The project for class . . . the beginning of the next journey!

Well, I have survived another semester and will have the final paper uploaded before the end of 2011!  I have had a difficult year, but 2012 is just around the corner.  Hang in with me a little longer!

The Batwa Project

I have always wanted to help people.  If there were someone in need and I had what was needed or knew how to get it, I did.  Philanthropy and art are my passions, when I started putting the idea of ART and philanthropy together, I knew I was onto a somewhat unique idea that I could do myself or find another artist type to do it.  This is how “philAnthRopisT” was born.  I am working with non-profit organizations to tell their stories through ART, this is how I found my way to Uganda, Africa in August of 2010.  It is in working with a new non-profit group called Gorillas, Villages & the Ugandan Spirit (GVUS) that I became acquainted with the Batwa Development Program (BDP), and two of the Batwa elders I wish to interview for the documentary in 2012.

Jeff Markley is the Director and founder of GVUS here in Fort Wayne, IN where he also teaches environmental studies at IPFW.   The GVUS organization was just being formed in 2010 and it is during a conversation with Jeff that I was asked to go to Uganda to help build a hut for a Batwa family. The GVUS is working to help with specific needs within this region of Africa.  Jeff and GVUS are working toward helping to keep the mountain gorillas from becoming extinct and to help the villages thrive around the forest where these last 750 mountain gorillas are living.  GVUS is also working with the Batwa Development Program, a limited corporation under the government of Uganda formed to help the Batwa people survive. The BDP is totally managed and run by the Batwa. When I went to Uganda with Jeff, I met James and Mangerie (two Batwa elders) at the Batwa Cultural Center.  It was here I learned the Batwa were hunters and gatherers for many centuries in the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. The Bwindi Impenetrable Forest was gazetted as a national park and world heritage site in 1992 to protect the 350 endangered mountain gorillas within its confines; in the process the Batwa were evicted from the park and having no title to land, were given no compensation. The Batwa became conservation refugees. Conservation refugees are people, frequently indigenous people, who are displaced from their lands to create conservation areas -- national parks or biodiversity reserves. Conservation refugees exist on every continent, except Antarctica. By some reports there are 14 million conservation refugees on the African continent alone. Conservation rivals resource extraction, as the greatest force displacing indigenous people.  The issue of conservation refugees has been overshadowed by the rush to preserve biodiversity and the western publics' love of biodiversity conservation. However, biodiversity is now suffering from the loss of indigenous people, who have managed these lands for centuries or milennia.¹ 

This project is about documenting the oral histories and traditions of the Batwa pygmies as told by the last generation of Batwa to live in this forest.  Through cooperation of the BDP and GVUS, we are currently interviewing Batwa elders that are willing to answer my questions via email.  James and Mangerie were unable to be contacted when I started this project so I will also be filling in my personal experiences from my trip in 2010 along with Jeff’s perspective on his involvement with the Batwa.

In 1992 the Batwa were removed from the forest to protect the endangered mountain gorillas.  It was imperative that the last surviving mountain gorillas be protected from any human contact since they share 98% common DNA with humans and can contract the same illnesses as humans. Today the forest is under the protection of the Ugandan Wildlife Authority.  It is against the law to enter the forest without an armed guard from the UWA and the proper permits.  The Ugandan Wildlife Authority sells permits to tourists and professionals for about $500 American.  Without these permits and watchful eyes you would not be allowed in the forest.  The Batwa currently cannot afford these permits so they cannot return to the forest.  There are some Batwa that have been hired as guides by the Ugandan Wildlife Authority for tourists who wish to trek gorillas.  There are only a few of these Batwa guides.  As I looked back at my journal from 2010 and the photos taken while in Uganda, I wrote this recollection and began the writing for the video project we will be doing in 2012. 

“I watched and listened as James and Mangerie explained this “removal” from the forest.  The sadness with which they recalled that time in their lives made me look at the bigger picture they were painting.  There was still some anger in their voices that I understood though their language made no sense to me, their voice inflection, hand gestures and facial expressions said a wealth of things, that this was unnecessary, undeserved and painful”. ²

Our trip up the mountainside to the Batwa cultural experience began innocently enough, western tourist types hiking up to be introduced to the history of the Batwa pygmies of the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest.  I thought the cultural center was just down the path, a place where tourists could get tickets and see the people in their cultural garb and speaking in their native language. What I thought would be a short stroll to a cultural center was in fact a 1 hour hike through the mountainous hillside.   As I reported back to my friends here in the U.S. when I was there in Uganda.  .  . “I bet it was hysterical watching a fat-ass white woman huffin' and puffin' straight up the mountainside”. 



