There are many reasons people join the Peace Corps. Some join for resume building, some to save the world and some for good ole-fashioned escapism. We all have different motivations for being here, but there is a certain feeling of understanding that we are all looking for deep down.
I recently went to an island; you may giggle because the Philippines is known for 7,104 of those but this island is special. It is called Rapu-Rapu and is within an exceptionally poor municipality in a down-trodden and typhoon-prone province (Albay)in a neglected and forgotten region (Bikol) of the Philippines. We are installing water filters there. 50 BioSand water filters will be donated to this rural, poor area.
Instead of having the trained artisans of the BioSand filter production facility install them, I thought that people would care about the filter more (treat it better, and be more likely to use it correctly) if they installed it themselves.
So I had a training. Training of trainers is the crux of being a Peace Corps volunteer. You impart the ability to teach skills and information to locals who will teach it when you are gone (sustainability).
Normally, when you give a training in the Peace Corps, it is likely that the people who attend do so more to listen to a tall white guy (Halangkaw na puti!) speak and be funny in public than actually learn what you are trying to say. There are usually one or two people who think that what you are doing is a good idea and only one of them isn't too shy to let you know how they feel.
This event had been postponed a number of times: Weather, Protest Rallies, Absent Attendees, Fiesta. All of these factors finally worked in my favor on this particular weekend and I travelled to the island with a smile on my face. The venue was prepared and the people showed up (REALLY; A BIG DEAL!!!). The weather was BEAUTIFUL. My training materials were completed and fully prepared!
Begin.
A woman whom I work with "Ate [ah-tay, meaning 'older sister'] Flo" and I gave a presentation on water and sanitation and how, if you drink contaminated water, you are most likely eating someone/something else's poop. That went well, people asked questions.
I presented the BioSand filter. They liked that.
We installed 5 filters and taught people how to do it themselves.
And then the smile on my face got big: one woman from the people's organization I was working with stood up and started answering people's questions. She had just learned all these good and bad ways to live and be healthy and now she was relating these to her fellow citizens. She understood me. She not only understood me, but she believed me enough to take the initiative and explain it to those around her after less than an hour!
In case my punctuation does not make this clear enough, this is a very good thing.
Given the number of times that people don't listen to what you say or really appreciate that you are trying to help them, having someone teach/do/listen/understand what you tell them of their own free will is amazing.
We are returning to this island soon with the rest of the 50 filters for the poor and down-trodden of that area, so the training these people recieved will be put to good use in the near future (ideally, they will take responsibility for the installation of the next 40). Pictures to follow soon.
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Thursday, July 05, 2007
Vacation in the Philippines, a photo essay
Before we get down to the business of telling you about my life, I just thought you would want a bit of bouyancy to get your gallstones jiggling. Here's the funny stuff.
Recently, a number of my friends from educational institutes past, Juan, Josh and Abby, came and visited me in the Philippines. After three long months of intense project work, I felt I deserved a bit of a break.
Sometimes I wonder about my choice of friends.
After a few minor delays and an afternoon of muscling through the hellish traffic jam that is Manila, we found our way to a boat bound for Puerto Galera, Mindoro.
A rare shot of the fearless tour-guide.
We stayed for about 6 days (the haze created by beautiful white sand mixed with San Miguel beer makes for an inaccurate concept of time) we stayed at Tamaraw Beach Resort on Aninuan Beach.
The closest bit of semi-offensive touristiness was called White Beach....
....a mere 5 minute rocky scramble away.
We hung out on the beach.
We played at an amazing natural waterslide in the hills nearby.
Abby and Juan got Dive Certified....
....with an excellent instructor named Noel....
.... but Josh and I decided that we couldn't let them have ALL the fun.
Some random hotness to keep the folks at home guessing.
We got in-situ massages at the place we ate dinner.
We drank a lot of this....
....and this.
Abby and Juan debating proper posture for perfect pictures.
We hung out in grass huts by the beach.
The sun set occasionally.
After we got tired of money-munching Mindoro, we headed down to Bikol to check out a very large waterfall....
....and with the support of a few random onlookers....
....we managed to clear a gargantuan tree from the pool....
....to make a few high jumping platforms safe again.
We went to the Naga City market, a place so far removed from the world of the supermarket that it took a bit of convincing to show my fellow travelers that here you COULD, in fact, buy....
....Pig Face....
....and Stingray....
....and Tapioca Balls for Halo-Halo (the national dessert, a dish that does not jive with most American taste buds)...
....and, of course, lots of random chicken pieces.
We also hit up the craft stores, like any good group of foreign tourists.
