A few pictures

Stephanie and I in Maryland

The view of Kaya from the Governor's house

Another angle of Kaya

Trent and Grace, my sitemates

Richard and I, sweaty as usual

Emily, Carolyn, and I

Burkina's Peace Corps 50th Anniversary

Check out this video from the first day of Burkina's 50th Anniversary fair:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hl2vFj3mvZw&feature=related

I'm Back!

Ca fait deux jours (it’s been two days)…as they say here in Burkina Faso, whether it’s been two days or a month or a year since you last saw someone. And yes, it has been two days, at least, since I’ve updated my blog. Désolé.

So what has been going on in my life recently? A lot I must say. Let me start back in the middle of July…

I left on the 18^th of July with Marita, Julie, and Rachel (fellow PCVs who has just become RPCV- returned Peace Corps Volunteers- aka they had just finished their service) for Tanzania. We arrived without much hassle in the middle of the night and promptly slept the next day away in our hotel rooms. Rachel and I were in the honeymoon suite, and it sure was sweet. The following day we left on a three-day safari to see animals in the wild, like I’d never seen before. The half of the safari was at Tarangire National Park where five minutes in we saw a herd of wildebeest and started to franticly take pictures. Little did we know that wildebeests are like goats in Burkina, you see them all the time. Some of the animals we saw, but were not limited to: Impala, Plain Zebra, Masai Ostrich, Masai Lion, African Elephant, Secretary bird, Masai giraffe, Savanna Baboon, Cape Buffalo, Fischer’s lovebird (made me think of you Mom), Vervet monkey, and warthog (which the guide kept calling Pumba). We really couldn’t believe how many animals we saw in such a short amount of time.

The next day we left for Ngorongoro Park, the home of a huge crater or caldera, at least a mile down and 16 miles across. There, we stayed on the edge of the caldera for the night before venturing down the next day. After taking the steep route into the mouth of the caldera, it felt like we were in a different world. The cloud cover was even below the rim of the caldera. In Ngorongoro we saw many of the same animals as in Tarangire, but we also saw hippos, jackals, gazelles, the sacred ibis, hyenas, and even a cheetah! Before going on the safari, I had a ‘take-it-or-leave-it’ attitude, but after being on one, it was completely worth it. When again am I going to be able to see animals like that in their natural state?

After finishing the safari, and arriving back in Arusha, Tanzania, we rested up that night before beginning the climb up Mt. Kilimanjaro. Kilimanjaro….I can’t really seem to explain in words what a good time I had. Yes, it was cold (really really cold after being in Burkina) and I got altitude sickness, but I was with wonderful people, which made the whole trip worth it. We did the Lemosho route and finished in eight days. People generally finish in six to eight days, but we choose to do a longer ascent for better acclimatization after being at basically sea level in Burkina for two years. And the food was amazing! I don’t know if I thought that because I had come from Burkina as not from America, but boy, did it rock. I would do Kili again just for the food…just kidding. But it was good! (Can you tell that I’m still a PCV because of how much I talk about food?)

I really could go on and on about Kilimanjaro, but I won’t take your time up with that, because I still have so much to share! So after descending the biggest mountain on the continent of Africa, I flew back to Burkina while Marita, Julie, and Rachel continued onto America and home sweet home. And fortunately, we all got our bags (eventually) in their respective locations!

Once I arrived in Burkina (without my bag, which got delayed and Ghana and would find me later), I went straight to the PC bureau to work on Camp Glow stuff. I stayed in Ouaga a few days to get everything figured out, and then it was back to Kaya to get things finalized before the camp. So I arrived back August 4^th in Burkina and the training of trainers for Camp Glow started August 11^th. Not much time. And guess what happened in between: the mayor decided to change the location on us, so we had to find a new place, inform the officials and inform all the schools. Additionally, PLAN Burkina, an NGO we were working with, said that we didn’t submit the proper paperwork to get their help. Thanks for telling us at the last minute. All the last minute stuff also had to be taken care of as well, such as bringing supplies to the new location, setting up mosquito nets, printing a ton of materials, etc, etc, etc. Needless to say, it was a process, one I do not want to do again alone. One of the lessons learned.

