The re-entry to the US went quite a bit smoother than I was initially expecting. It has been wonderful to be back around friends, and I spent a wonderful week back in Michigan with my family. I am fortunate to be surrounded by wonderful friends and family who are excited to hear about my experiences and are so supportive of my work. One of the most challenging things still proves to be going to the grocery store. There are so many choices, and I want to buy and eat everything, but can’t seem to make up my mind about what I want the most.

I knew that the experience was going to change me, but it’s always hard to know exactly how it will change you. It will likely be a long time until I recognize all of the ways that I’ve grown and changed, but I know that I am a different person now than I was before I left.

One thing that I’ll be doing is keeping up with blogging. I’ll be keeping a different blog here, http://katedilley.wordpress.com/.

Thank you for f0llowing my journey, I hope that you enjoyed reading the blog as much as I enjoyed writing it.

sunset on the nile river

I spent the last few days on a whirlwind trip through Murchison Falls National Park. I signed up for a three day trip run through Red Chili (a backpackers hostel in Kampala) that includes a game drive, afternoon boat trip on the Nile, and guided hike to the base and top of the falls. The group left Kampala for Murchison on Monday morning, piled into a van with three other really nice young women and a stuffy British couple. We stopped for lunch and then kept driving up to the park. Our first stop was Murchison Falls themselves. When we arrived at the falls we hopped out of the car and did a hike with a ranger down to a great spot to snap some photos of the falls from the bottom, and then walked up to the top of the falls. Murchison Falls is 44 m tall and all of the water from the Nile rushes through a gap in the rocks that is 7 m wide. You can imagine the power of the water there; approximately 300 cubic meters of water flow through the falls every second. Incredible. Listening to the sound of the rushing water and seeing the spray of the water was unbelievable.

a rainbow at the top of the falls

We were up at 6 am on Tuesday for our early morning game drive. I didn’t sleep very well the night before though because we were sleeping in safari tents an the camp isn’t fenced in, so animals can move freely through the campsite. The animal noises moving around in our camp kept me up. I kept worrying that I was going to be a hippo’s late night snack. We took a ferry over to the other side of the Nile and then did the game drive down in a delta near the water in a grass land. We saw lots of different animals – giraffes, all kinds of gazelles, elephants, hippos, tons of birds, and a lion. It was really cool!  The landscape is breathtaking.

giraffe on safari at murchison falls national park

After our game drive we had a nice quiet lunch, and I took a much needed nap before we headed out for our afternoon boat ride. We took a boat 17 km up the river to the base of the falls, and along the way it was like a boat game drive – elephants, hippos, Nile crocs, birds, buffalo, warthogs, and gazelle. It was great to see them from the boat – I rode on top so was out in the sun with the wind on my face walking around. Sitting in the car can start to feel a little claustrophobic, so seeing the animals from the boat (and we were able to get SO close!) was really amazing. Really different. I loved it.

We got back from the boat ride in the early evening and I dropped down on a picnic table to read my book and ended up meeting two people who were on holiday from the UK and so had dinner chatted with them most of the evening with Christan and Debbie (two of the girls from my van that are so nice). We sat around the camp fire for the rest of the night just talking about what we were doing in Africa and where we were headed next. You meet the most interesting people traveling in this country, without a doubt.

We headed back in the late morning Wednesday and stopped at the rhino sanctuary to see the rhinos before heading into Kampala. It was neat – not the highlight, but not the worst thing ever. Just so-so. Rhinos are big though – I mean HUGE. They just has two young ones born this summer, and they named one of them Obama; his father is Kenyan and his mother is American, from the Animal Kingdom in Disneyland.

And now I’m back in the office wrapping a few things up, sending emails before my flight at midnight tonight. It’s hard to believe that my next posting will come when I’m back in the US – freezing to death.

rafting on the nile river, photo by Nile River Explorers (www.raftafrica.com)

With work all wrapped up, I’ve treated myself to a few days of vacation to end my time in Uganda. I’ve just returned from Jinja where I spent the last two days on the Nile river.

Saturday was my day of white water rafting, which was absolutely AMAZING. I went through a company called Nile River Explorers who runs a range of adventure activities and hostel in Jinja. They did a fantastic job. I was in a boat with four young women and two men, and our guide Kirk. The eight of us had a blast. Everyone was really chill and got along great. In total, we rafted 30 km and ran 12 rapids. 4 or 5 of those are class V rapids, the highest you can raft in a boat. The scenery is absolutely breathtaking. Jinja is very tropical and so the banks of the river are incredibly lush and green. We saw lots of birds and lizards in the water, but no other serious wildlife.