1.  Pulled from:  http://conservationrefugees.org/wacr
2.  Pulled from Lynn Berry journal entry August 7, 2010

it's about the process

As  I write and re-write it really is about the process.  I see where there are places that i need to let the reader in.  I'm working on it and I will post section by section as we come down to the home stretch for school, this blog will continue through the entire project.  This intensity to get this paper done is fueling the desire to learn as much BEFORE we get back to Uganda.   I would like to keep the idea that its all about the Batwa, but I am in this too.  So you get to hear my story about their story, it just stands to reason.

MORE MEAT DARN IT!

I am realizing there are many descriptive opportunities being missed in this paper.  I am suggesting to my "self" to walk that walk again with the eyes of a participant instead of an observer.  Please excuse me as I travel back to the forest of Uganda!  


My senses need to be tuned up for this one . . . The sights, sounds, smells and the feelings about being there need to be stirred and written.  Next few entries will be reworks of sections of my paper.

The pain of writing for this class has me exasperated.  I have very low confidence that I can keep my GPA because of this class and my struggling to deliver the written project that I KNOW I CAN DO.  It's been a heck of a semester for me.  I'm not complaining and not making excuses, I'm just sayin' it's been difficult on many levels and this class is showing me HOW MUCH MORE I DON'T KNOW.  Or, at least how much I have to learn.  Oh Lord help me through these last few weeks so I can make it come to life!

First Draft -

Well, after a flurry of activity to get the first draft done, turned in and reviewed, I can say I have a LOT of work to do.  I find myself telling the story as an outsider, because I AM an outsider.  I am so far outside I have to make sure I leave bread crumbs on the ground so I can find my way back!  There are many things about this paper and this project that are important and yet, I still have a passive voice.  I will have to really bust a hump to get the right "voice" written into this.  Although, I still feel like I have a perspective which allows all my friends and followers to peer into this project from where I get to peer into it. . . outside looking in.  I'm working on it!

Oh Dear . . .

It's time to start the project of writing about what I know, what I have gathered and putting it into some semblance of order.  I am working on the best way to present the information, what point of view and with which subject should I "lead" the story.  I am a philanthropist at heart and an artist by trade.  I have a gift and a passion for both.  For the sake of this project I will touch upon the philAnthRopisT - combining ART and philanthropy as a lead into the paper because without the philAnthRopisT there would be no video project.  The whole idea of videotaping the Batwa was born from the visit I made with Jeff in 2010 to Uganda as his philAnthRopisT in tow.  While there working with him for his non profit group, I began thinking of ways to continue to help others, (especially the Batwa), through ART.  I knew there were endless possibilities but I would have to step away as the primary artist on this idea as I am not a videographer.  I have the creativity and vision but not the technical knowledge.  So, as I usually do, I stepped out into the unknown . . . working without a net (as they say in the circus), I began the drive to get others enlisted in doing good for everyone's sake.  Needless to say, I found the right people to connect.  I just need to move the art forward on paper, to bring the Batwa's life in the forest alive in print.  I am now walking the tightrope on a scary short deadline and working WITHOUT A NET.

Amazing! I am finding my way to helping others. . .

I am looking through the photos that I took when I went to Uganda and thinking how AMAZING it is that I got to go there to participate in my own thesis idea!  I know, it sounds funny, but what I am finding is I have taken the idea of combining philanthropy & ART to another level.  It is no longer just an idea or rough concept . . . I have a working model!  Art benefiting a non profit organization in a different way - a sort of "creative expansion" of out-of-the-box thinking.  This video project is a labor of love.  I just jumped in and asked the questions and here I am working at going back while writing the script.  Often I wonder how I got here, and then I realize it was meant to happen, if not to me, someone . . . so I am on board.    More on the Batwa . . . later.

Transporting back in Time

Every time I take these photos out I am taken back to Uganda and the Batwa.  I am connected to these people and I feel for them.  I felt very honored, like I was in the presence of a rich spiritual tribe, all woven together by fate and circumstance.

Political changes in Uganda in the early 1990's and global initiatives to save the mountain gorillas from extinction were the impetus for the extraction from the forest.  These gorillas are the closest to human DNA and there was concern that the gorillas would be compromised if the Batwa stayed in the forest.  Let's just ignore the thousands of years they lived together harmoniously, let's marginalize an entire culture which is struggling with the same threat of extinction, let's just "take" under the guise of betterment for all. Oh, I digress.  I am speaking ethnocide and this is about the Traditions of the Batwa.  Unfortunately, I have to tell this story here, I believe it would jeopardize our project if political ramblings cropped up and I am not a real politico by any stretch.  Just so you know I found this online at Wikipedia (not always a reliable source), when I said ethnocide to myself . . .  I LOVE GOOGLE!  This actually played out as accurate info: 

