No waste !

In March, the pricipal of Evangélique II told me

"organise a short play concerning Environment with kids for the closing ceremony of this school year"

Play is often used as effective enlightening (educating) tool for a large public.

But I am not good at playing in public so how can I do???

I hesitated at first but at the beginning of my volunteer work here, I tried to see as many activites of YANTA as possible. So I went several times to see theatre practice of the women's group about women's rights or environment protection.

They had a professional team to teach them and I participated in it some times as well.

Also a teacher told me that kids like playing and are used to doing it so I decided to try.

It wasn't easy...

It is only Thursday afternoon when all 4 classes' kids have free time at the same time.

But they need to get their parents' permission to come to school then.

I asked at each class who is interested in this. Most of them rised hands...

I asked the principal to make the paper form for the permission for about 200kids...

First Thursday, there were only 20 kids.

As usual in class, they were out of control...

They go out of the classroom, chat with other friends, come later to join us...

Anyway we made 2 groups. I let each group choose a subject about environment and creat a story.

Both chose the same subject : against deforestation.

Typical. The story takes place in a village, which is funnier than in a city according to them.

Personally, I wanted a story directly related to their daily life.

But I respected their decision and we decided to work in detail next week.

2nd week

Half of kids who came last week weren't there...

We had to reform the 2 groups.

The story was same as last week but it didn't work because more than half of members weren't same.

I asked them to come evrey Thursday if they really want to participate in the play.

3rd week.

There were football practice (matches) between classes.

The kids couldn't concentrate in the play.

Scream, cheer and noise outside drowned everything.

Impossible...

4th week: I couldn't participate. I had asked kids to practice by themselves but most of them didn't come apparently...

5th week.

Everyone’s motivation was getting lower…

There were about 10 kids who have been coming to practice since the 1st week.

I decided to work only with them and we restarted from deciding the subject of the play.

This time, they suggested 2 subjects :

Against deforestation & Solid waste management.

In fact, I wanted to creat a story about waste problems from the beginning

Because this is really a serious daily problem right now in this city and concern everyone. The message is simple but strong.

I didn't say anything. I let them choose one of them.

By majority decision, Waste problem was selected !

The story was quickly made then we moved to practice.

With the experience and observation at YANTA theatre practice,

I gave advice to kids repeatedly :

- Speak loudly and clearly,

- Show huge or even exaggerated gestures,

- Do not show your back to the audience

6th week

I believed that they got used to playing so I didn't prepare any lines for each actor.

However, they found hard saying all the time the same lines then asked me to write them down.

I prepared lines for whole story with the team director.

7th week.

Practice with reading lines and its modification

They decided to memorize their part by next week.

8th week.

They knew all lines !

I filmed once the play and showed it to them.

They realized by themselves their voice volume was low and gestures were still small.

We repeated several times.

9th week on Tuesday

I went to the school to present my report on my environmental education series.

I saw the notice of the date of school year closing ceremony :

"from 18:30 on May 18th"

That is today...

I had been asking to the principal when the ceremony would take place since a month then finally I knew that on the day...

I gathered all members at break and asked them to bring necessary clothes and materials when they come back to school after lunch.

At the evening

"Any events in Burkina never start on time"...

It is the case usually so I arrived at 18:45 then I started hearing some lines that I was very familier with...

No way !!!

Too late...

The ceremony started on time and the play was 2nd event so when I arrived, the play was alomst done

I felt so sorry and guilty for my kids.

The principal told me that the kids spoke well and it was good.

But I couldn't believe myself...

They put special clothes for their role and some put make-up with chalk...

I could see only the end but they seemed very proud of their play and themselves.

I really finished my EE programme at this school with the play.

"The end is the most important however the process is" (a japanese proverb)...

The play story:

A family always throws household wastes in front of their house.

The family's goats eat them and die.

They share the goats' meat with their neighbor family.

The neighbor daughter who ate some gets stomachache.

The family takes her to a hospital. The consultation was very expensive(50,000 fcfa).

The father complain about it : "how we can manage to survive this month !"

Then two wise men "sage" pass by and hear what happened.

They go to the family's house and in front of the wastes, they explain :

the cause of the disease is the wastes.

Wastes provoke many diseases to human and indirectly by eating meat of animals who ate wastes as well.

Primary collection costs only 1,500 fcfa par month which is much cheaper than hospital consultation and medicin.

Bring bags when you go to market for shopping.

Bring plates if you go to buy food on the street.

Try not to use plastic bags.

