Pre-Project Reflection Activities: Power and Privilege

Disclaimer:
The reflections presented on this blog are only the opinions of Matt Leslie.  I apologize for any inaccurate, delayed or incomplete information.  My education is in Microbiology not International Development and while I am to present well rounded and critical reflections, I apologize if I come across as narrow minded.

Power and Privilege 101

To learn and become aware of power and privilege, YCI provides its volunteers with a package of information.  This information helped to challenge some of my views and made me think very critically about my intentional/unintentional actions.

There were two things that really made me think.  The first was an article called "White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack", which I would strongly recommend that you read.  Sure it seems intimidating to read and if you don't have the time, then just read from page 5 onwards. 

The second thing was a scenario type question that helped to challenge some of my automatic assumptions.  I'd like to share the scenario with all of you readers:

Picture a couple on vacation somewhere in the Caribbeans.  The sun is shining and the water is crystal clear blue.  The couple is walking along the edge of the water, waves lapping at their feet.  They stop every once in a while to pick up shells and admire them.  They splash each other playfully in the water, and after a while they get out of the water and let the sun dry their bodies.  They head back to their hotel and get ready for dinner.  Just before heading to the restaurant, while they stand on their balcony overlooking the beach, he pops the question: will you marry me?


Were the people in your image while?  Were the people in your image young?  Were the people in your image a man and a woman?

My reflection question for this activity is:

How does working from an anti-oppression framework reinforce working from an asset based approach?

Working from an anti-oppression framework means actively working to shift power towards inclusiveness, equality, accessibility and social justice.  It means listening to all points of view.  It means creating a safe environment for conversations to be had and to respectfully challenge others opinions and views.  It means challenging the behaviour rather than the person. It also means ensuring that anti-oppression is embedded in everything that you do.  

When I worked as a Residence Assistant, I was taught different strategies for working from an anti-oppression framework.  As an RA, I met hundreds of different students, coming from all over the world.  It was part of my responsibility to make sure that all of the students within the building (or at the very least my section) got along well with one another.  This frequently included challenging behaviours such as homophobia, sexism or various other forms of prejudice.

By working from an anti-oppression framework, the volunteers and other project members will be respectful of each other allowing different opinions to be shared when making decisions or planning events.  It will also help us volunteers work with the youth at the community centre.  I'm sure that there are going to be many cultural differences, and know that I may have some questions.  Also by fostering a safe and open environment, the youth we are working with will hopefully feel comfortable to ask us questions and/or challenge our behaviours.  

I think that by working from an anti-oppression framework will compliment the asset based approached employed by YCI.  By being inclusive and equal, it will help us recognized the strengths of the community centre, other volunteers and the youth.

The 50/50 draw at Bishop Francis Allen School

Last week my mom revealed a wonderful surprise that she had been working on in secret over the last couple of weeks.  She organized and ran a 50/50 draw to help raise some money for me to put towards my fundraising! 

My Mom and I

My mom is a grade 8 teacher at Bishop Francis Allen elementary school, the same elementary school that I attended many many moons ago.

BFA

From grade 2 - grade 8 I attended BFA.  I remember my first day in grade 2, thinking how cool this new school was since my classroom was in the portapack (essentially just an addition to the school..but it had this really cool ramp).  I remember how big the halls and yard seemed.  I also remember growing into and out of the school, going to high school and coming back, everything seemed so much smaller!

What I received an excellent reminder of last week was how supportive and generous the teachers and staff at BFA were, and still are.  They teach by example, and I was truly touched by the amount of support I received from them.  

Below is a list of the teachers who took part in the 50/50 draw:
Hazel Beaton
Anne-Louise Basha
Victoria Bazely
Julie Ginn
Michelle Edwards
Gilles Godin
Tom Srsa
Janet Fleming
Michelle Morettin
Melissa Ricciuto
Maggie Reilly
Tina Grainger
Peter Noonan
Deb Egan
Jenn Geerts
Fran
Dagmar Huber
Krista Phillips
Luisa Guerra
Anna Ferreira
Bernadette Peterka

I recognized some of the names of some of my old librarians, french teachers, secretaries and teachers.  There were a lot of new names on the list too. 

Thank you thank you thank you to everyone who helped me raise a whole tonne of money!!

Fundraising Update #8 - FINAL UPDATE

Hello!!

I am EXTREMELY excited to announce  that tonight I have reached my fundraising goal!!!!!

 

I can't believe that I am already posting this update!  

My BIG special thanks for the last two days goes to:

• William and Joan Leslie
• Diane McEvoy
• Kim and Ken Robbins
• Ted and Jean Robbins
• Joe McBurney

So that's it, I'm done I'm finished, I have no more fundraising to do or to worry about! (However, I will still accept cash donations to go towards my flight and vaccines hahaha!)

