UN Volunteers

Hey all,
I want to make you aware of volunteer opportunities through the UN, and specifically, how you can make a difference from your own computer in Evanston. The UN has an online volunteers program, which you can access here: http://www.onlinevolunteering.org/assignments/find_assignments.php
I just searched the AIDS-related assignments and there are quite a few that we could help out with. I know we have many demands on our time, but perhaps we could even do this as a group volunteering effort.

Check it out and let me know what you think.

Nandita

onwaaaard

hey guys,
i'm just having a "i miss belize" moment.
I've been thinking about the trip and what we did and really hoping that we were able to make a difference to the people over there. i've also been thinking that even if we didn't do that (although i really hope and believe we did) our trip really made a difference to me. I feel that i know more about HIV/AIDS and that i recognize much more how devastating it is and what it can do to not only to the person who has the disease but to the people in his or her life. it's a really cool feeling to know that a week long "spring break" trip changed me.
So yay and such. miss you guys. let's quit school and go back RIGHT NOW!

Blog Access....finally

media

Today's Daily article about the ASB Ghana trip on HIV/AIDS:

http://media.www.dailynorthwestern.com/media/storage/paper853/news/2007/04/04/Campus/Trip-To.Ghana.Marks.Asbs.First.Effort.Overseas-2822379.shtml

The article on Daily that Jon was talking about:

http://media.www.dailynorthwestern.com/media/storage/paper853/news/2007/03/02/Forum/Start.Here.To.Change.The.World-2754548.shtml

An article on the US Embassy in Belize: "Mrs. Gwynneth Dieter Organizes HIV/AIDS Prevention and Empowerment Forum - March 15, 2007"

http://belize.usembassy.gov/march_15_2008.html

ewww

ok guys, it's official. I have THE most disgusting thing on the bottom of my foot (which also means I can't walk). It's this giant white/yellow bubble that looks like its going to explode (a skin infection according to the phone consultation i had with my doctor). i don't want to look at it because it's so gross, and yet, i do. ew ew ew. help me!

what a great souvenier from Belize.

More Belize!

I found a study conducted on Belizean adolescents regarding HIV/AIDS. It's a bit old, published in 2004, but interesting to read.

http://her.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/19/6/730

Listen to this segment on the cultural factors to a high rise in HIV/AIDS in Belize.
Once you open the link, click on the "online" in RealPlayer, at the bottom.

http://www.kaisernetwork.org/daily_reports/rep_index.cfm?hint=4&DR_ID=35568

re-flek-shun

Well, let's start by saying that Belize hasn't left me yet! I came home last week with hives on my feet - an allergic reaction to some bug bites I think. I went to the doctor and got some ointment which helped with the itching, but now I have developed this huge swollen thing on the bottom of my foot that is starting to throb. Oh fun. More seriously though, just this morning i was missing hearing the Belmopan Rotaractors talk in Creole!

I think our trip was very successful, especially considering that this was the first such trip that Rotaract had organized, and that we did so fairly independently. I think we all did a great job of stepping up to the challenge of developing presentations in a relatively short time frame. My favourite part of the trip AIDS outreach-wise (though it's really hard to pick a favourite) was the Teacher's Workshop. I think we did a terrific job of developing that workshop and presenting it. I was really impressed with how smoothly everything flowed from one section to the next. I think for next time, doing the role plays earlier during the workshop might help to get the participants more involved.

I also really liked the AIDS fair that we did in the marketplace, because we reached out to a population that was very little informed about AIDS. I think we should find a way to organize some follow-up work with this group, becuase while we gave them lots of brochures and information, I wonder how likely they are to read it. As we were handing out the information I imagined myself in their position and figured I wouldn't read this information on this disease that I had only just heard about. I would probably feel very unclear about the disease and also feel that "it won't affect me."

Oh - this is a slight digression, but I was reading an article yesterday about some new disease that infects the bloodstream and eventually leads to death. The disease can be contracted through mosquitos and other insects, and some other ways (I didn't quite understand those - it was very technical). But it can also be passed on through blood to blood contact, much like AIDS.

Ok, I actually made that "disease" up to illustrate my point. When you read about it, did you think, "this could affect me? Maybe I should read up more on this disease?" Probably not. I think it takes repeated information to make a person understand the severity of a disease like AIDS. Moreover, I imagine that some of the people we spoke to at the fair probably weren't literate. So just handing out information isn't enough, as that is making two assumptions: (1) that the recipient can read it and (2) that the recipient actually does read it. Don't get me wrong - I still think what we did in the fair was very valuable, but I also want to highlight that there's more that we can - and should - do with this population in particular.

