International

Time is such a funny concept and a lesson I’ve learned since being in Egypt is that we as a society put entirely too much emphasis on it. So, even though I’ve now been in Egypt for just over two months and I’ll be leaving soon, it feels simultaneously like time went by in a flash and like I’ve been here forever. The truth is that this internship has been really good for me and I feel like it’s done for me exactly what I was hoping it would. I’ve learned so much about myself and where I want to go from here, and I’ll be going into the future with my eyes wide open. However, that’s not to say that the experience has been all good and easy – far from it. It’s been extremely trying and difficult for me. I’ve never felt like such a fish out of water and it’s forced me to leave behind everything I know and feel comfortable with. More than that, it has forced me to question myself and the way I live my life at every turn

As a woman in Egypt, it’s been particularly difficult. I have always been very independent and I have always stood up for my feminist beliefs. Nothing was going to get me down, I was woman and I was going places. Well, Egypt has definitely tested my resolve. My internship at CARE International in Egypt has been in the Women’s Rights Program and the truth is that it’s been really depressing. Women in Egypt face so many challenges in so many different ways. I know I’m a foreigner, so it may be slightly different, but women in general here are harassed just walking down the street. I’ve never felt so uncomfortable in my own skin and why should men, boys even, have the right to make me or any woman feel that way? What really makes me angry is that almost everyone acknowledges the importance of women when it comes to development. We’ve learned it in class and I’ve heard it reiterated here in the field – if you want to make a difference, you have to get to the women. Educate the mother and you’ll educate the family. Train the women and you’ll increase productivity. Increase a woman’s income and she’ll spend it on the family. Women are the gate keepers; they are your entry point into the community. Yet, women’s inferior position within this society is so institutionalized in the economy, in the political system, and in the culture that their importance is overlooked and the respect they deserve often goes unrecognized

In addition, through one of CARE Egypt’s projects to end violence against women, CARE Egypt conducted a study in order to assess the extent of the situation and the different forms that violence against women can take in poor, rural areas. Unfortunately, many women live in heartbreaking conditions and must deal with many forms of violence, which include, but are not limited to: wife beating, female genital mutilation, inheritance denial, compulsory marriage, sexual harassment within the family, honor crimes, gender inequity within the family, wives’ incarceration, arbitrary divorce and wife abandonment. One of my tasks during my internship has been to help translate and edit these women’s stories into English in order to use them as testimonials that portray the dire circumstances within which they live. These testimonials are then used in reports, at conferences and in demonstrating need to potential donors and funding organizations. It has been eye-opening and very difficult to say the least. These women face unparalleled horrors in their daily lives and there is simply nowhere for them to turn.

Fortunately, there are many organizations that are bringing light to these issues and are working tirelessly to overcome them, such as CARE Egypt. During my internship, I have had the privilege to work with an amazing group of people on several projects that are trying to face these challenges head-on. I have also had the opportunity to work with the AIDS and Reproductive Health program and the Agriculture and Natural Resources program during my time at CARE, and I have seen firsthand how truly cross-cutting gender issues are. I know I learned these lessons over and over again in my university courses, but there’s something reassuring about seeing them actually play out in the field. It gives me a greater sense of preparedness when it comes to pursuing a career in development. I am now confident that the tools and knowledge I have learned in school were not just theoretical, but directly applicable to the field. Moreover, as it turns out, that compulsory third year development research course came in handy! I have learned that NGOs often have to perform their own initial research before implementing a project in order to understand the situation on the ground and to tailor the project to the circumstances in the field, especially in developing countries where reliable data can be hard to come by. I have also seen first hand how projects really must be adapted to the target group, including their cultural customs and beliefs, or else they will surely fail. Even something as foreign to me as the cultural belief in the “evil eye” that can often be ignored and overlooked by ‘outsider’ international organizations can have enormous impacts on the success of a planned project

This is all to say that I truly have seen the intersection of theory and practice throughout my internship in a way that I was never able to in my previous coop experiences. So, I started this blog entry explaining that the experience I have had here in Egypt has been difficult, but most things that are difficult end up being very rewarding in the end. This internship has given me the opportunity to explore where the classroom meets the field and how to use the tools and skills I have gained to work in the space where the two inevitably cross over.

At first, the city was so big yet somehow very isolating. But that’s Cairo – a study in contrasts. The greater Cairo area is extremely densely inhabited with an estimated population of 17 million. So, why was it isolating? With big cities in developing countries comes erratic driving, hectic traffic, irregular street patterns, and a lack of signs (and those that do exist are rarely in English). The result: one colleague said to me, “Don’t take a taxi, don’t take the metro and don’t walk anywhere by yourself, it’s too dangerous.” “How am I supposed to get around?” I thought. I quickly learned that this type of advice came not only from my colleague’s fear for me because I was a foreigner and therefore understandably lost, but also because of the suspicion that exists between classes in Egypt. Wealthier Egyptians almost always have a driver, and they think taxis and the metro are frequented by the poor (which they are, just like public transportation anywhere in the world). So, they associate these transportation systems with criminal behaviour. Once I learned how to use both the metro and taxis, I’ve found them to be safe and easy to use. Now if taxis could just discover seatbelts, we’d be set.

