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Voices from the Field: Robert, Katie, Morganne and Lauren

Posted on June 21, 2015June 21, 2015 by admin

The lighting in the room flickered between light and dark as many faces took turns crowding the doorway. The excitement was palpable. We sat with Fati and Sowda inside our newly constructed solar center, huddled around the Genset. We soon mirrored the smiles surrounding us as our two women entrepreneurs reassembled the equipment from memory without prompting. Having just concluded our meeting with the chief, elders, and entire community of Namdu One, it was clear that everyone knew this new clean energy business was “Ghana be a success.”

When we arrived, the chief and elders had congregated around Namdu’s emblematic big tree. Slowly, community members of all ages (yes, even the Fulani) joined the expansive circle in expectation for a big announcement. We sat tentatively as the audience expanded. We, dressed in freshly tailored Ghanaian fabric, and the elders well dressed in colorful smocks and tunics, set the mood. Despite our nerves, we began to officially present what we had been working on for the last week.

Highlights included the dangers of kerosene and lead acid batteries as well as the benefits of solar energy and an outline of the solar business. Attempting to showcase the awesome durability of the Burro brand waterproof lanterns, our hearts collectively stopped: our showy toss of the plastic light to the ground took a turn for the worse, and the batteries and backing popped out. The crowd was unimpressed to day the least. But we recovered our demonstration when we plunged the lit buoyant lantern into a murky bucket of dugout water. Still lit, we walked it around the chief and elders who then regained confidence in the product.
Whether it’s due to the newly installed solar panels or the anticipation of our opening night, there is electricity in the air of Namdu one. And when we did not think the day could get any brighter, Katie fulfilled her dream of riding a donkey.

Team Khadijah: Robert, Lauren, Katie, Morganne

Voices from the Field: Kelsey, Kelly, Wahab, Bria & Jessie

Posted on June 21, 2015September 2, 2016 by admin

Just two days ago we were thrown a curveball when our women entrepreneurs, Abiba and Amina, requested that we move our opening day from Monday to Sunday. Team Wahab collectively decided that we were up to the challenge! After two long, hot days of distributing Safe Storage Containers to all 54 families in our community, and working with our women entrepreneurs to fill a whole polytank with clean water, we were ready for opening day.

While Wahab, our translator, made a last minute fix on one of the three blue drums, Kelly and Kelsey pumped up the mood with an impromptu dance party. Since the discovery that jump-rope in Dagbani, the local language, is “Tsamina mina”, “Waka Waka (This Time For Africa)” by Shakira has become our team jam. The kids in our community are also very familiar with the song and often sing along with us. It’s amazing that Shakira has been able to transcend language barriers and help us build relationships with the kids in our community All the while, women were starting to arrive with their Safe Storage Containers, excited to provide their families with their first supply of clean water.

Amina and Abiba were treated as celebrities upon arrival; and so the wild rumpus began! In efforts to stay organized amidst this wild crowd, Jessie marked off containers on the household list, Bria labeled containers— since our Sharpie from yesterday turned out to be a dry-erase marker—Kelly and Kelsey rationed soap, and Wahab checked for leaky buckets. Our super-star women entrepreneurs collected money and put smiles on the faces of all their friends with their newly treated, safe drinking-water! Over 40 households sent a representative to fetch polytank water!

Our only bump in the road was when we ran out of water in the polytank. Unfortunately, last night’s alum treatment was a little too conservative— if you use too much alum, it can affect the taste of the water— so a quick refill was not in the cards. Amina and Abiba optimistically retreated the dugout water in the blue drums, announcing to the few remaining customers that they would re-open for business in the evening. As it turns out, because most of the community is fasting for Ramadan, they can’t actually drink water until sundown. Everyone will have delicious drinking-water in no time!

When asked about their plans for business hours later in the week, Amina and Abiba did not have to discuss their schedules. Instead, they excitedly announced that they hope to open for business everyday!

– Kelsey, Bria, Wahab, Kelly & Jessie

Voices from the Field: Camille, Josh & Hallie

Posted on June 20, 2015 by admin

Today Team Nestor hits up the blog with details in building the solar charging center and their time in the community of Vohyili.