On a different note, I was surprised by how much the school children already knew about AIDS. I think our technique of going into each classroom and asking the children what they thought of when they heard "AIDS" was a very good way to gauge their knowledge and adapt our presentation to what they already knew. It also engaged the students and forced us to be flexible. I really enjoyed how Tom and Jon in particular used little anecdotes and scenarios to engage the kids and make them relate to some of the bigger concepts of AIDS (eg. responsibility for one's actions) at their own level. That is one of the great things about volunteering as a group - everyone has different strengths and assets that they are able to offer.

One way in which I hope we changed Belize is by reducing the stigma around AIDS. I think the country has been doing that on a regional / national level - I was impressed by the number of AIDS awareness posters/murlas I saw on the highway, in schools, in the marketplace. I think we may have helped reduce stigma on a more personal level. Whether it was asking the school children whether they could tell by looking at us if any of us had AIDS, combined with Lisa speaking, or Adam's moving speech about treating all with respect (I don't know if you noticed but some of the kids clapped specifically after Adam's part), or painting alongside the HIV-afflicted family - I think these all had an impact on reducing stigma.

Switching gears a little bit, I want to talk a little bit about the local Belizeans. At the Rotaract meeting on our first night, I was absolutely blown away by the passion that these people had for addressing the issues in their country . Caribbean and other island countries are often stereotyped as "laidback," yet I think very few people think of these countries in terms of what we saw that night. The conviction that people like Shelly, Dave, Buca man (I never learnt his name!) had to better their country was incredible - I have honestly never witnessed anything like it.

And then there's Mike, who is one of my heroes. I don't know if many of you had a chance to talk to Mike, but I did and I learnt a lot about him. First of all, he went to school at Madison, but chose to return to Belize. That alone should be admirable, given what we learnt about the number of Belizeans who migrate to and stay in the U.S. But did you also know that Mike comes from a family of 20 children and all of them - except him - stayed in the U.S.? And that though he's a doctor, sporting his Nautica polos, he actually works in free clinics and provides free medical treatment? (He gets funding/sponsors from the U.S. for his costs, salary etc.) He is such a selfless man, not only in giving up a job offer in the US to return to Belize, not only in providing free treatment, but also in giving up his time to run the Belmopan chapter of the National AIDS Commission (which, by the way, receives no funding from BNAC directly and has to raise its own funds).

Wow, this is long. Ok, I am going to save for another post a list of things I would have done differently if I were to do this trip over again.

Truly unBelizable!

Well, guess what? I’m listening to our theme song—Akon, as I’m writing this. I promise I won’t digress into other random thoughts about my political views or the latest trends for spring 2007 :) So about Belize….it was quite an experience, and for me, it’s always hard to put my feelings and thoughts into words.

It would be selfish for me to only talk about how Belize changed me. The point of the trip was to provide something to the people of Belize—to give them a message about the epidemic that has hit the country pretty hard.

I remember sitting on a wooden bench in a local clinic in South Africa one afternoon during my break, when a svelte woman sat next to me. Maybe svelte is not the word to describe her. She looked like a walking skeleton—with sunken cheekbones. Too thin to be true. When I was back in the doctor’s examination room after the break, the same woman walked in and sat next to the doctor. A couple more girls were in the room shadowing the doctor as well. Just by looking at her, we all sort of knew what she had. I couldn’t understand the Xhosa words exchanged, but the doctor dismissed her after checking her tongue, which was badly sore with purple spots—one of the symptoms of the disease. She was trembling hard as she fought with gravity to lift herself up from the chair. She took small steps heading to the door, but with great effort. Every step that she took was not only excruciating for her, but also for me and the girls to watch someone suffer through the terminal stage of AIDS. The woman, who could barely walk, was alone. She didn’t have anyone to help her.

Around 20% of South Africa’s adult population is infected with HIV. With a population of 44 million, we’re talking about around 5 to 6 million people living with HIV, and 1.5 million orphans. That’s more than five times the population of Belize.

It’s a guilt-trip for me just thinking about the woman in the clinic—I could’ve helped her. But what could I—merely a student with no medical training or whatsoever—have done for her? She was in her final stage of AIDS too.

I think what we’ve done in Belize provides an answer to my question. I’m probably right in saying that I couldn’t really have helped the woman in the clinic. But I realized that I can help to prevent the spread of the disease, so that no one would have to go through such an ordeal.

I’m really proud of what we did to serve the people of Belize. We were able to use our “expertise” as youths to connect to the younger generation of Belize. In fact we’re all 19 and pretty young (right Nandita? :) ) We were able to render our message on the prevention of HIV/AIDS to one of the most vulnerable groups, and stand in the forefront of the fight against this disease. To the family that we’ve fixed the roofs for, we didn’t necessarily talk to them about HIV/AIDS but I believe we showed them that there are people from around the world who care about them and want to help them. What else did we do? We went on the Radio and TV to reach a larger audience. We passed out flyers in the market, where women frequent. For biological reasons, women are four times more likely to contract the disease from men. How unfair is that.

