WUSC Learning Days
15 mars 2010 | Nadine, stagiaire, SOS Village Children BotswanaGreetings from Botswana!
These last few days was WUSC’s (World University of Canadas’) Learning Days, which means all of the Canadian volunteers got to meet up in Ghanzi and D’Kar to debrief about our placements and receive some additional cultural training. Ghanzi is the “Capital of the Kalahari,” situated in the Kalahari Desert. I was very surprised at the vegetation that I found here. For some reason which probably has to do with my childhood movies, I pictured the desert as being stripped of all vegetation and life. However, there were many patches of grass amongst the sandy surface of the Kalahari. We stayed at a lodge called Trailblazers, and lived in the wood and mud roundavals that were traditionally built by the San people (also known as Bushmen, although this term has been labeled as derogatory.) The San are native hunter gatherers that used (and some still do) to reside in the Central Kalahari and lived off of roots and Game. The political enjeux of the San people can be compared to that of the Canadian Aborginals – they are fighting to use and live off of their ancestors land.
We had a demonstration of how the San use to find different types of medicinal and nutritional roots on an early morning walk. We had a translator as many San still use their native languages. It was really interesting to hear them speak, as their language uses ‘cliks’ which is when your tongue hits the roof of your month to produce “clicking” sounds. We were also treated to a traditional dance demonstration by a few locals, around a campfire. Their dances, a part from being a form of entertainment, were mainly used to thank the Gods for the food they had slain during the day.
During the day, we visited D’Kar, home to the Kuru family of organizations. D’Kar was a village that was founded by a missionary church in the 1960’s, who wanted to assure land to the San people. It has grown and expanded over the years, to accommodate a few thousand indigenous people as well as to provide schooling, healthcare and community resources catered to fit the needs of the San. The Kuru foundation is a division of the D’Kar Village Trust, that mostly focuses on preservation of the culture and economic development of the San. In order to counter these often opposite ideas, they have established an art project that feature traditional paintings. This cultural initiative is also an economic strategy as when a painting is sold, 40% is given to the D’Kar Community and 60% is given directly to the artist. The KURU foundation is also helping to develop Game Farms for the San to be able to profit from the rapid growing tourist industry in the region. The lodge we were staying at, although it is not under KURU, is an initiative from which a San Community runs a lodge, with the help of an investor. It is difficult for the San to start initiatives without the help of a Motswana or a Foreigner, as they often do not speak much English or Setswana, and cannot file the appropriate government documentation, which is not available in their mother tongues.
In the evening, at the Lodge, we made roasted marshmallows over the fire and shared them with the San dancers! They loved them! It was a really nice getaway that WUSC arranged for us. Meeting and learning about the San has made me realize how little I know about the customs of Aboriginals in Canada and has given me an interest in studying this culture.
Only a few weeks left!