We have now spent a long and rewarding 11 days in Ghana. Our journey began with a gust of hot, humid air as we unloaded the plane and got our first taste of Ghana. Once we all had arrived safely in Accra, the team of 40 Saha field reps boarded a bus and drove on a meandering two-lane road primarily made of uneven cement with the occasional stretch of dirt and ditches. The ride took us from the southern capitol city of Accra to Kumasi (the 2nd largest city) for a lunch break and then to our final destination, the northern city of Tamale. This was the only “highway” connecting these 3 major cities, so it was a very popular route. We passed through cities, villages, and expansive forests. Many of the communities seemed to be centered around this main road – using it as a way to attract outside customers. In each town, people watched and sometimes waved to our bus as we rolled through the middle of their marketplace.

Ghana lies 6 degrees latitude north of the equator, so the sun sets punctually at 6:30pm all year round. The view from the bus window shifted from vibrant, bustling markets to dark, quiet shacks lit only by a couple flashlights. Many rural villages are not electrified and people must rely on generators and batteries. Even in electrified cities, energy is expensive. Tamale is the fastest growing city in the region of Northern Ghana and its increasing population leads to a higher demand for electricity. Drive just 15 minutes outside of Tamale’s urban landscape and it becomes apparent that electricity and basic resources are beyond the purchasing power of families in rural villages.
The representatives in Saha’s solar program are tasked to establish a solar power station designed and built with the help of community members. In order to construct the station, we are utilizing local building materials and techniques to build a watertight mud hut for the electrical equipment. From the outside, a mud hut appears to be an easily built structure, however, the technicalities involved in its construction surprised us. Each step in the construction process has been passed down for generations, even down to assembling mortar and plaster used to glue bricks together. The villagers we have met and bonded with take pride in their skills and the artistry they use in assembling buildings. Seeing this has shed light on the immense amount of skill involved in building seemingly simple structures. The hut building process exemplified the idea that simplicity is the ultimate form of sophistication. With scarcity of resources constantly in mind, villagers must understand how to effectively use their land and maximize available resources. For those of you haven’t built a mud hut, here’s what you need to know:

Recipe for “Mud Hut”
Ingredients:
200 Blocks— made of cement, clay soil, and dugout water
Mortar— made of clay soil and dugout water
Plaster— made of cement and dugout water
Tin Roof— 10 zinc sheets
Nails— 2 types: cement nails and wood nails
Carpenter + tools— local carpenter, buddy of our translator
Wawa Boards— AKA planks of wood
MotoKing— a motorbike with a trailer attached to transport material from the market

The Dagomba people have established a way of life based around a closed loop resource system. The mortar used for all buildings is mixed together in a pit with clay-laden soil and water carried from a dugout a mile away. The villagers stomp the mix with their feet, carefully adding water until the perfect consistency is reached. Mortar is used not only to secure layers of bricks, but is added as a coating around the entire structure with a throwing technique requiring grace so as not to splatter others around you, but ensure the mortar stays firm to the wall. The mortar and brick is then left to dry for a day. After this, fine sand is sifted and mixed with cement and water to create a smooth plaster bolstering the hut walls. These processes were basic community knowledge and everyone had a role to play in the hut construction.

After 3 days of enthusiastically joining the village in this process by carrying blocks on our heads, accidentally getting mortar in our eyes, and marching knee-deep in mud (to mix the mortar), we could never look at a mud hut the same way again. As Americans, it is easy to see the mud hut as an icon of the “African village.” But it is much more challenging to convey its underlying complex processes and beautifully simple design. Someone asked us if we built our own homes in America and we had to admit that we knew far more about the homes of Ghanaian villagers than our own. It dawned on us that we sincerely wished we had constructed our own homes out of local materials with the help of our entire community. The efficiency with which the community members of Vogyili used their available resources amazed and humbled us. Through the process of constructing a mud hut, we ended up deconstructing our own perception of rural Ghanaian life.

Voices from the Field: Isabel, Emma, Kevin, Eric and Molly

Posted on June 18, 2015October 28, 2015 by admin

Today Team Eric jumps onto the blog with some thoughts on women’s empowerment and their time in the community of Kpenchila.

