Footsteps 12: Day 2!

Day 2 at Footstep 12 was our first in the village of Stara Bystricia, 20 km from Cadca. Jana Eyssel reports on the goings on!

The second day of the Foostep 12 conference began early at 8 o'clock in the morning with a Slovak breakfast served by the KERIC volunteers. We had sweet bread and Zavin s makovou naplnou, sweet bread with poppies, together with jam. For our first workshop we had a walk through the hilly area around our acommodation – but this wasn't to be a normal walk, it was a Philosophy walk. The group got in pairs, discussing different questions. The questions tackled the issues of sustainability, consumerism, over-population, happiness and travel experiences. After having come back to our accomodation, we discussed the questions together: very different views and experiences came together.

The Philosophy Walk was followed by the Kenyan project presentations. Introducing the „Kisumu Links and Sister Cities“ project Mikidadi gave a short introduction of the roots of the link between Kisumu and Cheltenham, reemphasizing Dennis' role. Margaret was next, presenting Kosimbo, a charity founded by her supporting widows and orphans. Third, Steven spoke about CADIF Kenya, a youth based organisation, coping with a wide range of different problems people face in Kisumu (e.g. HIV/AIDS, climate change, children becoming orphans).

After a tasty Slovak lunch we went on with the project presentations: Monika presented Tilia, an ecological association based in Torun, Poland. Among others, they run a forest school providing ecological education.

We hoped Ramnicu Valcea, Romania, would be represented at the conference. I travelled to Romania in March this year on a Global Venture meeting Irina who took me to several projects willing join the GF network. Despite their enthusiasm, their resources are so stretched currently that they could not spare the time to join us here. Teo, a student at the University of Gloucestershire, is here at the conference also representing her home country Romania. Together, we presented the current voluntary and social work situation in Ramnicu Valcea and Romania more broadly.

I also presented my home town Göttingen, which used to be one of the strongest link in the GF networks. However, this connection lapsed in the last years and needs to be reestablished. As I don't live there anymore, we do not only need to identify projects interested in linking with GF, but we also need a contact person in Göttingen.

Being the last group presenting today, Desmond, Janet and Michael from Saint Ann, Jamaica, told us about their college, Moneague College having implemented a very sustainable way of waste recyclying. All the presentations gave an insight into the backgrounds out of which the projects have developed in their communities and also highlightened difficulties they are coping with. However, the representatives already started to connect with each other, discussing possible solutions. If we move on like this for the rest of the week the conference's goal might be in sight!

Right now, we are having a break waiting for the first national dinner: It's the Jamaicans' turn. It already smells very nice!

Hello from Slovakia

Teo Craivan, who is here representing Cheltenham, UK and Romania simultaneously, was the first to pick up the pen to write us a blog entry.

Hello from Slovakia!!! The first conference day started a little melancholic – everybody had to leave the host families we got so attached to, but promised to return another time. Then we all met at KERIC headquarters and we had the official opening. After this we went to the K Museum, where we’ve met the manager of the museum and the manager of the culture house that welcomed us to Cadca and the surroundings. The museum was amazing, participants having the possibility to play the Slovakian ‘building’ game and they were all very excited of what they’ve made. After the visit at the museum we went back to KERIC where we had to find the presents they prepared for us in different parts of the building. After discovering some interesting facts about our host we went to eat. (The food here is really nice) Then Morgan had an introduction of the week. I have to tell you that this conference is dedicated to the person that made all this possible, Dennis Mitchell. The one that had the idea and the courage to not just want a better world but make footsteps in order to achieve his goals. We thank you Dennis and we promise to continue making those footsteps you taught us. Later this day we went to the Culture house for a special program – Slovak music and dance – you must have a lot of energy in order to try the traditional dance. In the evening we boarded on the bus to Stara Bistrica, a small village near CADCA. We are living in wooden cottages and it’s the best thing ever – we are four people from four different countries under one roof. Everybody should try it at least once!!! Jana’s turn to write tomorrow, until then Dobry vecer!!!

On the eve of Footstep 12

Footstep 12 is soon to begin and the participants have started to arrive here in Cadca, Slovakia.

Participants from Jamaica, Kenya, Germany and the UK have already arrived ahead of the conference, most are staying with host families in and around the city, but we all congregated in the town square last night to take in the All Slovakia Handball Championships.

Over the next week or so, we will be reporting on events here at the conference as we attempt to link together community capacity building projects from across the whole world to form a Global Footsteps network fit for volunteer exchange.

Global Venture to Bangladesh

On July 6th four young Global Footsteps members will depart for Bangladesh on a twp week fact finding visit to the newly established community capacity building project, the HRA Foundation in Nowder village, Bishwanath, Sylhet. The visit is being led by Global Footsteps co-ordinator Morgan Phillips who will be accompanied by two young film makers, Josh Sanger and George Allen, who will document the trip and a trainee teacher, Alice Matthews. Alice has made links with the Gloucestershire based education initiative ‘Sharing Communities’ and will gather resources on their behalf.

