Saturday, May 10, 2014

Checking things off...

Agribusiness Seminars: COMPLETE

As part of my obligations as Agribusiness Coordinator and with the help of funding from people like you, I took on the task of organizing three regional agbiz seminars that all took place in the last few months.  Throughout the process I learned a lot, worked hard, and feel I pulled them off to the best of my abilities.

Biggest seminar we had in Bocas del Toro

Analyzing weekly expenditures
After picking my host-communities for each seminar in the provinces of Veraguas, Bocas del Toro, and Panama Oeste, the first obstacle I faced was scheduling.  Between Panamanian holidays, Peace Corps events, and the travels of my fellow volunteers, it was literally impossible to pick dates that worked for all parties involved.  All scheduled dates were changed between one to three times and still there were conflicts, some that we were only informed of when a seminar was less than a week away.

Smallest seminar in Veraguas
Checking my phone hill once a day to coordinate with other volunteers who also don’t have signal was challenging.  We attempted to confirm the number of attendees and facilitators, host-families for lodging, cooks and ingredients, transportation, etc.  But most of these things ended up changing last minute anyway.

My main frustration with these seminars was their generally low attendance.  At each seminar about 10 or more “confirmed” participants backed out either by not showing up or by telling their volunteer that they couldn’t make it.  In the U.S. this does not happen.  If an event has been on our calendar for weeks or months and we commit to going, we go (unless something really urgent comes up).  But that is not the case here.  Leaving home to take a quick trip goes against local culture.  Even though we tried to make it easy (all expenses-paid, accompanied by a known volunteer), we were still asking people to do something outside of their comfort zone.  While many admitted the idea sounded worthwhile and that they were interested in learning about what we had to offer, when the day actually came, many just couldn’t go through with it.  Disappointing, but in truth not all that surprising, and certainly understandable.

Very high facilitator to participant ration.  I think this helped the participants!
For those participants who did show up, they seemed to get a lot out of it and have a good time.  The people willing to leave their houses seem to be the ones most eager to learn and to share their experiences.

Working hard
Earning free calculators by answering quiz questions
Passing the coin down the line through clothes gets people laughing every time.  Gotta love ice-breakers.
We covered topics like farm planning, keeping inventories, working in groups, using a calendar, using a calculator (really hard for some!), keeping track of cash flow, setting personal budgets, creating a marketing plan, calculating cost of production (another tough one, especially without good records), adding value to products, customer service, market analysis, and an intro to legal topics like contracts, loans, and becoming incorporated.  Whew!  The two days were jam-packed and people loved the skits and games we relied on to liven things up.  We emphasized that we knew we were throwing a lot of information at them at once and that this is not easy stuff (learning to track inventory when you’ve never seen a spreadsheet before is not easy!).  We know it’s impossible for them to implement everything we went over immediately, but rather we hope they will do so little by little and ask their volunteers for help along the way.  At the end, many commented that they were glad they came, learned things they didn’t know before, and were happy they’d had the opportunity to meet new people from other communities.


Analyzing markets
Calculator practice
Learning the consequences of signing contracts without reading them.  Those participants owed us some sodas and some jumping jacks!
I could not have pulled off these seminars without the help of some amazing colleagues.  My hosting volunteers were all incredible.  They jumped through hoops to get their communities ready to host these events, opened up their homes to us facilitators, and spoiled us with some of the best cooking I’ve had in years (THANKS: Neil, Viole, Brennan, Sara, Paul).  One such host had come down with the flesh-eating parasite leshmaniasis, but even he introduced me to his community before leaving to get treatment, and he let us live in his house without him during the seminar.  Brennan, you are such a trooper!

Brennan's home, minus Brennan 
And a huge thank you to all of my co-facilitators (Soraya, Lauren N., Leanne, Mary, Abby, Zoe, Elena, and Lauren H.) who helped bring people to the seminars, present the material, and keep me sane.  I worked with both volunteers from my training class and from the newer group and all agreed that working with farmers to develop these basic business skills is extremely rewarding (despite the frustrations).  Two of my facilitator helpers will be taking over as the next Agribusiness Co-Coordinators for the coming year.  As hard as it is for me to admit I’m leaving soon and wrapping up my work, I am happy knowing I’m leaving this role to such intelligent, dedicated individuals.  Good luck Abby and Elena!

Abby and Zoe presenting in Bocas

Elena using volunteers to show how contracts tie people together 
Before completely retiring from the Agribusiness Coordinator gig, I have one more site visit planned for the end of May in Bocas.  Megan, the volunteer there had tried to send some participants to our Bocas seminar, but they’d all canceled on her last minute.  She really thinks her community would benefit from this material, so we are trying again  I have had decent luck with site visits in the past (in the Darien and the Comarca Ngobe-Bugle), so hopefully people in Megan’s community will be able to sacrifice a few hours to attend an event right in their village.  The downside to this approach is that I will have less time with them so we will have to cut out a lot of info and that they don’t get to hear about experiences of farmers from other places.  Nevertheless, we’ll have the chance to target our presentation for their specific interests and hey, it gives me an excuse to visit Bocas one last time :)

And just like that, events that have been on my calendar and items that have been on my to-do list for so long are rapidly getting checked off.  Who knew time could go by this fast?

