Mangoes, Bees and Dutch Roses

Entebbe Botanical Gardens sits on the northern shores of Lake Victoria. It has 40 hectares of manicured lawns peppered with colossal termite mounds, flora indigenous to Uganda as well as plant species from all over the world such as the Mediterranean Cypress, Bermuda Cedar, Loquat (native to China) and the Oil Palm (this tree produces the high-in-cholesterol, thick red cooking oil ubiquitous in East and West Africa). The Gardens tell the story of colonialism as well as Uganda’s engagement with the international community. Some of the trees are themselves living histories—well over three hundred years old. One of the trees had buttress roots that are waist-high.

Our tour guide was a part of Green Youth Adventures, a Ugandan group promoting environmental conservation and the restoration of traditional agricultural and horticultural knowledge and practices. Current project objectives are to visit schools throughout the southern region to teach students about the utility of indigenous trees and plants. The hope is to instill environmental awareness in youth who will, ideally, encourage environmentally conscious practices in the home such as persuading parents to plant higher utility plants in their compounds (i.e.: vegetables and fruit bearing trees) rather than flora for  simply aesthetic value.

Entry into the global capitalist economy is a double-edged sword, but it seems to come at a particularly high price for the peoples and environments of developing countries. Globalization invites stiffer competition, privatization of industries, more mechanized production, “development,” foreign investment and it is often characterized by dramatic shifts in the agricultural sectors. In Uganda land is being bought up by foreign investors who enjoy more favorable trade and development agreements with the governments than local Ugandans who struggle with land acquisition and the establishment of economically-sustaining agriculture. Consequently, the prices of produce have more than doubled.

Using mangoes as an example, our tour guide claimed that as a school child mangoes grew in abundance and neighbors would allow children to take as many mangoes from their garden as they could carry. Today they are scare and it is beyond most Ugandans economical means to purchase enough mangoes for a family breakfast.

As we continued our walking tour, the path led us to a clearing overlooking Lake Victoria. Across the lake our guide pointed to a large grey building. “You see that building over there?” he said. “That is a Dutch flower farm that grows roses.” Uganda is a gold-mine for those in the cut-flower business and Holland has maintained its historical monopoly of the industry. The rose farm is having a detrimental effect on the local environment and Botanical Gardens. The roses are drawing all of the bees—the vital pollinators of indigenous flora—to the other side of the lake and, true of many flower farms across Uganda,  they are removing  a key step in the plant reproduction cycle, ergo adversely affecting the regeneration of indigenous plants, fruits and vegetables and their market prices. No bees, no trees: less species diversification and less food to go around.

It was heartening to learn about local initiatives underway aimed at addressing these concerns.

A Second Home

The airbus A330 was designed and built to compete with the Boeing 747. With capacity to hold up to 335 passengers, and the capability to handle 150,000 pounds of weight, it has become a popular choice among major airlines. A two engine plane, the Airbus has 311 kN of thrust, which means it takes approximately seven hours to fly from Brussels, Belgium to Entebbe, Uganda via a brief layover in Kigali, Rwanda.

When I took this plane ride with eleven other GSSAP students, I had had no sleep in the past twenty-four hours. However, this was a leg of the journey that was very important to me. For me, it was my first time outside of the United States. Stepping on the plane in Brussels I knew the journey ahead would shape my life. I was going to change continents, I was going to fly over the world’s newest democracy, I was going to land in a historic site of conflict, and finally I was going to enter into my home for the next six weeks—Uganda.

For many of us in the GSSAP program, our day began in the early hours of July 5 2012—for me it was 5:30am Eastern. By 2:25pm, we were in the plane, on the runway, already with a delay. At 2:57 the wheels were up and we officially began our journey. Landing in Washing D.C. went smoothly. However, getting our bags off of the plane did not—the bay door was jammed. Our next flight would be taking off at 5:30pm and our nerves intensified when mine, William, Josh’s bags were being held by the airport workers. They had not been tagged in Knoxville and due to “security reasons” they were not allowed to be handed out. We would have to go to the main terminal. We would have to wait. We were most certainly going to miss our international flight. With the help of both Dr. Hepners, the workers—out of pure kindness—allowed us our bags and we excitedly continued our journey.

We chased the sunrise across the Atlantic and landed in Brussels at 1:35am Eastern.

We landed in Rwanda at 1:30 pm Eastern and finally arrived in Entebbe, Uganda around 3pm Eastern, 10pm local time. Well over 24 hours of constant movement.

Stepping out into Entebbe was about the most disorienting thing I have ever done.

Between the lack of sleep, jet lag, and the language barrier, I didn’t think I could properly communicate where I was going or orient myself to get there. I began to think things were completely different in Uganda than back home. I wasn’t looking around, I wasn’t talking to people; I was simply staying as close as possible to this person I almost certainly couldn’t communicate with and whom I found myself prejudicing with contempt.

On the way to our hotel (for all I hoped) I relaxed, I saw our driver as a person not too different from myself, and I saw Uganda not as I had imagined it to be, but as it is—a second home. 

