Ons Plek: Girls' Education and Empowerment

Ons Plek - "our place"

 http://www.onsplek.org.za/

With some of the girls at the Annual General Meeting

     In my Rotary application essay I wrote about my passion for girls’ education and empowerment programs. Without going into a long autobiography, the four years I spent at Foxcroft School (an all girls’ international boarding school) molded me into the person I am today by equipping me with the confidence and ability to take risk, challenge myself academically, and to both lead and serve others. Given my background, I am so happy to have found a means through which I can contribute to the empowerment and education of girls in South Africa. The following is an introduction to my involvement with Ons Plek Projects, the only comprehensive program in Cape Town specifically for female street children.

In March, I blogged about meeting Jane Raphaely (a former Ambassadorial Scholar from the UK to Colombia in NY) who founded Fair Lady in South Africa in 1967 as well as Associated Magazines in 1982 which is the largest, privately owned publishing house in the country. Jane and I met at Ray’s Rotary Reunion and discussed our interest in issues facing women and girls. Because of Jane’s involvement with numerous service organizations and commitment to women and girls in South Africa, I reached out to her concerning service opportunities and she recommended I contact Ons Plek!

Ons Plek, meaning ‘our place’ in Afrikaans, has a mission to improve the lives of female street children in Cape Town by helping them re-build their lives and their self-esteem. Ons Plek now focuses on preventative work as well preserving family lives of children before they run away from home. The vision of Ons Plek is “that female street children will be successfully re-united with their families and that failing that, they will be sufficiently empowered at Ons Plek Projects to grow into healthy, independent functioning members of society.” Whether they come on their own or are recommended to Ons Plek, many of the girls have experienced significant trauma and face problems of severe poverty; abuse whether emotional, physical, or sexual; problems of unemployment; crime; violence; alcohol or drug abuse; family violence and/ or instability; and lack of safe housing*. Whether South African or foreign minors, many of the girls face learning difficulties and sometimes mental health problems that create challenges for assimilating into both the education system and mainstream society. 

Ons Plek and Siviwe address the needs of an average of 100 to 150 children per year with three different projects. Ukondla is a community prevention project located in the township of Philippi and works with another 73 children, Siviwe (“God has heard us”) is a therapeutic and developmental shelter for more ‘settled’ girls which focuses on reunifying them with their families and integrating them into the education system. Lastly, Ons Plek is the intake location for girls where the staff focuses on assessment and developmental care. The organization focuses on family reunification, counseling, social skills, and educational programing for the girls at Ons Plek and Siviwe.

For those girls who are not yet ready or unable to return to formalized school, Ons Plek offers the bridging program ‘Morning School’ on Mon – Thur from 9:30 am – 12:00 pm. In addition to assessing the girls’ abilities,  Morning School assist girls in adapting to the routine and structure of school while giving them confidence in their ability levels. I have the privilege to serve as a Morning School teacher every Wednesday and Thursday at Ons Plek. Although I was raised by a mother who was an educator and I have experience teaching or tutoring at abused children shelters and after-school programs in the States, Ons Plek has been a phenomenal and challenging experience. To be continued ….

* The description of the mission, vision, and programs are taken from Onsplek.co.za

** In the interest of not making this post too long, I plan to blog about my experiences at Ons Plek in subsequent blogs J

*** PLEASE PLEASE check out Ons Plek's website. If you are interested in learning more stories about the girls and the organization check-out this book 

School Update

Last Semester (IN LIFE) as a Student

I spend a lot of time studying & drinking tea at Coffee Shops

As a reminder for everyone – in South Africa, I am attending the University of Cape Town and studying towards an MPhil in Justice and Transformation with a Concentration in Peace and Conflict Resolution.

For the final semester of coursework, I am taking my program’s required Post-Conflict Justice in Africa course taught by Hugo van der Merwe, the Director of the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation (CSVR). The course focuses on “the role of empirical research in building knowledge of post-conflict reconciliation and transitional justice” by studying existing transitional justice mechanisms such as truth commissions, prosecutions, reparations, amnesty, etc. In class we address questions of delivering truth and justice as well as promoting reconciliation after a conflict.

