LTK Issue #02 - November/December 2014

Host Homes Profiles and Mid-Phase Review

Plus: Volunteers’success stories- Interview with the Chief- Development Issues - Family Portrait - Find Your inner tribe - Committees Final Words - Success stories

LTKMAGAZINE021112ABLETEAM

SAFARI

NJEMA !

#THEONLYABLETEAM

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CONTENT

BIG STORIES SHORT STORIES DEVELOPMENT ISSUES

2 LTK

VSO MPR STORIES : - MPR Naughty - MPR: A review by the committee - Brain Twister

COMMITTEE FAREWELLS: - Social - CAD - Team Leaders

VSO Family Portraits: The volunteers

Host Homes Profiles

Climate Change

Youth Empowerment

Grow Your English Club

Ridin’ Dirty

VSO Success Story: Laura

VSO Success Story: Melvyne

My Dad is a Chief: an Inter-view

Find your inner Tribe

VSO Comments: Skylink - Placement Supervisor

Just One Africa: A visual Story

Working with my UK coun-terpart

Final Words...

There were a few late arrivals to the standard Illaramatak rendez-vous. Eventually the fuller of the two waiting matatus sped off into the desert in frustration, only to enact Wrong Turn Kimana and actually arrive at Teen Ranch after its chillaxing brother, how lame. Two of the volunteers arrival time was so Kenyan in fact, that they were actually picked up on route by the cool matatu, no such thing as an early start in this town.

After a short transgression from the Kimana highway, and bearing witness to some impressive boulders, VSO arrived at Teen Ranch and excitement was already brew-ing at the prospect of all the available sports; there was so much room for activities! The volunteers were split into pre-arranged groups, and allowed to check out the swanky accommodation which came in the form of hutentcabin things with sit down toilets! Nice. Having deposited their bags, the excitable but slightly sleepy volunteers wandered up to what can only be described as a teepee shaped cabin, an impressive structure nonetheless, for a full day of activities focused on what they had achieved so far on VSO, and where everyone was headed.Lunch time is worth a mention, the food provided was phenomenal*, like nothing we had had previously in Kenya, some said it was like a beef stroganoff, yum.

Eventually the clock struck 3, and the volunteers were finally set loose on the outward bound playground which boasted some relatively impressive facilities. Once people had changed the first stop was the climbing wall. Practically everyone had a go with the entire team cheering them on, with Raphaella setting a precedent as always, and braving the wall first, thats what we call a team leader. Abilities varied significantly; Andrea managed to scale the wall in approximately 0.0634 seconds whereas Laura is still on it. Some seemed content to gently swing from left to right while admiring the UK and others never quite made it. It was team-building at its best.Other activities included an impromptu basketball and volleyball matches while some of the cheekies snuck off in search of some happy juice for Laura and Sikwattahs’ joint birthday which conveniently fell on MPR, what a recipe!

As the sun came down over Kimana the volunteers retuned to their huttents to treat themselves to some sitting deifications and hot showers before congregating at the birthday tent/ant farm for some civilised evening goon and birthday songs. The night had officially begun. Alcohol tolerances were low after such a long stint of good behav-iour and the goon claimed some early victims but there was no stopping others. After a wobbly dinner, more alcohol arrived, whether it was needed or not, and the night proceeded at pace. There were card games in the main hall, and eventually everyone bar a few sleepies gathered around the campfire to play a detective-esque game of which there were only two survivors; Kaci and Raphaella, probably the two most sus-picious individuals in these kind of circumstances, but nonetheless both proved to be innocent. No night is complete without a good stint of truth or dare, and the MPR was no exception. Debauchery was unleashed, there was stripping and many were dared to kiss around the campfire, what a perfect opportunity to experiment. Much like climb-ing wall ability, the kisses varied significantly in both passion and teeth clashing but all provided great entertainment nonetheless. One of the volunteers eventually had con-sumed enough alcohol to declare that due to his northern roots, was up for anything, and actually removed his clothes before entering a tent and propositioning one of the sleepies in the ant farm; access was denied. As the writer I am forced to admit my memory does become hazy around this point but I do recall several of the volunteers also deciding that clothes were no longer a necessary feature of the MPR and that running down the hill to go 'swimming' in three inches of water was not only a good idea, but was positively imperative to their well-being.

After some low quality sleep, the volunteers were forced to make another early start for training in the teepee, and lord knows there were some sorry sights to behold. The sea of red and puffy eyes looked like something from a first year lecture, and some of the volunteers were but a shell of their former selves. Occasionally a volunteer had to make a tactical exit to one of the bathrooms but everything was just about held to-gether and the integrity of the session remained in tact. Luckily, the more than compe-tent MPR team had factored some of this in, and the sessions were relatively easy and relaxed. After a final, and very merciful session from the project coordinator, Yvonne, the sessions came to an end and the team was allowed to enjoy the remainder of the day how they pleased, which for most, meant sitting very still in a cool shaded place. The matatus arrived for collection at 4 o’clock to whisk away the already recovering

and once again vibrant VSO Loitokitok team. In the words of Borat, a great success!!

*Phe

nom

enal

in K

enya

with

reg

ards

to

food

mea

ns n

ot U

gali

and

Kale

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TEXT KACI VSO ICS MPR STORY

3

The Mid-Phase Review (MPR) began with a host of high ex-pectations, ones that the MPR team were committed to meet-ing despite encountering sev-eral problems from the start. Unfortunately, the MPR Com-mittee felt like a disaster case with the original venue being changed three days before it commenced due to budget constraints. Budgets were fur-ther cut a day before MPR was to begin. On top of that all of the committee members had never organized or facilitat-ed a session before, so all of us were understandably quite nervous. Despite the challeng-es facing us, we hit the ground running, setting off at 7:30am on Saturday morning to head to Teen Ranch, the new loca-tion for the MPR. Upon arriv-ing we found Teen Ranch to be not as we had expected. Yes it looked somewhat deserted but it was well stocked with sports facilities, including a volleyball area, a basketball court and a pretty sweet climbing wall. The tents we were sleeping in were equipped with a shower (that didn’t require the use of a bucket) as well as a flushable toilet; two wonders that many of the volunteers had not been able to experience for some time.