Thanks for coming!
See you again next year!!!
Recently, a number of my friends from educational institutes past, Juan, Josh and Abby, came and visited me in the Philippines. After three long months of intense project work, I felt I deserved a bit of a break.
Sometimes I wonder about my choice of friends.
After a few minor delays and an afternoon of muscling through the hellish traffic jam that is Manila, we found our way to a boat bound for Puerto Galera, Mindoro.
A rare shot of the fearless tour-guide.
We stayed for about 6 days (the haze created by beautiful white sand mixed with San Miguel beer makes for an inaccurate concept of time) we stayed at Tamaraw Beach Resort on Aninuan Beach.
The closest bit of semi-offensive touristiness was called White Beach....
....a mere 5 minute rocky scramble away.
We hung out on the beach.
We played at an amazing natural waterslide in the hills nearby.
Abby and Juan got Dive Certified....
....with an excellent instructor named Noel....
.... but Josh and I decided that we couldn't let them have ALL the fun.
Some random hotness to keep the folks at home guessing.
We got in-situ massages at the place we ate dinner.
We drank a lot of this....
....and this.
Abby and Juan debating proper posture for perfect pictures.
We hung out in grass huts by the beach.
The sun set occasionally.
After we got tired of money-munching Mindoro, we headed down to Bikol to check out a very large waterfall....
....and with the support of a few random onlookers....
....we managed to clear a gargantuan tree from the pool....
....to make a few high jumping platforms safe again.
We went to the Naga City market, a place so far removed from the world of the supermarket that it took a bit of convincing to show my fellow travelers that here you COULD, in fact, buy....
....Pig Face....
....and Stingray....
....and Tapioca Balls for Halo-Halo (the national dessert, a dish that does not jive with most American taste buds)...
....and, of course, lots of random chicken pieces.
We also hit up the craft stores, like any good group of foreign tourists.
Thanks for coming!
See you again next year!!!
Monday, May 28, 2007
Facts and Feelings
OmigodithasbeenalongtimesinceIwroteanythingformybelovedfollowers!!!
The Unexpected
Last month Juila Campbell, a fellow Peace Corps volunteer and close friend of mine, was killed by some fuckhead up in the Cordillera mountains of Luzon island. Since her death there has been an outporing of support for her and her family both in the US and here in the Philippines (insert some cliche here about being "family" once you join the Peace Corps). I would like to thank anyone and everyone who has taken the time to send any kind of caring message to myself, other volunteers or Julia's family. In this crazy individualistic world we live in it is nice to feel connected to those around you, even if the circumstances are as drastic as murder.
Again, thank you for your loving support and I am sure anyone affected by this tragedy feels equally grateful.
Work
BioSand filters. Let me tell you about BioSand filters.
As you may know from reading this blog, my primary project for the last 6 months or so of Peace Corps has been dedicating all my time and energy into setting up a BioSand filter production facility. The filter itself is designed using slow-sand filtration techniques that have been around for millenia.
Some facts about a single filter to put things into perspective:
- Makes up to 200 liters of contaminated water clean every day
- Good for 10-15 people by Philippine standards
- Requires no electricity or maintenance beyond keeping the outside clean
- Lasts a lifetime once installed
- Costs $28 including transport and installation
For my project UNICEF and the PhilAm foundation purchased 160 filters to be installed in various places around my province. That is up to 2400 people (or 32000 liters of water per day, depending on how you look at it) provided with safe drinking water for the forseeable future. That is fucking amazing.
The thing that is not so f'ing amazing is the amount of work that requires. Production, coordination and installation of all 160 filters has taken 3 months so far and is not over yet. Every day I go with the workers on a truck to take filters to where they need to go and convince people that I am not selling them black magic.
Fun?
What do I do for fun? I hang out with cool european aid workers and learn about why I should go work for the International Red Cross and move to Darfur. I go to the sites of nearby volunteers to escape election-related violence. I listen to the baby next door cry like he (she?) has every night for the last 6 months. I read a lot. I am actually learning to cook for myself; I can make a mean chicken curry if you ever feel a mite' peckish and want to drop in for a bite.
Random Thoughts?
This is where I come up with some kind of clever anecdote to leave my readers stunned and amazed by the lengths I will go to sacrifice my mental health and personal well being to help the needy of the world. Unfortunately for you readers, it is not that simple. There are a million things that go into making a good story but honestly I can't remember any of them. I heard on the radio once that it was about timing or something....I forget.
