Lots going on

Wow - it has been awhile since I have written but I am going to try to cover a bunch in this blog to get you all caught up.

First off, before I left for the US for a vacation and early Christmas celebration with my family, we had In Service Training. This is a chance to hear from other volunteers about some of their projects and to really get motivated for the second year. This is the year they say most things get done and I would say this will be the case with me here. A lot of the first year is just spent trying to figure out what is going on, who is in charge, and how about to accomplish the goals of the community and your own. Well, during IST, we went to visit a volunteer who successfully completed a stove project. Through a Peace Corps SPA grant and contribution by the beneficiaries, they completed more than 50 new stoves in the community. This is important in that the new stoves are much more efficient (saving the cutting of the forests) and also that the home environment is so much more healthy. The stoves are outfitted with chimneys and all of the smoke that was previously breathed in the house now can piped outside where the health damage isn't nearly as serious as it would be in the house. And since respiratory illnesses are one of the leading causes of death here in Guatemala, something like this can make a huge difference, adding on 14-16 years of life on average from what I've read.

Well, after all of this, an idea started brewing in my mind. This is going to be a HUGE project but I think my community would benefit greatly from it. I have been invited in many houses here and the cooking situation is not a very safe or healthy one. All of the houses here cook over an open fire, set up using a couple of cement blocks and a few pieces of rebar. There is no chimney and the smoke fills the room. Often this room is the main gathering room of the family. Also, it poses a huge risk - both of fire and also the probability of a child accidently falling into the fire as there is no barrier around the fire. So, I am starting by putting the feelers out in my community and already there is some interest. The families will have to contribute a bit financially and will have to agree to attend building training sessions and to help build their stoves. I would also like to set up some talks about nutrition here. So, I am thinking this is going to be my big 2nd year project - it is pretty daunting - but I am getting the ball rolling and we'll see how it turns out.

Wish me luck!
Cheers!