Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Thoughts on Haiti: Huaraz All Over Again

In 1970, an earthquake the magnitude of 7.7 on the Richter scale hit off the coast of Peru and devastated the Andean department of Ancash, taking the lives of an estimated 80,000 people. Another 3 million were affected, making the quake the largest natural disaster in Peruvian history. Huaraz, Ancash’s capital city, crumbled to the ground. Ancash’s smaller villages were demolished; the adobe houses and buildings didn’t stand a chance. The quake destabilized the northern wall of Mount Huascaran, and towering at over 22,000 feet, the wall of the glacier broke off, creating a landslide of epic proportions that buried the urban town of Yungay. Only a couple hundred children and teachers survived the Yungay landslide because they were hiking on hills above the city, above the destructive reaches of the mud, ice, and debris that buried their town and families in the blink of an eye. The surviving children were dispatched to orphanages around the world.

Almost 40 years later, another massive earthquake devastates the impoverished island nation of Haiti. The statistics are shockingly similar: both Ancash and Haiti were impoverished areas before the earthquakes, both quakes left over 50,000 people dead and around 3 million affected, and both quakes completely destroyed basic and vital national infrastructure.

Today, Ancashinos sit in their adobe houses listening to the news come in about Haiti and are bitterly reminded of a not so far away past when they were living the same horror. Politicians and international aid workers should turn to Ancash as a developmental case study to help maneuver the unsteady waters of Haiti. What happens to an already impoverished society when a natural disaster strikes?

The earthquake in Ancash affected every aspect of the campasinos’ life, from family, culture, economy, infrastructure, and personal identity. Homes turned to dust. Crop fields were destroyed. Livelihoods were lost. Parents, siblings, and friends perished into the ground. Communities were destroyed. Access to drinkable water became the key to survival. The shock these losses take on a person’s self-esteem and self-worth are immeasurable. Peru lacked the resources to help their own people and turned to the outside world for rescue. What resulted in Ancash was a massive influx of international aid and support; richer, developed nations and organizations like the Inter-American Development Bank and the World Bank sent food, medicine and manpower in hoards. Survivors of the earthquake in Tumpa, my Peace Corps hometown, tell me about the planes that would drop boxes filled with clothes and medicine out of the sky.

One of the major challenges Peace Corps volunteers in Ancash face today is what we call the “culture of receiving.” Since 1970, Ancashinos have become accustomed to receiving international aid, mostly in the form of money. Whether the financial aid comes from NGOs with health, educational or micro-business missions, or from mining companies seeking to pacify exploited communities with quick and glamorous development projects, Ancashinos are in the habit of receiving money. Eager Peace Corps volunteers who are broke by default seek opportunities to start grassroots development projects, but often are not taken seriously, because to the Ancashino eye, a Gringo equals a greenback. Starting sustainable development projects in the Ancash communities without applying for grants is difficult and rare. And this might be because of how the outside world reacted to the earthquake of 1970.

When a national disaster strikes, basic human morality implores those of us capable to help those of us in need. International financial aid and involvement over a period of time is certainly necessary after major natural disasters wreak havoc on impoverished societies like Ancash and Haiti. But once the proverbial dust has settled, is continued international aid sustainable? When does international financial aid stop helping and start stripping a society of its national fabric and sovereignty? What happens to national and personal responsibility and self-esteem? In Tumpa, I often encounter a general lack of motivation, low self-esteem and apathy in the townspeople. Is 40 years of outside financial involvement more beneficial or detrimental to the growth and development of people from societies like Ancash? Did our morality in 1970 take a long-term demoralizing effect on these people?

Alternatives to long-term international financial involvement in response to natural disaster situations could include development programs like the Peace Corps Response, whose volunteers donate a few months to a year to educate people on healthy lifestyle techniques or micro-business strategies to help in the transition from crisis situations to peace. More widely known is the Peace Corps, whose volunteers live and work in developing countries partnered with host country nationals who seek to empower positive change and growth in their own communities. One human being extending a helping hand to another, offering knowledge instead of cash, is a resource that should not be underestimated. The international community should examine alternative options to financial aid that help developing communities transition to build their own countries with dignity so the citizens can really “own” their development.

Despite our academic knowledge, history continues to repeat itself. The role of international aid in times of crises like these must be examined carefully. If the Haitian people want to become a sovereign, self-sufficient, developing nation, the international community might examine appropriate alternatives to providing aid other than throwing money at the problem. Otherwise the Haitians might rely too heavily on financial support for the foreseeable future, obstructing the way for organic national development.


*Special thanks to Tim for inspiring me to write this.