I don't know what it is about the culture here (and the nature of cultural differences is such that I probably will never be able to fully understand why people different than me act the way they do, though I can tolerate it without an issue) but names are a bit of a joke. When a politician in Mindanao, the area best known for its fruit and, oh yeah, Islamic extremists, names himself Osama Bin Laden, you know there is something a bit strange taking place. A grown man, not just any man, but a person RUNNING FOR ELECTED OFFICE, named himself after that bearded Saudi we all know and love.
Some other funny names (real names) of people I work with or have met:
- Boy Mayor; running for mayor of Legazpi City
- Flo Canada; a woman in my office
- Cindyrella Donghit; again, in my office
- Purification; just a first name, I can't remember the last, but it doesn't REALLY matter, does it?
- Bossing Boy; running for mayor of the town of St. Domingo near me.
A Story To Send You Off With
To give credit where credit is due, this did not actually happen to me, but to a fellow volunteer named Noah (the only person I have ever known to seriously compete in a rap battle against a Filipino and not do too poorly).
Noah was in the group of 15 volunteers, called a "hub group" that trained down here in Bikol with me. Noah is Jewish.
During training, all volunteers lived with host families and Noah was no exception. He ate, slept and shat in the same house as a lower-middle class Filipino family. These host family stays were designed to slowly integrate us into living in the Philippines and help us become more culturally sensitive. Of course as a host family, you basically had Matt fucking Damon just move into your house (Americans are quite the showpiece here). As a host family, you would be likely to ask all kinds questions to make sure the American felt welcome in your home:
- Where do you live in the US?
- How old are you?
- Do you have a girlfriend?
- Do you eat rice?
- You know already how to speak our dialect?
- WHAT RELIGION ARE YOU?
This final question was posed to Noah
"I am Jewish," he said, Jewishly.
"What does that mean? What do you believe in?" said his host mom.
"Well, as a Christian, you read the new testament and the old testament. We Jews just read the old testament."
"Oh, so you don't finish the book!"
And with that, I bid you good evening (even though it is probably almost breakfast time for most of you).
The Unexpected
Last month Juila Campbell, a fellow Peace Corps volunteer and close friend of mine, was killed by some fuckhead up in the Cordillera mountains of Luzon island. Since her death there has been an outporing of support for her and her family both in the US and here in the Philippines (insert some cliche here about being "family" once you join the Peace Corps). I would like to thank anyone and everyone who has taken the time to send any kind of caring message to myself, other volunteers or Julia's family. In this crazy individualistic world we live in it is nice to feel connected to those around you, even if the circumstances are as drastic as murder.
Again, thank you for your loving support and I am sure anyone affected by this tragedy feels equally grateful.
Work
BioSand filters. Let me tell you about BioSand filters.
As you may know from reading this blog, my primary project for the last 6 months or so of Peace Corps has been dedicating all my time and energy into setting up a BioSand filter production facility. The filter itself is designed using slow-sand filtration techniques that have been around for millenia.
Some facts about a single filter to put things into perspective:
- Makes up to 200 liters of contaminated water clean every day
- Good for 10-15 people by Philippine standards
- Requires no electricity or maintenance beyond keeping the outside clean
- Lasts a lifetime once installed
- Costs $28 including transport and installation
For my project UNICEF and the PhilAm foundation purchased 160 filters to be installed in various places around my province. That is up to 2400 people (or 32000 liters of water per day, depending on how you look at it) provided with safe drinking water for the forseeable future. That is fucking amazing.
The thing that is not so f'ing amazing is the amount of work that requires. Production, coordination and installation of all 160 filters has taken 3 months so far and is not over yet. Every day I go with the workers on a truck to take filters to where they need to go and convince people that I am not selling them black magic.
Fun?
What do I do for fun? I hang out with cool european aid workers and learn about why I should go work for the International Red Cross and move to Darfur. I go to the sites of nearby volunteers to escape election-related violence. I listen to the baby next door cry like he (she?) has every night for the last 6 months. I read a lot. I am actually learning to cook for myself; I can make a mean chicken curry if you ever feel a mite' peckish and want to drop in for a bite.
Random Thoughts?
This is where I come up with some kind of clever anecdote to leave my readers stunned and amazed by the lengths I will go to sacrifice my mental health and personal well being to help the needy of the world. Unfortunately for you readers, it is not that simple. There are a million things that go into making a good story but honestly I can't remember any of them. I heard on the radio once that it was about timing or something....I forget.
