Thank you, Scituate Rotary Club!

Yesterday, I spent a very pleasant evening at the Scituate Country Club discussing my Earthwatch Expedition, water issues in the Samburu District, and the challenges of development with members of the Scituate Rotary Club. This was the third time that I had been invited to join the Rotarians for Kenya-related events, but it was the first time that I took center stage. The Rotary Club is involved in several projects in Kenya, I believe; they are working with an orphanage there, and they have an interest in assisting with water projects as well. In May, they were visited by 3 members of the Lutheran Church of Kenya, who talked about the water crisis resulting from the on-going drought and the challenges of constructing boreholes, especially in the arid northern regions like Samburu. Last month, a couple who work in Kenya as missionaries helping street children return to their families and get an education visited a meeting to talk about their work there. Last night, it was my turn.

I spoke during dinner and dessert about Earthwatch, my experiences in Kenya, and what I had learned about the challenges that come with development and conservation projects. For example, I told the story of coming across a very nicely made and kindly donated borehole sitting next to a lovely pond; at the time, Sam had pointed out to us that it was a useless place for a borehole because it would merely drain the lake, all because someone thought that the water would be better if it were filtered through the surrounding sand and soil. Why is this a problem? It isn't just people that need to use the available water; wildlife need access to water as well, and they can't use a borehole. Boreholes are needed in areas where there isn't readily available surface water. Sustainable development projects need to be done with an toward maintaining a balance between people and nature, between tradition and modern-day knowledge, between a people's way of life and what someone else thinks would be "better" for them. During our expedition, my fellow volunteers and I were constantly coming up with ideas that we thought were brilliant solutions to the problems we saw each day, and our Kenyan friends gently pointed out the holes in each and every one. Sure, a bigger, sturdier, more permanent fence would certainly keep a lion or hyena out of a manyatta at night, but who wants to put the time, energy, and money into building one when your family could move on to a new location at any time?

After dinner, I spent some time sharing my pictures and souvenirs with anyone who was interested. I finally put together my photo album from the trip, so it was fun to show that off! I passed out slips of paper with my blog site, my email, and Earthwatch's website on them so that people could learn more. I also collected names and addresses from people interested in getting an Earthwatch catalog. I hope that some of them will be interested in participating in an Earthwatch expedition of their own. It is such an amazing way to learn about the world and the environment, and some firsthand research experience on the water project in Samburu could really tie in to the club's interests. It was just so great to be able to share my experiences with people who were so interested to learn more about a country that I came to love so much in such a short time, especially knowing that they are already helping there. I really enjoyed myself, and was very glad to be able to meet so many nice people as a result of my Kenya expedition.