newsonaut
Turning inner space into outer space
Monday, July 31, 2017
How my web skills helped cultural tourism in Tanzania
The three weeks I spent in Tanzania as a volunteer web designer in the Leave for Change program were a perfect fit for me. Except for Joomla, but even that turned out to be a blessing in disguise.
When I first heard about the program at Thompson Rivers University, I was working as an auxiliary, which meant I wasn’t qualified to apply. It was also soon after having been laid off my job of over 20 years at the Kamloops Daily News. The family financial picture was uncertain, to say the least.
But three years later, I was on full-time and my wife agreed that this too good an opportunity to pass up.
I went to the Uniterra website to check out Leave for Change openings and was surprised to find a couple of openings for web designers. The one in Tanzania seemed closer to what I was doing in TRU’s marketing and communications department, so I made it my first choice when applying.
A few months later I was on my way.
Looking back on it, I can’t really say why I was so nervous about going. I worried about every little detail, even though I had been assured by other volunteers that the organization would take good care of me. And in fact, they did.
I was greeted at the airport and taken to a beautiful bed-and-breakfast in Arusha, a city near Mount Kilimanjaro. In fact, I viewed this fabled peak from the airplane on the way in. It was an impressive sight.
In spite of a warm welcome, I found myself overwhelmed by the foreign-ness of the place. The closest that I have come to a similar country was Sri Lanka back in 1982. I was a lot younger then, and a lot more fearless.
I felt not so much cultural shock as cultural overload. There was just so much to take in.
Needless to say, I adapted. And what helped — as I mentioned at the beginning — was the fact that my assignment was a perfect fit. The work set out for me on the Tanzania Cultural Tourism website was a lot like the work I’ve been doing for years at TRU.
Updating. Coding. Editing. Organizing.
It all came together because it was stuff I was already used to doing. The upside to being an old pro (the downside being that you’re old) is that you have confidence that you can solve pretty much any problem that gets thrown your say.
The first problem, and the biggest, was trying to figure out Joomla. This is a content management system along the lines of WordPress. Unlike WordPress, it is poorly documented and ugly as sin.
At first I struggled to do the simplest tasks. How do you update an article? It can’t be that hard. One thing that helped immensely was a theme I found for the back end that at least cleaned up the clutter and made the interface look like something that was designed in this century.
I persevered and eventually discovered how to do all the things I needed to do. The key was creating my own documentation. I wrote down where everything was, along with step-by-step instructions on how to get stuff done.
So how was this a blessing? By teaching myself I was better able to teach others.
The bulk of the assignment entailed updating a website that hadn’t been updated in five years. A lot had changed, and a lot hadn’t been coded correctly in the first place. It was a big job.
But the other half of the assignment, which in some ways was more important, was to leave behind the knowledge I had gained. Those step-by-step instructions I created for myself forced me to break things down into manageable bits of training for three staff members of the Tanzania Tourism Board.
They had initially wanted me to work with their IT department on training. But I assured them that using a CMS to update a website was no more difficult than using Microsoft Word to update a document.
They were pleasantly surprised to learn that I was right.
The real test, of course, will be to see whether they actually do keep the site up to date now that I’m back in Canada. They have my email address, and I offered several times to give them guidance if they need it.
My fear is that the staff is quite small, and even with the best of intentions they just might not find the time to do the updates. Other things might take priority. We’ve all been there.
Regardless of the outcome, I’m satisfied with what I accomplished in 12 working days. I did as much as humanly possible for a good cause.
Cultural tourism, which I had never heard of before, is a great idea. Local groups around the country organize tours of their village or region, and apply to the Tanzania Tourism Board for support. They must meet strict guidelines.
I saw one such enterprise in a place called Tengeru. The people there were incredibly friendly. To a certain extent, it was rehearsed — how could it not be? — but I also felt a genuine warmth.
The day consisted of two main parts: a coffee tour and a canoe ride at a nearby lake. Our guide had a great personality and proved to be quite knowledgable. His English was impeccable. The fact that he had experience guiding tourists on Kilimanjaro probably didn’t hurt.
I learned where coffee comes from, and had a lot of fun doing it.
But the best part was knowing that most of the money people spend on these tours (I met three Americans and three Belgians while there) stays in the community for local initiatives such as education and health care.
The website I worked on helps promote these tours. Visitors and tour operators can refer to it and find something that suits them. Pretty much everyone who visits Tanzania comes for Kilimanjaro, the Serengeti or Zanzibar. But they often have a few days where they are at loose ends, and these cultural tours are a great way to fill the gap.