We started events with a ses-sion led by Joan. All of the ses-sions that were facilitated were conducted with confidence

TEXT EMILYMPR COMMITTEE

MID-PHA

SE REVIE

Wand professionalism as well as loads of fun. After the day’s sessions were finished we went outside to reclaim the rest of the day for fun. Congratula-tions to Andrea who climbed the wall in an impressive 25 seconds and to Laura who was determined to defeat the wall!After defeating the climbing wall everyone gathered into the dinner hall for a delicious evening meal. The whole week was spent gathering 80 shil-lings off everyone to buy a special birthday cake for Sik-wattah and Laura, the birth-day girls. The huge cake was presented at dinner with two amazingly drawn birthday cards from Andrea. Hopefully it will be a birthday that Sikwat-tah and Laura will remember. After the cake, some of us went to bed whilst others chose to stay up further into the night celebrating the birthdays with numerous drunken activities.

All in all, the Mid-Phase Review was a roaring success despite the challenges that came our way. I hope we managed to make the MPR memorable for all of the volunteers in Loitoki-tok.

VSO ICS MPR STORY

4 LTK

MID-PHA

SE REVIE

W VSO ICS MPR STORY

VSO ICS PLAY

Over the MPR, the volunteers slightly overdosed with the classic and physically aggressing energizers.

So, Felix came up with a new idea: why not twist-ing our brain and meninges rather than our ankles.

Please, take a seat and challenge our very own master of riddles.

BRAIN TWISTER

ANSWERS:

1. What English word retains the same pro-nunciation even after you take away four of its five letters?

2. What is the longest word in the world?

3. What is in the middle of Paris?

4. Who is the ruler of the beach?

5. What is harder to catch the faster you run?

6. What goes up when the rain goes down?

7. What building has the most stories?

8. The man who invented it doesn't want it, the man who bought it doesn't need it what us it?

9. What animal is your girlfriend?

10. If a man carried my burden, he would break his back, am not big but live silver in my tracks what am I?

1. A queue (Q-eue). 2. Smilse , because there is a mile be-tween the letter “S” (S-mile-s). 3. The letter “R” (Pa-R-is). 4.The Sandwich (Sandwitch).

5. Your breath. 6. Umbrella. 7. A Library. 8. A coffin. 9. A deer (dear). 10.The snail

5

VSO ICS SUCCESS STORY

Teen Ranch was the location, mid-phase review, the event and the Kilimanjaro climbing wall; the opponent.As each and every volun-teer was climbing the wall with ease, I eagerly asked for a chance to refresh my rock climbing skills.To follow Andrea’s superhero time of 27 seconds, I was nerv-ous, but confident. With my courage intact, I got strapped up and started my ascent to the top. After climbing half-way and losing my footing many times, I decided to kick off my ballet pumps to achieve ultimate grip. What a mistake I made. Barefoot on a wood-en climbing wall with only small stepping stones, never a good idea. I completely lost it. Swinging from left to right, just hanging from the rope with no hope. With my sister cheering me on, I regained my footing and tried again, reaching the image if the monkey in the tree.Before I realized, my legs turned to jelly, I couldn’t straighten them or stand up properly, and being the prissy princess that I am, I have no upper body strength. No mat-ter how hard I was trying, there was no way I was getting up even one more stepping stone.As I hit the four minute marker, I looked the monkey in the eye as if asking for support, but receiving nothing back oth-er than a blank stare straight through me.At which point, still stuck in my tracks, I asked to be let down, defeated by a pile of wood and nails. I was so gutted, so let down with myself, so dis-appointed that people wit-nessed my failure. Despite the well-wishers telling me “You did well,” and “at least you tried,” I still felt horrible. Why was I so overconfident before I went up there? Couldn’t I have just tried then to be hap-py when I came down? Clearly not.After watching person after person defeat the wall, I de-cided I needed another try. I

shifted the blame to the lack of support from my shoes and squeezed my size 6 feet into Josephine’s lovely pair of size 5 trainers. I got strapped into the harness for the second time, with determination in my eyes and assurance from my team.As I started the climb, I felt at ease, the shoes really helped, until the dreaded point where I made eye contact with that stupid monkey. I knew this was the point that my heart sank having to descend last time round, so I tried to power on.After getting 2 steps higher, I was stopped in my tracks by my leg, trembling, the rest of my body paralysed while my right leg spazzed. After a harsh kick to the wall, it decided to behave and I took another step.After losing grip wherever I helf, I was so close to giving in before noticing how close I was, not only to the top, but also to the edge of the wall. The cheering from my fellow volunteers was astounding, they really wanted me to suc-ceed, I couldn’t let them down.Using my initiative, I latched on to the edge of the wall for guidance and pulled myself to the ledge. As I clambered into the den at the top of the tow-er, I felt so much pride. And everybody was screaming and shouting, for me.Getting back to ground level, I felt so emotional, everybody ran up to me and gave me such a tight cuddle. I was so lucky to have such an amazing support system with me.The coach, that had saved my life on several occasions, came over to get me out of the har-ness and insisted on giving me a pat on the back. Not good enough, I felt so thankful and I literally trusted him with my life, there was no way he was leaving without a hug. I just kind of jumped on him, unex-pectedly for the both of us. I was just so overwhelmed with gratefulness. I couldn’t have done it without him, or my fellow volunteers that I am so happy to be able to call them my FRIENDS!LA

URA,

THE C

LIMBIN

G WAL

L CON

QUER

ORT

EX

T L

AU

RA VSO ICS MPR STORY

6 LTK

VSO ICS SUCCESS STORY

Kimana. A little town in Maasai land that seems to be growing too fast within the great city of Loitokitok. They call it, “The city in the sun.” Here comes Noomayianat. “Blessed One.” Being places here was really a big blessing to me. Through this organisation, I have learnt so much on environmental issues and women’s development.It’s here where I got the chance to visit and interact with Maasai women’s groups. I was so amazed with what I found out. The groups have got local saving methods whereby every member is given a share pass book which is supposed to record any saving one makes in every meeting day of the week. They also have a local saving where money is kept in a metal box and is locked, until the next meet-ing day. After a period of time, members can qualify to take out a loan.Well, I thought of a way I could talk to the groups and share some few ideas and make them understand the importance of saving and investing in some income generating activities which could enhance their lives. The groups seemed not to be impressed with the idea at first because they were afraid of investing in a group. But again, I did not give up on having an open discussion with them where they could hopefully see the importance of a group. Most of them could mention some of the crops they have at home; watermelon, bananas, avocados, potatoes and so on.I made them understand how they could invest in their local resources and earn money. The idea seemed great to them and so they yearned for its implementation. Having knowledge on this, I decided I should train the groups on making fresh juice and potato crisps which will be sold locally. Some women were fast learners and promised to teach their fellows.Since the groups had saved a lot, they suggested purchasing a blender for juice making as fruits were readily available. For the potato crisps, they suggested purchasing pans and other equipment and in fact they have sent someone to Nairobi to look at the prices of these items.Unfortunately, our ICS program in Loitokitok is ending but I will leave the project to Noomayianat to continue and also hope that the

next volunteers in February will take over and encourage these women to diversify their produce and help secure livelihoods.