Then came the beginning of Camp Glow. We had a three-day training of trainers, getting the facilitators ready to facilitate. Then the boys arrived! And then the girls came! Throughout the two week-long camp, there were activities to encourage self-esteem, goal-setting, and leadership, as well as create awareness for personal health, HIV/AIDS prevention, and the importance of education. We, as facilitators, ran into problems, but that’s the case with any new thing that takes place. And of course there were many lessons learned and we’re already thinking about next year’s camp (AHHHH!!!!). The important thing is that the students had a great time and thoroughly enjoyed themselves, while also gaining important information and knowledge that they will hopefully guard for the rest of their lives. I have faith in them.

Towards the end of Camp Glow I started getting sick and by the end of the second week I was down for the count. The PC country director took me to Ouaga, where I stayed in the med unit for almost two weeks. It was a good, air-conditioned, recovery period. I came back to Kaya last week, still a little rundown and tired, but was very glad to be back. I spent a few days’ just relaxing, beginning to think about all the paperwork that comes after the camp, and decorating my house. I started work again yesterday at Save the Children, and it feels really good to be back. And I am back.

Ok, well that’s about all for today, if you have any comments or questions, please feel free to post comments or email me at emma.prasher@gmail.com. Now some housekeeping stuff:

1. I don’t know if I wrote about my change of address already, but here it is again:

Emma Prasher, PCV

s/c Corps de la Paix

B.P. 157

Kaya, Burkina Faso

West Africa

2. PC Burkina has a website! It is www.pcburkina.org. Please feel free to browse to your heart’s content.

3. Burkina’s Camp Glow has a page on the website. At the moment it’s a little hard to find. Two ways to find it are:

a. Click on the “Youth Development” tab on the website. It is under that.

b. Google search “Burkina Camp Glow.” It should be the first or second link that pops up.

4. As usual, it’s taking wayyyy to long to load pictures on my blog, so check out facebook for picture updates!

5. I just got a blackberry (I know, giving into the smartphone trend) so I now have internet all the time, or at least when the connection is good. So I will be more available to chat whenever! Also, if you also have a blackberry, let me know and we can become blackberry messenger friends and text for free!

6. I will be taking my month long home leave from the end of November to the end of December. I am planning to spend the majority in it in Alabama with my family, but will be up in the DC/St. Mary’s area for a few days. So hopefully I can see everyone!

I hope this finds you all well and surviving the crazy weather. It’s currently the beginning of mini-hot season here (90F at 9pm), so I’ll send some warm breezes your way!!! Take care!

Save the Children

Now for a little more information about the organization I am now working for. Save the Children Canada (SCC) is an international humanitarian NGO who works to protect children’s rights throughout the world. SCC has been present in West Africa for more than 20 years, now with a regional office in Ouaga. In Burkina, alongside the Ministry to Health, SCC works to teach about HIV/AIDS and against malnutrition. After an evaluation, the Centre-Nord region of Burkina Faso was chosen as SCC’s site to fight malnutrition. The regional capital of the Centre-Nord is Kaya. The Health District of Kaya covers 7 communes and 334 villages. Within these villages, there are 52 CSPSs (Medical Clinics), one CREN (Centre for Malnutrition), and the regional hospital. SSC works in all of these locations to help eliminate malnutrition in the district of Kaya. The goal is to have a durable and permanent reduction of malnutrition.

Now, malnutrition is what exactly? According to unicef, malnutrition “is a broad term commonly used as an alternative to undernutrition but technically it also refers to overnutrition. People are malnourished if their diet does not provide adequate calories and protein for growth and maintenance or they are unable to fully utilize the food they eat due to illness (undernutrition). They are also malnourished if they consume too many calories (overnutrition).” In this situation we are talking about undernutrition. I would love to see fat babies everywhere.

It is estimated that 20 million children suffer from severe acute malnutrition and directly contributes to 1 million deaths per year. Since 2005, health workers have been using the community care method to treat acute malnutrition. This method has been recognized by the World Health Organization as the best approach to treat malnutrition. This approach has 3 essential components: community mobilization, outpatient care, for children without complications, and hospitalization for children with complications. Generally children 6-59 months are admitted into this program.