I don't know what it is about the culture here (and the nature of cultural differences is such that I probably will never be able to fully understand why people different than me act the way they do, though I can tolerate it without an issue) but names are a bit of a joke. When a politician in Mindanao, the area best known for its fruit and, oh yeah, Islamic extremists, names himself Osama Bin Laden, you know there is something a bit strange taking place. A grown man, not just any man, but a person RUNNING FOR ELECTED OFFICE, named himself after that bearded Saudi we all know and love.
Some other funny names (real names) of people I work with or have met:
- Boy Mayor; running for mayor of Legazpi City
- Flo Canada; a woman in my office
- Cindyrella Donghit; again, in my office
- Purification; just a first name, I can't remember the last, but it doesn't REALLY matter, does it?
- Bossing Boy; running for mayor of the town of St. Domingo near me.
A Story To Send You Off With
To give credit where credit is due, this did not actually happen to me, but to a fellow volunteer named Noah (the only person I have ever known to seriously compete in a rap battle against a Filipino and not do too poorly).
Noah was in the group of 15 volunteers, called a "hub group" that trained down here in Bikol with me. Noah is Jewish.
During training, all volunteers lived with host families and Noah was no exception. He ate, slept and shat in the same house as a lower-middle class Filipino family. These host family stays were designed to slowly integrate us into living in the Philippines and help us become more culturally sensitive. Of course as a host family, you basically had Matt fucking Damon just move into your house (Americans are quite the showpiece here). As a host family, you would be likely to ask all kinds questions to make sure the American felt welcome in your home:
- Where do you live in the US?
- How old are you?
- Do you have a girlfriend?
- Do you eat rice?
- You know already how to speak our dialect?
- WHAT RELIGION ARE YOU?
This final question was posed to Noah
"I am Jewish," he said, Jewishly.
"What does that mean? What do you believe in?" said his host mom.
"Well, as a Christian, you read the new testament and the old testament. We Jews just read the old testament."
"Oh, so you don't finish the book!"
And with that, I bid you good evening (even though it is probably almost breakfast time for most of you).
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Impermanence
Just start writing.
Put symbols through finger movements and spread an idea out for everyone to see all over the world.
The body of Julia Campbell, a fellow Peace Corps volunteer and close friend, has just been found near the village of Batad in Ifugao province. As the official and unofficial media have reported, she went missing on April 8th while on vacation in the central cordillera mountains of central Luzon island, the Philipines.
A google search for info about her disappearance
But those are the facts and facts are, by their nature, devoid of emotion.
Julia was a damn good cook. I would invite myself over for dinner on a regular basis, partially because I am lazy and didn't want to go through the motions of learning to cook, but mostly because she made a mean ginataan (A dish prepared in fresh coconut milk).
Julia and I were sitemates in Legazpi City, Albay (Bikol region) and were very close friends. In the Peace Corps time spent with other volunteers is prized; we all need support and can't find it when we are alone and without any kind of familiarity. The bond formed between volunteers is a very deep one formed in an environment of constant traumatic stress.
The counselor from the Peace Corps head office told us that any volunteer who goes to a therapist and tells his/her story gets the same reaction. All American therapists brand Peace Corps volunteers as "Shell Shocked" (or, for the more politically correct among you, suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder).
She had her stresses and would spout off to me at every chance she got about the trials and tribulations of work and school and her arrangements to go home. She had already been accepted to NYU and to say she was excited about going home understates it drastically. She had been planning a post-Peace Corps trip back through southeast asia. Her Peace Corps service was wrapping up and her mind had already begun to shift gears back to the NYC mindset.
Then she disappeared. Then her body reappeared.
I don't know how I am supposed to write about something like this.
How can I do a human life justice? As my mom once said, if a picture is worth a thousand words, then an experience is worth a million pictures; I would add that to describe the complete truth of any human life is beyond pictures or experience and that only sharing the moment with that other soul can give a glimpse of an understanding.
So far I have stuck with the facts as I understand them, so I guess I will continue:
Nothing is permanent. Sorrow comes from attachment to things assumed to be permanent (people, ideas, etc). There is no why in this instance. Her life was not "good" or "bad," "virtuous" or "evil." She was.
You can rationalize and discuss the hows and whys and shoulds of this situation, but there are countless emotions that will boil to the surface. These emotions cannot and should not be controlled; let them come. As much as attachment hurts when it is taken away, you cannot feel alive as a human being without those harsh, visceral emotions. It is better to have an emotional rollercoaster of a life than one that remains flat and constant. Embrace impermanence in all things including emotions.