In addition to my course in the Politics faculty, I received permission to take courses in the Economics Department. I am enrolled in Developmental Challenges in Africa and I audit Economics of Conflict, War, and Peace. I was keen to pursue further studies in the Economics faculty to (1) assist with my thesis research and (2) because  socio-economic development in post-conflict transitioning societies is essential to sustainable peace; accordingly, an interdisciplinary approach is necessary. Upon graduation, I will have completed courses in the Politics, Economics, and Social Development faculties; this is my attempt to make up for the missed opportunity to utilize Davidson’s Center for Interdisciplinary Studies program as an undergrad.

Lastly, a brief update on my thesis – I presented to the Department last Friday and have started the draft of my Master’s thesis. My working title is: “Post- Conflict Private Sector Development: Does it Promote Sustainable Growth & Peace? A Case Study of Mozambique.” Private sector development addresses “the twin goals of economic growth and peace, in other words, to strengthen conditions for the growth of a stable, accessible, and competitive private sector and to contribute to a lasting and durable peace” (FIAS- GTZ 2009: 11).

To simplify à post-conflict countries face numerous challenges in not only preventing a relapse into conflict but also in pursing political, social, and economic change. With all the competing priorities of a post-conflict environment, my paper will focus on economic reconstruction and specifically local, private sector development. I am using the case study of Mozambique to address (1) the shifts in the global approach to post-conflict economic reconstruction; (2) the vital role of the state in post-conflict socio-economic development; (3) the importance of conflict- sensitive private sector engagement; (4) the need for a hybrid method that includes both the investment climate and interventionist approaches; and (5) the limitations of the current private sector development framework that holds Mozambique as a ‘success story.’ [For those former classmates and colleagues who study this subject matter, this is a general explanation of the topic for my family and Rotarians. If you are interested in my actual methodology, research question, and framework then email me ... especially if you want to give me advice or suggest resources J ]

Easter Trip to Mozambique and Swaziland (delayed post)

My Favorite Way to Camp

Before final exams, I traveled to Mozambique and Swaziland with a friend from Davidson for Easter Break.  Beginning at 5 am we flew to Johannesburg to pick up a 4x4 Truck that would become our home for the next 10 days! Not only was the truck equipped with a refrigerator, portable gas store, emergency equipment, water hose, pots & pans, and sleep bags but it also had a fold-out tent on the top of the car! (Best way to travel!)

I’ve stolen the idea of high/low from our family-dinner-table conversation to blog about our trip! (For more pictures of my trip click here!)

Mozambique Highs: (visited Maputo, Casa Lisa, Vilanculus, Tofo/ Inhambane, Barra, and Pande)

Bazaruto Island

-          Driving almost 3,000 Km (1,860 miles) in three different countries ( I drove for a total of 10 min in which I ‘learned’ how to drive a manual car)

-          Camping à easy minus brief encounters with spiders in the trees and bats in the toilets

-          Vilanculos à amazing beaches with wonderful snorkeling at Bazaruto Island and Two Mile Reef
-         Scenery à expansive fields of cashews, corn, rice, mangos, and bananas

Fish in the Market

-        
  - Markets à Each town through which we drove had a small but dense collection of buildings or shacks compromising a Market where the atmosphere was both lively and hectic! In the Vilanculos, I had a dress made out of local fabric.

-         -  New Friends à We met people from NC, Washington DC, South Africa, Israel, and all over Europe. Being typical Davidson students, after meeting a young couple from Brussels our dinner conversations included the pros/cons of capitalism in Africa, the role of the markets, whether or not education and health care are human rights, and the importance of freedom.

Baobab Tree in Vilanculos

-          Easter à We watched the Crucifixion Reenactment at a local high school attached to a church across from the Old Market in Vilanculos. 

-          Food à abundant amounts of peri-peri chicken, prawns, and rice!

-          Local Lifeà the people were extremely friendly and we enjoyed practicing our Portuguese! One night, walking back from the market, we passed a gathering of locals watching a Jackie Chan movie outside for a fun, community event.

-          Ocean Safari à swimming with whale sharks and manta rays in Tofo/ Inhambane.