Somehow I still don't have the hang of the awkward certificate hand-off formality

Summing up / Assignment Description

In January 2012 I received an assignment description from the Peace Corps for the Sustainable Agriculture Systems Program in Panama.  Doing some house-cleaning, I recently stumbled upon this document and was struck by how accurate it was in regard to how my service has gone.  No one can say I didn’t know what I was getting into!  Here are some excerpts that I find sum up my service particularly well …

It is hard work organizing people, planning, enduring physical labor in the sun, rain, and mud, but the rewards are great.

Consider yourself lucky; Panama is a country with great cultural, biological, and linguistic diversity all in an area the same size as the state of South Carolina.

You will work closely with agencies and community leaders to provide training and to promote greater use of sustainable practices that allow families to make better-informed decisions about their production systems and community projects.  Helping farmers realize what options exist to complement their traditional practices allows farmers to form solutions to their own problems.

In order to accomplish its goals, Peace Corps/Panama will ask you as a Sustainable Agriculture Systems Volunteer to perform some of the following work:
-         ---  Work with local farmers in activities such as clearing land with a machete, planting with a coa (planting stick), weeding, and harvesting in order to build working relationships and your understanding of traditional farming methods.
-         ---  Promote the establishment of rice and/or fish tanks to ensure that families have food and protein all year round and demonstrate the advantages and benefits of these techniques.
-         ---  Implement and promote the establishment or improvement of home and school gardens to improve nutrition
-          Help farmers analyze their market options evaluating quality and quantity of production required and the transportation cost of the different market options.
-          --- Train farmers in quality control methods and marketing techniques.
-          --- Identify, train, and encourage successful farmers, who will become promoters of the project techniques, within their communities in the future.
-         ---  Act as a liaison, facilitator, and promoter to help communities receive assistance, implement planning systems, and establish working relationships with appropriate agencies.

Sustainable Agriculture Systems projects are very demanding physically, and Volunteers will need to tolerate vigorous physical exertion in a hot-and-humid climate.

It is often said that being a Volunteer is a 24/7 job; but it is the toughest job you’ll ever love!

Assignment in the SAS program is physically challenging due to these extreme living and working conditions.

In the campo, Panama’s countryside, life moves at a much slower pace than in urban areas.  A rural Panamanian’s conception of time and work will likely differ from yours.  For example, meetings often begin late and plans can be arbitrarily put aside without reservation or prior notice.  A key part of the Volunteer’s successful adaption to Panama is having the capacity to understand that things will not always go as planned.  Patience is essential.  Remember that community members; time-frame is different than yours.  PCVs work in the community for two years and sometimes expect activities to go quickly, while community members are there for a lifetime and have other priorities.  It is important to try to place yourself in the shoes of your community partners in order to better understand their actions and motivations.  Panamanian farmers do work very hard.  In order to gain their respect and trust you will have to do the same while also demonstrating cross-cultural understanding.

You must be sure that you are willing to commit yourself to twenty-seven months of service in a foreign country, living in conformity with a culture that is completely different from your own.  Many Volunteers have difficulty adjusting to the slow pace of life, work, and lifestyle change.  You may have to explain the purpose and mission of Peace Corps and your role as a development worker many times, and to many different people.  You may feel a lack of understanding and technical support from your counterparts at times.  You may also be annoyed by frequent delays in most daily activities from cooking, to public transportation, to organizing a meeting.  You will also be frustrated by lack of privacy, and the local perception that you are a rich foreigner.  These obstacles to accomplishing goals can be very formidable.  Results will be hard to see at times.  But the underlying key to satisfying work as a Peace Corps Volunteer is the ability to establish successful interpersonal relations at all levels.  This will require patience, sensitivity, and a positive professional attitude.

And despite these challenges, most Volunteers agree that the rewards are very well worth the challenges.  While tangible results may be hard to see at first, with time, the impact you have had will show in many ways.  Small changes of attitude or working techniques in local partners will become apparent as you spend more time in your community.  You will find this to be a great source of satisfaction.  When large projects are slow in developing, smaller activities that succeed can provide you with a great sense of accomplishment and can even help facilitate larger goals.  Relationships formed with members of your community will become one of the most rewarding aspects of your work, and the impact you have on your neighbors and colleagues will be lasting.  You will most likely be the only American working in your community, and you need to prepare yourself for the inevitable scrutiny a foreigner receives.  However, because of the extra attention, the work you do and the relationships you make will long remain in the memory of your community.

By working in conjunction with community members and agency partners, you will be making a significant contribution to development in Panama.  Your ability to approach problems from a new perspective, use a variety of resources for information and ideas, take risks, and analyze and learn from your mistakes are all indispensable skills for dealing with the day-to-day challenges in your community.  Sharing these strategies with your co-workers will enable them to focus their development and tackle the long-term problems they face.

Being a part of the community is most important to your credibility and success.  Taking a long walk in the rain to see someone’s bean farm, attending the birthday party of a child whose parents you don’t know, and sitting through an 8 hour meeting that may not even pertain to your work will make all the difference to your community members.  We are here to gain the community’s respect and serve its needs pertaining to sustainable development.

But it is you, the PCV, who determines your experience no matter what country or project.  Patience, an open mind, a sense of humor, and a passion for rural community development work are keys to a successful adventure in Peace Corps.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.