About 50 of the volunteers from Peace Corps Philippines were sitting in the same room listening to information regarding the search for her when the news came in that her body had been found in a ravine near a trail. Until that instant, we were all tortured by uncertainty and kept happy only through the hope that this was a kidnapping and that she was still alive. Now we have certainty and, although we are not happy, we can begin the healing process. I wept for her and I will certainly cry again; she had a great deal of close friends, about whom I can say the same.
Rest in Peace, Julia Campbell.
Put symbols through finger movements and spread an idea out for everyone to see all over the world.
The body of Julia Campbell, a fellow Peace Corps volunteer and close friend, has just been found near the village of Batad in Ifugao province. As the official and unofficial media have reported, she went missing on April 8th while on vacation in the central cordillera mountains of central Luzon island, the Philipines.
A google search for info about her disappearance
But those are the facts and facts are, by their nature, devoid of emotion.
Julia was a damn good cook. I would invite myself over for dinner on a regular basis, partially because I am lazy and didn't want to go through the motions of learning to cook, but mostly because she made a mean ginataan (A dish prepared in fresh coconut milk).
Julia and I were sitemates in Legazpi City, Albay (Bikol region) and were very close friends. In the Peace Corps time spent with other volunteers is prized; we all need support and can't find it when we are alone and without any kind of familiarity. The bond formed between volunteers is a very deep one formed in an environment of constant traumatic stress.
The counselor from the Peace Corps head office told us that any volunteer who goes to a therapist and tells his/her story gets the same reaction. All American therapists brand Peace Corps volunteers as "Shell Shocked" (or, for the more politically correct among you, suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder).
She had her stresses and would spout off to me at every chance she got about the trials and tribulations of work and school and her arrangements to go home. She had already been accepted to NYU and to say she was excited about going home understates it drastically. She had been planning a post-Peace Corps trip back through southeast asia. Her Peace Corps service was wrapping up and her mind had already begun to shift gears back to the NYC mindset.
Then she disappeared. Then her body reappeared.
I don't know how I am supposed to write about something like this.
How can I do a human life justice? As my mom once said, if a picture is worth a thousand words, then an experience is worth a million pictures; I would add that to describe the complete truth of any human life is beyond pictures or experience and that only sharing the moment with that other soul can give a glimpse of an understanding.
So far I have stuck with the facts as I understand them, so I guess I will continue:
Nothing is permanent. Sorrow comes from attachment to things assumed to be permanent (people, ideas, etc). There is no why in this instance. Her life was not "good" or "bad," "virtuous" or "evil." She was.
You can rationalize and discuss the hows and whys and shoulds of this situation, but there are countless emotions that will boil to the surface. These emotions cannot and should not be controlled; let them come. As much as attachment hurts when it is taken away, you cannot feel alive as a human being without those harsh, visceral emotions. It is better to have an emotional rollercoaster of a life than one that remains flat and constant. Embrace impermanence in all things including emotions.
About 50 of the volunteers from Peace Corps Philippines were sitting in the same room listening to information regarding the search for her when the news came in that her body had been found in a ravine near a trail. Until that instant, we were all tortured by uncertainty and kept happy only through the hope that this was a kidnapping and that she was still alive. Now we have certainty and, although we are not happy, we can begin the healing process. I wept for her and I will certainly cry again; she had a great deal of close friends, about whom I can say the same.
Rest in Peace, Julia Campbell.
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
BioSand Filter Training, tapos na!
It feels like all of a sudden, the gears of my Peace Corps service have meshed: the people, both Peace Corps and Filipino, I work with are working side-by-side with me, I have been getting out and getting plenty of exercise, I have two dutch filmmakers staying at my house and my apartment is actually staying clean for more than an hour at a time.
I went on a 60km bike ride last weekend through the rolling hills of Albay. This place is simply beautiful. Once you are out of the city and the endorphin high kicks in, the ride becomes a fantastic adventure.
Up one hill, down the next, dodging crazy bus drivers who take crystal meth and don't sleep so they can drive for longer, flying past rice terraces on long, winding descents, the whip of the wind and the smiles of the children keep my spirits high. I don't rest for too long, the world looks better from the saddle. There is no destination, there is no goal, I am riding for the sake of spinning the wheels and seeing what magic lies around the next bend. I am free to enjoy it and not be judged. I just hope I don't get a flat tire.
The hanging road of northern Albay follows a serpentine path towards and away from the sea. Around each point of land is another small town with mothers doing laundry and fathers tilling the rice. The sea and sky are so still and blue that I am confused which one is reflecting which. The air is hazy, but there are no mosquitoes. Clearing the final hill gives a fantastic view of the mountain chain of Bikol; all the volcanoes have blown themselves to pieces except for Mayon, the upstart little nephew. It is amazing how rugged the shapes of the hills are in such a young landscape.