Thank you thank you thank you everyone!  You've all helped me get one step closer to working in Africa!  You're all amazing!!

-Matt

Fundraising Update #7

Hola!

These last couple of weeks have been quite eventful!  Dog sitting, thesis proofing, reflection writing...I apologize that I have not given a fundraising update in a while!

 

I am currently sitting at 90.4% of my fundraising goal, and am only need $328!!  I am still incredibly shocked and touched at how generous my family, my friends and even some complete strangers have been!!

This week I was completely surprised by my Mom, who held a 50/50 raffle draw with her co-workers.  She was able to raise $242 (7%!!) for me, which was absolutely incredible!  She also managed to keep the entire thing top secret, which was even better!  Currently I do not have a list of supporters of her 50/50 draw, however, when I do I'll be posting my supporters online!

My BIG Thanks this week goes to:

• Kristen Moore (and Oakley)
• Ashley Taylor
• Amy Larson
• John (Jack) Hass
• Lorraine Dunne-Leslie (for the 50/50 draw!)
• Barb Post

 Thank you everyone who has supported me so far!  

If you would like to make a quick online donation to help me raise the last $328, then you can do so by following this link: http://yci.tigweb.org/ind/MattLeslie . 

-Matt Leslie

Pre-Project Reflection Activities: Gender

 Disclaimer:

The reflections presented on this blog are only the opinions of Matt Leslie.  I apologize for any inaccurate, delayed or incomplete information. My education is in Microbiology not International Development and while i aim to present well rounded and critical reflections, I apologize if I come across as narrow minded.

Gender 101

Gender is a set of behavioural options that are given to men and women by the society in which they live.  These options and social norms describe how men and women should behave.  Gender describes social differences between men and women that are learned: Femininity and Masculinity.

For this reflection activity I had to answer the following three questions:

What are your assumptions around gender roles in the country you are travelling to?

 

Without having done any research and thinking very stereotypically here is a list of the following assumptions and preconceived notions I have of the gender roles of Tanzania:

• Men hold more prominent roles in society and are seen as the bread winners.  Men will be viewed as more skilled than women, and it will be easier for them to find work.
• Women will be in charge of their families and 'home life'.  Cooking, cleaning and buying/growing/preparing the food for meals.
• Men will be more of the decision makers in communities, while women will have to struggle to have their voices heard and their opinions taken seriously.
• Women will be paid less for doing the same job as men.
• I also think that there will be some stigma attached to men and women who break social norms and perform tasks labelled as 'masculine' or 'feminine'.

How will you challenge those assumptions before your departure to project and while you’re in the field?


The assumptions I hold are based on preconceived notions and stereotypes.  To challenge these assumptions before project I will be doing research into Arusha Tanzania to try to get a better idea of what gender roles exist.  While on project, it is part of my goal not to be offensive and to respect customs and the culture.  I will use the following tactics to respectively challenge these assumptions:

• Leave all assumptions behind me and go on project with an open mind.
• Understand that things are going to be differences in gender roles (different from those here in Canada) and that I may not agree or be comfortable with some of them.
• I will participate in activities and perform duties that may be viewed as 'feminine'.
• If I get hassled or laughed at for doing a 'feminine' duty/activity I will  use my sense of humour to diffuse the situation and start a conversation asking why what I am doing is 'feminine' and why I should not be doing it.
• I will not expect anyone (regardless of gender) to do anything for me that I cannot do myself (washing, cleaning, carrying, cooking).
• I will treat everyone I meet with respect and get to know them without letting gender roles get in the way.

Research gender issues in your project location.  What did you learn about gender issues that you did not anticipate?


I think that the resources I found did provide me with some information that I did not already know, however a few of the issues I had already anticipated.  Although I had anticipated them, I think that the research made these issues really hit home.  While not really surprised by some of the things I'd read, I feel very fortunate for living in Canada and feel frustrated by how unfair some of these issues really are.

I learned that adult men are seen as the breadwinners of a family, and try to financially support their girlfriend/wife.  Getting married is a rite of passage from adolescence to adulthood, and until a man has sufficient funds he is unable to marry, which creates some frustrations.  I found it interesting, and incredibly sad, that since men are viewed as the breadwinners, male children are given preferential treatment over females as it is seen as a future investment.

Female children may have an opportunity to go to school, however they are also sometimes responsible for tending to the sick and younger siblings, which frequently cause them to miss school.

I learned that while men are expected to act as the heads of the household, many are unable to fulfill this duty due to poverty and unemployment and that sexual promiscuity becomes a means for demonstrating ones masculinity.  While women on the other hand have fewer opportunities to find income and have little decision making power, often turn to transactional sex. 