At the end, everyone picks up wastes around.

It was 5 min play. They did really well !

Thank you, all !

Done !

Last week, I finished the environmental education series at the high school.

The school will be done this week for this year as well.

At the last class, I did a small test to see how much they understood my classes and at the end of the test, I asked to evaluate me, my classes.

It was the 1st time for them to have environmental classes.

Most of them enjoyed it.

The content was easy to understand, sometimes I felt it was too easy for junior highschool level students. But many of them said they learned a lot of things about environment, nature and their life conditions although these comments can be just compliment... :

"Thanks to the lecture by the forester and whole classes, I want to work for environment protection in the future."

"I will teach what I learned during the course to my younger siblings",

"I have now courage to point out my friends who throw away garbage on the ground."

I can believe now that this experience for the 4months wasn't just fun for kids or that they didn't think just a foreigner came every week and talksed about something.

I felt pretty happy :)

However there were some critiques as well :

"I couldn't hear what the teacher said because some students were chatting so loudly."

"I couldn't understand much because I am not used to the teacher's french pronouciation and her way of speaking",

"I didn't like groupwork" etc etc...

I learned a lot during the course.

At each class, I shouted and got angry at least once because of some students who don't listen to me.

But now I can understand how my teachers had felt at class when I was child. I feel sorry for my disrespectiful attitudes toward them...

Also, I realized that I was not so propre for teacher...

Probably I won't continue the programme at this school next school year.

Becaue if I continue by myself, after 2010 (after I finish volunteer), no one can take the part so it is not sustainable. I am not capable to control a class of 80-90 kids.

Also, the superior office of my office (regional) plans to organize EE programme next school year. So instead of doing alone, I may be able to contribute to make a better planning and implementation as one of team member and to improve my co-workers' capacity.

Presenting eco-citizens' conditions

I hope really that this course remains in their mind and they take actions.

If it is possible, I wish that they share their knowleadge with their family, friends and even their future kids !

Compost vol.3

You might be tired by now of hearing of garbage so many times...

But sorry, this is my main activity here ;D

always with Union YANTA women.

Since the 1st workshop, there are several women who asked me to teach them the compost techniques.

So this time, I decided to work with 10 associations, with about 80-90 women...

Yes, now I know it was too ambitous...

Right now it is a break between meetings after one week since the compost start and after one month so I am a bit relieved.

But at the beginning, everyday for almost 2 weeks I had one meeting in the morning and another in the afternoon...

April is the hottest month here and everyday the temperature is higher than 40!

The sunshine is painful...

Tiring...

Women might not come again...

Such stress and some worry discourage me sometimes.

But I don't work alone.

I have a strong supporter, student in doctor course who knows so much more than me about agriculture, composting and the local language (dioula and morre).

He doesn't show tiredness or say complaints. So I can't keep being like a baby either !

Anyway the problem for first 2 meetings with each association was that women don't come on time.

I arrive with lots of motivation and only 2 of 10 women come or 1 hour, 2 hours later they start coming one by one. That discouraged me quite much…

But I have to understand them as well.

They don't live everyday with time (watch) restriction (schedule).

Also, their house is not always located close to one's house where we have the meetings.

If there are some funeral ceremonies or someone is sick at home, they can't come to meetings.

Of course, they have everyday housework like cooking, washing clothes, taking care of kids etc...

So, I try to be always calm without showing my stress or frustration...

However there were more other associations who wanted to be part of this workshop.

In addition, it was them who asked me to reorganize it.

So I say clearly some points as well.

"if you can not respect the meeting time all the time, I will stop the workshop with your association. There are many others which wanted to learn compost. I can understand your situation but please try to be on time as much as possible. "

Or another solution : when the meeting starts at 8 in the morning, I will tell the women to come at 7 because they leave from their home at 7 (when the meeting starts).

Or, I appeal to the association's solidality (the group responsibility).

"If you are like that for the next time, I don't care anymore about your association !" (joking)

Then some members accuse others who came late at the meeting or themselves apologize to be late.

Or some come even though they had other things to do.

Or others explain the reason why they couldn't come to the meeting next day or later.

I can see how serious they are for the workshop.

Also they welcome us so properly.

I really appreciate that.

I modified the workshop content this time.

The focus is put more on discussions about hygiene (solid waste) practice, public health and impacts of waste to human, aminals and nature in addition to the compost making practice.

Showing real photos of wastes in Bobo

The base of compost with exact masured as I suggested.

