded by poverty and seeing issues firsthand has been a learning experience. I have been able to better understand the issues that developing countries face, and am able to relate with how hard they work just to get by. As easy as it is for me to pay someone $.25 for a ride, it makes it real to me that they are working all day for a few dollars. It is true that things are cheaper here, but it doesn't change the fact that it's hard to live off a few dollars a day. So my students teach me Luganda, and the environment around me teaches and shows me how lucky I have been to never have to worry about my next meal.

Tesia Jankowski '12

This is the beginning of my 4th week here, and my 3rd week at the health center but it feels like so much longer. My family here is absolutely amazing, and working in the health center has been unbelievable. My family has 5 children, a daughter older than me, twin girls my age, and then a younger daughter and son that live in the house, but all of their aunts, uncles, and cousins are constantly around, which is great! Everyone has been really welcoming and really eager to talk to me about my life, the US, and all kinds of things. A few of my family's cousins who live nearby are taking English classes, so a few times there have been knocks on our door during the night for last minute homework help. Its kind of tricky to help them because some of the examples their teacher is giving them in English aren't correct. I feel like I shouldn't give them incorrect information, but I also feel bad undermining their teacher, who is not a native speaker and I'm sure is doing the best they can. My first day at the Centro de Salud I mostly spent reading up on the common ailments, and the organization of the health care center, and on my second day I was running lab tests! I was able to run tests for intestinal parasites, pregnancy tests ( which are only done using urine here because the equipment for blood tests are too expensive), anemia tests, and tests for HIV! It was really interesting to see how the tests were run, and while we were doing them the other person running the tests was explaining to me how differently they are run in the US because we have so much more technology. Through discussions with the laboratory staff, and a few of the nurses I have decided to make a series of health education classes as my main project. A lot of the most common illnesses that people come to the health center with could be easily prevented, but people are just unaware of what they need to do. I'm going to have two classes a day, one at 7:30 am and one at noon while the patients are waiting in line to get appointments with their doctors. The health system is different here, in that you can only make an appointment ahead of time if you have a chronic illness, so people usually get to the health center 20 or 30 minutes before it opens to wait in line for an appointment. I'm hoping that because there will always be different people waiting, that a lot of people will be exposed to the information and pass it along to their families. The classes are going to start next week, so I have a lot of work to do between now and then!

 In addition to work I've been lucky enough to get some traveling done. We went to Granada for our first free weekend and got to see ' los hipicos' which is a cultural festival with lots of horses, and this past weekend I got to see some really awesome petroglyphs in Chaguitillo! I hope everyone else is having a great experience as well, and I can't wait to hear about them!

- Amy Fothergill '10