Women Making Food in Pande

-          Visiting Matt (a Davidson Peace Corp Volunteer) à driving to rural Pande, meeting Matt's pet donkey, sleeping in our tent outside the village to the amazement of the local children, walking to the river and masongas/fields, meeting Raul and others in the village

Mozambique Low:

-          Getting a ticket in Maputo (there are high levels of police corruption and they stop you on the side of the road and require bribes)

Swaziland Highs: 

Things to Do in Swaziland

-          The beautiful (yet, out-of-place) Botanical Gardens and Malandela’s for dinner

-          Visiting Gone Rural Craft Shop, Swazi Candels, Rosecrafts, and Baobab Bitak, the viewpoint from the top of the mountain passage, and the local hot springs

-          Enjoying a hip-hop, socially conscious concert by a Congolese artist at House on Fire

-          Shopping at the Ezulwini Market à we were 2 of VERY few customers for the day so we spent a couple hours looking around and speaking with the people at each ‘stand.’ After 9 days of camping, my favorite comment from one of the women was “sitah, can I do your hair?” J Clearly it was time for us to get home and take a real shower!

Upon arriving back in Cape Town, I went directly (after showering of course) to dinner with Dean Terry who was visiting South Africa!!! We had a lovely dinner at the Mount Nelson’s Planet Restaurant and were able to talk about my travels and his first few days in Cape Town. The next day I was blessed to spend the day with Dean Terry and his tour group in which we visited Signal Hill, Chapman’s Peak, Hout Bay, and Simmons Town/False Bay to visit the Penguins. It was absolutely wonderful to spend time with him in Cape Town and it was my first visit from a ‘family member!’        

(For more pictures of my trip click here!)

Traveling in Namibia

Sunrise in Namibia

Home

In June, I spent 13 days at home for my Dad’s 50^th birthday, brother’s high school graduation, family reunion/celebration that included my sister’s college graduation, 4 days in Miami for my college roommate’s wedding, and 1 brunch in DC to see friends, classmates, and former colleagues. I didn’t sleep much but it was my only visit to the States until 2012! Upon returning to Cape Town I spent the last weeks of winter break working on my thesis and organizing academic and volunteer logistics before one last ‘holiday’ to Namibia! (For more Namibia pictures click here!)

Sunrise on Dune 47

Namibia Highs: (visited Sossusveli, Swakopmund, Spitzkoppe, Waterberg Plateu, and Windhoek)

-         Officially learning how to drive a manual car thanks to Chris and Rachel!

-          Waking up at 4:45am to hike Dune 47 before sunrise! (Hiking sand dunes are MUCH more difficult then they look… let’s just say one of the other hikers stopped to cry half-way up!)

-         Watching every sunrise and sunset J

-           Climbing at Spitzkoppe

-          ‘Proper camping’ à cooking over a fire and setting up a tent by scratch (unlike Mozambique)

-          Eating apple strudel in Solitaire

Sunrise at Spitzkoppe

Namibia Lows:

-          Forgetting my sleeping bag but being saved by Rachel!

-          Camping at night in Namibia in winter was freezing!

-          Driving on dirt roads in a foreign country in the dark while attempting to watch out for game

-          Getting our 2x4 stuck in the sand at Spitzkoppe after it overheated (fortunately, the local Namibians were absolutely wonderful and saved the day!)

-          Having our bus from Windhoek to Cape Town break down making the return trip last almost a full 24 hours (thankfully we were WELL stocked up on snacks and made friends with the entire Intercape Bus Staff!)

Brief Perspective on Life in Namibia

In my limited travel experience in sub-Saharan Africa, I have found that majority of hotels, bed and breakfasts, and camps sites are owned by White Africans or foreigners. Although Mozambique, Swaziland, Namibia, and South Africa are majority Black, in the ‘tourist industry’ it appears most of the wealth is still held by Whites for various reasons that I won’t detail here. That being said, we had an interesting conversation with one of our Black Namibian tour guides and I wanted to share a little bit about his life in Northern Namibia:

Vincent* is from the Hararo tribe and works as a tour guide at a popular tourist location in Namibia. On the morning that we met for our hike, Vincent had learned that his grandfather passed away and that it was necessary for him to return the 125km home for traditional preparations and ceremonies. He was concerned about asking for time off because he is allotted only 2 days of leave a month to go home and visit his family which includes 8 sisters, 1 brother, 1 son, and their respective families. Being that his parents previously died in a car accident; following his grandfather’s death, Vincent became the eldest in his family and was concerned that if the Village Elders were to appoint him as head of the household (instead of his brother) then he would no longer be able to work and provide for his family.

