Deborah Harward (UK) Significant Change Story

I applied for Global Xchange at a time when I was unsure what I wanted out of life, especially my career. I felt I was lacking purpose or direction-my limited knowledge of global issues made me vaguely aware I’d like to do something to help others but I didn’t know where to start!

Thanks to all the wonderful people I’ve met on GX, I’ve learned so much from a personal and a global perspective! The biggest learning for me is to be able to differentiate between culture, tradition, religion, faith and spirituality an area I had very little knowledge of before. I’m developing an understanding of how these issues affect the social cohesion of communities and relate to wider issues of conflict around the world, and it has motivated me to want to work for inter-faith understanding and peace.

On a personal level being able to better understand what people mean by faith has helped me to explore my own beliefs and begin to feel more spiritual awareness. I’m also much more aware of how culture affects the interpretation of these things in society and so I’m able to see the influences that I’ve grown up with and realise I have a choice about the way I want to live.

I feel more centred and confident as a person now, and definitely have more determination and direction for my life. I am more aware of how I can make a positive contribution to my community in terms of my career but also as an individual. I’m motivated to be informed about the issues affecting my country and the world in order to be able to raise awareness and participate in how they are dealt with.

I now feel like there’s so much to learn and so many interesting things to be a part of, I’m really happy to have rediscovered the sense of enthusiasm and ambition which I had lost! I’m also eternally glad for the wonderful people I’ve spent time with over these four months, my new friends and family from countries I’m going to admit I couldn’t have located on a map before this started. I feel more connected to the world now and part of a wider family of people who mean so much to me and I’ll never forget. Thank you to all who have made this special, I wish you all the very best for the future and look forward to how our lives will continue to be connected!

------

Now we've been back two weeks, and I'm really enjoying telling all my family and friends what we did on the programme. I'm finding out about lots of organisations working for interaction between people of different faiths, initiatives to help young people develop their skills of reasoning, self confidence and self awareness, and projects to promote global awareness... I'm so excited to find that there is so much going on, its easy to keep up the level of enthusiasm! I'm making contact with different people, and volunteering to get training and experience within these new areas of work - its all going well so far. Hope the rest of the team are having the same good luck : ) miss you all!

The Next Step...

Hey Everyone!

So this is me calling in from LEEDS BABY! I've been at uni for just under a week and I can safely say that it's awesome. My flatmates are James, Julian, Amy and Lisa, and they're all really good fun and lovely people. It's nice to be living with people my age - it was weird living with just my parents after 4 months of living with the team! I'm living in halls called Montague Burton which is really close to uni and the city centre...if I have a lecture at 10am I only have to leave at 9.50am! So I'm really happy with where I am. Leeds is an awesome city too, comparable to Glasgow (Yes, I went there...). I officially start uni, like lectures and stuff, as from Monday...wish me luck! Met a few people from on my course and they seem to be pretty cool.

I talk constantly about Kenya and GX and I think people are getting sick about it already! I have all my pictures as my screensaver on my computer and I have a little reminisce everytime I see them. It seems like a lifetime away though, it's crazy.

Missing everyone a lot. I'd like to echo Kiki in saying thankyou for being such amazing teammates and pleaseee endeavour to keep in touch - I know I've been a bit crap the last week or so cos I've been mega mega busy, but I'll try harder! Also haven't put my significant change story up cos Peppy only sent half of mine...don't worry, it'll be up ASAP when I have it! =]

Massive love

Sabina xxxxxxxxx

Thankyou /Assan ta sana Team 85 !

It is the support , love and understanding of my all friends that made my journey very special in its own way.I just want to say Super Thank you to Debz,Suz,Sabz,Zakee,Alex,Najeeba,Maria,Salma,Rabail,Sarmad and Raheel for being such a nice and loving friend through out the programme. Thank you for giving me shoulder when i needed in tough days and thank you for always there to listen to me and for celebrating my joys. I ll never forget these 5 and half months.I wish you all the best for your future. May you all have all the sparkles of your life.Love you all.Miss you.