One of Saha’s missions is to “empower women.” We have been impressed with the amount of work that the women do in the village daily. Just some of their daily tasks include going to the dugout for water, harvesting, roasting, drying, and cracking shea nuts, cooking and taking care of the children. In the market in Tamale, we see women selling their goods and engaging in business practices constantly. However, we didn’t realize how integral the empowerment of the women would be to our work in Ghana. Today was our second day of training the women. After a lot of “we are so grateful” statements, came a more surprising one along the lines of “you know we are not educated so there are some parts of this that we cannot do.” They were mostly concerned about the process used to record sales every day. It requires counting and keeping track of sales for charging the reusable batteries and cell phones. We tried to assure them that they were completely capable and that we would work with them and practice until they felt fully comfortable. However, their response was to laugh while a nearby man said “make sure you train them well so that they don’t mess up.” This made us realize even more the importance of our work in the village. We all feel confident that the women will successfully grasp all of the technical aspects of the business, and I am eager to see them prove to both themselves and the community how able and intelligent they are. The fact that they already run a clean water business on their own, while also continuing with their previous responsibilities and taking care of their families, speaks volumes to their capabilities. So far our village has risen to the occasion with every step of the process. For example, when we arrived to our village the day after our meeting with the chief, where we pitched the project, tons of community members were already building the solar center. We couldn’t believe how efficient they were: it took only two hours to build the entire building, and they even finished plastering that night. The amount of work they put into the process makes it that much more special to the community – rather than giving them solar energy, we are working in collaboration with them to benefit everyone involved.

Eric and Isabel take notes as Lasiche explains Takpili's center — **Eric and Isabel take notes as Lasiche explains Takpili’s center**

– Molly, Eric, Isabel, Kevin & Emma

Field Rep Voices: Elizabeth, Simply, Danaite, Maggie and Havana

Posted on June 17, 2015June 18, 2015 by admin

Hi from Team Simply in Ghana! We have the privilege of implementing a clean water business in the village of Bamvim. Yesterday, we met with our community members and picked a spot near the dugout to put the Polytank stand, where the clean water center will be established. Together with the community, we painted the stand so that it would not rust. Unfortunately, our paint leaked all over the bag with all of our tools inside, so everything was covered in blue paint. We only had two paint brushes, so we had to think on our feet a little bit and ended up painting with our hands. It was definitely a messy but fun morning, and an awesome experience to share with the community members. One of the village elders loved the end result so much that he wanted us to come back and paint the door to his home.

In order to clear the area for the stand, some of the men worked to cut away some of the surrounding brush. Obviously, we were very thankful for their help.

Today was Day 1 of training the women who will run the water business. We went over how to use alum (the coagulant that makes particles in the water sink to the bottom so that the water becomes clear), but they already knew how, so it was a pretty straightforward process. We also went over how to assemble the safe storage containers that will hold the clean water for each household. The women are very smart and eager to learn, so they learned quickly. Outside of the three women who will run the business, many community members came to watch the process, including children and elders. Everyone is so excited, which is awesome 🙂 The day was long, but it didn’t feel like work at all. We had so much fun bonding and collaborating with the women and with the community members. Everyone applauded after each woman successfully assembled a safe storage container; there was a lot of encouragement and empowerment between the women. Today generated a lot of excitement as the idea of the clean water business comes to life. We purchased the rest of our materials today, and will put the center together tomorrow. The community of Bamvim, along with ourselves, plan to open the business on Monday, June 22nd! Days like these highlight Saha Global’s ideals of community engagement, women empowerment, and sustainable business opportunities, and we are so excited to be a part of it all.