Unemployment and poverty are high among the Harao people who were forced from their lands during colonialism and now reside in the more arid parts of Namibia which negatively impacts their access to both food and water. The people are extremely resourceful and (1) make square houses with termites and cow fat, (2) eat mice mixed with sour milk, and (3) use extremely creative methods such as ash to purify water.  Unfortunately, the literacy rates is still very low as many cannot afford the R350 per term school fees for their children; for example, Vincent’s monthly salary is roughly R650 which must provide for both himself and his family. After receiving a grade 11 education, Vincent tried to help his son and other children in the village learn to their alphabet and numbers by writing in the dirt. Although he can’t pursue his childhood dream to become a water marine scientist, Vincent is doing the best he can to one day be able to send his son to school.


*Vincent's name was changed for the purposes of this blog

Top of Waterberg Plateau 

  

Spitzkoppe

Chris on Sand Dune 47

Rotary and Experiencing Cape Town Life Outside of Being a Student

I am continually amazed to see the work of Rotary in South Africa and how fortunate I am to be an ‘ambassador’ of this phenomenal group of service-oriented individuals. In addition to giving Rotary talks over the past few months (including the District Conference), my host club (Newlands) and counselor (Grahamn Finlayson) have allowed me to witness some of their work in the community.

-         High: (1) Attending the opening of Emmanuel Daycare Center, a disabled child care center, in Atlantis. This neighborhood was an example of a predominantly coloured area established around a particular industry during Apartheid; however, when the factories were shut down almost the entire population became unemployed. (2) Attending the opening of Noluthando Autism Center in Khayelitsha. In addition to the joy of hearing the child sing at the center, I was intrigued by Newlands Rotary’s commitment to this school for the deaf. In addition to building the Autism Center they have participated in funding a soccer field and building other units of the education facilities.

Low: These were my first two trips inside the townships and acknowledging the dichotomy of life in Cape Town and in the townships is still unbelievable.  There are often times when I walk around town and forget that I am living in a ‘developing country’ with extreme levels of poverty, crime, and HIV/AIDS. To visit projects with Rotary reminds me of why I am here and why it is an honor to be a Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar. Although those in the townships and Cape Flats experience severe poverty, life goes on and many of the people are talented, hopefully, and remarkable individuals making a difference in their communities!

In June, I assisted with the interviews of the Rotary Peace Fellows! It was an interesting experience to be on the other side of the interview process and it was inspiring to meet South African applicants with a desire to pursue Peace and Conflict Studies abroad! Lastly, I had the opportunity to have lunch at Parliament and witness a committee hearing on a controversial bill concerning Protection of Information (often referred to as the Secrecy Bill). 

Emmanuel Centre was a Corporate Social Investment Project between Rotary and Peninsula Beverage of Coca-Cola

Fall- A Time for Education

View of the mountain from UCT while waiting for Bus

My first semester consisted of courses in both the politics and social development departments: Conflict in Africa, Peace and Conflict Resolution, and the Peace-Development Community Nexus. (My favorite part of the social development course was that 50% of the readings were from USIP!) The semester ended in early June and I received high marks so I am enjoying ‘vacation’ before classes resume on July 25^th.

-          

Two Highs: (1) Utilizing my Davidson degree and writing a paper on al-Shabaab in Somalia (half of my resources were from Ken Menkhaus!) (2) A Class stimulation to mediate the conflict with Gbagbo in Cote d'Ivoire 

 Low: Spending the final days of warm weather studying inside the library or computer labs!

At the moment, my winter ‘vacation’ is being spent researching thesis topics and finding a supervisor for my dissertation. I’m leaning towards looking at how the public and private sectors should engage the informal economy in post-conflict settings and whether or not its contributions to economy growth outweigh its inefficiency, distortion of competition, and limits on productivity.  (If anyone else has suggests or a better topic concerning transitioning/ post-conflict societies please feel free to send it my way!!!)

In addition to seeking learning opportunities inside the classroom, I have been able to attend some interesting Rotary lectures (including someone from the South African Defense Force) and documentaries in the past few weeks.

