[Stoves] What is poor ?

[Richard Stanley]

from the frozen glacier of Dar es Salaam, 

The cell phone is becoming the tool for communciation here, big time. Everyone sends text messages very littel spokn com as it is far more expensive. In fact, one tell when one is getting a call locally because someone calls, then hangs up, leaving you to foot the bill of replying..
There is group called Envya started by an ex peace corps turned silicone valley entrepreneur . Envaya is a way of linking the cell phone user (ubiquitous ) to the internet (still, not so ubiquitous) ---or accessable.  
There is very little "jungle path" to speak of anyway.. Its more a question of too much traffic if anything. 
But we-- in our recent infamous linguist-presidents word's--- misunderestimate the power of work of mouth too. 

 Brrr. so damn cold here !!!
Richard 

On Nov 21, 2011, at 9:23 AM, Crispin Pemberton-Pigott wrote:

> Dear Richard
> 
> I always appreciate your descriptions of how your initiative is spreading
> like a disease - infecting everyone with newly evolved strains and coming
> round again for second kick.
> 
> In order to inoculate people against it one would need a pretty big subsidy.
> 
> Just having fun...
> Press on
> Crispin
> ++++++
> 
> Mwalimu Paul et al: 
> 
> If one defines poverty as not only on the simple basis of cash income, fine
> but if one really wants to dive in, then one has to define it as a condition
> of hopelessness and lack of opportunity or will to participate in life. But
> therin lies the quandry: Then those of us in the "west" may need a big
> mirror: Then maybe we all better look a lot more closely at industrialized
> society, not just the third world .
> 
> Our own two cents  on it over the past few decades,  is that everyone has
> something unique to contribute. No one is an object to be pitied  and
> "helped" unless the situation is sudden and catastrophic. It is not the
> material sign of wealth but that needs to be "targeted" first, as much as it
> is a more fundamental issue: The capacity for solutions often very unique
> ones, is usually there is you dig deep enough. It is the setting for the
> unleashing of natural human tendency for survival in just social
> circumstances that needs to be most addressed. it is as much or more of
> problem in the US part of the Ameicas today as it is in the third world. 
> 
> You don't  want to approach it as working with someone as a potential
> recipient of your benifiscence, but as a potential participant  in a process
> of shared discovery and contribution. This is not Mother Theresa stuff but
> rather jut plain pracitcal common sense: You do nto want to create a trail
> of dependence upon your efforts : Rather youd like to see it all take off on
> its own two feet eh ?  If that all sounds a bit vacuous,  then heres
> somethign more specific: Last week up in the Usambaras, or Tanzania, we
> reconnected with some core producer-trainer teams from amongst the Mkombozi,
> Likozi and Wema groups whom we have been in contact with since 2007. They
> all would nicely qualify as "poor". They make briquettes presses and provide
> training. Thye do all of these things bette than we can and differently than
> we originally taught them. 
> They had devised   new blends and strategies for disrtibution of briquettes
> and application in stoves, a novel divider to double the produciton in  the
> new ratchet press we are developing with Steve Kitutu up in Arusha,  etc
> etc. What a kick to learn what the fellow citisens have to contribute. No
> aid has given these groups beyond initial training and funds to construct
> their own building (It rains alot there).
> 
> One can find similar innovation in the slums of Kangemi Kenya with such as
> the $5 buck press of Francis Oloo, or the "chewey" briquette of Zaugia and
> Marietta in Lushoto, or George Owino's clever adaptation of the side fed
> stove in rural Uganda. I come along with a bright idea about making sausage
> briquettes with the conventional mini- Bryant press and I will soon be back
> in contact with Mzee Senkenge  in Doche village to see how he and the
> production team there has adapted  the idea, to make it work better--or for
> that matter, rejected it as impractical.
> 
> The next step is to find a way to insure that ideas like this get
> communicated fairly, with due reference to the sources-- something that
> needs to be taught to us back home as much as here it seems.
> 
> Who is poor? 
> 
> Pressing on,
> 
> Richard Stanley
> 
> 
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