I like the Peace Corps.
Although this article is a little pre-emptive (using the past tense for the training that is currently underway) I thought it would provide some perspective into my work and allow for comments before I publish it in the Peace Corps newsletter:
Since the beginning of economic class distinction, the concepts of philanthropy and of service to your fellow man have existed, though sometimes in painfully low quantities. Since the beginning of human perceptions, there has been this idea that some things nature throws at us are not entirely supportive of our cause, as humans, to survive and provide for the next generation. Disasters have always been a sort of wild card that keeps humanity from getting too full of itself, although perhaps the people of Albay would not speak of it quite so light-heartedly.
Although the BioSand filter and associated IEC program were not initially designed as a quick, post-disaster solution, A Single Drop for Safe Water, the NGO responsible for the BioSand filter training at the 265 PST-2, in Iloilo, has been working with Page Weil and Mariah Klingsmith in Legazpi City, Albay to shift the paradigm of this filter’s use. BioSand water filters are point-of-use water filters that are best suited for installation in the homes of the rural poor, especially in locations with fecal contamination in the water supply. In February, A Single Drop formed a handshake partnership with ADRN (the Albay Disaster Relief Network; a group of NGOs setup to provide coordination and assistance in disaster aftermath around Albay) to work as counterparts to procure funding from UNICEF, the United Nations Children’s Fund, to fund a large scale BioSand program as quickly as possible.
Fast forward through the meetings, budget negotiations, and proposal drafts and redrafts, UNICEF supplied the necessary funding to A Single Drop to buy 6 BioSand filter molds and manufacture and install 100 filters within 6 weeks. The money spent will not only serve to relieve the effects of the recent disasters, but also to provide a long-term, sustainable solution to the problem of clean water in Albay.
We can now look back on the BioSand filter training at Aquinas University (WATSAN Page Weil’s HCA and a partner of ADRN) and smile, as the results have been nothing but positive. 18 attendees from various NGOs (all partners of ADRN) came to learn the technology and prepare to manufacture BioSand filters on a large scale. The trainers came from A Single Drop, the money came from UNICEF, the inspired people came from ADRN and Aquinas University, and moral support and day-to-day coordination was supplied by Page and Mariah. With very little coaxing, ADRN has taken on the responsibility of developing IEC plans before, during, and after filter installation. The people of Albay seem to be in good hands.
Completion of the technical training has left ADRN with 6 BioSand filter molds, trained staff, and widespread community entry through the placement of the initially manufactured 100 filters. ADRN now has the capacity to pump out 180 filters every month (each filter can supply up to 200 liters of clean water per day) and sell them locally to people who are still picking up the pieces of their lives from the wreckage of last year’s typhoons. Local material, labor, IEC and installation costs put the sustainable price of one filter at 1400 pesos. After initial installation there are no costs associated with the filter.
As this project gains visibility ADRN will use their training and local contacts to market the filter to all of the poor and needy within Albay. These inspired altruists will not rest until there is a pot on every fire and a BioSand filter accessibly placed near every contaminated water source; okay, maybe they will take a break for a Meryenda or two…
I went on a 60km bike ride last weekend through the rolling hills of Albay. This place is simply beautiful. Once you are out of the city and the endorphin high kicks in, the ride becomes a fantastic adventure.
Up one hill, down the next, dodging crazy bus drivers who take crystal meth and don't sleep so they can drive for longer, flying past rice terraces on long, winding descents, the whip of the wind and the smiles of the children keep my spirits high. I don't rest for too long, the world looks better from the saddle. There is no destination, there is no goal, I am riding for the sake of spinning the wheels and seeing what magic lies around the next bend. I am free to enjoy it and not be judged. I just hope I don't get a flat tire.
The hanging road of northern Albay follows a serpentine path towards and away from the sea. Around each point of land is another small town with mothers doing laundry and fathers tilling the rice. The sea and sky are so still and blue that I am confused which one is reflecting which. The air is hazy, but there are no mosquitoes. Clearing the final hill gives a fantastic view of the mountain chain of Bikol; all the volcanoes have blown themselves to pieces except for Mayon, the upstart little nephew. It is amazing how rugged the shapes of the hills are in such a young landscape.
I like the Peace Corps.