– Elizabeth, Simply, Maggie, Danaite and Havana

Voices from the Field: Team Jaleel

Posted on June 16, 2015June 16, 2015 by admin

June 14th

We have had a very eventful first couple of days in our village, Jangbarayili! Our first challenge was to pronounce the name of the village…a task we are continuing to work on. We set out early morning on the first day to greet our village. At 6:00am we left with our translator to get the engine fixed to make our voyage. We waited 2 long hours for the repairs to be completed and then were hopeful to get going. As we were driving we had our first run in with the Ghanaian cops, not once…but TWICE (within 5 minutes of each other we might add). Finally, we arrived and were greeted with children fighting to hold our hands, so much so, there was one child per finger. This is when we knew this would be a great village to work with. Trying to break free from the kids’ grasps we met with Chairman Yaya to seek a meeting with the chief and elders. The chief was out farming, so we busied ourselves by trying to find the crocodiles known to lurk around the dugout. Once the chief returned, he and the elders were already seated and waiting for us to pitch our purpose of working with them to create a solar power center and business to be run by respected women in the community (the same model that was implemented by Saha Global for the previous water business). They accepted without any hesitation and even said “No was not an option.” They were gracious for the opportunity to bring light to their village and we were excited to stat working with them!

June 15th

We woke up the next morning eager and hopeful for the day ahead. We ambitiously left to gather and purchase ALL the supplies that morning so we could prove our commitment to the village. Unfortunately, we ran into unexpected complications in the process. For instance, we had no idea what the items should cost in GHCs, and did not know which items could be bartered for or what item had set prices. We also had to go many different places to cut the wood because some businesses ran out of power. After many stops and learning experiences, we got most of the supplies and were pleasantly surprised by how many people in the community had gathered to work and how much they had already accomplished in building the structure. The men in the community taught us how to make mortar by mixing water and clay in a pit, so we all literally jumped in to get our hands and feet. Everyone helped out and even the little kids made their own assembly line carrying little piles of mortar to connect the bricks. In no time at all, it was finished!
June 16th

Day three, we started on the roof with a local carpenter. Since the carpenter was an expert, there was little help us or the community could give him, so we took the opportunity to get to know the women entrepreneurs. We asked them questions about their water business as well as going over their solar business that was soon to come. They even gave us a chuckle with a funny story about a spider who thought he could be oil in a pot. The funniest part was not the story itself, but the women acting out the scene complete with shouting and wiggling her behind. Another team member bonded with the boys playing soccer and another brought together the community with her Ukulele. At the end of the day, we accomplished all of our goals and even more! We are now ready to tackle each new day with the village and all the challenges that will arise.

Team Jaleel: Greta, Heidi, Lindsey, Hunter and Jaleel (not pictured)

P.S. Drought is alive and well in Ghana’s rainy season. Fortunately, it has just started pouring as we type.
-The Greatest Team (Lindsey, Heidi, Greta, Hunter, Jaleel)

Voices from the Field: Sasha, Amin, Tara, Richard and Sarah

Posted on June 15, 2015June 21, 2015 by admin

Meanwhile, in Northern Region Ghana…

Orientation is completed and our 4 water teams and 7 solar teams are beginning the work of building their new businesses! We will feature stories and pictures from all 11 teams as our program continues. Kicking off our tradition of “Voices from the Field” is Team Amin.

Today our group, comprised of Sasha, Sarah, Tara, Richard and our translator Amin, made our way out to Komlan-yili to pitch the Saha Global business model for community water filtration. After picking up our water supplies from the office we made our way out to the rural community. An hour and a half of dirt, potholed-roads later we arrived. We immediately made our way to the water source, which was predetermined as a stream nearby. After driving to the stream, it was clear the stream had dried up considerably. The seasonal change in location had forced the community members to walk farther and farther to get dirtier stream water. After walking along the dried banks we made our way to the current filling location, passing multiple women who were carrying water along the way. Without even touching the water it was clear how turbid and contaminated the stream was. While briefly talking to a group who was fetching water, we collected our sample and proceeded to make our way back to the community.

Sasha Amin Richard Tara and Sarah meet with the community of Komlanyili for the first time to discuss the water business idea — **Sasha, Amin, Richard, Tara and Sarah meet with the community of Komlanyili for the first time to discuss the water business idea**

Upon returning to Komlan-yili, we drove into the heart of the community to speak with a community member. With the help of Amin, we requested a meeting with the community chief and were told to have a seat under a prominent tree among other community members while someone ran to go get him. In a short moment, a wooden reclining chair had been set in front of us and two elders took their place directly across from us. After exchanging pleasantries, the chief proceeded to ask the purpose of our visit (whether we had come to see him or were being chased and wound up there).