TEXT MELVYNE

7

Uchi, VSO RedCross Volunteer, picking up rubbish on the market

place.

01

02

03

04

Climate Change

Youth Empowerment

Grow Your Eng-lish Club

LTK CLean Up / Ridin Dirty

8 LTK

DEVELOPMENT ISSUES:Challenge yourself to

Change your world

Few issues over the past two decades have brought with them as many challenges as that of climate change. From shifting weather patterns that threaten food production, to rising sea levels that increase the risk of catastrophic flood-ing, the impacts of climate change are global in scope and unprecedented in scale. While climate change is global, its negative impacts are more se-verely felt by poor people and poor countries. Without drastic action today, adapting to these impacts in the future will be more difficult and costly, un-dermine national development efforts and hinder progress towards the Millennium Devel-opment Goals. More specifical-ly, climate change exacerbates problems such as poverty, dis-ease and gender inequalities that already afflict – albeit to varying degrees – individuals, communities and in some cas-es whole nations.

Article 1 of the UNFCCC states that the adverse effect of cli-mate change will not only be felt in natural and managed ecosystems, but also have “sig-nificant deleterious effects” on the “operation of socioec-onomic systems or on human health and welfare”.

The impact of climate change also constitutes an opportu-nity to leverage positive social transformation with a particu-lar focus on the needs of the most vulnerable within a com-prehensive sustainable devel-

opment framework.

Climate can be defined as ‘average weather‘ and is described in terms of the mean and variability of rele-

vant characteristics such as temperature, precipitation and wind over a period of time ranging from months to thousands or millions of years. Climate reflects how weather behaves over the long-term, and as such needs to be distinguished from weather which is a particular meteorological condition that we experi-ence daily, characterized by precipitation, temperature, wind, and so on.Meteorological conditions, like the annual average tem-perature at the Earth’s sur-face, change overtime. Small changes in these conditions can result in ice ages, or warm periods. Over the past century an increase of the Earth’s average surface tem-perature of about +0.76°C has been observed.There are several natural fac-tors that can influence the climate, such as changes in the Earth’s orbit around the sun, volcanic eruptions, or even periods of heightened or diminished solar activity. However, the current warm-ing trend we are experienc-ing has been primarily linked to an increased concentra-tion of heat-trapping green-house gases (GHGs) such as: Carbon dioxide (CO2), meth-ane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) in the atmosphere.The 2007 Intergovernmen-tal Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Assessment Report confirms that the warming of the global climate is un-equivocal and that it is very likely due to human activi-ties (also known as anthro-pogenic activities) and has been increasing since the dawn of the industrial age (circa 1750). These activities

include, among others, the burning of fossil fuels (coal, oil and gas), clearing of forests, and agricultural practices that lead to increased GHG concen-tration in the atmosphere.

The impacts of global warm-ing are already apparent today in melting glaciers, increased frequency of extreme weather events such as droughts, cy-clones or heavy rain falls, sea level rise, and changes in plant growth affecting agriculture and food production. These and other observed changes are expected to intensify and inflict a significant impact on human societies and the en-vironment around the world especially if no drastic efforts are undertaken to reduce the emissions of GHGs into the at-mosphere.

During our time in Loitokitok, we have witnessed the impact of this climatic phenomenon. The town lies at the foot of Kilimanjaro, the mountain once described as beautiful and covered in a white coat of snow. However, to our sur-prised eyes, the snow was now long gone as the inhabitants of the town struggled to catch up with rare rain falls. In Novem-ber, the weather was similar to the one expected in January enabling the planting of food.Our placement was supposed to be over the rainy season, all volunteers were surprised to take out their raincoats only late in November. In the farm, the crops struggled to grow and the lack of water quickly became a challenge.Climate change is real. It is af-fecting all of us and the quicker we make efforts to change, the better we can save our planet.

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Development Issues01

Many people may ask themselves, why youth empowerment? Youth is a generation that is very energetic and they are good resources when it comes to man power. When left idle they end up misusing the energy they have in wrong way. Most of the youth in Kenya are victims of drug abuse and HIV. This is because their time is not fully utilized. Most of youth lack skills and knowledge on what to do to better their lives. In Loitokitok community there are so many youth who are drug addicts .The community refer to these people as ‘wendawazimu’, a Swahili word meaning ‘mad people’, in real sense these people are not mad. I hope when they are taken to re-habilitation centers they will reform within a short period. How sad it is to see energetic youth, like Tony, a friend of VSO, roaming in the town aimlessly .We say prevention is better than cure. Before we reach the stage of drug addicted youth in rehabilitation centre, it is better to create awareness in advance. My fellow young people let’s all rise and empower our fellow youth in the different skills we have. Let youth realize that they are useful in the community. Share knowledge to know that the resources and opportunities available in the community can change their life in better way. No one can save our generation except us.

The Gro

w Yo

ur English club

was started

after the need to

imp

rove Eng

lish speaking

and literacy

amo

ng stud

ents in Loito

kitok w

as noticed

. To b

ridg

e this gap

, Sikwattah, Joan and

Emily d

ecided

to

go

round

schoo

ls and m

ob

ilize students as a ho

liday p

rog

ram to

join the G

row

Your Eng

lish club.

The students and

teachers were q

uite po

sitively receptive of the id

ea and o

ne could

tell this by the

numb

er of students that sig

ned up

. The main aim

s and o

bjectives of the club

wee to

bring

students

tog

ether, imp

rove Eng

lish speaking

, pub

lic speaking

, writing

, spelling

, as well as eng

aging

them in

dram

a, debate and

interviewing

to b

oo

st their confid

ence. The first class was o

n No

vemb

er 17th at the Yo

uth Resource C

entre at 2pm

. Initially, only fo

ur students sho

wed

up d

ue to heavy rains and

there w

asn’t much w

e could

do

. We eng

aged

them in sp

elling activities w

here they had to

write d

ow

n a series of w

ord

s. They seemed

enthusiastic for the w

hole sessio

n especially w

hen they had to

verbally sp

ell the wo

rds.