While these gender issues are occurring, there are organizations (Tanzania Gender Networking Programme and FemAct) started and run by Tanzanians which are helping to advocate for social change  towards gender equality.  The Tanzanian government has also made commitments to include women in decision making processes, increasing the number of women in leadership roles and improving/protecting women's rights.

It was difficult to find  specific gender issues for Arusha Tanzania.  The following websites were helpful: 
 http://www.tanzania.go.tz/gender.html
http://www.kit.nl/exchange/html/2002-4_changing_gender_roles_i.asp

I am very interested in reading this blog post-project, and seeing how and if my views and assumptions are changed.

To Tanzania and Back (via: USA, Ethiopia and Italy)

Jambo!
Just a quick update: I have purchased my plane ticket!!

After dropping quite a bit of money on this ticket, my trip to Tanzania has become even more real!

My flight itinerary is kind of ridiculous, but I manged to save about $500 by choosing this option.

On the way there Jessie and I will fly:
Toronto, Ontario - Washington, DC- Addis Ababa, Ethiopia - Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. 

Coming home things get a little more complicated with us flying from
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania - Addis Ababa, Ethiopia - Roma, Italy - Washington, DC - Toronto, Ontario

On our way there, we'll have a full day to experience Dar es Salaam, which we're both very excited about!  Coming home, we'll have about 12 hours of time to kill in Addis Ababa, which is apparently a beautiful city.  We'll have to do some research though to see if we're allowed outside of the airport without a visa!  Fingers crossed!!

Pre-Project Reflection Activities: Youth Development

Disclaimer:

The reflections presented on this blog are only the opinions of Matt Leslie.  I apologize for any inaccurate, delayed or incomplete information.  My education is in Microbiology, not International Development and while I aim to present well rounded and critical reflections, I apologize if I come across as narrow minded.

Youth Development 101

Today there are over 1.5 billion people between the ages of 10-24 (youth), and approximately 70% of them live in developing countries.  Everyday youth face issue such as: poverty, education, employment, health, drug abuse, gender equity, HIV/AIDS, active citizenship and information/communication technology.

It is important to engage youth in developing countries fora  number of reasons.  They are able to disseminate information in the correct cultural context, they can establish rapport with other youth more easily than adults and they may be willing to use creative approaches to problem solving.  

YCI's Youth Development program focuses on the following five areas:

• Leadership Development
• Environment
• Health
• Economic Development
• Education

"In community decision-making processes, youth are often marginalized and not
invited to participate in collective problem solving. This isolation can create social
contexts where negative stereotypes about youth may be perpetuated, and there
may be few opportunities for youth and adults to work in partnership." 

 My reflection exercise is asking me to develop a list of strategies for actively engaging youth in implementating a community development project.

Recruit Youth for a Community Development Project

There are a tonne of youth out there with great ideas. Youth who  know the day to day challenges faced by themselves and other members of their community.  I'm sure that if given the opportunity a lot of them would be willing to share their input to help facilitate a change.

Facilitate and promote social clubs and volunteerism

By encouraging youth to come together to participate in a common activity you promote the development of community. As club members become friends they might recognize and discuss issues that are occuring in their communities and may develop strategies for dealing with these issues.  Clubs for youth also allow people of the same ages, and of similar backgrounds to come together, which may create a more open and comfortable environment for the youth to work in.

Provide Funds to Youth to Implement their own Development Projects

While youth may be capable of developing and implementing community development projects, they may lack the funds needed to do so.  By creating a system, providing well thought out community development projects with funds to get their projects started, youth would be encouraged to be active community members.  By seeing the change they helped to faciliate, it may also encourage other youth to take part in the development projects.

Mentorship programs 

A program which brought youth and adults together would have benefits for all parties involved.  The youth may learn how 'the system' works while adults may hear fresh ideas and input.  This would allow for a transfer of knowledge between two different generations.  If the mentorship program was 1 adult:1 youth, a bond might form which would help to reduce the negative stereotypes held by both parties.

Education Rebates/Class Credit

A lot of youth have a lot going on, education or parttime/full time jobs and volunteering may be the last thing on their minds.  By enticing them with class credit or with a rebate on the cost of school, they may be more likely to participate in community development programs.  This would allow them to gain hands on experience, and allow them to spend less on their education.

Pre-Project Reflection Activities: International Development

One of the requirements for participants in YCI projects is that we do some research into certain topics that will help prepare us.  There are a few modules provided by YCI which help to introduce us to some core development issues and tools for effective international service.

Basically YCI is giving us some homework, so that we don't get to our project placements and feel completely overwhelmed and out of place.  For each module, we are required to write a one page response.  I thought that I would use my blog to share what I've learned and my own reflections with all my readers.