I truly hope that we did make an impact on the communities we’ve visited. It is up to them to absorb the information and to realize that they can be affected, and that they have neighbors who have been affected. What I would like to see in Belize is the mobilization of the community and the creation of an activist group like the Treatment Action Campaign in South Africa. TAC has been a powerful force in steering the South African government in the fight against HIV/AIDS. Belize needs more people like Lisa who is daring to speak up about her status and fight for the rights of the people with AIDS. The government should also recognize the immensity of the problem, prioritize the fight, make funds more accessible, and implement a comprehensive surveillance system.

On the other hand, I don’t want to discount the efforts of the members of Rotary/Rotaract and Mike. Belize is gifted with people like them who are truly passionate about social issues. I was astounded by their love for the country and their efforts to heal their communities. I cannot emphasize how much respect I have for them.

I wonder how the course of the disease will change in Belize, perhaps five or ten years later. I’d love to return to do more work like this.

I’m back to wearing contact lenses again. Although I don’t miss about having conjunctivitis, I miss other things about Belize. How can you forget about riding at the back of a truck at the end of the day and appreciating the beautiful sunset in the clear sky? The taste of scrumptious tamales at the Belmopan market, or the barbeque chicken after a quick swim in the river? Pulling over the road to cheer for the cycling team, trying to decipher the Creole that your host’s sister speaks to you, and lastly, witnessing our supreme leader fearlessly venturing the holy Mayan cave Indiana Jones’ style with everything but her pants on?

I made fry jacks yesterday. Chatting with Phylicia usually took place in her kitchen when she was preparing for dinner. I was a bit dismayed that my fry jacks didn’t puff magically like how Phylicia’s always did.

On my kitchen counter lies an interesting Mayan pot that has a Jaguar head sticking out of it. At the same time, it has human arms and legs. It even has a tail. Next to the pot is my pebble that I salvaged from the river that we swam in. I find myself trying to re-create Belize all around me. And I am glad that when I become really sentimental just thinking about our times there, my punta CD is waiting for me in the boom box.

if you were to pick one day that sums up our trip:

Tuesday was pretty much the CRAZY day (see below):

6:45am wake up to go to radio talk show
7:30am "My Refuge" Christian Radio Show
9:00am talk to a classroom of kids... unexpectedly as the other car goes to the marketplace (ehem..)
10:00am Painting a health clinic, Rae gets massive ant bites
12:00pm Lunch and Presentation with Rotarians at George Price Center
1:00pm Lady of Guadalupe School, 2 class of Std. V
3:30pm Meet the Mayor of Belmopan at City Hall
4:00pm Debrief at colorful park (best one)
4:30pm Talk with TV show editing place --> riding the Clown Car
5:00pm Chill at Caesar's
5:30pm Go film for the TV Show
7:00pm Pick up Chinese food dinner
8:00pm University of Belmopan Basketball Game
10:00pm Shelly's House - debrief and planning for teacher's workshop

ok, so isn't that crazy?!?

I went into Belize hoping for an open mind, so that I can absorb whatever alllll of anything the moment I stepped off that plane. The humid sunny weather immediately hit me making my skin moist and slightly sticky. I had to take off my NorthFace IMMEDIATELY. What else? I love the tamales off the streets: 2 belizeans please. and Marlon was so cute, I think he's gonna get all the girls with that eyebrow raising trick of his.

It may sound selfish and a little bit like an unequal trade of things but I definitely got more out of this trip than I contributed. I'm taking away the hint of Belizian culture, food - mostly Habanero hot sauce, friendliness and hospitality, earth - with mud on my shoes, the beautiful weather - look at my peeling back, and can't forget my body being covered with mosquito bites.

But not only that, I got more than I expected, considering I was going in there inspired by the passion for social justice and the realization that we as Americans are so fortunate and should use the spoiled resources we have. I as a Christian, am called to care about the issues of this world like social injustice - whether it be local like homelessness right in the middle of Evanston, or it be international with the stigmas people face through an HIV positive test. Going to Belize was like a slap in the face... look around you EunJoo! In one neighborhood you saw a broken down shack, with their neighbor having a 3 story mansion. What a disparity... and what is an AIDS victim to do to battle those stigmas that they face each and every day? Restoring the roof and painting the AIDS victims' house was a crucial point for me. It put a face to injustice. I had so many questions.. where was the mother?, was the father out of work?, are the children going to school?, what was that nasty scar on the boy's leg?,how long have they been living in the condition they were in? - minimal furniture, leaky roof, and dirty floor? Maybe we are always afraid to face certain problems and issues of this world because they seem so big and overwhelming or seems like an impossible problem to fix. But we need to overcome that fear and face it. Help it! We may not see the immediate impacts of our week's worth of HIV/AIDS awareness but in time it will come to fruition. Whether our contribution was that it encouraged one student to talk to their parents about the issue or whether a passer-by sees our hand-print painting on the soccer field wall, it's not really a concern. What we can do as this issue is still hard on our hearts is to bring it back to THIS community here. eh~ .. more of my reflections later. it's still all a jumble of many many things. :)

...that's what she said.