A g

roup

of students later w

alked in after the rain had

calmed

do

wn and

the numb

ers were o

ut of our

expectatio

ns. The turnout w

ent from

4 to 22 stud

ents from

prim

ary to university. They intro

duced

them

selves, we d

id a b

it mo

re spelling

and they w

ere given a take ho

me activity to

prepare a 5m

inute sp

eech abo

ut their family. Their exp

ectations fo

r the club w

ere to im

pro

ve their English, co

mp

ositio

n w

riting, p

ublic sp

eaking and

spelling

. Loo

king fo

rward

to the next class!

To m

ake the club sustainab

le, the students w

ill act as ambassad

ors in their o

wn scho

ols w

here they w

ill initiate the same club

s in their schoo

ls with the help

of their English teachers. M

ore activities fo

r the club

include sp

elling b

ees (com

petitio

ns), tong

ue twisters and

handw

riting im

pro

vement. O

verall, w

e want the stud

ents to have fun w

hile learning.

The class has been having

an increase in size, show

casing the yo

ung p

eop

le’s interest in learning. It’s

been three w

eeks and co

unting since w

e beg

an and b

ig thanks to

Betty, Sikwattah, Joan and

Emily

for successful running

of the club!

Grow Your EnGlish ClubYouTh EMPowErMEnT

TE

XT

JOA

N

PH

OT

OG

RA

PH

Y JO

AN

TEXT UCHI

02

03

CLIMATE CHANGE11

VISUAL ESSAY No 1

Development Issues

The VSO-Red Cross duo Ie Uchi and Robert organised a commu-nity clean up. The volunteers arrived at Boma La Tumaini along with the Red Cross members, Skylink students, reformed convicts (Ulinzi Shirikisho) and various other members of the community to help rid the town of some polymers. The turn out was signif-icant and the group was split into two teams as there were two tractors available, each drawing a trailer in which everyone could dump their collected refuse.

Like the gangs of west side story, each team headed to oppo-site ends of the town. Everyone was gloved up, and looking like the environmental surgeons they were born to be. At around 12 these environmental renegades began extracting rubbish from their surroundings, with a particular emphasis on plastic. Many members of the community looked on in admiration.

Eventually the vastly superior group 2.0 arrived at the market and began cleaning until the trailer was totally full. Everyone was rea-sonably tired and slightly more smelly than normal by this point. Nonetheless, the driver managed to convince everybody that it was imperative they bear witness to the location of the Kimana dump, and thus hanging precariously off the stink wagon any

ridin dirTY

TEXT KACI PHOTOGRAPHY ERICK

way they could as it trundled through the desert to an undis-closed location, was the next logical step in the lives of these volunteers. Those who could not fit on the tractor were forced to perilously hang off various protruding metal objects, or just sit in the rubbish filled trailer. One lucky volunteer opted to bal-ance of the tow bar, which twisted, turned and swivelled for the entire duration of the journey, which as it happens, was signifi-cantly longer than anticipated. The journey began with a glorious procession through the town of Loitokitok, which involved the volunteers waving their gloved hands to the tens of fans which had gathered throughout the day like the dirt emperors they felt they were. Then the team hit the highway in the filth wagon. This part of the journey was relatively pleasant despite the fact that I found myself sinking further and further into the collected refuse at an alarming rate. At this point getting any dirtier seems quite implausible and thus acceptance of the amusing state of affairs played a key role. The problems arose when the filth wagon left the highway onto what was a very rough and muddy lane. Tow-bar Claire began to struggle with the aggressive twisting tractor, her situation was compounded by one of her students from Sky-link hanging onto her shoulders for his own support. Eventually everybody arrived, alive and well, at the glorious eye-sore that is the Kimana rubbish dump. On the way back, life was marginally better for trailer dwellers as it was now empty; the disadvantage being that without any of the rubbish to cushion the volunteers, some rear ends were subjected to a violent half an hour. The unforgiving terrain of the dirt path meant that volunteers were occasionally sent airborne as the trailer slammed into various undulations. Upon returning to the tarmac road, the initial relief brought about by flat ground was short lived as copious amounts of mud which had been gathered by the rear tyres was slung back into the faces of the trailer dwellers whom were already nursing bruised rear ends. A few of the volunteers situated at the front of the trailer were very quickly pasted with large amounts of Kimana and had to make a tactical retreat to the back of their five star cabin. Eventually this effect subsided as the rear wheels ran out of ammunition.

The volunteers returned to Loitokitok town tired, muddy, but more appreciative of their existence than they had been in a long time. Debrief was held at Boma as various speeches were made and gratification demonstrated to the various attending parties. Soda and biscuits were then served to the deserving dirty street cleaners.

Volunteers were still receiving words of gratitude and apprecia-tion from various members of the community in the street weeks later. Well done guys!

04

12 LTK

Hi, so what is your official name?My name is Isaiah Samana and I have been Chief of Loitokitok for 16 years.

What are the requirements to become a chief?First you should be a mature person, over 30 years old. Sec-ondly, one must be educated and a man of the people, a chief has to be able to ac-commodate the people. Also, a chief should be married to

show that he is a family man.

Why did you choose to be-come chief?I saw that I can be a leader of the community. I grew up in a big family and so I got to know

what I was good at doing.

Have you ever been a leader anywhere else in your life?From Class 3 to 8 I was a school prefect. Then from Class 6 I was the head boy at school and a

prefect again in Form 2 and 3.

What are the vital issues in Loitokitok?A big problem in Loitokitok is school dropouts. For instance, a school could have 100 girls

and by the time they finish, only 30 girls remain. This is because of issues like early marriages and FGM (female genital mutilation) which affect young girls and I am trying to fight these problems. Anoth-er problem is illegal alcohol (moonshine) which some men spend a lot of money on and forget to pay important things like school fees.

What is your vision for Loi-tokitok?I want to help realize Vision 2030, a Government initiative for Kenya. This includes uni-versal education for all chil-dren, gender equality, ensur-ing public services get to the community and environment issues. For example, Tanzania gets a lot of water from rainfall but Loitokitok doesn’t.

