I didn’t feel “in love” with the landscape, like I did in New Zealand… maybe because the people and their big brown eyes have already won me over :)… but I did feel very strongly compelled to come back and live and work here, even if it’s for a short time as a volunteer or researcher. It was just amazing how I've always been passionate about these issues and understood them, but to actually SEE them was beyond overwhelming. Sure, I saw rural areas in Guatemala or the Philippines, but somehow the houses in those countries always have a touch of modernity, like a cement foundation or even a satellite dish on their thatched roof. I feel like in rural parts of Ethiopia, it’s really just people living off of the basic natural resources in their backyard, with hardly any Western influences. The lack of access to clean water and sanitation, land degradation, deforestation and grinding poverty are in your face, and it’s impossible to ignore how large family sizes and high population growth are even more detrimental to quality of life.
When we arrived in Dinsho woreda (district) of Bale zone, my work friend Mery and I met the MELCA project directors Tesfaye and Aby. Along with our driver Desalne, the five of us had an AMAZINGLY fun time, in addition to accomplishing a ton of work! Over the course of three days, we interviewed probably 50+ people who were involved with this population, health and environment (PHE) development project. It was amazing to really understand their daily challenges, and how the project was improving their lives. I felt like I made really good friends with the project implementers, and now I completely understand how culture, community and creativity go into PHE work on the ground.
Most of all, it was incredible how the people did SO much with so little. Our last day there, we arrived at Fincha Banoo Elementary School in Robe woreda, where hundreds of kids greeted us by singing a welcome song about PHE, wearing PHE sashes across their uniforms, dancing and clapping their hands. It was amazing! These beautiful girls named Fatiye and Rose, the “PHE Club Leaders,” showed us the nursery they had created and how to mix soils for the best growing outcomes. Then they led us to their "Cultural Hut" filled with beautiful hand-crafted objects, and I have to say it was a million times prettier than the National Museum in Addis Ababa. They showcased their cultural artifacts, and I teared up when Rose sang a song about “sinque,” a stick that women use to protect themselves from domestic physical and sexual violence.
Tesfaye explained the environmental and cultural importance of all of the items in the hut, and along with the student leaders, teachers and school director, everyone sang songs and laughed about the different stories that accompanied each object. The best part was when they gave us a PHE presentation, using a “PHE Story-board” that they had created. Their 178 "PHE club members" had each paid 2 bihr or about 15 cents per month in membership fees, and they commissioned a local artist to create it. (His name’s Ibrahim, and he’s also a PHE-trained entrepreneur and environmentalist—I met him later on in the day). The story-board consists of 10 different beautiful paintings comparing large families with small families, a beautiful forest with a degraded landscape, a healthy mother compared with a suffering woman in labor, etc., to show how people who choose smaller, healthier families are also happier and more prosperous with a healthier environment. They've used these story-boards at about 5 different public celebrations such as "Mountain Nyala", Earth Day and Climate Change awareness days, to reach over 10,000 people! I was so inspired while video-taping their presentation. And although there are so many problems... many girls marry at 14, have as many kids as their bodies are capable of having, and many people suffer from HIV/AIDS... there was an overwhelming sense of pride and joy in all the beautiful work they've created, and you could really tell that it’s made a vast improvement in their lives.
They treated us to a fantastic coffee ceremony, and at the end of my pestering them with so many questions that I felt bad that I was keeping them out of class, the school director humbly thanked us for coming and asked me to pose with him for a picture. He presented me with a gift wrapped in white paper… I pulled the paper off and was SHOCKED to see a beautiful hand-woven basket with shells and leather adornments, just like the artifacts we’d seen in the cultural hut. I didn't expect it at all, and the whole world literally spun around me! I felt like I wasn't worthy! I said “Gelletoma, Amasegenallo” (thank you in Oromifa and Amharic languages) over and over, but I still can’t believe it’s mine. Definitely my new most prized possession!
After the school visit, we went to the local artist Ibrahim’s house, which he’d constructed by himself of local recycled materials. He’s created dozens of beautiful sculptured works of art out of recycled plastic, but I couldn’t believe that he’s never sold any of his art! He was truly a beautiful person, who explained the cultural and artistic significance of all of his works of art. He said that he made everything with recycled materials in order to teach his community about the importance of protecting the environment, and told us his dream is to open an art gallery on the second floor of his home. He asked us our advice on how to improve his work, and I suggested “sell it online! Americans would love this!” Only moments later did I realize that he doesn’t have an email address, let alone speak English or know how to post his artwork on the internet. As it is, he makes a living from hand-painting curtains and napkins for local community members, who can barely afford the few dollars they cost. I went ahead and bought a beautiful painting and an Ethiopian wolf sculpture for $65 total, which are now my second most prized possessions! :) If anyone reading this is interested in purchasing his artwork, please let me know and I would love to help make it happen!
After a final long interview about the project with Tesfaye and Aby, the five of us went out to dinner and descended into our last night of inside jokes and giggling hilarity. Earlier in the trip, I had decided that my new favorite word in Amharic is “bajaj,” which is the same as a tuk-tuk or a motorized cart taxi with three wheels, and that somehow became our battle cry. We’d shout it every time there was a lull in the conversation, when we’d move on to a new project, or when we’d “cheers” our glass of local beer. :) After visiting Ibrahim’s house, Tesfaye wouldn’t let go of my little Ethiopian wolf sculpture, and was even giving it little kisses of endearment… it was beyond adorable… so we christened the Ethiopian wolf sculpture as Bajaj! :) Earlier in the day, we had also stepped on a strange round plant that emitted a gray smoke, and my friends told me its knick-name is “yaru geetfas,” which means “old lady fart.” This of course became my second favorite word in Amharic! :) So at the end of dinner, we were walking through the pitch black street since there had just been a power outage, holding hands, and avoiding a stray black dog that was following us… and on the count of three, we yelled YARU GEETFAS as loud as we could into the night! I almost peed my pants I laughed so hard!
In the end, it was an amazing five days of learning, laughing, and falling even more in love with Ethiopian culture and the critical nature of the issues I’m working on. I’m again so unbelievably grateful for this experience, and can’t wait to start my MPH program at UCLA next year to focus on these issues even more. Who knows, maybe I’ll be back here next summer during my research internship abroad, and I’ll have another chance to yell out BAJAJ with my Bale friends!
NOTE: If anyone is interested in learning more about the amazing MELCA project, or donating to support their efforts, please let me know by responding to this blog post. Funding hasn't been secured for next year's PHE project, which would be devastating for the community since the results have so far been successful, doubling the number of family planning users, planting more than 60,000 tree seedlings, and reaching more than 10,000 people in the community. In particular, I'm trying to raise money for Tesfaye and Aby to have a laptop, since they work in 4 communities that are a good hour apart, share one motorbike, and have inconsistently-working desktop computers in their office. Any amount that you can offer will really help them to make a difference in the community! Thank you!
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