Disclaimer:

The reflections presented on this blog are only the opinions of Matt Leslie.  I apologize for any inaccurate, delayed or incomplete information.  My education is in Microbiology, not International Development and while I aim to present well rounded and critical reflections, I apologize if I come across as narrow minded.

International Development 101

International development is a concept that encompasses: foreign aid, governance, healthcase, education, poverty reduction, gender equality, disaster preparedness, infrastructure, economics, human rights and environment.  The goal of international development is to foster a greater quality of life for humans.


Over the years, many organizations have been founded which focus on specific goals of international development such as: OXFAM, The Red Cross, Medecins San Frontiers, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Global Fund and Save the Children (to name a few).  As a result of the number of organizations committed to these goals, there is competition for donor funds.

In September 2000, the 8 Millennium Development Goals were created with a targeted completion date of 2015.

Now most development programs fall within three broad categories:

1. Charity Model Approach
• Immediate needs with short term outcomes
2. Rights Based Approach
•  Promoting and protecting human rights
3. Strengths/Assets Based Approach
•  Appreciates individual and community talents, skills and assets

YCI uses the Strengths/Assets Based Approach, focusing on Education, Leadership Development, Environment, Health and Economic Development.  YCI focuses on these sectors and uses the following approaches: Youth Development, Volunteerism, Partnership, Equity and Advocacy.

After reading about the history of International Development as well as reading about YCI's own approach, I am feeling more and more confident in the volunteer project that I am going to be a part of.

The Umoja Centre has been active for at least the last two years, and appears to be running a program that is providing positive results.  The founders of the Umoja Centre recognized that many Tanzanian youth have a gap in their education which is reducing their chances at fulfilling their dreams.  

By partnering with the Umoja Centre, YCI is helping an established organization increase the impact that they are already having.  The Umoja Centre provides Tanzanian youth with the resources and education they need to make a positive change in their own lives.  If the Umoja Centre suddenly disappeared, those youth who have received some training/education would still be capable of building off of the assets they already possess and hopefully would be able to find jobs and/or fulfill their dreams.  The other volunteers and I will be helping to facilitate change, however we will not be the cause of the change.    

YCI’s approach to program design, monitoring and evaluation is one that lets programs grow and change to fit the needs to the community.  Emphasis can be placed on areas that are very successful, and new strategies can be devised for areas that are less successful.  The monitoring and evaluation also allow for more continuity among different cohorts of volunteers.  Each time volunteers work with the Umoja Centre, they will not be starting from square one, they will be building on what has already been done.

Almost Famous

Hi friends!

Check it out! I'm practically famous on another blog!!

http://ycicanada.wordpress.com/2011/04/06/preparing-for-tanzania-matt-leslie/

Nice to see that people are enjoying my writings! 

Back to thesis editing...I'll write a more substantial post later this week. 

-Matt

Matt Leslie: Dog Whisperer

For the last week I dog sat for a friend.  Oakley, a 7 month old Yellow Lab, is very excitable and can be a tad rambunctious at times.  He is incredibly goofy and mostly enjoys plowing his face through the snow to try to escape his collar.

To show just what I'll do to raise money, I thought I'd document my experience with Oakley by taking a picture of him everyday.

Day 1

Oaks was giving us some lip bright and early, he wanted a walk but did not want a collar.

Day 2

Oakley kept me company while I made corrections to my thesis.

 Day 3

Oakley being charming and rather suave with a top hat.  Moments later he devoured his squeaky toy.

Day 4

This rope keeps him busy for quite some time.  One of the only toys he didn't devour.

Day 5

Oakley ate that rawhide like it was his job!

Day 6

He looks like he's biting, but he's just really enjoying a belly rub.

Day 7

Oakley hated that gentle leader so much, he tried to hide from me in the bathtub.

Day 8

A nice glamour shot to end off the week. 

Fundraising Update #6

Hello Everyone!

Just wanted to post a quick fundraising update! 

It has only been 6 weeks since I have started fundraising, and those weeks have FLOWN by!  In that short amount of time, I have received numerous generous donations from family and friends, to which I am incredibly grateful!!

As of right now, I have raised $2 615!! That means that I only have $785 left to go!  That is absolutely incredible!  

This week my big special thanks goes to the following:

•  All participants of the 50/50 draw 
• Anika Bartholomew
• Sabrina Maraj
• Jennifer Barrow
• Laura Giovinazzo
• Filomena Ng
• Audrey and Andy Leslie
• Kevin Todd
• Lina Yaeger (A two time donator!)

 If you'd like to make a donation, it can be done so very easily by following this link: http://yci.tigweb.org/ind/MattLeslie

Thanks again everyone for your awesome support this week!!  You're all amazing!

-Matt