Best wishes Kiki

Significant change story

Kiran Anwar- Significant Change Story

“Is this Osama Bin Laden’s home?” one of the children asked me when I was showing different styles of houses in Pakistan. I was mute for a while; I was not sure what to reply. Then I, with a smile on my face, replied politely that it’s not a house of Osama Bin Laden.
The realities are far more away from what media portrays. I couldn’t believe that a child from Glasgow could ever asked me this kind of question. When he asked me such a question there was one thing on my mind that I have to challenge his myth and I did it and I’m very happy about it.
Before joining the GX I always thought that “non-muslims” cannot be your good friends. But through GX I have made new friends who are very supportive, friendly and empathetic. I have grown very close to them. I share all my happy and sad moments with them. I am going to miss them a lot. But me and my friends from the UK have planned to visit each other’s homes in the future and will keep our friendship long lasting.
I thought people in Glasgow and Kenya will stigmatise us as being terrorists, I was tense about it before coming to Glasgow and Kenya. But to my astonishment the people turned out to be very helpful and friendly. I remember one day when a man on a bus started chatting with me. He was so glad to meet me and when he learnt that I am from Pakistan he sympathised with the current situation Pakistan is facing.
I took drawing classes at Nusra Technical Institute in Kenya. The drawings of children were amazing. One of the girls made textile designs but she was too shy to paint on the wall with me, she thought her drawing was not good. I couldn’t see any fault in it. I wanted to make her confident and motivated her to try drawing, I used to encourage her. She was reluctant to paint on the wall but now one can see a beautiful skirt painted on a wall of the clothing department by her. I am proud of her.
I have learned a lot from GX, more than I expected. I enjoyed the whole GX programme as being a volunteer. As the programme is coming to its end but for me it’s a beginning of a change within myself. I realised that my life was confined to myself and to my country alone. My thinking approach is broader now. I can elaborate it with an example like before GX I was unaware of global issues, if there was any issue I thought that “its an issue of X city in Pakistan” but now I compare with other countries as well. I consider myself to be globally aware. I want to learn more and more about different cultures, norms, traditions, issues, languages and histories of different countries. I am thankful to British Council and VSO for providing me this opportunity and I will continue to work voluntarily as I go back to Pakistan.

Enjoy Life Not Drugs!

One of our Community Action Days was to march against drug abuse - we walked through lots of villages to mobilise the community, with banners and puppets, singing and dancing all the way!

When we reached the venue there were performances throughout the day by the different volunteer groups - it was a great event, 1200 people were reached with the anti drug abuse messages, 33 people donated blood and 121 used the Voluntary Counselling and Testing services for HIV.

The photographic evidence of us singing an anti drugs song in Swahili... capturing on camera the reaction to our pronounciation!

Lets meet at MEDA

Najeeba and I worked for the two months at MEDA - Malindi Education Development Association - http://www.medakenya.org/ - who run lots of different programmes to promote, support and encourage education for children, youth and adults. The office always has different people coming in, meeting, working on different things; early childhood development, community outreaches, peer education, youth groups… never a dull moment! They were also the implementing partner for VSO in Malindi, so this was the teams main base and meeting point… the new Central Station! ; )

MEDA have a network youth volunteers who work for free to educate their community, raising awareness of issues affecting youth like HIV/AIDS and drug abuse, helping people access services, supporting and encouraging responsible decisions and behaviour. They have 300 peer educators, and over 100 who work as ‘Ambassadors of Change’ who have a talent like music, acting, or acrobatics and use that to mobilise the community at outreaches, where they then give information and educational performances.

One of our main roles at MEDA was going with Anisa to different girls schools and groups, and sharing experiences of how culture affects women in our countries, which provoked some interesting discussions comparing the equality in education and employment opportunities in UK, Pakistan and Kenya, and debating whether women can do anything a man can do, including be president!

We had so much fun with the girls, who were also keen to ask us questions about ‘girly’ subjects and dilemmas we can all relate to - appearance, self confidence, healthy diets and relationships! On request we also helped with some revision tips, although I don’t think they needed them - I was so impressed by how focussed and determined the girls are in their studies, and how confident and strong they are in their visions for their future! We also did peer counselling, taught life skills classes, and started work on a girls’ magazine, and I’d like to finish with a brilliant piece one of the girls wrote for the magazine;

Fail Forward Fast
We learn by making mistakes
So if we want to learn at a faster pace
The key is that you must learn from mistakes you make so you don’t repeat them.
Although we all make mistakes fear of failure doesn’t have to cripple you. Feel the fear and do it anyway. Have fearless life!

By Jamila Mwang

My new extended family

My and Rabail's host home was with Saumu, a wonderful, fun, strong and independent woman who I loved getting to know and really admired! She's a nurse at the local health centre, and as well as working full time and overtime to support her family, she volunteers for MEDA, sells beauty products as a sideline, is a great friend (to it seems everyone in Malindi), cooks amazing pakora, bajia, pili pili, and makes delicious fruit juice! : ) And I thought my life was hectic... yet somehow none of this makes her hurried or stressed, which I find incredible - and she always found time to talk to me (although sometimes Swahili time' helped out there, the way its acceptable and even expected that people are late for things a LOT!)