So what does this mean for me exactly? This means that every morning a team of Save the Children workers (generally 2-3 people) goes out to one of the 52 villages in the Kaya district. When we arrive at the village, we head to the CSPS to find a long line of women waiting for us (if word has gotten out that we’re coming that day). Then we set to work determining if each child is malnourished. We look at the age, sex, weight, height, and MUAC. Based on the child’s measurements, we decide if the child is malnourished. And if so, is he/she moderately or severely malnourished? If the child is malnourished, we give them vitamin A, amoxicillin, folic acid, along with plumpy nut (a nutritional supplement given out by UNICEF). We enter them in our program and monitor them over several months, with the hope that everyone gets better!

SCC has recently started a new initiative where all the children 0 to 5 years in the Kaya district, along with pregnant or nursing mothers, are given free medical treatment. Programs like these can take place due to community participation alongside the regional health office. I’m looking forward to seeing this be put into action.

In other news, I leave for Mt. Kilimanjaro in a few days. I’m still doing my Close of Service trip that I’d planned on doing for almost a year with three of my good friends here in country. So we will be climbing Kili and doing a three day safari. Then I return to Burkina where ten days later, Camp G2LOW starts. It’s going to be a whirlwind until September, but I am looking forward to everything (although of course I am also looking forward to relaxing and only having work to think about in Sept). Yay!

Third Year

Dear Friends and Family,

I am officially doing a third year here in Burkina Faso. I am working with the NGO Save the Children Canada. Everything happened in a whirlwind a few weeks ago, with me finishing school, then getting this job with Save the Children, then starting my new job, then moving all of my belongings to my new house. Needless to say, I haven't had much time to update/be on the internet. But I'm here now!

I am now working at Save the Children. I am still a Peace Corps Volunteer, so I still get all the perks of PC (the best healthcare, a whole bureau to support us, a way out if the country blows up, etc) but I am working for an NGO. Save the Children here in Burkina has three main offices: Ouaga, Banfora, and Kaya. I am at the Kaya office working in the mobile team to help end childhood malnutrition in the centre-nord region of Burkina. Being in the mobile team, every morning we go to a different village to diagnosis and treat children who are malnourished. It is fantastic work, everyday is different, and I actually feel like I'm making a difference.

Living in Kaya will be very different than living in Tougouri. First of all, my house is amazing. I have a salon, two bedrooms, one of which I have turned into a kitchen, and an inside bathroom, yes with running water and even a toilet! Although I have to admit, I still use the latrine more often than not. A toilet just uses too much water. But the shower is wonderful!! Annnddddd I have electricity! This is a big change for me. Electricty means that I now have fans! So I sleep in my bed, with real sheets on it (I've been missing that for two years) under a large ceiling fan. Being able to charge my cellphone and computer is definitely nice too.

Another difference about living in Kaya is that there are two other PC volunteers. I really like this, but I don't want it to turn into me only hanging out with them. I enjoy (and now miss) my village friends. But good news, Kaya is only 70km from Tougouri, so I am sure to see my Tougouri friends all the time. In fact, one of them has already come down to visit me for a night!

Oh another difference: I have a new puppy! His name is Denzel and he is black with a white stomach and white front paws and loves to chew on toes!

Well, I've got to run, but hope everyone is well and it's not as hot there as it is here!!

Forever and Ever

Sorry it has been a year and a day since I've last updated. Okay, it's actually only been three months. But three months is a long time and a lot has happened!

To recap:

On February 22nd, students in Koudougou, a town 100km northwest of Ouaga, started protesting after the death of a jailed student. During the protests four people were killed and more were injured (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/25/world/africa/25briefs-Burkina.html). As a result of this, students burned down government buildings in Koudougou and called for nationwide strikes. On February 28th the Burkina government closed school indefinitely and the police chief and governor of Koudougou were relived of their duties (http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=13019318). In early March, students all over the country began protesting and burning police stations and government property (http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-09/burkina-faso-students-protest-deaths-police-rights-group-says.html).

Mid March brought around the first military protests, as soldiers in Ouaga left their barracks and began shooting into the air in protest of a recent arrest of their colleague (http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/burkina-govt-calls-for-calm-after-overnight-gunfire). Everything calmed down for a few days until unrest began in Fada, a town about 250km East of Ouagadougou. Soldiers were again protesting over the arrest of a colleague and blocked the entrance to Fada (http://af.reuters.com/article/idAFJOE72R0LR20110328). Subsequently, soldiers from Fada left the town and went to neighboring towns to commandeer vehicles and rally support and arms. After a few tense days, the protests in Fada seemed to calm down.