It’s All About Perspective

Today in the market I met a twenty-four-year-old guy named Morghan.  He works six days a week.  Each day he must walk twenty minutes from his village to get to the market where he rents a shop.  The shop sells second-hand jeans that have been shipped up from Kampala, the country's capital.  After stopping by Morghan’s shop to see if I could find any good deals on clothing, I struck up a conversation with him.  We eventually began to talk about finances.  I will give the readers a run-down of our conversation.

On the topic of finances, Morghan told me that it cost 10,000 Ugandan shillings per month to rent his shop.  This day in particular he made 130 shillings.  Morghan said some days he can earn more money, sometimes close to several thousand shillings but this is extremely rare.  His average monthly income from just the shop is around 50,000 shillings.  Now let’s do some math.  The exchange rate is around 2,500 shillings to $1 USD.  This means that his shop rent is $5 per month and he earns around $20 per month.  That should give you some perspective on the purchasing power parity when you consider that his entire month’s rent is the equivalent of a Burger King Whopper (fries and drink not included).  I find this incredibly interesting.  It is interesting not from a negative view that Ugandans are impoverished, but from a negative view that Americans are rich.  Generally, we (myself included) don’t have a perspective on the reality of life, and because of this, we lack a true sense of value for the things we do have, which are more than likely luxuries to begin with.  Everything in Uganda has value.  Nothing is taken for granted, and I love it.  I want to immerse myself to see and truly live out this reality.

Morghan and I continued to talk, but the rest of the conversation is for another blog.  I plan on continuing to follow-up with Morghan so we can become better friends.  Remember it’s all about perspective.  You never know how you will affect someone or how they will affect you.  Please continue to follow our blog as we tell you about our adventures and our new perspectives.

Mizizi Ensemble Kampala

Between power outages, poor connection, internet sticks and being an utter dunce when it comes to technology I have finally figured out how to upload a video! Please note that only the first video that plays is  from our program.

Day 3 Mizizi Ensemble Kampala

We attended the Mizizi Ensemble directed by Sam Okello who works to engage youth in traditional Ugandan music and dance, some of the most powerful avenues of cultural expression, healing and celebration. For hours we watched as they demonstrated different instruments such as the Adungu (bow harp) and the xylophone,  explained the meanings and histories behind each dance and movement and their respective regional birthplaces. The energy was contagious and we all tried our hand at some Ugandan traditional dance moves. Fellow student Candice Patton demonstrated impressive aptitude for traditional dance and I invite anyone who has documentation of this to share!

Gulu Redux or Uganda Unique?

This time last year, in anticipation of GSSAP 2011's inaugural journey to northern Uganda, I felt transported to the summer of 1995. I was a rising senior at Barnard College when I embarked on my own transformative journey to the brand-new African country of Eritrea. As my first 2011 post captures, I was suddenly standing back in my old shoes as I imagined what it felt like to be in my students'. I recalled distinctly my excitement and anxiety about the territory ahead. I was acutely aware of how embracing the histories and cultures of other nations can shape your own life course and that of the people you come to know. I was full of vicarious anticipation for our twelve intrepid students as they sallied forth towards their own unknown horizons.

Tomorrow we depart again for Uganda with a new and equally amazing group of eleven young people. I am again filled with anticipation for what lies ahead, especially for them. And no doubt they are full of the same excitement and perhaps trepidation as those who went before. But for me, the anticipation feels different this time around. The groundwork was laid. Logistics and planning all went smoothly. We know what to expect. Is it Gulu Redux?

And then I remember a lesson I thought I knew well. No place is ever the same twice. No set of experiences is reducible to another. And certainly the students are special: Kaitlin, Katie, Helena, Brook, Hannah, Joshua, Candace, Jody, Candice, Michael, and William - each one of you comes to GSSAP 2012 with your own backgrounds and experiences, each one of you brings something irreplaceable to the table. At least four of last year's group are returning in other capacities this summer - a testament to the success of GSSAP 2011. Other new faces will join the mix, adding their own colors and characters: Dr. Randal Hepner and Dr. Dawnie Steadman. Together with old and new friends from Kampala to Gulu to Kitgum, we will form our own humble kaleidoscope of humanity, shifting and changing in the striking patterns we make together. We will be Uganda Unique.

Although I eagerly await the opportunity to see everything anew through the eyes of this year's team, I stick by my words to last year's group. This summer experience may or may not change the course of your life. But it will forever shape the way you think about the world and your place in it. You will grow in ways you can't yet imagine - and some of it will be painful as well as joyful. You will return home more critical in your thinking, more empathetic, more inspired, and perhaps a bit disillusioned as well. You will form friendships that may last the rest of your life, both with one another and with the Ugandans you meet. And hopefully you will leave something equally important behind, something you co-create with Ugandan friends and mentors - the sense that human solidarity can always transcend the arbitrariness of our birth and nationality. From that realization great things can follow.
      

Welcome GSSAP 2012!!

This is the blog of the Gulu Study and Service Abroad Program's 2012 Team. Follow us on our journeys to northern Uganda as we engage in study abroad and international service learning!