Here we began to explain how we suspected their water source was contaminated. We asked questions about the quality of water and if it made them sick, especially probing about diarrhea. When the elders and the community members confirmed our suspicion, we proceeded to explain how we, Saha, could provide their community with clean water using a four-step process. These steps were the following: 1) building a center to house the water, 2) training women entrepreneurs to filter the water and run the business, 3) distribute safe storage containers to each household, and 4) opening and maintaining the businesses after we leave.

Women collect water from Komlanyili's stream. — **Women collect water from Komlanyili’s stream**.

Beyond this explanation we concluded that Saha does not pay the women at all and simply helps set up the business. After initial implementation, we explained, it is up to the women entrepreneurs and the community to maintain the business and ensure its success. With this final note, we asked if the elder had any questions and were told that they were very grateful to have us visit and were excited to begin work with us. Exchanging thank you’s and pleasantries once again, we set a time for a community-wide meeting the next day before giving the elder an offering of kola nuts. With much excitement, they exclaimed that they were the ones who were supposed to give us an offering and proceeded to give us eggs as a gift. With much gratitude, we accepted and took our leave to regroup back at our lodging.

– Richard, Sasha, Sarah, Amin and Tara

Meet Our Field Reps: Matt Sullivan

Posted on April 30, 2015April 30, 2015 by admin

My name is Matt. I’m 20 years old studying Industrial and Systems Engineering at Virginia Tech, and I was a field rep for the 2015 Winter Global Leadership Program. Over my first few years of college I was pretty focused the pursuit of “success” after graduation, which I figured involved landing a job and making money. I started doing web development for a consulting firm and things seemed to be falling into place, but by the time I started my senior year I had realized the path I was on wasn’t going to lead me to happiness. I knew I wanted to make a change, but I didn’t know in what direction. Enter Saha Global. I found out about the Global Leadership Program by chance through an email on my major’s Listserv. The program’s simplicity and elegance captivated me and I was amazed by the measurable impact it had in northern Ghana. I knew that this was something I would truly find rewarding.

The experience was so much more than I expected. I spent three weeks with my team in the village of Takpili implementing a solar electricity business. We laid mud bricks and constructed the solar center by hand, trained four women to be self-sustaining entrepreneurs, and supplied all 80 households in Takpili with renewable energy and light. But above all else, I value the relationships I built along the way. My fondest memories are of playing soccer with the children of the village, riding bikes through Tamale with Peter (our team’s leader-translator-extraordinaire), and learning to drive stick shift from our taxi driver, Hustla.

One of the biggest things I’ve learned from this experience is how those receiving aid view the organizations providing it. In Takpili, a village that already had a Saha water business, the village elders were completely receptive towards our propositions for implementing a solar business. They trusted us because of the level of commitment Saha had already demonstrated in monitoring the village years after implementation. In contrast, they expressed to us how they often see organizations come through and make promises of improving quality of life only to find that what they provided was extraneous. There were remnants of projects that were started but unbeknownst to the village, got caught up in red tape and were never finished. It really helped me appreciate the work Saha is doing, from the comprehensive village scouting and research beforehand to the five year post-implementation plan for village independence.

The Global Leadership Program shaped the way I think about my future. I know now that I want to work in international development, ideally in a field that also incorporates my engineering background. Currently I’m finishing up my undergraduate degree, looking to graduate in the spring, but I’m excited to stay involved with Saha in the future.

Want to learn more about Matt’s experience or have any specific questions? Matt would be happy to tell you more and can be contacted at [email protected] Also keep up with what Matt is up to now here!

Meet Our Field Reps: Caroline Collins

Posted on March 31, 2015April 1, 2015 by admin

My name is Caroline Collins. I am a twenty two year old senior about to graduate from Connecticut College. At Conn, I study biological sciences and anthropology. I am originally from Cohasset, MA which is on the south coast of Boston. I was lucky enough to participate in two of Saha’s global leadership programs. I first travelled to Ghana during my sophomore year for their winter program in 2013. I gained an incredible amount from being a Saha Global Leader and valued their program goals immensely. I was itching to return to Ghana, so when Saha announced that they had an opportunity for past leaders to return for the following summer program, I jumped at the chance! Saha was looking for Field Reps to help implement their water business model in Salaga, a new region for the organization.