If I was even in some small way able to keep these tours thriving, I will indeed be quite happy.
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Wednesday, July 26, 2017
A day in the life of a web designer in Tanzania
First, you have to get there. That means surviving wall-to-wall people at Addis Ababa airport.
But it’s all worthwhile because you start your day with a glorious sunrise like this.
Or on a sunny day, like this.
I stayed in a nice little bed-and-breakfast type place.
It was called Adia’s Place. Adia made me breakfast every morning, except for a couple of days she took off to have a baby.
This dude did the laundry and other stuff.
This guy drove me to work every day.
Why did I need a driver? Because you never knew who might be lying in wait at the side of the road.
Lions.
Cheetahs.
Leopards.
So we had to drive fast.
I didn’t work in a clock tower, but it was near a clock tower.
So here’s the building where I actually worked.
I shared a tiny space with other volunteers.
It seemed even smaller when these guys moved in.
And this guy.
Luckily, we had some other guys building new furniture for us.
The boss was kind of grumpy.
And this guy was kind of shifty.
I never did find out what these guys did.
After working really hard, I got a promotion and moved into this office.
On coffee breaks, we had fresh coffee. Really fresh.
First, we would pick the beans.
Then we would dry the beans.
Then we would shell them.
And roast them.
And, of course, grind them.
Finally, we had a nice drink of coffee.
By the time that was over, it was time for lunch. We went to a nice place by the lake.
And had a hearty meal for $3.
For dessert, it was bananas.
Sometimes, we would have company for lunch.
And more company.
By the time I was done lunch, it would be time to go home.
The wildebeest crossings could really slow you down.
But the turtles were even worse.
Finally, I made it home.
And had that great feeling that I had found my TRU
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Sunday, October 23, 2011
Like letters to the editor, protests deserve respect
A recent editorial in The Daily News dismisses the Occupy Kamloops protest as a lame excuse to rally for people who have nothing better to do. Criticisms like this have been levelled at the Occupy Wall Street movement in general: Why don’t they get a job? Or, if they do have jobs, what right do they have to complain?
I’m not going to use this space to argue the specifics for or against Occupy. But it does bother me that people living in a democracy would be so contemptuous of people exercising their right to free speech. This is something we, especially journalists, should be nurturing.
I liken it to letters to the editor. As you can imagine, I’ve seen many of them in the decades I’ve worked at newspapers. In the vast majority of cases, people have attempted to put some thought into what they say. And they don’t take it lightly. In there entire lives, most people will only write maybe one or two letters to the editor. Something really has to push them to it.
It’s true that there are some prolific writers, who have something to say about everything. And there are also the ones on the fringe, whose scribbles barely make sense. But I would say those are the exception to the rule. And even if they weren’t, I would still respect them. The freedom to say what you want in a public forum should never be taken for granted.
And so when I look at Occupy protest, I see a muddled message. I see people who angry, but not sure why they’re angry. Those things I can shrug off. But I can’t turn may back on the fact that these people have the courage of their convictions. And that’s something I always respect.
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Tuesday, September 20, 2011
The troubling turn against science in the U.S.
Did you know that only one of 16 people running for president of the United States for the Republican party “believes” in evolution? Did you know that one them claims the HPV (human papilloma virus) vaccine makes girls retarded?
We all know why politicians make certain statements — they’re pandering to what they feel will get them elected. In the United States, many candidates seem to think an anti-science attitude will get them to the White House.
It’s alarming because science — and it’s application in technology — is what has made the U.S. the most powerful nation in the history of the world. Its achievements are unparallelled. American scientists routinely receive the lion’s share of Nobel prizes for science. Even the country’s most ardent enemies have a grudging admiration for Americans’ technological achievements.
Would this all go down the drain if an anti-science Republican were elected president? We can only hope that common sense would prevail. Still, if science were to fall into disrepute in the U.S., there would be serious repercussions for Canada and the world. Without American leadership, we would be seriously hampered in our quest for medical breakthroughs that enhance our lifestyles and technological innovations that drive the economy.
History shows that every great nation or empire has a fatal weakness. A growing bias against science may eventually prove to be fatal for Americans.
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Friday, April 29, 2011
I know just how she feels
Grace van Cutsem, 3, has clearly had enough. Photo: Reuters/Darren Staples.
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Thursday, April 28, 2011
Talk about a waste of taxpayers' money
Well, someone has to say it: the royal wedding that takes place tonight is a waste of money, and little more than a public relations exercise designed to keep a bunch of rich twits living in the luxury to which they have become accustomed. Tom the Dancing Bug, a comic strip by Ruben Bolling, sums it up quite nicely. The descendants of English tyrants have sucked us into fawning all over them, and paying for their extravagant lifestyle.