Article 7 of a 1994 draft of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples uses the phrase "cultural genocide" but does not define what it means.^[4] The complete article reads as follows:

Indigenous peoples have the collective and individual right not to be subjected to ethnocide and cultural genocide, including prevention of and redress for:

(a) Any action which has the aim or effect of depriving them of their integrity as distinct peoples, or of their cultural values or ethnic identities;

(b) Any action which has the aim or effect of dispossessing them of their lands, territories or resources;

(c) Any form of population transfer which has the aim or effect of violating or undermining any of their rights;

(d) Any form of assimilation or integration by other cultures or ways of life imposed on them by legislative, administrative or other measures;

(e) Any form of propaganda directed against them.

This declaration only appeared in a draft. The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly during its 62nd session at UN Headquarters in New York City on 13 September 2007, but only mentions "genocide", not "cultural genocide", although the article is otherwise unchanged

Oh, I still digress.

Anyhoo - Back to the history project . . .

When we got to the cultural center the elders, which were three women and one man, took us into a hut where we could rest a minute and hear them speak of their time in the forest.

James was the one to speak to us and Levi was the translator.  James told us about the Batwa's instruments, the drums made from goat skins and wood and a string instrument (which I don't know what it's called) that James played for us while Mangerie danced.

This moment, this resting time, was for me, a brief look into the world of the Batwa . . . a journey with information that I was to carry back with me and share with whomever would listen.

BLOG THIS!

ok, so I am "lean" on my blog information . . . well yeah, I am, I am working to get ANYONE to respond to what I NEED.  So, I am now left to look into the written word that is available and to try and connect with anyone else who may know anything pertinent about the Batwa.  I have my own memories and I can subject you to those, but I must admit that I am not an expert by any stretch of the imagination.  I would prefer to ask questions of James and Mangerie, but to my dismay I have to wait on EVERYONE ELSE.  So, if you detect a bit of sarcasm and hhhrrrrumpfffppph!  It is because of the deep frustration I am experiencing with most aspects of this project.  There may even be a few expletives sprinkled in where I just don't feel like curbing my language!  I will start with the 2010 journal that I kept for the two weeks we were there.  That journal and the 1400 photos I took should have some meat to feed the MACHINE!

Our trip up the mountainside to the Batwa cultural experience began innocently enough, western tourist types hiking up to be introduced to the history of the Batwa pygmies of the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest.  As I reported back to my friends here in the U.S. when I was there .  .  . I bet it was hysterical watching a fat-ass white woman huffin' and puffin' straight up the mountainside.

This was our view from the area around the cultural center, the views were spectacular, so was the adventure.

From this vantage point we moved further up the mountainside until we met a small group of Elders from the Batwa  . . . they greeted us at the entry to the final ascent to the cultural center.

 James was the Chief guide and the individual who spoke about their lives in the forest.  Along our path James showed us the way they slept in and under trees and rocks, any nook or small shelter would suffice.

From this point we continue up the mountainside (yes, up, up, up, huffin', puffin' and thinking how can anyone live this way?)  I felt like I live a soft life.

 I have no idea how old James is, he certainly looks older than I believe he is, but with no written records before 1992, it is hard to say what his age might be.  I was struck by the mix of modern clothing with forest reproduction, neither looked great . . . both were tattered.  The women that were in this group of elders were amazing too, they were stronger than me and again, I am thinking they were older too.  Although an average age for a Batwa pygmy is 28 years, I was 48 when I was walking side by side with these women of the forest.  How much older (if at all) are these women?  They aren't even breathing hard as we keep winding up the mountainside.  The thought that they could actually be younger than me really was a mind bender, I still can't wrap my mind around it.  Hard life ages you, ages you before your time.  After just the experience of getting to the center, I realized this was a way of life for all the Batwa, moving from place to place in the forest searching for food and shelter.  Now add children into the mix - this is a hard, hard way of living and it was done for thousands of years . . . so I guess it isn't abnormal for me to have a problem my first day.

Mangerie is on the right . . . she is another person I will be interviewing.  I really want to know what their lives, (James & Mangerie), were like in the forest.  More to come. . . .

Collecting the Information

Well, I am now at the mercy of others for collecting the information that will pertain to the video project.  I will have to do some research through previously written information and my previous visit to Uganda.  I have a catalog of photos to go through and information from my daily log that I kept while there.  I am starting to write the paper that will carry over to scripting.  I will have to meet with the director of GVUS and Dan from Media 401 to go over my concepts, but I am sure the both of them will "bless" this research and fact finding I am doing before we land back in Uganda!  I am excited to think I can contribute to this oral history by documenting all the things we saw and did while there last August ('10), I realized I have a good amount of information from then that can translate into documentable information.  I would like to build more huts while there AND see the gorillas . . . along with a list of things that need done.

