As well as the HRA Foundation the four will visit several other NGO projects and several other key people involved in improving life for the ordinary citizens of Bangladesh. On returning to the UK they will report back to the Global Footsteps membership the wider community through a short documentary film and a series of presentations.

Global Footsteps has closely assisted Mr. Arosh Ali, founder of the HRA Foundation, in creating a new charitable trust The Friends of Nowder. Mr Ali has lived in the UK for over thirty years but felt moved to transform land and buildings left to him by his late father into a centre to serve his home community. The HRA Foundation is two years old and provides primary healthcare and education for all as well as vocational training for men and women. The Friends of Nowder is a grant making organisation and hopes that the HRA is the first of many similar projects it will support. The goal, in time, for the HRA is to be a self sustaining project funded primarily by an on location women’s textile cooperative and eco-tourism facility. It hopes to grow in line with Social Business principles.

Cheltenham MP, Martin Horwood, is a keen supporter of The Friends of Nowder and will become its patron. He had the following to say about the project and the forthcoming visit:

‘Having worked for Oxfam in the past, I know the immense value to poor communities of well thought out projects based on local knowledge. This project should improve health and education in this very poor part of Bangladesh and empower local people to earn more income and improve their situation. But it’s essential to make sure the project is well run and this trip by Global Footsteps is an important part of that plan. I wish them well.’

Open House

We had a really lovely 'Open House' event last night at FootSteps. It was great to show people around and learn more about what they do and their interests. We told them a little bit about what we do and heard their thoughts and ideas on what we could do with the building and as a charity!

Here are some of the ideas, suggestions and comments we had and I've tried to feedback a little:

Clarify the focus of your charity and its aims and mission; prepare an elevator pitch.

This is so important and something we recognise we need to address. How about: 'We connect people at a grass roots level..... We do this through a variety of events, clubs and activities that all aim to bring people together in ways that are enjoyable and positive for the environment and society.

Offer the space to existing local charities to use for their meetings and so on.

We are very keen to do this and hope local like-minded organisations come along and use our space for meetings and events.

Word of mouth is very powerful as is networking through events like this.

We are trying to network as best we can through things like Transition Cheltenham and we hope our events create a buzz around the charity... please spread the word!

Charge users a nominal fee [to use the space at FootSteps]

We do intend to charge a small fee to hire out our space once it is in a nice usable state. We also have an option for organisations to be members of Global Footsteps, which would give them discounts on hiring spaces etc, as well as in the shop/cafe.

Screen environmental and educational films

We are very keen to do this and are working out a way to do this without breaking license laws, if anyone has any suggestions please get in touch!

Could you benefit from using Community Service people for labouring?

I'm sure we could, we are desperately in need of someone to help co-ordinate the manual work that we need to do, someone with DIY skills who wants to get their teeth into a worthwhile project, do you know anyone?

Contact the Eco-housing set up in Stroud, about their ecological building experience.

Thanks for this suggestion, I looked them up and the co-housing project sounds brilliant, perhaps we'll invite them up to FootSteps to give a talk and some advice. Follow this weblink for more: http://www.cohousing.org.uk/springhill-cohousing

Focus on Poverty in Cheltenham + Gloucester(shire)

We recognise the huge social and economic inequalities that exist here and would love to do something practical to address this as well as spread awareness of this problem. .

Run day trips / weekend trips for people on modest income

This feeds in to the above and is a great idea, who wants to come help us to make this happen? Where shall we go?!

Use the space for various craft-making classes

Yes please! If you want to start something up please get in touch!

More language classes

We have a history of providing language classes and want to resurrect it, we already have people who can teach French, Russian, Tamil and Bengali in our membership. If there is a demand for lessons then I'm sure we can get them going.

Bike repair clinics, maybe located at Freinds Meeting House

Another great idea, we have a few people who I think could offer this, I know that I could do with learning a bit more myself! One of our members has even written books on Cycle craft!

Frock Swap

Simple but really great idea, thanks for this, whoever wrote it down are you up for helping to organise and run a Frock Swap event?!

Have a low cost meal night - meal and a drink for a fiver

Great idea this, the shop floor is a nice cosy spot to have a meal and we have the facilities downstairs for people to join together to cook it. Any budding chefs fancy it?!

Thanks again to everyone who came last night and contributed your ideas, you've seen the resources we have, but the most important resource we have is YOU! Please get in touch if you want to help us to bring people together by the grass roots!

Email info@global-footsteps.org to get involved!

Can you host students from China this summer?

I'd like to draw your attention to a request in the Cheltenham Weihai Link newsletter. I hope you can help.

Students from Weihai

In July two groups of young people from Weihai will be coming to Cheltenham to study on the summer English Language courses at Gloucestershire college. The College are short of families to host in the Cheltenham area and ask that if anyone would be interested in having some Weihai students please contact Wendy Clark at GlosColl on 01242 532007 or Annette Wight, 01242 264311 (Annette.Wight@cheltenham.gov.uk) for a form. The first group will be here from 11 July for 3 weeks and the second group from 19 July for 2 weeks.

If you can offer any accomodation that would be great. We are keen to build our links with Weihai over the next few years, hopefully if we can host one or two students it will help us to build this relationship.