Around the middle of March, the presidential guard in Ouaga mutinied over a pay dispute (http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-04-15/burkina-s-faso-s-presidential-guard-mutinies-in-capital.html). The military protests then spread to other towns in Burkina Faso (http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2011/04/18/world-burkina-faso-mutiny.html). The President gave the presidential guard more pay and then dissolved the government and the problems seemed to be solved for the time being http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/16/world/africa/16burkina.html).

At the end of May, right at the end of the school year, teachers began striking, wanting more pay. Students then began striking as well, to help the teacher's cause (http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2011/04/18/world-burkina-faso-mutiny.html). Then, last Monday, military protests began again around the country over a pay dispute. Tuesday, the military in Bobo, the second biggest city in Burkina, left the second largest base in country, started shooting in the air and looting shops. On Wednesday, shopkeepers, fed up with the looting and rioting, tried to get onto military base, but to no avail. They burned mayor's office and were then dispersed. Thursday all was calm in morning until around 2pm, when the military left their barracks again and started rioting in centre-ville, comandeering cars, and shooting in air. Over Thursday night, the Presidental Guard made its way to Bobo and Friday morning attacked the military base where 57 were arrested, 7 killed, 20 injured (http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE75403V20110605). Things have been calm since Friday.

I hope none of this scares you back home. I have seen no disturbances in my village and would not know any of this was going on except for Peace Corps messages and Burkinabe gossip while listening to the radio. So please do not worry. I feel completely safe. :)

Now, in terms of my life, school is finished!...well almost. I have calculated all of my students' grades and filled out their report cards. All that is left is the final teachers meeting. So I am basically done with my primary assignment for Peace Corps! Camp GLOW has been moved to August, due to the extension of the school year and everything that has been going on countrywide. So this means that I will be in Burkina at least until September. However, I am thinking about doing a third year (gasp). I'm in the process of finding a job in the health sector in Kaya, my regional capital. I really want electricity and fan(s) if I'm going to be staying in Burkina. So my life in up in the air at the moment. But since school is done, I now have time to go to Kaya during the work week to job search. yay!

However, things that are for sure:

1. My sister, Rebecca, is here visiting, but is leaving tonight :(

2. I'm climbing Kilimanjaro in July as my COS (close of service) trip, despite the fact that I am not COSing in July.

3. It is hot season and it it hot.

4. I am still accepting packages, but to there has been a change in the address

New address:

Emma Prasher, PCV

s/c Corps de la Paix

B.P. 157

Kaya, Burkina Faso

5. I miss everyone at home and hope you're all enjoying the beginning of summer!

Camp GLOW is up online!

Camp GLOW is up online! Please click here to donate: Peace Corps Partnership Camp GLOW.

Thank you so much!

Camp GLOW

As most of you know, I have been working on Camp GLOW (guys and girls leading our world). Lorena (another volunteer) and I have been spearheading this project to bring this camp to Burkina. We will be asking for donations from friends and family in a few weeks, so I wanted to give you all a heads up. I've copied our project proposal for everyone to read, so please enjoy!

Project Description:

Excited by its success in other countries, Peace Corps Burkina Faso has decided to host its first Camp GLOW (Girls Leading Our World). In hopes to become the 23rd Peace Corps country to house a Camp GLOW, we also want to make Camp GLOW even more unique by giving it a small twist to transform it to Camp G²LOW (Girls and Guys Leading Our World). There is no denying that, in Burkina Faso’s patriarchal system, there is a need to empower women, but it is our belief that the only true way to empower women is to educate young men, and teach them the importance of working with woman as equals. Camp G²LOW is a week-long leadership training camp geared toward school-age male and female students across the world.

Camp G²LOW -as it pertains to Burkina Faso- will focus on three subfields: 1) healthy lifestyles, 2) development of leadership skills, and 3) promotion of gender equality. In order to address the subfield of healthy lifestyles, camp counselors, which will include Peace Corps Volunteers (PCVs) and host country nationals (HCNs), will lead educational sessions focused on proper hygiene and safe sex practices, as to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS and lower the rate of unwanted pregnancy. To develop their leadership skills, Camp G²LOW participants will take part in activities to teach critical thinking and decision-making skills. Lastly, camp counselors will aid in the promotion of gender equality by leading sessions that focus on ending domestic violence, as well as working with members of the opposite sex as partners on the same playing field.