What has changed since you became chief in Loitokitok?-There was a shortage of tree seedlings. Places like Nkama were semi-deserts. I started a tree nursery in my office and I give out 20 trees a year to peo-ple who need them.-Loitokitok used to have a lot

of alcoholics and this would lead to deaths and people being idle but this has now changed a lot.-There were a lot of thieves in town but I have partnered with the police and come up with a community policing strategy.-Education was a big problem because parents were refusing to take their kids, especially girls, to school. We have now created awareness on the im-portance of education.-There were inadequate hospi-tals within this area but during the years I’ve been chief, we have started three more dis-pensaries in Elangata, Olonka and Moilo.-Also there were not enough schools in the area and I have supported the opening of four new primary schools.

Has VSO helped you? If so, how?Yes, VSO has helped me be-cause it has helped the com-munity I serve. I get feedback from everybody that VSO is

helping people. The volun-teers are working in AIC school so they are even educating my

daughters.

What do you think of tak-ing on volunteers, especially from overseas?What I can say first for the Kenyan volunteers from Nai-robi and Kilifi that the Loi-tokitok people are wishing to be in their shoes. They will be able to educate their own peo-ple and tribes about Maasai culture. In fact I urge VSO to continue recruiting from more diverse communities. As for the UK volunteers, they have helped us understand their culture and diminish the myth that the whites are ‘superior’ to us. Their presence has helped us believe that we can do our own things without depending

on others. We are equal.

Would you like to see more volunteers in Loitokitok?Yes, the exchange of cultures and ideologies is great. We are

very happy about them.

An interview by BRENDA

MY DAD IS A CHIEF

15

Ro

b an

d Erick

:Living

in what is ind

isputab

ly the best ho

st ho

me, w

e consid

er ourselves very p

rivileged

w

ith Mam

a Hellena. It is im

po

ssible to

go

hung

ry as there is almo

st always so

mething

co

oking

on the jiko

ni. With freq

uent visits fro

m M

ama Shelvin (o

ur host sister), w

e al-w

ays receive the highest q

uality chapattis Lo

itokito

k has to offer. Situated

on an ex-

tremely larg

e shamba, the ho

mestead

com

-p

rises of three hom

es, the largest b

eing o

urs. O

ur bed

roo

m is id

eal as we b

oth have d

oub

le b

eds, d

espite them

being

four feet apart. W

e are fund

amentally fo

rbid

den fro

m sho

wering

w

ith cold

water, unlike o

ther host ho

mes. H

ot

water is p

repared b

y Mam

a Hellena b

efore

we w

ake up, alo

ng w

ith breakfast, and

heat-

ed to

a charming

500deg

rees.

HOST HOMES

Joan and Claire:We are living with Mama Margaret, the principal of AIC Secondary school, with many sisters; Christine, Mercy, Faith and our host nephew, Eugene. We love the food that we get as it is always delicious and having a busy house is great fun. We dislike trying to light the jikoni when it has been raining and washing the ugali pot is always messy!

Uchi and Emily:Living with Mama Florence, Peter, Carol and Baboo is a pleasure. We have a positive attitude towards living with a family from a different culture/tribe and have nothing but good memories of our host family so far. In the last two weeks left we hope to have a few more laughs with them and we will miss them when we leave

Sim

on

, Jam

es a

nd

Fel

ix:

Firs

t of

all,

eve

ryb

od

y kn

ew t

hat

Sim

on

wan

ted

Mam

a Ki

m

bec

ause

Kim

’s a

re t

he b

est

mum

s in

the

wo

rld

. M

ama

and

Ba

ba K

iman

i are

no

diff

eren

t, th

ey a

re t

he b

est

host

par

ents

. O

ur h

ost

mum

alw

ays

coo

ks t

he b

est

mea

ls w

hich

alw

ays

mak

e us

co

mp

ete

for

the

toile

t. W

e ha

ve a

nic

e co

mp

oun

d

with

rat

her

liber

al p

aren

ts w

ho a

llow

a c

erta

in s

om

eone

to

b

ring

ano

ther

cer

tain

so

meo

ne o

ver

to th

e ho

use

all t

he ti

me.

Th

is p

erso

n w

arns

his

bro

ther

s no

t to

sit

on

his

bed

bec

ause

of

the

‘w

ater

ing

’ th

at g

oes

on

ther

e. W

e kn

ow

thi

s b

ecau

se

the

wal

ls a

re v

ery

thin

. O

ur h

ost

ho

me

is t

he b

est

bec

ause

it

has

suff

icie

nt w

ater

, whi

ch is

a p

rob

lem

in L

oito

kito

k. W

e ha

ve

mas

sive

bed

s an

d t

hree

bla

nket

s so

the

co

ld is

no

t an

issu

e.

Ho

st M

ama

and

Bab

a lik

e ch

attin

g to

us,

esp

ecia

lly B

aba

love

s

telli

ng s

tori

es, n

o m

atte

r th

e tim

e an

d s

ituat

ion.

Kaci and Kenneth:It was always going to take something special to handle the boisterous KK duo, and so it was with either some excellent strategic reasoning or a stroke of great luck that Mary Wanjiru Ndiritu was selected for the task. Not only does she more than match them in terms of dominance, volume and making fun, but also enforces a strict code of conduct with the use of various household implements.The Ndiritus include three children; the eldest Bri-an, is also somewhat a comic. The second, Morris, is an extremely bright 12 year old with impeccable English, and a heart of gold. The youngest, Angela, is six years old. She is a textbook extrovert; impres-sively loud and confident, much like her mother. In fact, her constant full volume is yet another potent source of amusement in the Ndiritu household, of which there are many. The father, Justus, is busy working as an accountant in South Sudan.The dynamic of the household is pretty much per-fect, and we look forward to returning to our host family after a busy day at placement to mess around not only with the children, but Mama as well; she often has us in stitches. They will all be sorely missed when it is time to leave, especially by Kaci who is now used to (for the first time) having a large num-ber of family members present all hours of the day.

16 LTK

Raph and Josephine:It’s just the three of us living at our host home, Mama Helen and us, but we have two older host sisters and their four children who live next door and come every morning to say ‘Hi’. Baby Moses is only a few months old and has the cutest cheeks in the world. We also have a dog, cat, Puss puss the kit-ten and several chickens. Our mama is undoubtedly the best cook in town and she says, ‘We don’t play, we eat.’

PROFILES

Laura and Brenda:There are six people in our family and we live with the Chief’s wife. We have teenage sisters and live in the Ministry of Transport compound. We don’t have running water but use solar power and stay in a wooden house.

Goat, maaaaa!

Am

ina

and

Sik

wat

tah

:Li

ving

in a

fam

ily o

f 12

was

sca

ry a

t fir

st!