Alison and Glenn meet up with like minded organisations in Torun

As part of a holiday in Poland, Morgan (Woodland) and I met up with Glenn “Our man in Torun” and over a 3 day period (9-11 May) met up with representatives from 4 different organisations with a view to them participating in the Cadca conference, and identified a possible 5^th organisation. A productive time.

Our first call was to the forest school in the Barbarka Forest near Torun, an organisation previously identified and visited by Howard. www.szkola-lesna.torun.pl/index.php?id=102 At an extremely productive meeting we met Monika Krause, who works there, and Zbignew from the environmental NGO Tilia, who help to fund the project. www.tilia.org.pl They were extremely interested in attending the conference, and have subsequently booked, without requesting any subsidy. They run an environmental centre deep in the Barbarka forest (12km north of Torun). They educate school children about nature and have a really good set up (funded by EU support from Iceland, Norway, etc). During the week they educate school children and then at weekends members of the public and tourists swarm to the place for pleasure (there are many trails, a lake, mini golf, tree assault course, etc). So although there is tourism, with its impact on the environment they are primarily an educational and environmental organisation, and share our ethos on sustainability.

They have a hostel and hotel which would actually be a perfect location for a future Global Footsteps conference with a large room catering up to 150 people. They are looking for similar minded NGOs to link up with...and so they would be very beneficial to join the GF network.

As we returned to Torun, we came across a poster advertising a picnic and barbeque the previous day in aid of Fair Trade day. Some detective work on the computer on our return to the hostel revealed a website which seemed to have information about various environmental activities throughout Torun www.ekologiczny.torun.pl It also included a map and addresses of other environmental NGOs, so we got emailing, and managed to set up two more meetings at short notice.

Rowerowy Torun is a cycling campaigning and capacity building group www.rowerowytorun.com.pl
We met Joanna (nickname Asia) and Pawel in their run-down offices, and gave them the presentation and explained about Global Footsteps.

Joanna explained that they are quite a new organisation, about 4 years old. They are working on the council to improve the cycling infrastructure in Torun, and they want to improve the image of cycling as a means of transport, once the infrastructure is improved. She said In Poland it is only quite recently that cars have become affordable for many people - and everybody wants one. Although they are quite well known in the city - they have a regular critical mass cycle ride - she feels that people don't understand why there is a need for an organisation for assisting cycling. They are a very grassroots organisation - I think they only have volunteers, although they had some funding for a specific project to advise the council on cycle lanes etc. They have just got a rickshaw bike which they use to generate electricity for their sound system on the critical mass. We told them about Dennis’s adventure cycling from Torun to Cheltenham on a similar machine. Like Barbarka, they understand the sustainability agenda. They are circulating details about the conference to their members, and are keen to be represented, but would certainly need some funding if they were to come. I would certainly recommend that they would be good candidates. Joanna said how hard work it was, and that working so locally on such a specific issue, it was hard to see how they fitted in with the big picture, but of course she agreed with think global, act local etc. So encouragement through links with what else is going on in the world would be great.

The following morning we had a very interesting meeting in a lovely cafe (sampling the cheesecake and apple cake) with Basia Witek from Pracownia Zrównoważonego Rozwoju, a sustainable development organisation based in Torun. www.pzr.org.pl Again they are quite a new NGO - about 4 years. Basia is a fairly new volunteer, in her 20s, who got involved in helping to apply for funding and do community consultations. Krzysztof Slebioda the director, wanted to join us, but his wife is pregnant and they had a medical appointment. So the people involved seem to be young. The main event they organise is laying turf on the main town square, for a day in June - with stalls selling eco-goods, local food, etc etc. encouraging a family day out with an important message. They are very much into the Global Footsteps message about making connections and community building, as well as sustainability.
As she is a fairly new volunteer, Basia couldn't commit the organisation to anything, but they have weekly meetings on a Monday, and she will report about our meeting, and possibly arrange for Glenn to visit at a later date, or come back to us with more questions.

Our meeting with Bartosz from AIESEC was also very promising. www.torun.aiesec.pl He is interested in sending a representative to the conference, and I think they will be useful, as they are good networkers, like us. For example he told us that they arrange for international students to run workshops in local schools about the country that they come from. Also they take part in summer camps for local school children, and they have organised skills workshops for local unemployed people. They are interested in the international links we have made, and also in the local links in Torun - they don't seem to know about PZR at the moment. I think it would be useful for them to attend as networkers, but also as an organisation who can give a presentation on what they do. I encouraged them to send a representative, and he said he would report back to their committee and be in touch. He indicated that they would need financial help.

Finally, Monika from Barbarka put us in touch with Zbigniew Szalbot, who organised the Fair Trade picnic. We didn’t have time to meet him, but he responded to my email with interest, saying they will “soon be creating an organization (a co-op) that will have as its goal taking on board unemployed people and offering them work.” He said they could not afford the fee, but I encouraged him to arrange a meeting with Glenn to take discussions further.

It has been great to get a brief sense of what is going on environmentally at a grass roots level in another country. I was inspired to meet these people, and hope we develop lasting links with their organisations.