With Pierrinne at Encounters

-          (1) John Pilger’s The War You Don’t See about the role of media in depicting war. Let’s just say that as an American in the audience, in a foreign country, I felt a little attacked! A group of us went out to dinner afterwards to ‘process’ the portrayal of Obama and the US military. It was interesting feeling when I realized that I would be more open to the criticism if I had watched the film with an American audience.

-          (2) The Encounters International Documentary Film Festival showed Robert Mugabe: What Happened? about the Zimbabwean dictator. I found this film particularly interesting after a class discussion in which two Zimbabwean students had contrasting opinions —one held the view that Mugabe is a violent dictator who should be prosecuted for his crimes and the other was proud of him as the 'only' Africa leader willing to stand up to the West. The film portrayed him as a master of propaganda and a leader willing to change both his rhetoric and actions at any point in hopes of self-preservation.

Garden Route

Jubilee Creek Hike

The last week in March was University of Cape Town’s (UCT’s) fall break, giving me my first opportunity to travel outside the greater Cape Town area. Ciaran O’Reilly (an Irish Ambassadorial Scholar studying Human Rights Law) and I decided to spend the time both traveling and fulfilling some of our Rotary duties on the Garden Route. I’m determined the best means by which to visit new places is as a Rotary Scholar because you get to meet the most interesting, friendly people from all backgrounds who share a commitment to service. Ciaran and I were thankful to be in contact with Mike Mills, a Rotary Assistant District Governor, who helped us not only plan our trip and organize Rotary talks to local clubs but also gave us a place to stay!

Pier near Belvidere Manor

Ciaran and I picked up a rental car on Monday, April 28^th and I began the fun (yet intimidating) process of learning to drive on the ‘other’ side of the road with the steering wheel on the ‘wrong’ side of the car. Fortunately, highway transportation in South Africa isn’t too difficult and the drive was absolutely beautiful; Ciaran and I successfully made the trip to Knysa in about 6 hours. On our first night Mike hosting a Braii in which we were able to meet some wonderful, local Rotarians and relax after our long drive. On Tuesday morning, we had breakfast at the lovely Belvidere Manor with Mike and his wife Sue! (I highly recommend anyone traveling to the Garden Route to visit this wonderful cottage-style hotel.) Afterwards, we were able to see the beauty of small town Knysa and spend the morning visiting the local waterfront area. After having lunch at the Yacht Club and briefly speaking at the Knysa Rotary Meeting, Ciaran and I drove around a bit to get a sense of the town before headed an hour east with Mike to speak at the Mossel Bay Rotary Club.

Jubilee Creek

Wednesday was spent exploring Knysa and hiking Jubilee Creek. The hike was quite leisurely until we attempted to climb closer to the waterfalls and away from the path. Word of caution for those in South Africa, STAY on the PATH unless you want to have an encounter with BABOONS!!!! South Africans will warn you that baboons aren’t exactly the most peaceful and harmless creatures and they are quite large and travel in troops. We didn’t have any near death experiences but the second we noticed a few baboons closing in on our location we decided to ‘high-tail’ it out of there and back to the path.

Upon awaking to rain on Thursday morning, Ciaran and I decided to get some homework out of the way before going to meet up with our friend Andrew, another Davidson alum spending time in South Africa. The three of us had the infamous Knysa Oysters for lunch. I am NOT the biggest fans of raw oysters but I enjoyed the ones that were fried and wrapped in bacon (typical). From here we headed to Robberg Island in Plettenberg Bay for a brief hike before Ciaran and I spoke at the Plettenberg Bay Rotary Club. After dinner at Scottie’s with the Mills, we met up with Shaw Hispher (Davidson ’03) who is living in Knysa and working as a P.E. teacher and coach. (Yes I kept finding Davidson alum in SA!)

Tsitsikamma National Park

Friday was absolutely my favorite day in the Garden Route as we travelled to Tstikamma National Park for a lovely hike. The beauty of the Garden Route is the unbelievable combination of wilderness and beaches all-in-one!! On Saturday morning we attended the Sedgefield local market, Elephant National Park (where Shaw, Andrew, and Ciaran fed the elephants), and Noetzie Beach. Noetzie Beach gives a breathe-taking view of two old castles situated on a mostly- deserted beach.