Walking is a whole other story, and the biggest risk I face here in Cairo is the very real possibility that I could be hit by a car before I leave. There are no traffic lights, people walk in the streets because sidewalks are in awful condition or are non-existent, and there are no crosswalks. There’s a flow to the traffic here and one has to learn to go with it. At least I bought really good travel insurance!

While Cairo is a very modern city where a westerner can find anything s/he wants, it’s also a blend of old and new. It’s still in a developing country with all the infrastructure issues that one would expect: the waste disposal system is inadequate (garbage is everywhere, and people litter without a second thought); transportation regulations are problematic; issues with pollution and smog; a serious problem with street animals; sanitary conditions are often poor; and, of course, there are slums. Moreover, despite the fact that Egypt has the second largest GDP in Africa at US$470.4 billion (PPP), the gap between the rich and the poor is still significant. Poverty is widespread. Tipping (called baksheesh) is very common here, and people give a small tip (1 or 2 Egyptian pounds or roughly 20 or 40 cents Canadian) for just about everything (e.g. helping you park your car on a cramped street). A colleague told me, “This is how we help the poor and ensure that they don’t starve.” However, baksheesh is just a Band-Aid for a wound that runs deep: a systemic inequality present on many levels, which cannot be fixed by providing money alone, no matter how large the sum.

Finally, women in Egypt face systematic discrimination and numerous challenges because of their gender. At CARE, I work in the Women’s Rights Program, and I have seen the plight that Egyptian women face. Nevertheless, I have also seen the progress that has been made by CARE and other NGOs and the difference that they make for marginalized and disadvantaged groups. I’m proud to say that I finally feel like I’m putting my education and my experience to work, and I’d like to think that I’m helping in some small way. The road to a poverty-free, discrimination-free, healthy, and prosperous Egypt is long but not impossible (insha’allah).

It is sad to imagine the end of this workterm and the end of this amazing journey. Unlike many of the other internships I still have three weeks left, but reality is sinking in that soon I will have to return back to Canada and I lament this feeling.

As I mentioned in my last post, we had the Cairo American College visit our Centre for their Week Without Walls. It was such a great experience. The group was small, but all the students were bright and were constantly challenging me in an intellectual way. Only one student was Egyptian while the other 11 were citizens of Canada, the United States, Italy, Japan and South Korea. Although their passports may connect these students to their native country, they are in actuality global citizens. Most of them were not even born in their country of residence and all have lived in multiple nations, including Bangladesh, South Africa, Nigeria, Qatar and Australia. Although there are many activities I could note, the most successful was the Community Service Day. Visiting from a local school were Egyptian students with physical and mental disabilities. I was worried that the day would be a failure because the Egyptians students could not speak English and aside from the one lone Egyptian, the other CAC students could not speak Arabic. But, I ended up being fascinated at how easily the students were able to communicate and was amazed at how quickly friendships formed in as little as a day.

We had the American International School (AIS) visit our facility in mid-March. The dynamic was quite different from CAC, but the program turned out to be a success. A most positive note for this group was their complete honesty during a candid conversation about wealth distribution and class differences. Openly the students shared how they viewed people of lower socio-economic backgrounds. Their sincere responses enabled a productive discussion, whereby we were truly able to breakdown walls and stereotypes.

Unfortunately March is sandstorm season and so we were hit with a horrible storm leaving our Centre the day the AIS students were to depart. Of course our Centre is in the desert and we had to make our way back to Cairo on the “Desert Highway”. We formed a convoy, Dr. Adly and I leading the school bus and a teacher’s car until we reached a more amiable area. Although I have traveled in snowstorms, I was in awe of the sandstorm.

Although March was yet again a busy month I had a chance to take some vacation time and go to Luxor. Luxor is one of my favourite places in Egypt, due to the backdrop of the mountains, the agricultural fields around, and the more than usual clean streets. It is also home to the Valley of the Kings, Valley of the Queens, Karnak Temple, Luxor Temple, etc. On a previous trip years past I visited these sights, so this time my trip was leisurely/ I was able to bask in the sun.

Safe travels to everyone making their way back to Canada at present and I hope everyone has had a pleasant experience at their internships.

Cheers,
Zabrina

February has passed by so quickly that I am unsure where the time has gone.

