Earth Systems Science, Inc.

Laying the Foundation for 2006-2007 International Effort

Aug 27, 2005

Photo (c) 2005, S. Lee: Non-toxic pest control training gets the attention of the students, teachers and host families as ESSI encourages reducing the use of synthetic pesticides, herbicides, and other agricultural chemicals in its sustainable agriculture training. Photo by S. Lee.

The Summer 2005 Thailand Volunteer project was a success. Though newsletter articles haven't been posted, there are several photo illustrated reports in the new "Our PDFs" section of the website.

The busy summer season proceeded full-speed with few breaks. ESSI American volunteers arrived in Ban Na Fa, Thawangpha City, Jompra Subdistrict on 17 July 2005. Their short stay was punctuated with several highlights. Without a doubt, Ban Na Fa and its residents will never be the same after this volunteer project.

The volunteer group was much smaller (7) than originally planned group of 30. Concerns about the past tsunami and political issues along the border with Malaysia kept many prospective volunteers away. For the fortunate and determined summer 2005 volunteers, the normally very conservative northern Thai culture was hard to find. The openly warm acceptance of the "farang" (foreigners) was a very pleasant surprise. The home stay portion of the program left both hosts and volunteers lamenting the short time in the village. Fond farewells were filled with tears. It was very surprising to see the bonds of friendship develop despite the language barrier and short stay.

Plans are in the works for follow-on project work. Host families are eagerly asking when the next visit will take place. Many summer 2005 volunteers are hoping to return next year.

Volunteer recruiting for the 2006-2007 (yet to be planned projects) has already begun. The Ban Na Fa REEEPP (Rural Environmental Education Enhancement Pilot Project) will continue. The ESSI RTC (Rural Training Center) may be another focus as development plans were launched this summer and much more work is yet to be done. High on the list is rain water catchment and storage facilities at the RTC. Additional training of the ESSI RTC volunteer staff is another priority.

Cambodia is lining up in the wings. Eager to adapt the REEEPP activities to their country, two students have begun to explore the possibility of bring a modified ESSI program to their country. Discussion and exploratory meetings are scheduled for this Fall.

Much work remains to be done for the future projects. The rising oil prices cascade into some many other sectors of the Thai economy. Fund raising activities are being considered to help offset the rising costs of equipment and supplies required to support the training in Thailand.

Volunteers amassed more than 34 CDs of pictures from the summer trip. These will be the source of possible illustrated fund raising talks as the impressions and experiences of the summer 2005 project are shared with others. Watch for upcoming announcements for these events.

Feedback from the key participant groups:
Ban Na Fa Head Villager: This was a very good project. We should do it again.

Ban Na Fa Elementary School: The teachers are now in keen competition between the Green School, Habitat, and NASA CERES S'COOL project teams to make more progress in their respective projects and their English. They are looking forward to future volunteer visits.

Ban Na Fa Host Families: The overwhelming lament was the brevity of the program. All the families wished to have more time with the volunteers.

ESSI RTC Volunteer Staff: They took time away from their families, farms, jobs to do so much behind the scenes support work in food preparation, transportation and logistics, purchasing supplies and equipment and a myriad of other petty details to keep the project rolling. All of their hard work contributed significantly to the success of the project. Their payback was the training and insights gained from the experience.

Once again, the synergy of the ESSI community-based environmental education methods of outdoor interactive, hands-on, interactive training spanned the language barrier. The direct people-to-people cross cultural approach forged friendship and understanding to becomes the foundation for further progress in rural community sustainability.