You can see the rest of the comic here.
What’s particularly galling is the way the media — my colleagues — have joined in the swooning. Why aren’t they acting like real journalists, asking tough questions, demanding to know why taxpayers’ money is being spent on this over-the-top posh wedding. If public funds were being spent on a so-called commoner’s wedding, we’d be all over it.
I’m not saying we should abolish the monarchy, although I’d certainly be open to the idea. But if they’re going to get married, let them do it on their own dime.
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Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Potassium iodide panic helps no one
The distance from Kamloops to Japan is more than 8,000 kilometres. That’s actually greater than the distance (7,314 kilometres) between Victoria and St. John’s, N.L. And yet people here have managed to work themselves up into such a state over problems at the Fukushima nuclear power plant that they’ve emptied the city’s pharmacies of potassium iodide.
The pills or droplets supposedly prevent radioactive iodine from causing thyroid cancer, but the risk of anyone in Canada being exposed to dangerous levels of radiation from Japan are somewhere between zero and nil. The chances are much greater that people will become sick by taking too much potassium iodide.
How did we get into such a state of affairs?
When we see vivid images of catastrophe in our living rooms every night, the perils of radiation seem all the more immediate — especially when Peter Mansbridge pronounces the situation to be “very, very serious.” Surveys have found that people believe television more than that of any other news medium, perhaps because seeing is believing.
Making things worse is the cynicism and distrust toward governments. It’s reached the point where many people automatically believe the opposite to be true of whatever an elected official tells them. Prime Minister Stephen Harper has told us that we need not fear dangerous levels of radiation reaching Canada. So what does that mean? A coverup? A conspiracy?
I hope common sense will start prevailing. Japan is half a world away. While the situation is dire, there is still hope that disaster can be averted. And even if a worst-case scenario plays out, we should be devoting our energy to those who truly need help — the people of Japan.
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Monday, February 21, 2011
A revolution, tweet by tweet
Do a search on Twitter for “libya” and you can read a horror unfolding minute by minute. Hundreds of people are being massacred as the Gadhafi regime clings to power in the face of mounting protests by thousands of people.
As I type this, the latest reports have jets dropping bombs on protesters. Last night there were reports of mercenaries — brought in from other African countries — shooting people in the head.
Libya’s ambassadors abroad are defecting, and rumors are rampant that Gadhafi has fled to Venezuela.
Every minute, dozens of new tweets appear. This may be the closest we can get to watching a revolution develop before our eyes.
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Friday, February 11, 2011
Mubarak's dishonour
At one point I had some sympathy for Hosni Mubarak’s desire for an honourable way out. He had ruled the roost for 30 years, and if he could be eased out with “honour,” it would make the transition easier.
But the more I think about it, the more I have to come to the conclusion that Mubarak, like all despots, plays a dangerous game. When you hold onto power with the use of force, the only way you can be removed is by an equal and opposite force.
In Mubarak’s case, he had to depend on the army and security forces to keep a lid on dissent. When the people found a way around that — by routing the police and befriending the army — the game was up.
And as for Mubarak’s so-called honour, well, many Egyptians would likely scoff at that idea when they have been treated with dishonour for decades. Mubarak and his cronies have amassed a fortune in the billions. He lives in palaces built for him in various parts of the country. And all this while ordinary Egyptians are living in poverty and have no real hope of even aspiring to middle class status — because disparities between rich and poor have become so great that a middle class no longer really exists.
In military terms, Mubarak has been discharged without honour. And he deserves it.
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Monday, January 31, 2011
Egypt's path to democracy
TRU student Tito Badawy has some legitimate concerns about the safety of his family in Egypt. From what I’ve been able to glean from various news sources, the biggest worry is not clashes with security forces but a lack of law and order. Many neighbourhoods have created vigilante groups to protect their homes and businesses from looters. So who’s doing the looting? Some say it’s the humbled police officers themselves, who were run off the streets by protesters.
The army has taken over security for the most part, but it looks like a re-organized police force is returning. It will be interesting to see how this works out, because in some cases soldiers appear to have been protecting protesters from the police. I’m betting the police will continue to be reined in by the army.
Protest organizers have now called for a million people to turn out in demonstrations. If this goes ahead, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak won’t be able to hold out any longer. I predict he will announce a transitional government and new elections. And if he’s smart, these elections will be free, fair and open.
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