Camp G2LOW is a program put on throughout many
Peace Corps countries. It stands for Girls and Guys Leading Our World. Here in
sunny Burkina Faso, the upcoming summer will host the third round of these
excellent opportunities for the youth to come and be empowered. This is kind of
my thing. Thus, I’ll be financial director for this week-long camp taking place
in my regional capital. Good thing I’ve had a bit of experience with managing
donations and file-keeping! (Shout out to Prattsville, NY here. I hope you all
weathered Sandy…)
Each volunteer in the region works with their village to send 5-6 + kids to this camp. I think at ours, we would like to host 70 all-together. It’s necessary to provide lodging and food for the students during this time. During the camp, we put on sensibilizations, teach songs, play sports, and do all that good, old-fashioned campy stuff. Really, the main focus is promoting the girls to be more confident and engaged in their community. Burkina Faso has made it a priority to change long-standing attitudes and ideas about women that keeps them from reaching their full potential. Also, we teach the guys to accept and promote the girls in their village as well. It is crucial for the men to be involved in this process if there will, indeed, be a change.
Each volunteer in the region works with their village to send 5-6 + kids to this camp. I think at ours, we would like to host 70 all-together. It’s necessary to provide lodging and food for the students during this time. During the camp, we put on sensibilizations, teach songs, play sports, and do all that good, old-fashioned campy stuff. Really, the main focus is promoting the girls to be more confident and engaged in their community. Burkina Faso has made it a priority to change long-standing attitudes and ideas about women that keeps them from reaching their full potential. Also, we teach the guys to accept and promote the girls in their village as well. It is crucial for the men to be involved in this process if there will, indeed, be a change.
I will be at a formation for planning this camp, a formation
for my IT committee, and a 2-week training for my group of new volunteers all
in December. Goodbye site- I’ll miss you... Basically, December gone be CRAY.
Of course, after that I’ll be submitting grades (yeah, my students basically
get a 2 week reprieve from Math class) and then celebrating Christmas with my
community and New Years with the Americans. Hopefully I’ll be able to host some
other volunteers who will be passing through during winter break to visit!
We shall see.
We shall see.
Things which are normal for me now…
Eating
sauce with my hands
Goats and pigs on my porch
Abandoning all thought of the absolutely complex idea of queuing
Speaking only in French for weeks at a time
Being given babies to hold in my lap because there’s not enough space in the van to fit everyone
Taking 4 hours to prepare afternoon tea
Clicking my tongue to signal affirmation
Being able to tell random kids to do errands for me whenever I want
… and so much more! I just can’t remember what is bizarre for Americans right now…
Goats and pigs on my porch
Abandoning all thought of the absolutely complex idea of queuing
Speaking only in French for weeks at a time
Being given babies to hold in my lap because there’s not enough space in the van to fit everyone
Taking 4 hours to prepare afternoon tea
Clicking my tongue to signal affirmation
Being able to tell random kids to do errands for me whenever I want
… and so much more! I just can’t remember what is bizarre for Americans right now…
Matt, you are a true BFPCV. I can't do the tongue thing...
ReplyDelete