Project Outhouse: The story, the solution and how you can take part!

Hello friends, family, colleagues and those who have been directed to this site via word of mouth or at the request of my # 1 fans (aka- my parents!)! I invite you to read on about the framework of Project Outhouse and encourage you to consider a contribution towards its success!

The situation

As some or most of you know by now, I have been working on a variety of community economic and social development projects since arriving in the Comarca Ngöbe-Buglé in western Panama just over a year ago. Most of my work has been about education and capacity building such as writing small business plans, home gardening classes, and beekeeping training sessions. My next project is about infrastructure, a welcomed change to the somewhat intangible soft skills that have been my focus up to this point. I have committed to helping a nearby community with dedicated leaders on fulfilling a basic need: latrines (AKA the outhouse, the loo, water closet, whatever you want to call it)! The community of Quebrada Pabón consists of about 20 families and has been consistently left out of nearly all development projects that have come to the area. While Cerro Iglesias, the larger hub community I live in, is soliciting the government to bring electricity, Quebrada Pabón, less than an hour hike away, does not have running water nor do they have access to latrines. What does that mean to their community health? Without access to running water, children are sent to fetch water from nearby rivers and streams. Without access to latrines, people do what they’ve been doing for centuries and do their business in the outdoor bidet. Read between the lines: the rivers and streams are being contaminated and then water buckets are filled for cooking. Now, this seems like an obvious no-no, but a generation or two ago, there just was not the same population density, so the community’s health was not nearly as effected. In a culture where each woman is expected to have between 5 and 10 children, exponential population growth has caused all sorts of complex issues that have had negative effects on agricultural practices, land disputes and public health. Lack of access to clean water is a well-known and common cause of illness especially in children. The following comes from the UNICEF website: "Almost fifty per cent of the developing world’s population – 2.5 billion people – lack improved sanitation facilities, and over 884 million people still use unsafe drinking water sources. Inadequate access to safe water and sanitation services, coupled with poor hygiene practices, kills and sickens thousands of children every day, and leads to impoverishment and diminished opportunities for thousands more."

Providing access to latrines in Quebrada Pabón is just one step to solving this massive global issue.

(Nearby waterfall with a great swimming hole)

The solution

The community leaders in Quebrada Pabón are aware and concerned with this public health issue. They have contacted local government representatives and gotten no support up to this point. Almost a year ago now, Miguel, a dedicated leader in the community (see photo below) contacted me to start soliciting support for this project. His approach to this project very much embodied a spirit of collaboration and I was impressed! The project that we are proposing is to build 20 latrines in the community of Quebrada Pabón by next May. Our goal is to reach those who have never had a latrine and to inspire a cultural shift towards using latrines. We will educate the community on the benefits of latrines and the hazards of not using them properly.

I will be present for the construction of each of the latrines this projects seeks to build. Yes, I plan to become an expert at mixing concrete the old fashion way. There are several experienced volunteers in the area who have offered to provide guidance and assistance. The design of the concrete latrine floor includes handles so that when the latrine fills, the floor and seat can be lifted and used in a new location, hence, its benefits will be reaped for decades.

(Above: Meet Miguel, our latrine committee president and the sweetest man you'll ever meet)

The project in the context of sustainable development

The underlying question that we ask ourselves everyday as Peace Corps volunteers is “how can we make this project or activity sustainable?” Our goal is to promote development in a way that does not fuel the “give-me” mentality that feeds a feeling of poverty, a force more degrading than actual poverty. For that reason, Peace Corps provides its volunteers with no project funds and most of our work is educational and motivational in nature. However, this project seeks to provide basic infrastructural need that will improve the general health of the community and thus I am seeking your financial support. Good health is essential for getting on the first rung of the ladder out of poverty and without it all other development projects are hopeless.

Community contribution

The Peace Corps Partnership program recognizes the importance of community contribution in the context of project sustainability and requires that the beneficiary community support 25% of the project costs. Quebrada Pabón has committed to cover 45% of the costs for this project including: all of the labor costs, materials such as sand and gravel, all local transportation of materials (i.e. hauling 100 lb bags of cement on their backs or by horse for nearly an hour to arrive to the construction site). Each participant will be required to attend a series of educational seminars given by myself and other volunteers covering topics such as how to maintain cleaner water sources and how to avoid illnesses spread through water contamination. In addition to the hard labor and time contributed by the community, I wanted to ensure a sense of financial ownership, so I am asking every family to pay $5 towards the purchase of materials. As an added incentive to complete the project in a timely manner (before I leave next June), I am offering a $2 rebate to each family that successfully completes their latrine and is using it properly within the first month.