Dear friends, family, and constituents,

It's early Saturday morning ("early" being used in the college context, not that of Belize, where we got up on average at 7 AM!) and I've been doing some thinking about our trip to Belize. What strikes me is it's already been almost a week since we left, and I just can't help but think what our dear friends Daren, Claudia, Dr. Mike, Shelly, Hedge, Ross, Leon, Trish, Phylicia, Karteek, Dave, Kahlil, Alger, Caesar, and co are doing. Sure we have email, blogs, and Facebook to keep in touch, but it's just not the same as being together in Belize impacting the community and getting to know one another better.

Anyway, while I was on the trip I kept a journal of sorts, and added entries every few days. None of it is too personal to share, I feel, so I thought it'd be interesting to post them here. Below is my first entry, which includes first impressions of Belize.

3/19/07

Belizia. I am writing this entry a little later than I would've liked, as we've now been in Belize two days. It's very important to me to capture first impressions of the country in their freshest form, especially to compare these with pre-trip conceptions and expectations of Belize.

But oh what a country! We have been here all of two days and I can already tell eight days just won't be enough. The sheer amount of culture and diversity within Belize is astounding. Coming into the trip I had read about the different groups making up Belize's ethnic mix, but my goodness, what an array of people. There are the Mayan, the Mennonites ("White guys in overalls" according to the Lonely Planet), the Farifuna, mestikzos, East Indians, Lebanses, North Americans, and even Chinese! The latter came as a shock to me, but evidently there is a healthy population (around 10,000) of Chinese and Taiwanese in Belize. I never would've guessed it and just assumed I would stick out like a sore thumb being white and Chinese. Apparently the people from Taiwan are very good about integrating themselves within the community, while the mainlanders are more reluctant and keep to their own respective neighborhoods. I wonder why that is? I'm tempted to try the Chinese food here, but as Kay pointed out, we ARE in Central America and should therefore enjoy the food of this region first.

And now we've touched upon my favorite topic... the food! Wawaweewa! Ok, so maybe it's not that good, but it's tasty. Since arrivfing Sunday we've had some Belizian dishes - both in restaurants and homemade - and they are certainly remniscent of Mexican dishes and Latin American food in general. At the very first restaurant we went to in Belize called Cheers we got a taste of the flavors of the country. Tom Cruise, ahem excuse me Tom Hughes (I hear Hughes gets that all the time) pointed out the "Gringo Tomale" and of course I immediately felt compelled to try it. He went with the vegetarian burrito... idiot. I can't remember some of the others. WE ordered this ridiculous spread of nachos supreme, loaded with meat, cheese, and my favorite, jalapneos! Daren, our chief host and Belizian superstar, challenged me to test out the hot sauce, which turned out to be manageable (I did cry later). Since then I've gained his respect for spicy foods and flavors with my willingness to try, well, anything and it was later observed by Hedge that I have "a littel bit of Mexican in me". Go figure :)

I should pause for a moment and shift back to when we first arrived in Belize. It's significant because never before have I received as warm of a welcome to a foreign land or anywhere else than what we experienced upon coming to Belize. The Belmopan Rotaract Cluhb was out in full force, and just after stepping off the plane we could see them all excitedly waving and proudly holding a welcome banner. At first glance of the banner and crowd gathered atop the airport gallery I thought to myself, "Jeez, somebody must be loved", and then realized it was all for us. Complete strangers and we get this kind of welcome? I didn't realize it then, but the warmth and care the Belizians extend in general to visitors is remarkable. It might be blasphemous, but they just may even have Apple's customer service beat. There, I said it!

The airport in Belize City was small and a far cry from the monstrosity that is George Bush International Airport., It reminded me a lot of the airport in Ixtapa, Mexico. Funny, not but a few seconds upon entry had I taken my camera out for a picture and was approached by secuirty. They informed me of the no camera rule, which made sense. Apparently the gentlemen behind me video recording the baggage claim and customs area was of no concern to them.

So we've already met a lot of incredible and fascinating people while here. One that immediately comes to mind is Ross. Ross is a 77-year old Texan witha killer mustache. He's a wooden cross-wearing, big gulp-toting, free spirit who is friendly to everyone he meets. You take one look at this guy, have one exchange of words with him and just think, "oh the stories he must have. The sights and sounds he must be able to share." Indeed, this isn't far from the truth. Ross was born in Texas and is a true traveler of the wrold. He fought in the Korean conflict and has been to a majority of the continents.