The morning started out with lots of training and practice to get us comfortable with the water and what we were going to have to do. This included a ‘swim’ down a small rapid to get used to having our feet up and water splashing in our face in case we fell out of the boat, capsizing the boat and righting it again, and the absolutely most graceless thing ever – getting back into the boat. All of this came in very handy later in the day.

It wasn’t long before we were running our first class five rapid, Bujagali Falls, and our boat made it out of that one unscathed. One of the most incredible things about the rapids is how you can hear them long before you see them. There is so much water rushing over rocks and crashing around, they have a loud roar that carries over the water. Mid morning we approached Silverback, where the roaring was so loud and caused by a series of HUGE waves rushing through the passage. As we headed down the rapid, we hit one of the waves, and I was launched out of the boat and tossed around in the water for a bit before I was able to hook back up with the raft and get pulled back in the boat. Fortunately, this was all captured on video for those of you interested in seeing it. The footage is amazing (and hilarious).

Photo from Nile River Exploers (www.raftafrica.com)

While the rapids were a highlight of the day, I also enjoyed the parts when we just lazed down the river. It was great to spend time chatting with all the different people in our boat – two Americans, to Brits, a German, a New Zealander, and a South African (our guide). Everyone had such interesting backgrounds and stories, it was fascinating to hear where people had been and what was keeping them busy.

Our boat only managed to capsize once. Kirk said as we approached this rapid, it was going to be ‘paddle forward, paddle forward, get down, lean left’ and there was a chance that we would flip, but we might make it out upright; you could never tell with this ‘cheeky wave’. Well, Kirk was actually the cheeky one here, the ‘lean left’ part of our routine was fully intended to capsize us, which it did. It was the only time we flipped and of all places there was a great place to go for a swim. It was a nice deep rapid, so we just bobbed along in the water and pulled ourselves back up into the boat.

We wrapped up the afternoon with a few more rapids, including walking around a grade VI (the highest grade, equivalent to death, ha) and put back in to run the end, a grade five, called the Bad Place. By the end of the day I was exhilarated and exhausted. With the exception of a little sunburn, blisters, and a ripped off toenail, I came out no worse for wear. I spent Sunday recuperating by soaking up some rays, finishing a book, and napping. I couldn’t have had a more relaxing end to the weekend.

view of the nile from the deck of Nile River Exploers Campsite (photo from Nile River Explorers website www.raftafrica.com)

Since being in Uganda I’ve seen the overwhelming need for continuing foreign aid and development assistance. That doesn’t necessarily mean in the form of a blank check, and there should always be checks and balances to make sure that funds are appropriated correctly and make it into the hands of those who really need it. One of the most damaging things to development is the high rate of corruption and failed projects, but aid workers on the ground see the success and the optimism and continue to fight and make progress. I believe that the answer lies somewhere in the middle of endless money and nothing; in creativity and innovation.

Before I left, a professor from BUSPH told me that this would be an incredible personal and professional journey, and he was not wrong. Living in a place like Africa changes who you are to your core. Professionally, I’ve gained amazing programmatic experience including design, implementation, and evaluation. But more notably, I’ve developed a love of writing about the successes and showcasing improvements in global health and development. I have seen the power of the written word and sharing information with diverse audiences, through this blog and through the writing I’ve done for the organization. Giving the statistics a face, name, and story has been an incredible experience.

Today, I came across the Living Proof Project that the Gates Foundation is doing. It serves as a way to provide concrete examples of where aid is working, and working well. The project includes progress sheets and written stories, but most captivating are the photo galleries and videos.

For foreign aid to continue working, I think that it will be critical to continue to highlight the success stories. Development is never going to be a quick fix, and while we’re waiting for the playing field to level out it’s wonderful to see success stories like the ones I’ve seen here in Uganda and that the Gates Foundation is highlighting on their website. I’ve seen aid projects that have failed, or only made it part way. But that does not mean that it’s not worth trying. I’ve come away from this experience with a heightened commitment to making sure that the voiceless have a voice, especially when that voice intends to say, ‘I did it. I’m better now than I was before.’

the sun will always shine

she pushed the can back and forth with the stick laughing the whole way

a discarded piece of rope has become a jump rope for this little girl

the balls are made of local materials, often including grasses or other fibers. they seem to do the trick just perfectly

bike tires, car tires, truck tires -- they'll push anything along with their hands or a stick. often giggling and shouting as they chase after the tire