Although this article is a little pre-emptive (using the past tense for the training that is currently underway) I thought it would provide some perspective into my work and allow for comments before I publish it in the Peace Corps newsletter:
Since the beginning of economic class distinction, the concepts of philanthropy and of service to your fellow man have existed, though sometimes in painfully low quantities. Since the beginning of human perceptions, there has been this idea that some things nature throws at us are not entirely supportive of our cause, as humans, to survive and provide for the next generation. Disasters have always been a sort of wild card that keeps humanity from getting too full of itself, although perhaps the people of Albay would not speak of it quite so light-heartedly.
Although the BioSand filter and associated IEC program were not initially designed as a quick, post-disaster solution, A Single Drop for Safe Water, the NGO responsible for the BioSand filter training at the 265 PST-2, in Iloilo, has been working with Page Weil and Mariah Klingsmith in Legazpi City, Albay to shift the paradigm of this filter’s use. BioSand water filters are point-of-use water filters that are best suited for installation in the homes of the rural poor, especially in locations with fecal contamination in the water supply. In February, A Single Drop formed a handshake partnership with ADRN (the Albay Disaster Relief Network; a group of NGOs setup to provide coordination and assistance in disaster aftermath around Albay) to work as counterparts to procure funding from UNICEF, the United Nations Children’s Fund, to fund a large scale BioSand program as quickly as possible.
Fast forward through the meetings, budget negotiations, and proposal drafts and redrafts, UNICEF supplied the necessary funding to A Single Drop to buy 6 BioSand filter molds and manufacture and install 100 filters within 6 weeks. The money spent will not only serve to relieve the effects of the recent disasters, but also to provide a long-term, sustainable solution to the problem of clean water in Albay.
We can now look back on the BioSand filter training at Aquinas University (WATSAN Page Weil’s HCA and a partner of ADRN) and smile, as the results have been nothing but positive. 18 attendees from various NGOs (all partners of ADRN) came to learn the technology and prepare to manufacture BioSand filters on a large scale. The trainers came from A Single Drop, the money came from UNICEF, the inspired people came from ADRN and Aquinas University, and moral support and day-to-day coordination was supplied by Page and Mariah. With very little coaxing, ADRN has taken on the responsibility of developing IEC plans before, during, and after filter installation. The people of Albay seem to be in good hands.
Completion of the technical training has left ADRN with 6 BioSand filter molds, trained staff, and widespread community entry through the placement of the initially manufactured 100 filters. ADRN now has the capacity to pump out 180 filters every month (each filter can supply up to 200 liters of clean water per day) and sell them locally to people who are still picking up the pieces of their lives from the wreckage of last year’s typhoons. Local material, labor, IEC and installation costs put the sustainable price of one filter at 1400 pesos. After initial installation there are no costs associated with the filter.
As this project gains visibility ADRN will use their training and local contacts to market the filter to all of the poor and needy within Albay. These inspired altruists will not rest until there is a pot on every fire and a BioSand filter accessibly placed near every contaminated water source; okay, maybe they will take a break for a Meryenda or two…
Friday, February 16, 2007
Work?
I don't know who put this crazy organization together, but the idea of actually having stuff to do is a bit foreign to me. Joke lang (in case my boss is reading this)!!!
This week has seen the installation of the first of many BioSand filters along with a poster on my campus. Kids and faculty alike have been coming up to me and asking how it works and where they can get one if it really works as well as I say! Yay for small victories!
On top of building, installing and preparing to give a half-day seminar on BioSand filters, I am also working with the NGO "A Single Drop" to develop a program to bring around 700 filters to the province of Albay within about 6 months. These numbers will change, but for the sake of scale you should know that 700 filters is a CRAPLOAD!
This project will also serve to develop some kind of disaster preparedness plan for the poorer areas of Albay. This region gets hit by 20 typhoons every year with only minimal typhoon preparation or education. It seems obvious to us Americans to say things like "keep extra blankets around," or "make sure you have some clean water saved," but when you can't afford food or simply have no education, your life is lived very fatalistically. "Bahala na" is a phrase commonly used here to describe the attitude of the Philippine poor. Literally translated, it means "it is up to god," or "come what may." But I digress.
We are planning on helping rally the people to help themselves, especially when it comes to the massive amount of annual typhoon damage recieved by Bikol (not that things are regularly as bad as they were this year).
Anyhoo, things are going well here in Bikolandia; too much work to do, crazy hectic city life, fun when I have a free moment, and of course just sitting on my roof watching the stars.
End of ramblings, more serious posts when I have my serious face on.
Ingat kamo!
This week has seen the installation of the first of many BioSand filters along with a poster on my campus. Kids and faculty alike have been coming up to me and asking how it works and where they can get one if it really works as well as I say! Yay for small victories!