Alright, before wrapping up, as it is getting quite late here in Belmopan and we are going on a radio show tomorrow morning, I wanted to reflect some on how the trip si going thsu far with respect to our main objective, which is raising awareness about HIV/AIDS. Today we had our first experience with discussing AIDS and with Belizians. Actually, the first conversations began the night before when we met with the Rotary and Rotaract members from the Belmopan community and Gayland University. That was an eye-opening experience. We got into a fairly intense discussion/deabet about preventative measures and the crux of the issue was whether to emphasize abstinence only or incorporate it among several other methods of avoiding STDS/pregnancy. It's the classic debate held frequently and as vociferously in the U.S. There was definitely a divide among those in the room about where the emphasis should lie when raising awareness about AIDS in the classrooms. Some advocated abstinence only or at least a strong emphasis placed on abstinence. THis of course left othres among more progressive sentiments not necessarily opposed to the inclusion of abstinence teachings but insistant on it not being the only advocated solution. One interesting thing I saw was why the abstinence supporters felt as they did. There was the obvious influence of religion that I was use dto hearing back in the U.S. While people spoke passionately and eloquently on all sides, the general understanding was to teach a vareity of preventative measrues, including a portion covering the merits of abstinence.

Must get some sleep now. More later.


Ok so that's my first reflection. If anyone has any reactions - whatever they may be - please don't hesitate to post. I leave you with this:

Belize was: amazing!

It's so hard putting into words my feelings from the week spent in Belize. I had the time of my life, and learned so much! My favorite part of our work done in Belize was the gender based discussions we had after each school presentation. It was interesting hearing what issues they were facing and what they wanted advice on. It was also evident that there was still stigma attached to hiv/aids although they apparently have many presentations on this topic. Hopefully they will take the advice and knowledge we gave them and apply it to their lives, and also positively influence others.

I loved trying new things: riding in the back of the car so many times, fixing a roof, eating traditional belizean food, mayan ruins, and caving!!! I also loved meeting so many new people, and it was amaizng how friendly and welcoming everyone was. When I left Belize, I felt like I was leaving home. I've never been so attached to a place after only a week there, but I guess after staying with host families and hanging out with locals all the time, it just felt so natural there.

I'm still trying to sift through all my thoughts, but this is what i've got down for now :)


love.

I miss my family

i miss belize :(

I love Belize. Let's start with the things I didn't enjoy because it'll take me all of two seconds to write them down. I did not enjoy my sunburn. I also hope that someday I wake up and I don't have Akon stuck in my head but that may not happen for a long time. Now onto good memories because they're so much more fun to talk about. Caving was probably my favorite thing. It was so different from anything I've ever done; the whole day was incredible. By the way, I love using semicolons properly in sentences because it makes me feel smart. Anyway, I also really enjoyed the scooter (sorry to everyone who isn't Eunjoo), actually seeing the stars in the sky (so pretty), painting (always fun), speaking Spanish in the market about HIV/AIDS (although I don't think the Spanish-speaking Belizeans enjoyed that half as much as I did), karaoke (especially the ice incident). The best part of the trip though was the group. I thought our group was amazing and the Belmopan Rotaract and our host families were so nice and welcoming. It was really fun for me to get to know everyone, especially because there were so many unique personalities in our group and the Belizeans we met.
I would say my low point was a short time the first day when I couldn't hear anything because my ears weren't ready to pop. That was the worst part of my trip. That's how you know it was an amazing trip. The high point would have to be the unveiling of the skeleton lady. It was a combination of creepy, exciting, and fascinating in that history way.
How I changed Belize is really difficult to know. I hope that something I said to someone in the market changed how they approach important decisions or how they think about HIV/AIDS. I hope that one of the girls we talked to in our groups started talking about HIV/AIDS or other issues with someone if she needed to. I hope that the family whose house we painted feels more accepted and happier in general knowing someone cares. I hope someone watched us on TV or listened to us on the radio or read our awesome sign and then responded to it by changing their actions or talking to someone they thought could use help. I hope all these great things happen, but how can I really know how I changed Belize.
How Belize changed me is also difficult. I feel like I have more confidence in almost all aspects of my life. I think I'm also better at expressing my thoughts more clearly. I guess in general I think I know myself better now and am more aware of what I'm doing or thinking. In a not-so-positive-change, Belize also caused my skin to physically change red and peel which first hurt and now itches so that's a party. But seriously, this experience has changed me in ways I see everyday and in ways other people point out to me that I hadn't realized.
In conclusion, I love Belize.

waaaah

TAKE ME BACK TO BELIZE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Collaboration

One point that Prof. Diamond emphasized in the 5'C was collaboration.
His point was that, if there are many NGO's working on the same project,
why not work together? Collaborating with other groups means
working together towards one goal by sharing knowledge, information,
and coming up with innovative ideas to combat the problem. So on that note,
I thought it would be interesting to see if there are other groups like us around
Chicago or in other States who are interested in the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Belize.
Then we can share our experiences, exchange info, and maybe work on a project
together in the future.