The regional capitals of Kaya and Boromo have been selected to serve as the locations for the inaugural year of Camp G²LOW in Burkina Faso. Camp G²LOW will be held in Kaya June 19th to July 3rd and in Boromo July 15th to July 30th. During two weeks of camp, 60 girls and 60 boys from surrounding villages will participate in Camp G²LOW in each location.

Purpose of project:

With a United Nations' Human Development Index (HDI) ranking of 161 out of 169, Burkina Faso remains one of the poorest countries in the world (United Nations Development Program). Seeing as more than 50% of the country is under the age of 15, it stands to reason that Peace Corps Burkina Faso has identified middle school students (generally around the age of 11 to 16) as their target group. As Secondary Education Peace Corps Volunteers, we work with this particular group of the population on a regular basis. Often we encounter our young girl students getting pregnant before they reach the 8th grade; passive to the passes that are made to them by older men, and naïve to the process of getting pregnant and STDs. We work with male teachers who more than often take advantage of their position to get these same girls to sleep with them for a guarantee of a good grade and a false hope of a future with a civil servant. Sadly, these situations generally end in undesired pregnancies, an education and a promising future left behind, and occasionally a newborn abandoned in the middle of the bush. The youth, and more specifically, the young women of Burkina Faso, are generally passive when it comes to decision-making. Part of the reason the youth are so passive is because Burkina Faso is an extremely patriarchal society. As a result of the extreme patriarchal structure, men tend to make all decisions, and the women's voice goes unheard.

Additionally, we see boy students who idolize and wish to imitate their male teachers by sleeping with numerous girls at a young age or hoping to one day be a teacher so they can too take advantage of their female students. All the while, these young impressionable men are unconscious of the consequences and oblivious to the corruptness of the actions they wish to replicate. As teachers, we also have the misfortune of knowing numerous students who die of malaria and other various diseases every year due to misinformation and poor education. Camp G²LOW will aid development by working with this critical group of students and by educating them and instilling in them a sense of commitment and dedication to bettering their communities and country as a whole and by building the capacity of HCNs on interactive and participatory teaching methods. By addressing healthy living practices, the development of leadership skills, and the promotion of gender equality, Camp G²LOW 2011 intends to teach young men and women to work together as partners, and to take charge of their futures by confidently asserting themselves and by making responsible decisions.

Justification for the grant:

Burkina Faso is a country of constant metamorphosis. Plagued by political overturn, after political overturn, Burkina Faso did not become “politically stable” until the early 1990s, 30 years after gaining independence from France. It was with this stability that Burkina Faso was able to move toward more market-orientated economic policies and re-engagement with the international community.

Re-engagement with the international economic community was good for Burkina Faso, but the benefits of this change were not always distributed evenly. Burkinabè youth, and more specifically the female youth, are still suffering from high levels of unemployment and few educational opportunities. The overall unemployment rate in Burkina Faso is 77% (The World Factbook). In terms of education, only 21.8% of Burkinabè over the age of 15 are literate. When one considers that 29.4% of Burkinabè men are literate, it is shocking to discover that only 15.2% of Burkinabè women are literate (The World Factbook). For example, in the town of Tougouri, with a population of 7 thousand and a middle school that caters to 42 surrounding villaged, only 30% of the 900 students are female. In the 2009-2010 school year, only 37% of those 300 female students made the average to go on to the next grade level. Because these numbers are so discouraging, Camp G²LOW can be a great asset to Burkina Faso. Unfortunately, the youth of Burkina Faso often feel that they are victims of the system, and do not even try to break the cycle of poverty and illiteracy. The youth of Burkina Faso need to be motivated and introduced to tools to tackle these obstacles that past generations of Burkinabè were never forced to encounter.

Burkina Faso is not developing rapidly due to its few large metropolitan areas, lack of ports for shipping and importing, and limited variety of products that build up the economic sector. For instance, 90% of the population are cultivators and agricultural workers; this would not be a problem if it were not for the fact that only 17.66% of the land is suitable for that type of work (The World Factbook). As a result of the lack of resources, opportunities are limited for youth. Camp G²LOW will offer economically challenged, rural youth the opportunity to leave their villages, quite possibly for the first time, and attend a program that will equip them with the skills required to start the process of bettering the state of their communities and themselves by teaching them to make good decisions.