On top of building, installing and preparing to give a half-day seminar on BioSand filters, I am also working with the NGO "A Single Drop" to develop a program to bring around 700 filters to the province of Albay within about 6 months. These numbers will change, but for the sake of scale you should know that 700 filters is a CRAPLOAD!
This project will also serve to develop some kind of disaster preparedness plan for the poorer areas of Albay. This region gets hit by 20 typhoons every year with only minimal typhoon preparation or education. It seems obvious to us Americans to say things like "keep extra blankets around," or "make sure you have some clean water saved," but when you can't afford food or simply have no education, your life is lived very fatalistically. "Bahala na" is a phrase commonly used here to describe the attitude of the Philippine poor. Literally translated, it means "it is up to god," or "come what may." But I digress.
We are planning on helping rally the people to help themselves, especially when it comes to the massive amount of annual typhoon damage recieved by Bikol (not that things are regularly as bad as they were this year).
Anyhoo, things are going well here in Bikolandia; too much work to do, crazy hectic city life, fun when I have a free moment, and of course just sitting on my roof watching the stars.
End of ramblings, more serious posts when I have my serious face on.
Ingat kamo!
Thursday, February 01, 2007
News. Weather.
I haven't posted in a while. It happens. Sue me.
New Years in the Philippines sounds more like a war than a celebration (El Salvador memories). We set of fireworks and made merry.
I went to Hawaii in mid-January for 10 days and had an ABSOLUTE BLAST! It was just me and my parents, but we managed not to kill each other for 2 weeks... We all learned to windsurf and went hiking. Hawaii seems like what the Philippines COULD be if there was more money available and they kept everything really clean (oh yeah, and if they served cheese and guacamole on command). Pictures are coming soon, but it was an amazing trip to a beautiful tropical paradise.
I HAVE WORK!!! Finally, after 9 months here in the Philippines, work has begun to pick up. I am currently preparing to train a number of people at my university how to construct BioSand filters to be sold in the surrounding area. The BioSand filter, for those who don't know and are too lazy to read A Single Drop, to develop this project. They want me at the front of this project helping develop trainings to clean the water for the whole freakin' province! When things go well, they really go well here.
I have had a great deal of help in my projects from the people at Hands-On Disaster Relief who have been essential in assisting me make my first few demonstration filters. It is also work checking out their website; they have basically set up shop here in the nearby municipality of St. Domingo and have been working 'round the clock to help this place recover from its disastrous state. They operate in a really organic and wonderful way: They post on volunteer and travel websites about what projects they have and how many volunteers they need, and anyone in the area (aka. South-East Asia) can contact them and stop in for a few weeks work. They provide food and a roof over their heads, all you have to do is get there. Right now they are making tarps for peoples' roofs and building new boats for fisherman through donations from the US.
Anyways, that is the news and the weather. More on BioSand as it takes off, and it is going to REALLY TAKE OFF!
Ciao
New Years in the Philippines sounds more like a war than a celebration (El Salvador memories). We set of fireworks and made merry.
I went to Hawaii in mid-January for 10 days and had an ABSOLUTE BLAST! It was just me and my parents, but we managed not to kill each other for 2 weeks... We all learned to windsurf and went hiking. Hawaii seems like what the Philippines COULD be if there was more money available and they kept everything really clean (oh yeah, and if they served cheese and guacamole on command). Pictures are coming soon, but it was an amazing trip to a beautiful tropical paradise.
I HAVE WORK!!! Finally, after 9 months here in the Philippines, work has begun to pick up. I am currently preparing to train a number of people at my university how to construct BioSand filters to be sold in the surrounding area. The BioSand filter, for those who don't know and are too lazy to read A Single Drop, to develop this project. They want me at the front of this project helping develop trainings to clean the water for the whole freakin' province! When things go well, they really go well here.
I have had a great deal of help in my projects from the people at Hands-On Disaster Relief who have been essential in assisting me make my first few demonstration filters. It is also work checking out their website; they have basically set up shop here in the nearby municipality of St. Domingo and have been working 'round the clock to help this place recover from its disastrous state. They operate in a really organic and wonderful way: They post on volunteer and travel websites about what projects they have and how many volunteers they need, and anyone in the area (aka. South-East Asia) can contact them and stop in for a few weeks work. They provide food and a roof over their heads, all you have to do is get there. Right now they are making tarps for peoples' roofs and building new boats for fisherman through donations from the US.
Anyways, that is the news and the weather. More on BioSand as it takes off, and it is going to REALLY TAKE OFF!
Ciao
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