Oh, and I am REALLY excited about taking pictures in Belize. I love working
with B&W photography! A picture paints a thousand words. I believe that
using pictures is a great way to get NU students personally engaged in the issue.

Global Health

I attended the same workshop as Nandita at IYVS. I just wanted to add a few more points that stuck out to me during the workshop.

• When planning long term international projects, you must consider the issue of sustainabiliy. How do you get people out of the current crisis, and then build a new structure to avoid that crisis in the future?
• How do you go into a community and try to change it but not do any harm at the same time? And how do you respond to the crisis but not create dependency?
• Always remember to capitalize on the assests of the community.
• People in the affected community need to TRUST the intervener- a good relationship is very important to establish.
• How do we integrate men into healthcare discussions and projects? By focusing HIV/Aids campagins on men, we hope to change their focus from power and success to caring for their family and friends.
• A lot of microfinance projects take ppl from bottom of poverty to top of poverty, but not out of poverty
• There are 4 C's that Michael Diamond suggested for Global Health projects- Convergence (find mutual area of interest/concern), collaboration & cooperation (intervention), and communication (how do we talk to each other about what we're doing?)
• How can we integrate private and public sectors? We should collectively look at 1 goal and see how all these different resources available can help them.

Lesson to be learned:

Think differently, be creative, ask different and counter-intuitive questions, dont' stick to the status quo!!!

Mission Development

We talked about some general ideas and prof Diamond gave us some specific examples of those. and then we opened it up to the table and we got to share what our projects were and if we had any questions we could open it up to discussion.

A prime example is that of Ebola in Zaire. the couple of nurses that went in there had good intentions but became the propagator of spreading the disease by reusing needles. well, this was a long time ago and we dont reuse needles anymore, but that is not the point. the important thing to stress here is our responses to such outbreak and crisis. we need to address the problem and propagate it.

another example he gave is about a country that had a tsunami hit them. we discussed that the most vital thing to do in that situation is to empower the people. it's not about going in there without a plan, helping out, and withdrawing from the country again. that is not going to help out their situation. a good strategy is to have some kind of financial loan system where the people would loan money and they use it to buy something in order to circulate more money into their own economy. it is therefore something that they do on their own, and giving them their own possessions that they work for empowers them to control their own environment.

there were 5 Cs to this whole thesis but i only remember 4: convergence, cooperation, communication, collaboration.

a question a student brought up was that of the importance of a mission statement and how to make it effective. ya, it's a little out of topic but not really because mission statements are the foundation that a project is built on.

overall, very interesting seminar and very hands on and applicable.

Before/During/After Activities

Hey guys,

Here's some important information to make sure we're on the same page. Feel free to comment, make suggestions, propose new ideas.

First up, let's make sure we know what the objectives of our trip our:
- Hands-on engagement with our club's 06-07 theme, AIDS, in an international context
- Challenge ourselves to think more globally.
- To develop a long-term partnership with the Belmopan Rotaract club.
- To further the Evanston/Belize sister city relationship

Pre-trip Preparation:

A quick recap on what we've done so far:
- Thought about AIDS in a broader context (of sexual violence and genocide) by attending the Tubeho Project Panel Discussion and by discussing the panel at Wednesday's meeting
- Gained skills, knowledge and ideas by attending IYVS sessions
- Learned about Belize (history, economy, demographics, AIDS), and reflected on some potential issues we may face during the presentations at Wednesday's meeting.

During-trip Activities:
(This section doesn't include actual day-to-day service/trip activities, but broader, ongoing activities. I will email you a trip itinerary with specific service project info).

Sustainability
To develop a long-term partnership with Belmopan Rotaract, we need to work together to establish common goals, brainstorm future projects, and develop an infrastructure for the partnership.

Some ideas we've come up wtih to continue AIDS-related efforts in Belize include:
- Forming a Rotaract Belmopan committee to train local students and community leaders to be peer educators
- Developing a youth AIDS education program through a creative medium such as sports
- Implementing a public awareness project, such as a mural
- Engaging members of the community in gender-specific discussions about AIDS
- Establishing a system of psychological and social support for AIDS victims (a current AIDS issue in Belize is the lack of such support)

Engagement
We will be holding daily discussions to engage with the issues we're dealing with, share our observations and reflect upon our experiences and impact. These discussions will be documented in a group journal.