We

did

n’t

even

kno

w if

the

re w

as e

noug

h sp

ace

at t

he

din

ing

tab

le fo

r us

! We

wer

e w

rong

of c

our

se! I

t ha

s b

een

amaz

ing

and

we

wo

nder

wha

t w

e w

oul

d

do

in a

n em

pty

ho

use!

We

love

our

yo

ung

er b

roth

er G

eral

d w

akin

g u

s up

bef

ore

he

leav

es w

ith

his

cons

tant

rem

ind

ers

that

it is

go

ing

to

rai

n o

n o

ur s

hoes

. His

co

ncer

n, “

SIKW

ATTA

H, A

MIN

A W

API

?”

“AM

INA

, SIK

WAT

TAH

WA

PI?”

is a

lso

mo

st a

mus

ing

. Ev

eryo

ne a

t o

ur h

ous

e sp

eaks

Eng

lish

so w

e ha

ve n

ot

had

a lo

t of

tro

uble

wit

h la

ngua

ge.

We

love

o

r yo

ung

est

Lenk

ai a

s he

nev

er le

ts u

s o

ut o

f sig

ht! T

he g

irls

are

so

love

ly, t

hey

mad

e o

ur b

irth

day

s am

azin

g!

We

have

n’t

had

muc

h to

co

mp

lain

ab

out

and

our

par

ents

are

the

bes

t. H

one

stly

, it

had

bee

n th

e b

est

hom

e aw

ay f

rom

ho

me.

We

are

the

bes

t si

ster

s ev

er! T

he r

ich

kid

s of

Bev

erly

Hill

s!

An

drea an

d M

elvyne:

Located

by the custo

m, slig

htly outsid

e of tow

n, we have

found

the warm

th and lo

ve of a hom

e under the ro

of of M

ama Saito

ti. Welco

med

by the entire fam

ily, from

the g

ranny speaking

only m

aasai to the to

dd

ler with his b

ig

smile, g

oing

back to the ho

use after a day w

orking

was a

sight fo

r sore eyes.

In the mo

rning, the jo

y and laug

hter of the young

sters w

ould

wake us up

soo

n follo

wed

by the sm

ell of chai bo

il-ing

in the kitchen. When the p

ow

er wasn’t bailing

on us,

the TV w

ould

sing G

osp

el or r’n’b

tunes and it is no

t rare to

see Mo

ses (abo

ut 4-5mo

nths) gig

gling

in front of it.

Living in this ho

use was a real p

rivileged

for the b

oth of

us. Thus, And

rea has a UK co

unterpart experienced

the d

aily task of squatting

, tried herself of cho

pp

ing w

oo

d,

hand-w

ashed her clo

thes, etc. Melvyne learnt m

ore o

n the M

aasai culture and the tw

o of us just felt part of the

family, p

laying w

ith the children, help

ing o

n daily d

uties o

r simp

ly sitting d

ow

n tog

ether for d

inner and w

atching

soap o

n TV.

Katie and Betty:Betty was content from the word go when she first set eyes on her gi-gantic bed. Katie was equally happy when she found out that contrary to her preconceptions about Kenyan life, she was able to have a hot shower every day. We were glad to know that our Mum (Mama Soila) is one of the most jovial, kind and loving women in Loitokitok. She always gives us cud-dles in the morning as we leave for work and in the evening when we come back home. Even though our mum hurt her finger halfway through the programme, we’ve both been happy to help her out with household chores as she is such a sweet lady! We will be sad to leave our lovely home but we will be sure to keep in touch with Mama and

our little sister Nicole.

VISUAL ESSAY No 2

VSO ICS SOCIAL COMMITTEE

The ‘A’ Team (Social Committee)

Call it turning a desert into an ocean, Loitokitok has been the best place, contrary to everyone’s expectations. All thanks to the great social team. Loitokitok is one small dry place; one mini supermarket, no pubs and literally no modern places to hand out. We all thought we would die, I mean what would we do without a pizza place. Had you even thought a place as strange as this existed??? Anyway, as we say now, ‘We don’t need it!’ Social team has made every step of the way worth living. They have turned this journey all around. We don’t need all that crap to be happy, we just need to be here; we need one another! The movie nights, the Halloween party, the soccer friendlies, the birthday parties, the bonfires, name them, they have been the best moments for most of us. Did I say we have a found a new place? You will all definitely love it. It’s been easy working together as a team, everyone loves fun, everyone loves to be happy. We no longer want to go home. Long love Loitokitok, best home away from home. Kudos to the great team, thanks

to everyone for their great ideas, cheers to friends for life. Amina, James, Simon, you guys rock! Love, Sikwattah.

COMMITTEES FINAL WORDS

18 LTK

VSO ICS CAD COMMITTEECOMMITTEES FINAL WORDS

I think it is safe to say that the Community Action Day (CAD) committee possibly had the most stressful job; however we definitely got some of the greatest rewards! The first mission that the CAD accomplished was organizing the inter-school sports day and area clean up. The main aim of the day was to educate the local people about the importance of looking after the environment and how to tackle the issue of littering in Loitokitok. After a great deal of planning, stressing and changing of minds, the day arrived. Almost 300 people turned up for the event and after a lot of bottle collecting, testosterone fuelled races and eyebrow raising dances, we had pulled it off.

Our next task was an outreach for World AIDS Day on December 1st. After a seriously last minute change of plans, we managed to hurriedly pull together a day of speeches, performances and food all with the aim of increasing awareness about HIV/AIDS. 100 young people turned up and the room was packed, it was a great day.

Working as a member of the CAD team is stressful and there are always a million and one things to organize. However, at the end of the day, once every chair has been put away, every biscuit wrapper picked up, the feeling of relief and satisfaction that the day was a success and not the complete disaster that you had envisioned, makes it all worth it! Claire x

TEXT CL AIRE

19

COMMITTEES FINAL WORDSVSO ICS TEAM LEADERS

We are so grateful to work with the volunteers because they are the best! We’ve learned a lot from them and we are proud to say that we have been a great help to them.

The International Volunteer Day was a huge success and the team really worked so hard from 9-3pm with no lunch to dig a path, paint a wall and create numerous learning materials. And who can forget the creativity on display at the Recycling Fashion Show?Overall, we know that the whole team will go on to do great things! Big thanks to boss lady Y-vonn-eee for her freestyle approach and guidance. It’s been wonderful! Thank you Team Loitokitok, the only able team.