Three Amigos

After an early breakfast on Sunday morning we decided to take the ‘long-way’ home on the R62, one of the most beautiful drives I’ve ever taken (see pictures). We stopped at the Afrikaans festival in Oudtshoorn and for dinner in Montague along the way; unfortunately, we missed the hot springs in Montague because we needed to get back to Cape Town and finish homework before class on Monday morning! I recommend the Garden Route to anyone and everyone visiting South Africa and I hope to visit again to see the dolphins and whales during the summer months! Thank you to the Rotarians of Mossel Bay, Knysa, and Plettenberg Bay who allowed us to visit and speak at their clubs! Special thank you to Mike and Sue for being absolutely wonderful host and we hope to see you again soon!

Tsitsikamma Otter Trail Waterfall

Tsitsikamma National Park

In other news … the month of April has been spent doing a lot of homework, watching my first Rugby game (thank you Shan and Claire), visiting the Stellenbosch market, attending a lecture on China’s involvement in Africa at the UCT Business School, getting to speak at my host Rotary Club- Newlands, and attending a Hannah Lyon's (Davidons '10) birthday party! At the moment, one of close friends from Davidson (Jacquin 
Milhouse ’08) is visiting for a few days after spending the past few months on a law school trip in Namibia! 

Drive Home on R62

For more pictures of my trip click here :)

March Madness

Sunrise Morning of Cycle Tour

Rotary Service and Adventure (http://www.cycletour.co.za/)

Kids from Capri Village

On Sunday, March 13^th Cape Town hosted the 2011 Argus Cycle Tour! The 110 km Cycle Tour is Newlands Rotary’s (my host club) largest annual fund-raising project and brings roughly 30,000 cyclist to Cape Town from everywhere in the world. Each ‘station’ on the tour is managed by Rotarians from various clubs and I was able to assist at the Capri Station near Noordhoek. Helping with the cycle tour required waking up at 4 am and returning home after 7 pm (after a braii) but it was a wonderful experience. Serving as a ‘Marshall,’ I monitored general safety, helped distribute drinks to cyclist at our stop, and encouraged people to visit the physio station. I am by NO means in shape to do a 110 km bike ride and I was VERY impressed with the cyclist of all ages, nationalities, ethnicities, genders, and fitness level. One highlight of my experience included enjoying the local kids from Capri who LOVED watching the cyclists and sampling the bananas and coca-cola at the completion of the race. Lastly, Davidson people should be excited to know that Shaw Hispher (’03) took part in the cycle tour and visited my Capri Water Station J

Another great Rotary Project is the Blue Train for Charity operated by Sea Point Rotary Club. On Sunday, March 20^th I volunteered to help the community and Rotarians paint the blue train. It was wonderful to see the turnout of volunteers as there were more people then brushes and buckets of paint! 

In addition to direct service and engagement with Rotarians in South Africa, being an Ambassadorial Scholars has introduced me to some wonderful South Africans and given me the opportunity to travel and share in new experiences. For example, I was able to go paragliding at Macassar Beach (near Khayelitsha)! Additionally, I had lunch with Jane Raphaely (a former Ambassadorial Scholar from the UK to Colombia in NY). Jane founded Fair Lady in South Africa in 1967 as well as Associated Magazines in 1982 which is the largest, privately owned publishing house in the country. (For those of you who are Oprah fans, Associated Magazines is responsible for publishing O Magazine outside of the US). Jane and I met at Ray’s Rotary Reunion and discussed our interest in issues facing women and girls. Jane takes part in numerous service activities in South Africa and established a shelter for battered women in Langa and participates in the “Real Men Don’t Rape” campaign. Give my service interest, I look forward to remaining in contact with Jane and her work during my time in Cape Town.

 Social Life in Cape Town

In addition to school and Rotary, I have enjoyed meeting new people and experiencing life in South Africa. March has been filled with St. Patrick’s Day celebrations, dressing up for the Cape Town Carnival, and spending times with friends at the beach, a wine farm, and beautiful Chapman’s Peak.

To view more pictures check facebook: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2048315&id=14701722&l=89298bd585

St. Patrick's Day With Ciaran (Irish Ambassadorial Scholar)

Carnival on Long St

Dressing Up for Carnival 

Paragliding at Macassar (I'm not pictured)

Sunset at Chapman's Peak

View from Chapman's Peak