Photographs
We will take photographs during the trip to use for the post-trip photo exhibit and presentations.

Post-trip Activities:
Upon our return, we will organize activities/events to engage the NU & Evanston communities. Some initial ideas are:
- Photo exhibit (including observations/insights from trip journal)
- Dorm firesides
- Follow-up AIDS-related volunteering activity for trip participants
- Presentations to local Rotary clubs and to the Evanston community about our experiences
- Facilitating a workshop/discussion at IYVS 2008
- Article in the Sister Cities International March/April newsletter about the trip (Evanston has a sister city relationship with Belize)
- Possibly attending the Sister Cities International Conference in Chicago

Ray's Post - Maximum Impact on Short Volunteer Trips

Ray posted this on a separate blog, and am reposting it here so you can see all the comments in one place :)

Hey guys,so i went to the IYVS info session on how to have the maximum impact during your short term volunteering experience. I found the session really helpful and came away with some great ideas about how to make our volunteer trip really worthwhile and educational not only for the people we will be interacting with in Belize, but for our group of volunteers and Rotaract in general.So let me briefly talk about the session down. The people running the session said it helps to break your trip into three sections: 1. before you go, 2. while you're there and 3. after you get back. They suggested activities and brainstorming events in all three sections, so i'll go over that a little here and then we can go into more details at our next meeting. so here we go.

Section 1: Before embarking on your volunteer trip.-talk with your group about how involved with the local people you plan to be. Are your contacts local? are you staying in a hotel or with local families? Are there plans to integrate you into the community and if so, how? Do people in the group have suggestions as to how to really connect with people while we are there?
-have everyone write down what they personally wish to accomplish there within the theme of your volunteer trip. So for us, what does each one of us want to do? For example I could say "I really want to empower at least one woman in Belize with the knowledge of how to protect herself from HIV by using a condom during intercourse", etc. Feel free to also include personal goals such as, i want to bond with my trip mates and come up with way to convey what we've experienced to the rest of Rotaract who didn't get to come
-assess your personal skills. have everyone sit down and write out what skills they personally have that will helps us with our goal of educating people about this disease. For example if someone has worked in a health care clinic before, list this. Or if someone has volunteered specifically with women or children, or etc etc. Then compile these lists to help figure out who would be best doing what once we reach Belize
-READ UP ON BELIZE. Educate yourself on the place where we are going. Thanks to some awesome research and presentations we're already half way there, but there is no such thing as being overly prepared. Let's keep researching ways to approach the topic of AIDS and HIV, such as how is culturally sensitive, how do we approach it within certain religious groups, male v.s females, etc
-get journals, they don't have to be leather bound or anything, but the people leading the session suggested that having a journal that you could write in before, during and after the trip would help us organize our thoughts and make it possible for us to keep an accurate record of everything we will be doing and seeing

Section 2: On the Ground-remember, we are ambassadors to not only our school but to our country as well. Act like it!! be respectful, polite and involved. Also keep in mind that while we are going to help, we are not "rescuing" anyone. We are helping with aid, but we have no right to be arragant or think ourselves above the people we are helping. Not that i think any of us would but i thought it was a good reminder. Other than that, just involve yourself with the people
-on that note, it is easy to be overwhelmed by the things you will be seeing and experiencing. don't freak out! more than likely everyone is experiencing something like what you're feeling. talk to your trip members about it, or if you find that too much, write it down in your journal. The session leaders suggested we sit down for at least a half hour every night to talk about the days events and how we're feeling. i think it's a great idea! let me know what everyone thinks-be flexible. realize that conceptions of time, organization, communication and personal space may vary in the country you are going to. If you can accept that, even if it makes you uncomfortable in the begining, everyone will be able to function much better. You can of course though talk about how it bugs you or any culture shock you experience when we all sit down to talk. Please do not complain though in front of any of the people we will be working with, they've been working really hard to make things great for us and we'd hate to see them feel bad. So talk to the group or write it in your journal.
-unless of course you feel something is dangerous or you feel at all threatened, then obviously seek out whoever is responsible in that situation and alert them.
-also take your health into your own hands. If you start feeling sick do not ignore it! let someone know so that your health can be monitored. everything is a little more important when we are abroad so we don't want to ignore anything that might grow into something that could potentially be bad. Also, bring basic medicine that you think you might need. Things that we can get here easily such as advil or pepto bismol may not be available in belize.
-don't be afraid to branch out and really put yourself out there while on your trip. talk to people! don't be afraid to make a fool out of yourself, most people are excited to see you in their country and are usually more than willing to share stories about their lives and experiences. Recognize that you can really make a lasting difference to someone by being their friend, not just a random volunteer. Learn peoples names (i know this one is hard guys, i suck at it, but it really makes people feel great knowing that the people they are coming to looking for advice not only recognize them but remember them as individuals). Ask them about their familys, their lives, etc. And share your stories too!
-empower local leaders. target individuals within the community. Help them realize their potential to help their people once the volunteers have left. Provide them with examples of how to be a leader, such as ways to dialogue with theirs peers, etc. Make sure that the majority of your volunteer activites can be maintained once the volunteers depart
-have a mentor system on the trip. match everyone up with a buddy within the group and set up some brief one on one time for you and your buddy to talk about how you're feeling, what you feel the trip is accomplishing or not, and generally just provide support for each other.

