You do what exactly??

So many of you have written me and asked about my work here. I think much of the confusion comes from my ambiguity about my job description before I left. The truth is that at the time I really didn't know what I'd be doing except for the very broad terms like "sustainable development" and "community resource management." Actually, even once I got to my site I wasn't all that sure of exactly the kind of projects I'd be pursuing. Even now it seems that every week of so I discover next information that leads me to radically change my ideas about what is would be possible and/or helpful in my village. However, as of late I think I have a pretty good idea of what I'm going to attempt.

Right now my first priority is public health and sanitation. I have made some contacts with some health NGOs (non-governmental organisations) in Mahajunga and have started selling mosquito nets, over-the-counter medicine (like anti-malarials, and de-worming treatments) and water treatment supplies. In a few weeks I have arranged to have Population Services International (an American NGO) come to my village to train 3 village women how to sell these products. In a few months I hope to have a doctor pass through the village to write prescriptions for Birth Control for the village women. After that happens, the women will be able to sell birth control products. Additionally, I just received a spring scale from the hospital that I will use to start a baby-weighing program. The idea here is that by tracking a child's weight you can estimate his health and nutritional status and be able to spot problems such as worms or malnutrition before they become a major problem. This program should also give me a chance to regularly talk to the villagers about the importance of nutrition, sanitation, and family planning.

Also, I am beginning the process of applying for a grant to build 2 wells in the village. Currently, half the villagers are fetching their water from a spring located near the center of a fetid swamp where cows graze, mosquitoes breed, human feces are washed, and water born diseases plot evil things. After the wells are built, I would like to get some funding to build several sanitary blocs- a building which combines an outhouse with facilities to take a bucket bath and basins for washing clothes.

For any of you wondering what all this has to do with the environment, I reply- everything. Lack of birth control leads to rapidly increasing pressure on forests and forest resources, while high-child mortality increases the incentive to have more children (because some are expected to die, families compensate by having more). High incidents of illness keep people from working and therefore having the economic freedom to experiment with new ideas, such as new, different, and less resource intensive methods of earning a living. Additionally, lack of access to outhouses increases the prevalence of disease both in humans and wildlife, and is an obstacle to eco-tourism (important since a luxury hotel is under construction just outside the village).

In addition to health and sanitation, I'd like to experiment with income generating activities such as rabbit raising, patch sewing, tree nurseries, eco-tours, and individual and community gardens. However these projects are the ones that have proven most difficult to plan and work through. So, for the time being I will focus on the projects described above.

So there you go. Now y'all can stop lying to your friends about me replanting forests, building hotels, and training lemurs to sew baskets.

Izay

Comments

[Mom]

Call me naive, but I had no idea that lemurs were so talented. Can they weave multicolored Easter baskets, too?

[PBD]

Yes but they are called Paca baskets and they only come in mauve.

[Karen]

dirty hippie

We miss you =)

-K