How your contribution will impact the project

You, the generous donor, will supply the funds to purchase materials that must come from outside of the community to make this project happen. These materials include mainly: cement, rebar, a seat mold, sheets of zinc for the roof and a few tools such as a cement trowel and a shovel. Peace Corps has strict reporting policies in place, so you can be rest assured that 100% of your tax-deductible donation will be managed properly and used only to purchase latrine materials and pay for the transportation of those materials.

I trust that this description has provided you with a more (or more than enough) detailed explanation of the project than I was allowed to post on the Peace Corps Partnership Grant website. I hope that you will please consider even a small contribution for this project. There is no amount too small! Your contribution is greatly appreciated and will leave a lasting effect in the Comarca Ngöbe Bugle!

Please feel free to contact me for any additional questions or clarifications. If you do choose to make a donation, please let me know so I can shower you with praise! Peace Corps Partnership website does not make any donor information available to me so I will not know who has donated unless you let me know. Thanks again for your support. Click here to be linked to the official page.

All the best,

Kat

(Photo above by Edward Perry, me with the girls)

It's undeniably fall in the Comarca

(Household chores: clipping weeds to make a broom and dehusking rice)



(Welcome to winter/rainy season in the Comarca)

While most of the people reading this are probably enjoying the red, yellow and orange leaves of fall, the Comarca couldn’t be any greener. When I think of fall I imagine fresh apple cider, crisp mornings and pumpkin pies. Fall in the Comarca is officially known as winter and its most notable feature is the insane amount of rainfall.

(Aji dulce, sweet peppers provide some color and joy to my bowls of fresh rice, also reminds me of fall leaves.. ok, that's a stretch!)

For several days now, we’ve just been sitting in the clouds. The sun hasn’t bothered to make even a brief appearance. I wonder if down below at the beach it is also raining or if the rain clouds are just stuck on Church Hill. Without the sun, the solar panels at the cooperative are useless and cell phones go dead. Too much rain seems to be making the phone networks loose coverage anyway. Although we are not officially in a cloud forest, it sure feels like it. They pass right through my bamboo walls, leaving heavy wet dew on everything. Even the toilet paper is just a little too damp for comfort and now must be kept in a zip lock bag. My clothes and sheets have long since been covered with mold and its no use to wash them because they’d never dry. So, the battle with nature continues and I seem to be losing. It must be fall in the Comarca!

If I sound miserable, I assure you that I am not. All of the rain and mud has kept me indoors and has provided an excellent excuse for deep introspection. But as soon as my propane stove broke I was out of town on the next car. Life without hot beverages is just not worth living.

(Coffee drying on screens under a plastic roof that we received from the President of Panama- more on the coffee progress another day)

The only similarity between fall in the States and fall here is perhaps that its harvest season! Most notably: corn, rice, cacao and coffee. Also, many people are enjoying tomatoes, cucumbers and squash (thanks to Mr. Eadie for the seed donations – see previous entry).

(I helped out with the rice harvest with the family of my "mama")

The other obvious sign of fall in the Comarca and all over Panama is the sound of school bands for miles around. There are not one but two Independence Day celebrations coming up (… although I think they should consider a third one from the US!). From my house I can hear the drums and xylophones from several surrounding communities, depending on which way the wind is blowing. They practice rain or flood, every single day. The Independence Day school band parades are very serious business here. There are competitions and cash prizes and lots of pride to be won. (Check out the xylophone video that I posted on Flickr - it was too big for this site)

(Farmers market at the school! So much is in season right now!)

The Ngöbes have recently made national news here. Angry with international companies’ self-serving interests in mining, hydroelectric and tourism (there is no real tourism going on here, so I don’t understand that one), they have organized a 230-mile long, hot march to Panama City to protest. They even have a website dedicated to this cause! For a typically stoic, passive people, this is quite remarkable and I commend them for being passionate and standing up for their territory. However, I do believe that good old fashion protesting is in most cases, a waste of resources, especially if you do not have a strong political voice. This undoubtedly small group of protesters was not from my community. It seems, however, that revolutionary Ngöbe spirit is in the air. My community recently decided that after nearly 2 years of putting up with the director of the school, a Latina who they say did not respect their culture; they ousted her from the position. The entire community protested by not sending their kids to school for 8 days. The school is a hub for several communities within about a 3-hour radius of Cerro Iglesias and about 1000 children in all attend. Not one of them went to school until finally, the government had to do something about it. They officially fired her and named a new director of the school. I was so shocked and slightly inspired by this collaborative community effort. The kids are now back in school and the band practice is in full force, rain or flood.

(Some of the various products in season at the school farmers market (coconut, green beans, chayote, yucca, tomato, peppers, oranges, rice, corn, bananas)

Girl stands next to the healthy cucumber plants (seeds provided Mr. Eadie of Davidson, NC))

(Bebé (just turned 2!) helps his family rake the coffee every few hours so that it dries before it molds)

(Ripe cacao pod ready for making chocolate!)