My two experiences in Ghana were truly life changing and they have shaped my academic pursuits. One of my strongest memories is from my first trip, when my teammates and Shak, our translator were educating our community’s school children about the importance of clean drinking water and the differences between clear water and clean water. Educating children about healthy hygiene is one of Saha’s initiatives toward creating a sustainable clean drinking water model. So after we had implemented the water business, my team and I spent a day in the school teaching the children songs about clean water to help them remember healthy drinking practices. I distinctly remember a group of about thirty children singing and dancing excitedly about their water. One of the kids came up to me while we were all singing the clean water song and told me that he used to have headaches every day, but after drinking the clean water for a few days he felt so much better and was thrilled to have energy to run around play soccer with his friends. This was one of the most influential moments of my trip, as it was a direct and concrete example of the benefits that the clean water system will bring to the community.

My biggest take away from being a Field Rep is the power of little changes to bring significant impact. Before traveling to Ghana, the thought of bringing a water business to an entire community seemed quite daunting, however as a Field Rep, I learned that the procedure is really simple and with attention to education and prompting clean habitats my teammates and I were able to create a system that the community ran completely independently and were proud of. When I left Ghana after the program, the women in charge of the business were excited to develop the system and I knew that they would do a tremendous job building a sustainable source of clean drinking water for their community.

My time with Saha has encouraged me to study the connection between human health and the environment. I am particularly interested in bacteria and what environmental factors lead to the proliferation of bacterial diseases that pose a significant public health risk to developing countries. Saha gave me great experience in the field and has left my very excited to learn more about the prevention of waterborne diseases. I graduate from college in May 2015 and look forward to pursuing a doctorate degree in microbiology and environmental toxicology. Hopefully, this educational path will bring me back to countries like Ghana, where I can further study environmental health.

I have enjoyed staying in contact with Field Reps from my trip and my translators as well. There is an active facebook group where the Saha team and past field reps post about exciting things going on within the Saha network. It is great to stay connected with the incredible and inspiring group of global leaders as they go out and do interesting things around the world.

Want to learn more about Caroline’s experience or have any specific questions? Caroline would be happy to tell you more and can be contacted at [email protected] Also check up to see what Caroline is doing here!

Introducing you to Saha Global’s Advisory Board!

Posted on March 11, 2015March 11, 2015 by admin

At Saha Global, we truly value the input and feedback from our network of Field Rep Alumni. They are the ones who know exactly what Saha is all about. They have the skills, experience and passion that we need to drive our growth. With a big year ahead of us, we wanted to be sure to have their ideas on board! After sitting down and brainstorming, our team hand selected some of our most involved past Field Reps to make up Saha’s first Advisory Board.

Our hope is that the Advisory Board will be the idea-engines. Their input will help drive and direct Saha’s long term impact and expansion. They will give their insight on a number of different topics like the Global Leadership Program, the Field Rep Alumni network, Saha’s geographic expansion, marketing and communication strategies, fundraising efforts, etc. We are excited to announce and present to you Saha Global’s first Advisory Board members! Over the next few weeks we will be posting bios about each of the members so you can get to know them a little better, stay posted!

Saha Global’s 2015 Advisory Board Members:
Ben Powell
Brianan Kiernan
Bryant Foreman
Caroline Awh
Caroline Collins
Claire Cohen
Katie Rumer
Katie Spruill
Lucas Hilsbos
Mark Moeremans
Matt Sullivan
Sam Reilley
Serena Haver
Zander Rounds

WELCOME TO THE SAHA FAMILY!

Over the next few weeks we will be posting bios about each of the members so you can get to know them a little better, stay posted!

Saha believes that the Advisory Board will benefit from new prospective and members each year. The Advisory Board membership is one year and positions on the Board will be available in February of each year.