Everyone participates to prepare the compost base.

Well organized, aren't they ? (↓)

They check the humidity (how much water to add) by themselves to prepare later at their home.

There are some associations which have some members who participated at the 1st workshop so I ask them to give advice or answer to the questions from others to train now them for future trainers. (↓ 2 of them)

She has already 4 bags of compost since October last year.

This time, just after 2 month workshop, the rainy season should start normally (at the end of June or beginning of July).

So at their field, we will test their compost respectively and see how it will help for cereal production.

I am very looking forward to doing it !

She went to get some vegetable waste at a market then prepared already one full bag !

As she has lots of animals at home (pork, cows, moutons...), after 1 week she had already 3 bags of compost. If she continues like this, she needs tans of bags...

So we suggested her to try 2 different ways of compost : One for more with cooking waste and a bit of animal wastes in a bag, another (bigger quantity) for only animal wastes and leaves outside at garden.

We will see how it will work !

2 day trip

After mid term presentation, I went to the South of Burkina, Tiébélé & Nazinga, 3 hours from the capital with 11 other volunteers with who I came to Burkina together.

To avoid hot wind and dust in the car like touareg (people living in the Sahel)

On the wall of Tiébélé king's family houses, there are many designs which each has particular meaning.

People live in houses in different shape according to their social status. (rounded wall house for single men, square for a young couple etc)

The house entrance is very small to avoid outsiders' attack. As it is small, enemies have to bend down and get into it from their head. Then attack !

Inside is very dark without light. These bowls are for drinking water or dolo (local beer) and also probably eating.

With a little sunlight, women grind cereals.

Community court (↓)。

These kids are so used to seeing foreign tourists and ask to give them some candies or money.

This is the 3rd time to come to Burkina but I had never seen any wild animals.

Because the last two times, I came here both on rainy season (Aug-Oct) so the road condition is too bad to get to such parks, the road is shut by heavy rain, or "thanks to" much rain, there is too much vegetation to find animals...

It is early morning to meet more animals.

We got up at 6 and went into the park, like safari park♪

The first animal was a family of elephant.

Next, Antelope.

Monkeys. I think he is the boss of the family

Beautiful color birds (there are some even in towns though)

Elephants again

They passed next to us to go to a pond for morning bath.

These are not rocks but elephants!

They like being always clean:)

It was really relaxing, exciting typical african trip !

At the front of accommodation where we stayed at the park

The inside was well arranged and clean.

6th

It was my 2nd birthday in Burkina.

I spent “already” 1/4 of a century.

I celebrated it with so many friends this year.

I had never felt so grateful to everyone around me for their presence (support).

First, 11 volunteers with who I came to Burkina

At the end of March, we had our mid term presentation at JICA office in capital. Then we all went together to 2 day-trip to Nazinga national park in the south of Burkina (to see wild animals), 3 hours from the capital, close to the border with Ghana.

At the night, they organized a party for me.

Cookies shaped in Burkina and us (12).

Funny gift (all costume) from them :D

Other volunteers in Bobo and nearby organized an occasion as well at the same time as new volunteer welcome party.

In Burkina, the person who has birthday invites others to celebrate it, which is opposite to Japanese style.

“When in Rome, do as the Romans do.”

I invited my colleagues at office and some others with who I work at home with some Japanese food.

I had invited more of my office colleagues but they didn’t come because of some family reasons I suppose…

Menu:
Seaweed salad, Matumae-zuke (konbu: seafood and dried squid, seasoned mainly soy sauce: old volunteer had given me), curry rice, Okonomiyaki (Japanese pizza), Pork seasoned with sugar and soy sauce.

Everyone liked all !

With my “parents” here (my bosses & project counselor couple)

Friends with who I spend time often during weekend

At a restaurant in Bobo where we can get “Karaage” (fried chicken), which is pretty rare in Burkina. We usually eat grilled chicken but not fried !

They brought even a homemade cake!!!

I really, really felt so lucky and happy during those days.

I realized again how important my friends are.

I can exist here, feeling so, which is above all thank to my parents in Japan although I was born 20 days later than expected and my mom took 3 days at hospital to give birth to me…

Thank you…

Friends who celebrated my birthday in Burkina, friends who called and sent me greetings from Japan and other places,

Thank you…

I hope being always close to you all !

This year, I will try to become an adult woman !!!

PS

Gift from a friend:
A special jam with pineapple, orange and mango (only one in the world)

Why ?

I have never seen any jam pot with such photo ?! ;D