Camp G²LOW 2011 will offer its participants a realistic setting in which to explore the various aspects of gender equality. In Burkina Faso, gender equality is almost nonexistent despite efforts by the government to enact legislation focused on improving women’s rights. In the typical Burkinabè family, the rights of the women (and in some cases the girls) are poorly protected. An alarming 2004 United Nations report actually estimated that 35 percent of girls between the ages of 15 and 19 were already married, divorced, or widowed in Burkina Faso.

In addition to the early marriage problems, there is also little equality in most Burkinabè marriages. Though the Burkina Faso family codes state that spouses are equal, and that both parents should share parental authority, the men are still considered to be the head of the family. All decisions men make are expected to be obeyed by their wives. The problems start to occur when the men are not able to make enough money to support their families, creating a situation where their wives are then forced to work and contribute to the household finances. Most men in this country have a hard time seeing women as their equals, so the fact that they are the same economically also tends to lead to problems. It is for these reasons, and many more that Camp G²LOW wishes to work with gender equality alongside both girls and boys.

One can use the practice of female genital mutilation as a case study for the power of educating a country. The OECD estimated in 2009 that 72% of Burkinabè women have undergone female genital mutilation (FGM). FGM was criminalized in 1996 and it is estimated that FGM for women ages 15 to 19 has dropped to 65% --more positive changes are anticipated for the future. Part of the reason there was a drop in the number of girls who underwent FGM was because of extensive education campaigns against the practice, as well as campaigns to spread the new laws regarding the practices (United Nations Development Program). During Camp G²LOW campers will discuss gender equality, women’s and men's rights and responsibilities, safeguards against sexual harassment and domestic violence, and health care for both men and women.

Lastly, Camp G²LOW will include several types of physical empowerment activities. In a high stress environment, the ability to relax and depend upon inner strength to face obstacles is of utmost importance. For this reason, the campers will be taught relaxation and stress relief techniques. A healthy mind, body, and attitude, coupled with individuality, independence, and self-reliance are significant attributes to Burkina’s youth today. Through these various activities, Camp G²LOW will empower participants to make changes in their lives by: raising awareness of existing opportunities in the community, providing resources to campers, and instilling new-found confidence in the students.

Recruitment and Expansion

Recruitment of campers will take place in the spring of 2011. The administrations of 30 middle schools surrounding the regional capitals of Kaya and Boromo will be asked to nominate eight high-performing, middle school students for consideration as participants in G²LOW 2011. These young men and women should demonstrate characteristics of leadership, enthusiasm for learning, and teamwork.

HCNs will play a vital role in Camp G²LOW 2011. Each PCV counselor will invite a HCN from their community to work alongside the PCVs. The HCNs will be in charge of the traditional training portion of the camp and will set the expectations for work and interaction, facilitate sessions in their specialty areas or work field, and will lead discussions specifically related to culturally sensitive subjects such as sexual harassment and women’s rights. In addition to leading sessions, HCNs will serve as valuable interpreters and translators of the Volunteers and will hopefully make lasting personal connections with the camp participants. Prior to the start of the camp, a training of trainers (TOT) will be held with all of the invited facilitators for each camp. The TOT will be a valuable exchange of ideas and will provide an opportunity to discuss the camp as a whole, individual sessions, activity ideas, and teaching techniques. Since HCNs will be involved before, during, and after the camp, they will be trained in the organization, implementation, and facilitation of Camp G²LOW, thus preparing them to replicate the camp in the future.