In addition to the photos here, I’ve seen children make little cars or vehicles out of items that have been discarded, including jerry cans or other storage containers, small pieces of machinery, and string or rope. I’ve also seen kids playing with pots and pans, sticks, and of course each other.

people often flatten US doneated vegetable oil canisters for their doors

My time here in Pader is wrapping up – I only have one week left of work. I’ve interviewed the beneficiaries for the success stories that I have been asked to write. The success stories will likely be published to the website of the organization I’m working for, which is really exciting. I got a lot of wonderful insight into the beneficiaries of our program. They all have had unbelievable experiences.

I talked with a young woman who had been abducted by the LRA when she was twelve and escaped four years later when she was sixteen. She now works with a small group opening land with a pair of oxen and an ox plow. She’s planting seeds and making money to keep her two children in school and provide the food and medical care that they need. Another young man was forced to protect the IDP camps with an arm of the Ugandan army. He continues to suffer from injuries he sustained at the hands of the LRA The lifeskills trainings pushed him to stop drinking and a conversation about gender-based violence caused him to reconsider gender roles within a household. Now he frequently helps his wife with things like fetching water and other household tasks. He says that it is important for them to work together, for the good of their family.

I’ve also been put in charge of the implementation plan for our next year of youth programming. I’ve updated the objectives to make them SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-bound). I expanded them a bit to include outcome objectives and linked process objectives, which I think will make the program easier to monitor and evaluate. I also have selected indicators for our monitoring plan and devised an evaluation plan which includes a baseline, mid-line, and end-line evaluation. Finally, I’ve put together a timeline of the programs activities for the next year.

the USA cans are also used to store charcoal, which is what most (if not all) people use for fuel.

Lastly, I have been blogging for the organization. I’ve written three posts so far, and they have been posted to the website. I’m enjoying highlighting the successes of the amazing staff here and sharing their accomplishments with a wider audience. I love having the opportunity to give a voice to those who are doing such incredible work, and also to the beneficiaries that they’re serving. I’m really falling in love with the writing and communications aspect of the work that I’m doing.

Finishing up these last few tasks should take me through the end of next week, and then I head to Kampala for a few days of much needed vacation. My weeks here typically involve me working six days a week, and I’m often in the office from 8 until 6 or 7. I’m planning a three day trip to Murchison Falls National Park where I’ll do a half day game drive, a half day cruise on the Nile, a hike to the top of the falls (which are supposed to be spectacular), and rhino tracking. Then I’ll head back to Kampala and leave for a day trip of white water rafting through 30 km of the Nile River in Jinja.

And then it’s back to the US…I can’t believe that my time is wrapping up here so quickly. It’s been an amazing experience.

A friend, Ken, shared an article from the LA Times with me about the current public health and political situation in Sierra Leone as they attempt to recover from the decade long year civil war that plagued the nation from 1991 to 2000. Similar to Uganda, the war there had a catastrophic affect on the youth of the country; many of them having been recruited to fight as child soldiers and others having been otherwise harmed and/or displaced by the conflict. Working in a post conflict setting has opened my eyes to a series of challenges and opportunities that aid and development organizations face following a conflict or natural disaster.

this is probably my favorite picture that i've taken since i've been here

It is an incredible challenge to successfully move a community out of disaster response and into development. Many organizations (World Food Program, Doctors Without Borders, and the refugee organizations) come to a location immediately following a disaster and work in the acute response to an emergency or conflict, and then as security improves and the situation appears to get better, they leave. We’re starting to see a lot of pull out here in Northern Uganda, and I worry that this removal of aid organizations has the potential to throw the country back into complete turmoil.

When a communities entire way of life is disrupted by moving into IDP camps and having food provided in rations from WFP and there is no opportunity for economic growth and development, you begin to see dependency syndrome.  This results in individuals not being willing or able to care for themselves, and relying on humanitarian aid for their livelihoods. It can be incredibly challenging to successfully move communities back to being self sustaining, but it is the successful implementation of development that is likely to be the only way that countries survive man-made or natural disasters.

one of the constant reminders that we're working in a post conflict setting. this is the decal indicating that we don't carry weapons in any of our vehicles.

Sierra Leone and Somalia are tragic reminders of how the mishandling of a civil war can lead to catastrophic consequences for so many in the population; particularly when the youth is so adversely affected. Uganda and Rwanda are seeming success stories, but both countries remain on a tight rope walk towards success, threatening to fall back into complete and total demise at any moment.