Section 3: After you get back-let yourself be affected. It can be really easy to fall back into your regular rutines of school and friends, so make sure you take some time once you get home to recognize that you might be feeling different about things like your life, your health, etc. Don't push these feelings aside.
-engage yourself back home. For us, that will include educating the rest of Rotaract on what we did, what we think went well, what didn't, what future action we should take, etc. We can also look into joining up with other organization at NU or in Evanston to combact AIDS and spread awareness
-make others aware of your experience through writing to newspapers, letters to the editor, blogs, sending photos to photography competitions. try to engage the surrounding community in your experience. We will have an advantage of being people who have real life experience which always makes for a more interesting story and pitch for assistence.
-continue the mentor buddy system that was established on the trip. remember some of your emotions about the trip may not hit you for awhile so having your buddy even after the trip will make it easier to sort through some of these feelings, especially if it's with someone who experienced it with you.
-challenge people to think beyond their pre-set conceptions of the country that you volunteered in. For example for us, a lot of people think Belize is like St. Barts, a rich vacation resort. So when people ask you about it, don't be afraid to tell them about the nitty gritty truth.
-talk to leaders within your university, like professors who have connections to any of the issues we are discussing: HIV/AIDS, awareness, Belize, how to empower people, etc. A university provides unlimited and motivated resourse: students!! reach out to them!

so anyway, that's just some of the main points that i wrote down. Needless to say i think they brought up some very interesting stuff that we should definitely keep in mind for our trip. So read it over, write down anything you want to discuss and we can talk about it at our next meeting and incorporate it into our trip planning. so yeah, thanks for reading guys! ROCK OUT BELIZE TRIP!!!

From Nicki

Nicki had some trouble posting to the blog, so I am posting on her behalf :)

She attended the same session as Jon, and wanted to add the following websites for you all to check out:

www.engagetheworld.org
www.crossculturalsolutions.org

Student Health Engagement Session

Carrie and I went to the Student Health Engagement session and it was very interesting. A lot of the students were working on AIDS-related issues:
- AIDS awareness through soccer/sport: this raised an important point about the target group of such outreaches - ie. most soccer players are male, but the AIDS incidence is higher in females)
- AIDS in the transvestite community in India: Indian society does not recognize these transvestites, consequently, they turn to prostitution etc. for livelihood and spread AIDS. India also doesn't recognize AIDS all that much. Thus, they fail to recognize AIDS and one of the sources of its perpetuation

We discussed the gender dynamics of AIDS. In particular, in a lot of countries such as India, women have no power to even tell their husbands to use a condom. Thus they contract AIDS, and pass it onto their children (in India there is also a big negative stigma about being childless), and eventually the parents die and the child is left an orphan.
Also, in many African countries there are myths that if you are infected and have sex with a virgin, you are not only cured but also protected against future AIDS infections.

One of the takeaways here is that gender behaviors need to be shifted, and the importance of engaging men in discussions about AIDS and health.

IYVS Workshop: Maximizing your study abroad experience for future action

On Saturday I went bright and early at 10 AM to an interesting discussion on ways maximize one's study abroad/service trip experience both while in the foreign country and upon returning.

We covered a broad range of topics within the study abroad experience, but one area we concentrated on was treating the experience as two-fold and beyond just academic goals:

1) Having a meaningful impact in the community in your host country (getting to the know the people, volunteering, learning about what issues are most prevalent there)
2) Bringing your experiences back to the United States AND using them to promote issues, raise awareness, take action, etc.

We discussed the challenge of coming to a country as an American and the stereotypes that accompany this label. One possible way of dealing with this challenge is to enter the country with an open mind and willingness to learn, no matter others have said about the region or what's shown in the news. The basic idea is to learn the culture first, THEN try to engage in the community and work towards substantive change that the community members themselves want.

There's this group the facilitator talked about, Exchange, that is devoted to gathering students recently arrived from study abroad trips and interested in channeling their experiences into something tangible and proactive. I don't have their website on me now, but I'll try to find it soon and post it.

Anyway, it was a cool workshop and I found it pretty helpful. I also went to one on Microfinance, but I'll leave that description for another time.

C'est tout!

Jon

Welcome guys :)