As stated earlier, Camp G²LOW 2011 will take place in the regional cities of Kaya and Boromo during its first year. Having learned from Camp G²LOW 2011, Camp G²LOW 2012 will be a larger event with sites in four regional capitals to aid the youth in two more additional regions of Burkina Faso. In addition to the increase of participating campers, Camp G²LOW 2012 will be planned with the help and support from the people and government of Burkina Faso. The facilitation of Camp G²LOW 2012 will also include more Burkinabè involvement; the idea is that two or three model participants from Camp G²LOW 2011 will be invited to participate in the Camp G²LOW 2012 to serve as junior counselors and role-models to the new campers. These junior counselors will be assistants to the PCVs and HCNs and can be used to lead sessions, plan and be responsible for various activities, and be building leaders. This opportunity will allow past participants of Camp G²LOW to use and share what they learned at the camp, what work they carried out in their villages based on what they learned at camp, and to develop their leadership skills. The use of peer-to-peer teaching will reinforce everything Camp G²LOW 2011 campers learned in 2011 while at the same time making the message resonate more with 2012 campers; students, after all are more likely to follow the lead and example of their other fellow students. Additionally, the utilization of past participants as junior counselors will help facilitate the transference of Camp G²LOW from being reliant on PCVs to HCNs.

Camp G²LOW will add two more sites in 2013 and 2014. By 2015, Camp G²LOW, with the help and support of the government of Burkina Faso, will be a national camp hosted in Burkina Faso's capitol city of Ouagadougou with students coming together from all 13 of the national regions to work for the encouragement of healthy lifestyles, the development of leadership skills, and the promotion of gender equality.

Citations

United Nations Development Program. “Human Development Index (HDI) - 2010 Rankings.” United Nations, 2010. Web. 29 November 2010 <>.

The World Factbook. “Burkina Faso.” Central Intelligence Agency, 2010. Web. 29 November 2010. < https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/uv.html>.

Mom Comes to Burkina!

Although not off to the start I wanted, my mom made it safely to Burkina Faso! We started the trip off with a day in Ouaga, to let her recuperate from the flight and me to rest from the long voyage back from Ghana. The next day we travelled down to the South of Burkina, to the town Banfora, one of the main touristy places in the country. Once down in Banfora, we arranged for a guide to pick us up the next morning to go site-seeing. After spending the night in one of Burkina’s loveliest hotels, we were well rested for the day ahead of us. But we were not quite prepared. The guide arrived in a beat-up sedan that was supposed to take us 80km on a bad dirt road to Niansogoni, a trogolyte village perched on a cliff top. But we made it, despite the bone jarring ride! We hiked up the cliff to see the cave dwellings that have not been inhabited since 1980. After Niansogoni, we made our way back towards Banfora and stopped along the way to see Sindou peaks. These monumental structures were made by the movement of oceans and wind and hardly any noises disturb the silence. In fact it was a little spooky, but a needed rest from the cars jostling.

The next day found us with the same guide, but we stayed closer to Banfora, so we did not have as long in that dreaded car. We went to the waterfalls of Takeledougou, hidden behind fields and fields of sugarcane. Being at the waterfalls was like being in a different country, or back in the rainforest in Ghana. The trees were humungous and the temperature was downright cold (to me, after being in Burkina 19 months). We hiked up to the waterfalls and enjoyed the view, and the water, which is a rarity here.

Then it was up to Tougouri! I needed to get back to begin teaching again; I was already a week late for the start of the second trimester. Once back at site, we settled into a routine, I’d get up, run, and go to school, Mom would show up a little later, then we’d cook lunch, then go visit people in village, then it’d already be time for dinner! I think Mom enjoyed being in village much more than doing touristy things, but I’m glad she got to see different parts of Burkina. Everyone was very excited to meet my mother and state what a good thing it was for her to come here. Still today, two weeks later, I get asked everyday how my mother is doing back in the U.S.

The final night of her stay in village, we had a big fete (party) to honor her visit. 17 chickens were killed and cooked with a basketful of vegetables. All of the teachers at my school showed up, along with some village friends. The school gave my mother a traditional outfit which she wore and even danced in (once the generator got going, unfortunately). I wasn’t thinking when I said yes, the teachers could bring a generator. This meant there was a loud generator running with music blasting over it in my relatively small courtyard. Oh well, my village friends had a great time.

Then it was time for my Mom to leave. I have to admit it, but I was glad to see her go. It was a GREAT trip and I am thrilled she now knows how I’ve been living for the past two years, but after living alone for this long and all of a sudden having someone around 24/7, I was tired. But I cannot begin to say how thankful I am that she came to visit. I love you Mom.