Lots of love #caringteamleaders

20 LTK

FIND YOUR INNER TRIBEMaasaI

Contrary to popular opinion, not all Maasai are tall! The Maa-sai tribe belongs to the Nilote ethnic group. They are recog-nized by their unique tradi-tion and cultures displayed through elaborate beadwork, facial markings and the wearing of red shukas. The Maasai own a lot of pastoral land in Kenya and are the only tribe permitted to carry a panga (sword).

KalenjInA sister community to the Maasai, the Kalenjin also belong to the Nilote ethnic group. They mainly live in the Rift Valley and the high altitude is often per-ceived as a reason for their success in long distance running. Since 1980, Kalen-jins have won about 40% of the top honours at interna-tional athletics from 800m to the marathon.

LUOThe Luo tribe is character-ized by their dark skin and exemplary use of the English language. Based in Kisumu, the Luos are also Nilote and descend from Bhar el Ghazal in South Sudan. Luos love fish and are particularly active in politics, that’s why we call Kenneth ‘governor’.

KIKUYUThis tribe represents the majority of people in Ken-ya and forms part of the Bantu ethnic group coming from Congo. The Kikuyus are astute business people and President Uhuru Kenyatta is a Kikuyu.

COASTThe Coastal region is actual-ly home to 9 out of the 42 tribes in Kenya. People from the Coast

are often unfairly accused of their slow pace of life and

insecurity issues due to the high muslim population. In fact, the Coastal region

boasts the best food in Kenya and places like Mombasa are

famous tourist sites.

MZUNGUMzungu is the Swahili word referring to people originating from countries outside of Africa. In Kenya young children jubilantly shout ‘Hello mzungu, how are you?’ everywhere you go!

During our time here in Loitokitok, the team has come to realise that there is quite a focus on tribal differences in Kenya, even to the extent that people vote on tribal lines, regardless of policies. So we’ve decided to write this guide to help you find your inner tribe. And please forgive the stereotypes!

ARE YOU TALL? ARE YOU A MARATHON RUNNER?

DO YOU HAVE DARK SKIN?

DO YOU LIKE THE SMELL OF MONEY?

DO YOU WALK SLOWLY?

YES NOYES NO

YESNO

YES NO

YES

NOVSO ICS PLAY

I am delighted to say that working with both Claire and Erik was a momentous experience. A huge thank you goes to VSO and ICS for giving us this delightful pair. They are young people with great visions and working with them has made a difference to our entire staff and students. They have left behind a legacy of energizers, life skills, mentoring, awareness in global issues and even how to carry out community projects.

In fact their time with us was very short but we are sure that the fruits of their labour shall be experienced for a very long time. Our thanks go to Claire for her volunteering efforts in coming all the way from the UK to work tirelessly with us and to help us secure new sponsorship outlets. Our thanks also go to Erik. We realize that this was a new experience for you but you have shown us what volunteering means.

Thank you to VSO and may God bless you.

VSO ICS PLACEMENT SUPERVISOR COMMENTS

WORD BY PETER N’MUHOYADIRECTOR OF SKYLINK POLYTECHNIC

VISUAL ESSAY No3

With the help of the NGO Just One Africa and Mme Lenkai, some of us were able to go see traditional Maasais in the countryside in order to give out water filters.

BRENDA

Expectations of VSO ICSTo give the programme my best shot.

RealityI had a mixture of fun and hard work which was lovely!

LearnedGood things come to people who work hard. There lies greatness in every man it just needs to be discovered.

VSO ICS PORTRAITS –

THE VOLUNTEERS

VSO ICS FAMILY PORTRAIT - VOLUNTEERS

Starting the VSO adventure, we had all different expectations and dreams that we wanted to achieve. There’s a family of the LTK Team 2014 also known as #theonlyableteam.

ROB

Expectations of VSO ICSI expected VSO ICS to be a life-chang-ing and eye-opening experience that would give me a chance to grow as a person.

RealityThere are always challenges when working in an under-developed so-ciety.

LearnedThat being flexible and adaptable is vital to making a positive impact in a community.

LAURA

Expectations of VSO ICSTo learn about new cultures and to experience poverty first-hand.

RealityMaking lifelong friends with people from different cultures.

LearnedThat cultural beliefs are ex-tremely different between cultures.

Exp

ecta

tio

ns

of

VSO

IC

SI w

ante

d t

o c

halle

nge

mys

elf

to

mak

e a

chan

ge.

I al

so e

xpec

ted

to

mee

t ne

w p

eop

le a

nd d

isco

v-er

ing

Afr

ican

/Ken

yan

cultu

re.

Rea

lity

It t

akes

mo

re t

han

2 m

ont

hs t

o

mak

e a

chan

ge.

Lear

ned

Ho

w t

o li

ve w

ith o

ther

s in

a

smal

l co

mm

unity

with

out

go

ing

cr

azy.

AN

DR

EA

UCHI

Expectations of VSO ICSI was expecting a loving communi-ty and experience networking with different people.

RealityI made a lot of friends.

LearnedI learned a lot about community work

at the Red Cross.

JOAN

Expectations of VSO ICSOpportunity to gain new skills, meet new friends and challenge myself to leave a positive impact.RealityWith the right attitude and mindset you can overcome anything. I also gained a new appreciation that diversity is crucial to teamwork.LearnedI learned how to work with others, respect other peoples’ opinions and to be innovative.

SIMON

Expectations of VSO ICSThat it is difficult, challenging and nerve-racking.

RealityIt was really difficult at times and had its challenges but overall it was extremely re-warding. It was the best time of my life.

LearnedTo be open minded, flexible and adaptable.

MELVYNE

Expectations of VSO ICSI expected to learn about a new culture, to make friends, build my confidence and also to help fight poverty.

RealityI made many friends, had an opportunity to address several issues on the ground and learned about a different culture.

LearnedAdapting in a new environment helps one to learn. Experience with problem solving is the best weapon in fighting poverty.

BETTY

Expectations of VSO ICSTo meet new people and learn

different things from other cultures.

RealityIt was a great experience liv-

ing with a different family and a UK counterpart.

LearnedTo work as a team and know

how to solve a problem when-

ever it occurs.

JAM

ES

Expectatio

ns o

f VSO

ICS

To learn ab

out new

cultures, give back to

the com

munity and

develo

p d

ifferent skills in life.

Reality

I have learned a lo

t abo

ut UK culture, m

et friendly p

eop

le and have also

develo

ped

a lot

of skills.