I’ve learned a lot since I’ve been here, but one of the thing that is brought up by over and over is the successful navigation from emergency response to development. No country can be expected to survive, let alone to thrive, after an emergency situation without successful development. What that looks like is incredibly challenging to identify and implement, as history has shown us.

our head of office, country director, regional person, and headquaters person checking out a handwashing station we're providing at one of the local schools

The end of last week was full of big visits. Our country director and someone from headquarters were here Thursday on their tour through the country. I was able to update them on the youth program and get their feedback on the things that I’ve put together for the next year of programming. They seem to be pleased with the work that I’m doing, which is encouraging.

After their arrival we had lunch and then headed out to the field to make the tours of the project sites that they were going to see. We headed out to one of the roads that we’re building and talked with the engineers and beneficiaries of the program. Our program staff did a great job answering questions and showcasing their work. I think that the CD was pleased with what he saw while he was here.

On Saturday we had a delegation from USAID, which is where we get a lions share of our funding, here to see some of the projects that are funded through them. The big project that we were showing off was the SPRING (sustainability, peace, and reconciliation in Northern Uganda) project which provides seeds, tools, and trainings to groups in the IDP camps and those who have moved back to their home villages as a way to promote sustainability and peace in the region following the war.We also had lunch and a meeting with district commissioner and other government officials involved in the Pader Peace Forum and other conflict resolution initiatives.

So much of what this organization does here in Uganda is related to peace and conflict resolution, and I am starting to believe that it is a critical component of sustainability and development. Communities cannot move forward and develop if they live in constant fear of conflict or war. So much of Africa is plagued by tribal conflict, and if more places could learn to accept each others differences and get along with one another the way we encourage them to here, I wonder if we would see less conflict and fighting. I hope to see some of the peace building work that they’re doing in the North while I’m still here.

three of the women (widowed women) in one of the SPRING groups at the USAID delegation presentation

Last week was incredibly stressful preparing for the country director and then the USAID delegation. But on Saturday afternoon at 5 pm when I got back from the field, I felt like all the stress and work leading up to Thursday and Saturday was well worth it. Our programs are having great impact and leading to positive change in the community, and our staff and beneficiaries were able to show that as well. All in all, a huge success.

They dropped us at the base of the hill, where we started our ascent on a paved road at about a 30 degree incline. We walked straight up for close to 45 minutes or an hour in the hot sun. It felt great to be getting exercise, but I was a little concerned that I wouldn’t have enough water and that I hadn’t eaten enough to sustain me for the entire hike. As we climbed we had the most amazing views of the region. I’ve said before how green and lush the area is, but seeing the expanse of vegetation below was still striking. We could see IDP camps and villages dotting the region below, as well as Kolongo town with its schools, hospitals, market, and other shops. As we climbed higher and higher, the sun got hotter and hotter.

the mountain

Fortunately, after a switchback the trail leveled out and we walked around the edge of the hill. We stopped a few times to have some water and fruit and take in the view. There were many other hills around where we were, and the scenery was breathtaking. The trail took a turn up again, and we had to climb again to reach the top. It took about an hour and a half to reach the top. Fortunately, there was a road that had been constructed by MTN in order to put a cell phone tower on top of the hill. At the top, we walked past a soldier outpost, and finally ended on a smooth rock outcropping with a cross to commemorate those who lost their lives in the war.

me at the top of the hill, with the cross in the background

We rested at the top soaking in the view for close to an hour. During the time of heavy conflict with the LRA people used to climb the mountain for safety. Acholi legend says that if you’re on a hill, you’re protected from harm. When the LRA would raid the villages and the camps, people would move to the mountain until the threat of abduction or death passed. Since the LRA is also an Acholi group they believed that legend as well and so would not disturb those on the hill. Everywhere there are reminders of a life marred by conflict and challenge.

everything the light touches is our kindgom

The descent took about an hour, and was equally challenging as the ascent. When we reached the bottom, we walked towards the town center, grateful to stretch our legs on mostly flat ground. We stopped at a little shop for cold sodas, which have never tasted better. While waiting for the vehicle we walked popped into the market to see if Kolongo had any of the elusive produce like pineapples, mangoes, or avocados that are so hard to find in Pader. With no luck, we climbed into the vehicle and headed back towards Pader in almost complete silence. When I got home I took a shower and collapsed into bed, exhausted from the hike.