She has two beautiful kids, my sister Mulhat and little brother, Boss - aka Abdul Aziz, but called Boss becuase he's the man of the house! I loved having a brother and sister, eating dinner all together around the big shared plate, and playing lots of noughts and crosses, cards, hangman, and my all time favourite, pictionary! They saved me from what would otherwise have been long dark evenings with a tv boasting dodgier soaps even than in the UK, if you can believe it! (Sabina can give you the detailed account of who was dating who's sister and mother at the same time, I'm outing her as the soap addict!)

I will never forget Mulhat's incredulous expression every time I did something 'weird' - which was often! From eating raw tomatoes, to my choice of socks, to drawing doodles, nothing I did went unquestioned and I loved that about her! And Boss with his cheeky smile and babbled stories when he forgot to be shy... and most of all, the massive hugs I always received as soon as I got in the door! Saumu has assured me the house is too quiet now we've left, and the feeling is mutual, I miss them all heaps! So thank you so much to my little family, I had a wonderful time with you and please keep your promises to stay in touch!

4 Days 4 Activities In Muzaffargarh Community,Pakistan!

Hi, After coming back to Pakistan, The GX team 85 Pakistani Volunteers has organized four Consecutive activies on daily basis. The High temperature is a big challenge for them but We all remained steadfast and persevere. Instead of having low energy levels in such a hot weather we ultimately managed to organize our activities and they went well. Now today is our last day in Muzaffargarh Community. The activities we have organized 4 activities in the last 4 days are:
1. SIGN IN Petitions for High Schools In the Vilages,
2.Walk for the Promotion of Volunteerism.
3. Drawing class and Wall Painting in school and session with Parents of Children regarding Health and Hygiene (In theSunakki School where children even don't have enough books and copies),
4. A session on Poverty ,Inequalty and people's Responsibilities in Host Homes Villages.

Tomorrow we will travel to Multan which is about 35kms from Muzaffargarh...there we,ll have one free day for sight seeing and then on tuesdaywe will have Debrief and on wednesday 16th Sept,2009 is our Final Farewell. On Thursday we,ll move to our cities. Our Journey is going to end But i would like to say that Its not the ending but Beginning of Global Active Citizens! WE will miss our UK as well as Pakistani Counterparts and team members a lot and the moments we had together.
Thank You Team 85 You all are Great!

Smile you're in Kenya

As the days in our final phase are drawing to an end time is again slipping swiflty away, I have loved every minute living in Malindi and in a land of hakuna matata adn the friendliest of people warmed by the shimmering sun how could you not. My host family have welcomed Kiki and I into their home unreservedly showering us with love and support. Our host mum Priscilla has been nothing but patient with me as I pestered her each and everynight for the recipes of such tasty tropical delights; choclate has long been replaced by cubes of heaven in the form of vichete. We have provided our host siblings with some right laughs as I tried to learn not only kiswahili but giriama too, hinde!In to this cross cultural experience I have undertaken fasting for Ramazan, and yes this does include no water. No easy challenge in such sweltering temperatures and with a four o'clock alarm buzz but the rewards of Iftar are certainly deliciuous. Salma and I have loved our time at the health centre. We started our day early in the morning awaiting the onslaught of matatu conductors to hurl Watamu Watamu gede in our sleeping faces, before we hopped into a van to hurtle down rainbow flowered roads; sending cyclists wobbling as we bopped and bounced to banging beats. We were even privilaged enough to once board one with a flat screen tv. At the health centre we worked alongside such inspirational people who were deveoted to the betterment of their community. We undertook a plethora of tasks from taking blood pressure, sitting in on councelling sessions, encouraging others to test for HIV and encourage those midwives to continue doing the fantastic voluntary work that the community need compelled them to undertake initially. We ventured to distant villages for outreaches where we witnessed the shocking reality of a developing country and the health implications triggered by something as small as not having a pair of shoes. Again our fellow volunteers and workers at the health centre provided only the best of support especially in unexplored territory. They took us out to lunch to ensure we dined on only the finest African cuisine (and even provided mchicha seeds so I can continue to feast so back in the mother land), climbed coconut trees so that we drank only the sweetest madafu juice and took us on mini adventures allowing us to see the dazzling beauty of the marine park without paying muzungu prices. It has been the most incredible experience so a huge THANK YOU to all those who made it possible and made the experience what it is!!