Learned

Ho

w to

wo

rk in a team w

ith others, ho

w to

socialize w

ith other cultures and

I have also

learned that everyo

ne’s op

inion co

unts.

KACI

Expectations of VSO ICSI really put my expectations in my pocket. I have learned that if you

don’t know, don’t expect, especially with pioneering.

RealityIt has all been a lot more fun than I anticipated, and I have more life

friendships than I thought I would.

LearnedAnything is possible with a positive attitude and people are capable of

so much when working together.

SIKWATTAH

Expectations of VSO ICSI thought it would be boring, es-pecially being away from home and around strangers. I also thought that it would be all of-fice work.

RealityReally fun and I have gained lots of experience. Strangers are no longer strangers and I have found a home away from home!

LearnedNetworking skills and commu-nication skills- I am super con-fident now! I have also learned lots of new agricultural knowl-edge thanks to Noomayaniat.

Expectations of VSO ICSI expected that it would be really hard to come up with innovative ideas for project placements and would be quite difficult.

RealityI actually found the programme really easy and not nearly as challenging as I thought. The community is also welcoming and loving.

LearnedThat you can achieve anything as long as you have a positive attitude towards.

ERICK

VSO ICS FAMILY PORTRAIT - VOLUNTEERS26 LTK

AMINA

Expectations of VSO ICSI expected the programme to be well organized. I fur-ther expected to have a lot of things to do and to always to be busy. Culture shock was another expectation.

RealityI made lots of friends. Things were a little unorganized but I had lots of fun.

LearnedA lot about issues affecting third world countries.

CLAIRE

Expectations of VSO ICSTo make a lasting positive impact in a community. To also make friends for life and learn about a new culture.

RealityWorked on an amazing placement and got to know all of the team re-ally well.

LearnedHow to work as a team regardless of people’s background/abilities. Also that in Kenya you will end up eating

a LOT of food.

KATIE

Expectations of VSO ICSI expected structured 9-5 office hours with clear guidelines for placement ac-tivities.

RealityA non-existent structure on placement with few guidelines from supervisors.

LearnedHow to create work for myself and how to kick start my own projects. I also learned entrepreneurial spirit in making things happen when no guidelines are given.

FELIX

Expectatio

ns o

f VSO

ICS

Since I am a p

ioneer fo

r the ICS jo

ur-ney in Lo

itokito

k, I expected

to b

e w

orking

tog

ether with a team

for the

greater g

oo

d.

Reality

ICS has m

old

ed m

e into so

mething

d

ifferent from

befo

re.

Learned

I have learned ho

w, as a yo

uth, I can challeng

e myself w

ith different id

eas and

skills to m

ake a po

sitive impact in

the local co

mm

unity.

KEN

NET

H

Expectatio

ns o

f VSO

ICS

To b

e the change and

gain relevant

skills for chang

ing the w

orld

.

Reality

It is young

peo

ple’s resp

onsib

ility to

take action fo

r glo

bal go

od

.

Learned

Interperso

nal skills and co

mm

unity d

evelop

ment exp

erience.

SIKWATTAH

Expectations of VSO ICSI thought it would be boring, es-pecially being away from home and around strangers. I also thought that it would be all of-fice work.

RealityReally fun and I have gained lots of experience. Strangers are no longer strangers and I have found a home away from home!

LearnedNetworking skills and commu-nication skills- I am super con-fident now! I have also learned lots of new agricultural knowl-edge thanks to Noomayaniat.

Expectations of VSO ICSI thought it would be a challenging experience with my peers. It also seemed like an opportunity to meet and make new friends from another culture.

RealityIt was challenging but good in terms of team-working.

LearnedI learned how to work as a team and how to be positive in the face of difficult situations.

EMILY

27

Working with my UK coun-terpart (Laura Beeley) at our placement Lenkai Christian School in Kimana has the best experience I have ever encountered with lots of new things to learn. She has helped me learn about the UK culture of which to me it was one of my best moments.On matters concerning work and placement she has helped me know and discover new skills and the same time de-velop the ones I had earlier. Her nature of being ready to learn new cultures, new lan-guage and her urge to get herself involved in each and every work that arises and this has shown how hardworking she is this been demonstrat-ed through the way the chil-dren, teachers and the school fraternity as a whole. She has helped me understand that we have issues that affect the whole globe of which they need to be addressed.Her communication skills has helped a lot of people espe-

cially the school girls at Len-kai Christian School mostly those in the rescue program through guidance and coun-seling which she initiated to help the girls. We have spent some good time that I can term as one of those fun and cherished memories. Our time in the Manyattas (in the Maa-sai community) is one of the cultural and fun experienc-es that I and my counterpart have through while giving back to the community.As and understanding, sup-portive, caring, loving and open minded person she has made my time working with her enjoyable, fun and made me have full urge of giving back to the community. For the 3months I have worked with her she has shown me the importance of time man-agement. Lastly for the 3months I have been with my placement counterpart I have to believe that you have to challenge yourself to change the world.

VSO ICS SUCCESS STORY- CROSS CULTURAL TEAMWORK

WORKING WITH MY UK COUNTER-PARTTEXT JAMES

“The grass I never on the other side its greener where you water it. Keep calm the community needs you to

change the world”

28 LTK

The Media Committee are ending this cycle on a high after finding out that Team Loitokitok’s magazine shall be used as an example in VSO’s promotional work. Things started off slowly, with perhaps not as much organization as there could have been. By Mid-Phase Review however, we made sure that our first set of articles for chapter one of LTK was complete. We hope that this magazine is both informative and entertaining and for those readers from Team Loitokitok, that it brings back happy memories. We couldn’t have done it without the truly fantastic design work from our dear fellow volunteer Andrea. We owe you Andrea.XKatie

Acknowledgements:The LTK magazine team would like to thank all the volunteers (Amina, Brenda, Claire, Laura, James, Simon, Felix, Betty, Kenneth, Katie, Kaci, Robert, Melvyne, Joan, Emily, Uchi, Sikwattah, Andréa and Erick) for their hard works and efforts put into this magazine.We would like also say a massive thanks to their Team Leaders (Josephine and Raphaella) and Yvonne (project coordinator) as without them, we wouldn’t have been able to be so awesome.Plus, last but not least, we would like to thanks the entire Loitokitok community and all the special persons that have made our expe-

rience unique and unforgettable. We owe you memories of a lifetime. Thank you

FINAL WORDS...