A week and a half ago Felipe and I finally hired the new team member to help us implement the project. Silvia Ariyegua speaks the local indigenous language (Guarayú), which is an asset in many of the communities where COBAGUAL will work, and has a certificate in environmental health. She has previous experience working in rural communities in Guarayos with waste management, has worked on latrine projects before, and has a very solid understanding of health issues affecting rural communities. Silvia and I are in the process of developing our approach for the community diagnostic and participatory planning phase of the project.
Finding the right person to help with the project was not an easy task. I spent several days in meetings with officials from local governments and NGOs explaining our project and asking for them to recommend people who they thought would be a good fit. For a couple of weeks we did not hear anything, but then within a few days we had three fairly well qualified candidates express interest in the position. After interviewing each of them, Felipe and I felt sure that Silvia was the best fit, given her ample related work experience, previous training, and deep connection to the Guarayos region and people.
A further benefit from the meetings is that local government officials and several other NGOs in the Guarayos region are now aware of our project. Local governments have even offered material support to help us reach more people, although only time will tell whether their offer is serious or not.
Most of our meetings have been in Guarayos, a pleasant change from our hectic travel schedule of the first few weeks of the project, however, so far this month we have made a couple of trips to destinations near the city of Santa Cruz. We returned to Mairana for another meeting with Irwin and Juan to discuss COBAGUAL´s incorporation, as well as a visit to an impressive nearby organic farm where Irwin used to work. We also met with an NGO called Etta Projects, which implements participatory projects focused on community health, composting latrines, and school gardens near Montero, Eastern Bolivia. Most recently we have met with representatives of the Grigotá Rotary Club in Santa Cruz to discuss possible collaboration and funding opportunities. The meetings have provided us with valuable tips and information that will no doubt improve the outcomes of our project.
Sunday, August 19, 2012
The demonstration site – Barrio San Francisco, Ascensión de Guarayos
My time in Bolivia is tentatively divided into 4 phases:
1)Learning from the experience of other NGOs and institutions and testing out our newly acquired knowledge before applying it in the rural community where we are going to work
2)Developing a more detailed and thorough knowledge of the potential beneficiary communities where we may work and finalizing the project design with community members
3)The implementation phase of the project, involving construction and training workshops
4)Initial follow-up to help ensure sustainability and learn lessons for future projects.
The first phase should last until late September, although we are already beginning some activities of the second phase as well. Much of my time with COBAGUAL since mid-July has been dedicated to an important part of the first phase of the project: the demonstration site in Ascensión. A month ago our demonstration site was an empty lot in the town. We will use it to put what we have learned in the first few weeks of the project into practice before adapting it to a rural community. Aside from providing us with more practical experience, the demonstration site is also intended to showcase the feasibility of urban gardens in Ascensión. Although the site isn´t up and running yet, several people from Ascensión have already asked for help in setting up their own household kitchen gardens upon hearing about our project idea. Local governments have also expressed some interest in supporting a larger scale urban garden project.
The plan is for me to live in a traditional mud brick and palm roof house (sleeping under an insect net) on the demonstration site throughout the rest of my time with the project. It is hoped that my living there will attract more attention to the project, help demonstrate that people involved with the project are willing to ´practice what we preach´, and serve as an example that other members of the community could follow at a fairly low cost. Construction of my home is already underway… pictures will be uploaded soon…
1)Learning from the experience of other NGOs and institutions and testing out our newly acquired knowledge before applying it in the rural community where we are going to work
2)Developing a more detailed and thorough knowledge of the potential beneficiary communities where we may work and finalizing the project design with community members
3)The implementation phase of the project, involving construction and training workshops
4)Initial follow-up to help ensure sustainability and learn lessons for future projects.
The first phase should last until late September, although we are already beginning some activities of the second phase as well. Much of my time with COBAGUAL since mid-July has been dedicated to an important part of the first phase of the project: the demonstration site in Ascensión. A month ago our demonstration site was an empty lot in the town. We will use it to put what we have learned in the first few weeks of the project into practice before adapting it to a rural community. Aside from providing us with more practical experience, the demonstration site is also intended to showcase the feasibility of urban gardens in Ascensión. Although the site isn´t up and running yet, several people from Ascensión have already asked for help in setting up their own household kitchen gardens upon hearing about our project idea. Local governments have also expressed some interest in supporting a larger scale urban garden project.
The plan is for me to live in a traditional mud brick and palm roof house (sleeping under an insect net) on the demonstration site throughout the rest of my time with the project. It is hoped that my living there will attract more attention to the project, help demonstrate that people involved with the project are willing to ´practice what we preach´, and serve as an example that other members of the community could follow at a fairly low cost. Construction of my home is already underway… pictures will be uploaded soon…
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