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Healthy Schools Program, Tumpa, Peru


Since my arrival in Tumpa, I have worked on the Healthy Schools Program with the Health Post and Santa Fe school to reinforce healthy lifestyle behaviors in the youth, specifically in the areas of hygiene, nutrition and environmntal awareness. We have tackled these health problems with the youth by discussing and pacticing handwashing, bathing, toothbrushing, healthy meals, and trash management. After over a year of training and preparation, my Healthy Schools Program in Tumpa is becoming a reality! Peace Corps, Washington has approved my grant proposal and posted the project to the Peace Corps website. We are ready to take the Healthy Schools Program to the next level, and we need your help! Please pass on this email to any philanthropic friends who would like to donate and improve the lives of the Peruvian youth in my community. Below you will find a brief description of my project with instructions on how to donate.

Hygiene, nutrition and envionmental practices in Tumpa´s youth are very poor. Healthy lifestyle behaviors are seldom taught or reinforced in the home or school. Tumpa´s Health Post and Santa Fe school see the opportunity to strengthen healthy lifestyle behaviors in Tumpa´s youth through dynamic trainings and workshops; however, materials and supplies like trash cans and soap dispensors that reinforce these behavior changes do not exist and are needed. I need your help to improve healthy lifestyles in my Peruvian students!

Please visit the Peace Corps website to view the Healthy Schools Program profile, and please donate to improve the lives of my Peruvian students!


Go to the Peace Corps website at: peacecorps.gov
Click on ¨Donate Now!¨
Enter my last name ¨Dila¨ or my project number 527-015

OR
Click on this link: https://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=resources.donors.contribute.donatenow
and enter Peru in Search by Country of Service

Muchisimas Gracias!

****
¨La posibilidad de realizar un sueño es lo que hace que la vida sea interesante¨ -Paulo Coelho

Monday, January 11, 2010

Año Nuevo


Happy New Year! This Christmas, Carl and Franceen met me in Cusco where we spent a beautiful week walking past Incan walls and visiting colonial churches and local weaving stores. Cusco is a very well preserved city, and the juxtaposition of Incan ruins with Spanish colonial architecture is unique and dramatic. In contrast, Huaraz has been destroyed three times over by intense earthquakes in the past 100 years; the cathedral in our Plaza de Armas has been under construction since the last earthquake. So I loved Cusco. We made our homage to Machu Picchu and spent Christmas at the Santuario Hotel right next to the ruins. Machu Picchu is breathtaking in a way that words really cannot describe. The city wasn't discovered until 1911 by Hiram Bingham, an American explorer, which means that the Spanish conquistadors had no idea Machu Picchu even existed. Machu Picchu is at about 8,000ft on a mountain ridge in a jungle climate, and there are hundreds of types of orchids that grow in the area. It's one of the most amazing things I've ever seen in my life.

I spent New Years camping out on a beach south of Lima with some friends - including Grant Picarillo, my classmate from GFA! He's in the Peace Corps in Guatemala and came down to Peru with his wonderful boyfriend to see the sights. The New Years trip was so much fun - including mimosas for Shannon's birthday, Vermont sharp white cheddar NYE picnics, fireworks at midnight and a great bonfire on the beach.



Before the holidays, back in Tumpatown, I was asked to be the madrina (godmother) for my neighbor's son's graduation from primary school. So I went to Rodney's graduation and danced with him and his classmates and ate half a cuy. Part of my responsibilities as the godmother of his graduation was to give him a gift, so I gave him a Spanish-English dictionary. Appropriate, no?


Right before school ended in mid-December, I had a final meeting with the health post, teachers and admin for my Healthy Schools project. The grant proposal is being reviewed by Washington right now and should be posted on the Peace Corps website sometime this week, so that's very exciting! More on that once it's posted.


So here I am, it's January, the rain isn't too bad just yet, but it's getting cold... School's out until March, so my life as a Youth Development volunteer is a little quieter than usual. Shannon and I are planning and coordinating a girls leadership camp in Ancash called ALMA, or Actividades en Lierazgo para Mujeres Adolecentes (Leadership Activities for Teen Girls). Every PCV in Ancash is participating and will bring 2 girls from each volunteer community to the 3 day camp. We're going to bring in local Peruvians to lead conversations and activities on leadership, women's health and environmental issues. We're going to get the grant proposal in by the first week in February, so we're busy at work looking for a site, planning the activities and working out the budget. I'm diving into my personal hobbies to pass the days - cooking healthy mostly vegetarian meals in site, working out for the first time since the marathon last year, reading, writing, watching trashy TV episodes and hanging out with my host sister. We cook together. Jess' Minestrone is next on the menu (YUM!)

I have 7 months left of my service in Tumpa. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't starting to freak out a little bit. I love it so much here, and the thought of leaving soon is heart-wrenching. So I'm keeping my options open. I know the right decision will come to me.

***
Amazing firework shows I saw over the holidays: 2
Currently reading: Three Cups of Tea
Post-Peace Corps options considering: ∞
Next blog title: TYLER RETURNS TO PERU!