Now, it’s back to the grind of things. School is in full swing and I’ve taken on a few extra hours teaching sex education classes, which I actually love teaching! It’s a lot of fun to get into topics that the students actually care about and talk about things that are pertinent to their immediate lives. Don’t get me wrong, someday my students may have to know the acidic properties of granite or the lifecycle of algae, but not now. In addition to sex ed, we will be talking about gender issues and inequality, goal settings, and decision-making skills. In addition, I also started a World Map Project at my school, which involved myself and some of my students first drawing, then painting, the world on a concrete slab on the outside wall of the library at my school. Even though I’m still in the beginning stages, it has generated a lot of interest. If I’m ever working on it when the students are not in class, I usually have a crowd of at least 30 students around me watching me. It’s going to be really exciting when it starts to actually become a map of the world.

Hot season is also upon us, on the cusp of breaking. The past few days have been in the low 100s and I’m not excited of sweating for the next 6 months. This past cold season definitely spoiled me. However, it rained (ok, sprinkled) this afternoon. That never happens up North where I am. There are “mango rains” in February, but generally only in the lush, green South of Burkina. So I am a little confused. But not complaining in the least, because rain means cloudy skies which mean a lower temperature. Yay! I will be sleeping well tonight!

That’s all from here at the moment. Again, I apologize for the lack of photos. Please look on facebook for recent pictures. Miss you all!

Bobo Christmas and a Ghana New Years

I know I’m about a month late, but here’s my first of two updates of my current life.

For Christmas, I travelled down to the South of Burkina (about an eight hour bus ride) to meet up with some other volunteers in the city of Bobo-Dioulasso. Bobo is Burkina’s second largest city and is often preferred over Ouaga by PCVs. There may be more faux-types (guides/annoying Burkinabe waiting to prey on hapless tourists), but it has a slower pace of life and is much greener than Ouaga.

The 10 other volunteers and I rented two apartments and ensconced ourselves in American-ness for two full days. Several PCVs had received Christmas decorations from home, so we decorated the apartments to the nines. The decorations made it seem almost Christmasy and were completed with the two-foot high fake tree sent to Julie. Christmas Eve we had a candle-light ceremony complete with hymns accompanied by Colette on the flute. The next morning we awoke to cinnamon buns and exchanged secret Santa stockings. We spent the day cooking an inordinate amount of food and then stuffed ourselves silly. Overall I have to say it was a good Christmas, if one has to spend the holiday away from home.

After Bobo I travelled with Sabrina to Ghana (!!!) for New Years. I was under the impression that all of West Africa is the same, just like Burkina. Boy was I wrong. Now I know why volunteers call Ghana “Americaland.” Even small villages have paved roads, sidewalks, and believe it or not, streetlights! Hard-boiled eggs with sweet Ghana bread, along with fried rice with chicken, can be found on every street corner. It was a dream come true.

Sabrina and I travelled the 24+ hours from Ouaga to make it to the beach to spend four days in utter relaxation. Those days consisted of swim, eat, sleep, swim, eat, sleep. I was not complaining. On New Year’s Eve, a local dance troupe came to perform and we roasted a pig. I stuffed myself silly, again, but again, not complaining. After the calming days at the beach, Sabrina and I went to Cape Coast to visit the slave castle and then onto Kakum Monkey Preserve to do the canopy walk. After that we moved up to Koumasi, Ghana’s second biggest city. The big tourist attraction in Koumasi is the market, so of course Sabrina and I made our way there. I thought I knew markets, but I have never seen Africans move so fast. Everybody was go go go, with something to do! Although Sabrina and I were a little perplexed at first by all of the moment, we prevailed and found beautiful Ghana fabric to bring back home to Burkina.

Sabrina and I were scheduled to take the 5pm bus back to Ouagadougou and were informed at 530pm that the bus would be 7 hours late. Usually, this would not be a problem, as we’ve become habituated to things being late and not running on time, but this time this was a slight problem. My mom was flying into Ouagadougou the next afternoon and I wanted to meet her at the airport! I went up and asked what time the bus (16 hour ride) would be getting into Ouaga and was told it would arrive at 12noon the next day. This did not make any sense to me. And of course, we did not get in until 5pm the following day, with the bus having broken down twice on the way, after the seven-hour delay. Boy was I glad to finally get off the bus and thankfully, some friends of mine went and picked up my mother at the airport. So everything worked out, as it always does!

I want to apologize for the lack of pictures; the internet connection is to slow to upload anything at the moment. Please look on facebook for photos.