Sustainability

Last week Helen Lieberman received a humanitarian award from the city of Ceuta, Spain for her work with Ikamva. She had no idea she had been nominated in the first place and was shocked to find out she’ll be receiving 50,000 Euros for the organization! I was lucky enough to sit in during her interview with a Spanish reporter (just in case something got lost in translation, I could help out) and listen to her responses. She kept reiterating how this award shouldn’t be for her, but for the thousands of people working for Ikamva. There is something so humbling about her constant dismissal of being the recipient – it is one thing to act modest, another to actually BE modest and truly believe you are not deserving of the recognition. There’s a Spanish news article (http://elfarodigital.es/ceuta/sociedad/11887-la-madre-teresa-de-sudafrica-gana-el-premio-convivencia.html) about her award and nicknames her the ‘Mother Teresa of South Africa’. Again, she laughed at that and countered the comparison.

Helen’s interview got me thinking about the success of non-profit organizations. In order to make an organization successful, it needs to be self-sustainable, so, should not rely on one person, or likewise, be dependent on external funding. It needs the determination and contribution of many, each playing their part in the game. As Helen put it, she does not do the work, she assists. I was talking to my friend Anna the other day, who is here in Cape Town as part of her internship portion for her Social Entrepreneurship program in Norway. The aim of the program is to ASSIST businesses/organizations in creating a self-sustainable business plan, usually focusing on the non-profits. An interesting Masters… maybe something to look into at some point.

So. Remember the overwhelment (I still justify that’s a word) I felt at work in the beginning? Slowly diminishing. I have people, sources, and quotes for both the drip irrigation system and greenhouse. Now I just need to have a meeting with Helen, the contractor, the Health & Nutrition people, and the … well source…person to agree on a final plan and carry it out. I hope that can get done soon.

I met a girl, Asmaa, the other day who presented the idea of traveling around the area with me. It sounds very enticing… the plan as of now would be to fly up to Joburg, take a bus to Maputo in Mozambique, then bus to Swaziland, then take the Bazbus from Durban back to Cape Town, stopping at several spots along the Garden Route. The total trip would be 11 days long. I originally didn’t really plan on traveling outside of Cape Town much, but I like the spontaneity of the idea and exploring what’s around here. After all, I’ve come all this way. However, the main thing keeping me from committing right now is work. I want to make sure that if I do go, all my projects are either completed or don’t need any of my help anymore. I had promised Ikamva until the end of July and don’t suddenly want to back out of my commitment. If I go, I have til the 16^th to wrap things up. I’ll have to think about it some and talk to Helen.

Yesterday was Independence Day. We brought the US holiday to South Africa by going to the beach (my friend planted a US flag in the middle of it), going to a BBQ, playing flip cup, and mingling with a bunch of Americans. How typical, eh? ;)

I moved in with some new couchsurfers last Wednesday. Three dudes, very chill, very cool. They live in the “tampon towers” that are up against Table Mountain (called so b/c they distinctly look like giant tampons sticking out of the ground). Beautiful views, but now makes my walk to work about 50 min long – however, I’ve been fortunate enough to get rides down the hill for some of them :).

Um, don’t know if you’ve realized, but THE NETHERLANDS IS PLAYING IN THE SEMIFINALS!!!!! AND I’m going to go SEE that game tomorrow!! Super ecstatic about that! It’s kinda sad… World Cup is wrapping up rapidly… Less than a week left of it.

Was thinking of cooking chicken stuffed avocados with suiza sauce for the boys tonight. One of my favorite dishes in the world… but I’ve never tried making it, soooo… good luck me :P Hopefully I don’t burn their apartment down.