The first two weeks of the month were spent working for the American Embassy. The Mediterranean Centre was contracted by the Embassy to play host to a US government funded program called the RELO ACCESS Scholarship program. ACCESS is a two year course where underprivileged students accepted into the program learn English and about western culture 3 times a week. The students visiting our facility were ages 14-16 and had all graduated from the program in the Fall. They came to our Centre to learn about sustainable development, citizenship and how to create an Alumni Network that would be completely student-run. Nearly 200 students came over a two-week period from 6 different Egyptian cities. All of these students were keen, intelligent and respectful. They had a strong desire to learn about western culture and all wanted to travel abroad. Despite the success of the program it was disheartening to know that as bright as these children are, due to the employment problem in Egypt and due to high university costs (at schools like the American University in Cairo), many of these children will be handicap from achieving their dreams. I know their visit to our facility will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience that they will remember forever.

Of course the most fortunate students were in the first session, and were present when the American Ambassador came on a visit. Although our Centre is very safe, the local government became involved and decided to try to benefit themselves from the Ambassador’s visit and came to the Centre as well. As a result, we had thousands of security around our property, from Nile river patrol to armed guards at all the entrances. And the governor and his entourage, having no respect for the facility and it’s concept of zero-waste and sustainability, left our property with litter all around. However, despite the headaches for management staff like myself, the Ambassador’s visit was a great success and the children were touched. [ I have attached a link to the New York Times article written about the program, the Ambassador's visit and our Centre:http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/06/world/middleeast/06cairo.html?_r=2&ref=world ]

Presently, I am writing a report to be submitted to the Embassy post the program. As well, I am preparing for our next school program. On Sunday, we have 13 students coming from Cairo American College, which is one of the leading international (elementary and secondary) schools in Egypt. They will come to visit our Centre for 5 days, which is called “A Week Without Walls”. All the high school students leave the school for a week and travel around the world to do community service. Some students, like the ones visiting our Centre, remain in Egypt. The students visiting us will do activities related again, to sustainable development, and related to lessons about poverty. They will also spend a day with disadvantaged and orphaned children. I am eager to meet all of the CAC students, as it is a small group and all are from different cultures and backgrounds.

Aside from work, I am teaching myself Arabic with from my boss’s children. I love living in Egypt and especially like having a tan in the middle of winter (sorry to anyone reading this in Canada).

Zabrina

Hello Everyone,

I have been working in Egypt for 3 weeks, so although I feel like I am now in the swing of things  it was definitely a crazy start. This is primarily due to a blizzard in Halifax the day I was supposed to fly out to Toronto - no flights were landing or taking off. I was told that if my flight didn’t go out that I wouldn’t be able to fly out until January 8th due to backups from all the winter storms (the day I was flying out was January 1st). Amazingly, my flight was one of the only ones to leave that day and it was clear flying from there.

My bosses had emailed me over the Christmas break to ask if I would mind starting work early. I was supposed to start on January 5th, but they needed me to start January 3rd, the day I arrived. So, after having landed at 2 am in Cairo, my bosses picked me up at my hotel at 8 am, having not really had the opportunity to sleep yet, and I was off to the desert by noon.

The organization that I am working for is called the Mediterranean Centre for Sustainable Development - we make programs for schools and companies teaching them about sustainable living in Cairo. In the desert we have a facility where the students/companies come to learn about the programs we have created. The facility is beautiful, but there is no heating in any of the buildings. One would think this is not a problem giving that Egypt is so warm. However the desert gets very cold at night, so you need to sleep with many layers (I sleep with a sleeping bag, a blanket, and a comforter, a hoodie and gloves on). Secondly, the city turns off our water from 1-3pm and 8pm-7am. This is not an uncommon practice in Egypt, and often the wealthier Egyptians have water heaters to prevent from being inconvenienced. The hardest adjustment to being in the desert, however, is the wild dogs barking in the desert at night. I sleep in the administration building so then I have a 1000ft walk to the washrooms - it’s very intimidating at night to go from my lodging to the bathroom!

Already I have had the opportunity to work with Egyptian children. The students that came to our facility in January are from the wealthiest families of Alexandria. The children travel frequently so they are well informed about international cultures. Yet I was suprised how  very little they knew about the environment and how they felt it was not their responsibility to keep their country clean. (For anyone who has been to Egypt you would know that as beautiful as this country is, there is litter everywhere). The children were also very misinformed about Egypt’s poverty, so we had many activities that taught them about poverty in not only Egypt but all of Africa. The entire experience was rewarding though, and the children were an absolute pleasure. In 10 days we will have another program at our facility whereby we will have 200 students over 12 days. All of these students are coming from government schools and from poorer homes. This experience will be very different from my first one.

Although I have travelled to Egypt in the past, I am liking this experience more than the others. I am getting to know the culture, the food and the customs and am being treated like a local and not a tourist. I can say confidently that I am enjoying my workterm.