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Published: December 7th 2014
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First Workshop on Compost
We are assigning everyone a number for a group activity Wow…I can’t believe it is already December! My apologies for not posting lately, it has been a busy month.
Our project is in full swing and we are heading in to our 3rd week of training with the youth at Pamoja Tunaweza Boys and Girls Club. They truly are an incredible group of people! The leaders and youth are equally passionate about the environment and share an entrepreneurial spirit that will be sure to drive the success of the C4C project. We are hoping to start collection by early 2015, and we are currently in the process of getting the second prototype of our collection carts made. Our first prototype didn’t work out the way we hoped it would, and it was quite the process to complete. I’ll try my best to sum it up, it took about 3 months to complete when it was supposed to take 2-3 weeks max. We gave the job to a welder at the local vocational college in hopes that we could support the students and start a meaningful partnership…that plan back fired. The welder was very difficult to work with, and kept pushing back the completion date and increasing the price from the initial
estimate. After our first visit to the production shop, we noticed that the tires they used weren't what we wanted so we had to go out and purchase new tires ourselves. That was a whole other experience in itself; we basically sat for 3 hours and watched the tire maker assemble two tires, spoke by spoke. All I have to say is…don’t ever take Canadian Tire for granted. Waiting aside, it was a good learning experience and I’m glad I was able to be a part of the procurement process. I also feel that the experience has made me a better, more patient person…but hopefully the second prototype will go according to plan!
The workshops have been going well! My co-workers and I have designed a curriculum that covers various topics including, values, recycling, waste management, health&safety, entrepreneurship and some others. For the most part, the youth and leaders speak and understand English, but the workshops are delivered by our Tanzanian co-workers in Swahili so that they are able to grasp the material better. I have been fortunate enough to be working on a team with such bright individuals. My co-workers are Liz, who was already my friend before
The Tanzanian Interns' Graduation!
From left to right: Evance, Me, Helen, Evance, M, Nice, Deo, Mili, Liz and Joseph. coming to Tanzania so we get along wonderfully and have a great partnership. Harry, an 18 year old from South Carolina who is probably the most motivated and down to earth 18 year old boy I’ve ever met, he inspires me every day! Evance and Joseph are our Tanzanian interns, and not only are they brilliant and hardworking; they truly are a joy to work and party with. And last, but certainly not least, our line manager Goodie (short for Goodluck) is incredibly smart and passionate about his work, but also knows how to have a good time and make us all laugh. His playful spirit always keeps us entertained; we definitely lucked out with him as our boss.
I will continue to keep you all updated with our progress, we have secured 15+ businesses for when we start collection, and I am overjoyed with the amount of support that we have received from the community and local businesses. Hopefully we will be able to start on time, and meet the needs of everyone!
My friends and I will be heading on a Safari in the next couple of weeks, and then Zanzibar to welcome the New Year! Although I’m excited to head to the beach and hopefully see the wildebeest migrate, Christmas just isn’t Christmas without friends, family, winter and delicious treats. I miss you all dearly and am sending lots of love across the pond.
Swahili phrase of the day:
Pamoja Tunaweza which means
“Together We Can”. I know now, more than ever, that we can accomplish anything in this life if we have the support of others.
Peace&Love
- Lisa
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