This photo is from the village of Nteko where we built a new hut for this Mutwa (singular for Batwa) woman.  Her name is Effuress and she has 7 adult children - 6 died before the age of 5.  This hut was an absolute labor of love for this woman.

   I hope to return to Nteko to see her again along with the cutest little guy I have EVER met!  I do not know this little guy's name, but he stole my heart with his joy.  He was one of many children who captured my heart, but his eyes say much more than words could ever.   My hope is that he got to the hospital before he got too sick, you see his belly is distended because he has a case of worms, which is common in places without adequate sanitation.  He lives 5 hours from the hospital in Bwindi, his family and other villagers must walk to get him there.  I am very afraid for him, this is why I would like to go back to Nteko to see him.

Moving Forward

Well, the first round of questions have been sent to my man Jeff here in Fort Wayne.  I will be contacting him instead of multiple contacts from Uganda.  I am also concerned about the time frame, because it is so difficult to get anywhere to interview the Batwa.  If you can't reach it by vehicle you have to walk . . . someone has to be willing to go there.  We shall see.  Keep us in your thoughts over the next few weeks as we try to gather information for the video!!

Making headway . . .

Had a wonderful meeting with the director of GVUS and we have a plan of action that makes perfect sense.  Jeff will contact the BDP for me and work out the reciprocity issue.  We are back on the move again.  The questions are ready to be sent and I am currently waiting to hear from Jeff at GVUS to green light my questions pertaining to the video scripting.  I feel like I have a clear concept of what I am doing now.  Rewrote the proposal, yet again, for clarity . . .


Clarity, what a wonderful thing.

Holding My Breath

Well, I am now crafting a letter that speaks to the overall project, not just my college paper.  I will be sending it out after I meet with my man Jeff,  head Mzungu of the GVUS here.

I would like this to be a smooth process, although that is relative since the conditions there are so much more complicated than here.  In order to get to James and Mangerie the BDP have to find them since they are not on site at this time.  So, that means limited communication from village to village, walking instead of driving to most places and then getting word to them they are needed.  If they agree it would be up to the translator and them to do the interview where everyone is most comfortable, either at the village they are residing in, or back at the BDP offices in Bwindi.  My questions are few, but the answers will be long (I hope).  The whole project rests on every one's willingness to volunteer and participate.  I dream of teamwork where even the language barrier doesn't matter.  I just want to take down this information for posterity and for the video project we are working toward creating for them . . . how do you convey THAT message?  Still holding my breath.

Taking a moment to learn.

I had a great discussion in class with my instructor about this dilemma.  Really not to worry about getting the interviews, but the process I am experiencing to find information.  The negotiating will be an interesting process and I will speak to Jeff about it . . . got an email back from him and he doesn't seem concerned (at least by the tone of his email he didn't) . . . So I am the one who is having a conniption over the latest development.  Soooooo, do I wait to respond to the BDP with my newest proposal? Or, wait until I speak with Jeffrey to hash it out?  I dread losing anymore time between now and whenever we get together to talk about the development since my life is revolving around school, day job, night job and trying to have a small life carved out for my art and my "self" . . .  I guess I will find the middle ground in this before I strike out on the next path.

Today's dilemma .  .  . reciprocity.  I am asked to pay for the interviews and the translators, something I believe is important and necessary.  I wasn't completely expecting this, but for the paper I feel it is imperative that I pay them somehow what they desire, I am just not sure I can afford to write this paper since I am on scholarship and I am not making much money myself.   I will have to think about what my next moves are.  Definitely have a message out to Jeff so there are no surprises in store for the three of us when we go in June.  I am thinking there may be need for some more discussion.  I am now starting to wonder about the project.  If I am volunteering to take two months off from my paying part-time job to help the Batwa preserve their history, do the people of the BDP and the Batwa understand I am not getting paid and neither are Jeff and Dan?   I believe the prep work is imperative, their traditions and history are important; am I the one to do it?  Jeff is the lead man on the project as far as the connections to the Batwa and getting us there, Dan and I are the creative team behind the video . . .  I am the instigator of the project.  Now would be the time to find out expectations . . . theirs and ours.

 I am in the midst of rewriting the current proposal to reflect more questions!  I have so many questions already and I haven't even asked James or Mangerie anything yet!!  They are my inspiration and they are so strong.  My hope is to create an outline/script that follows their path from the forest to today.  What will they want to pass on to their ancestors about the forest, the gorillas, the plants, the life?  We will see how this goes as we step into the process of gathering . . . .

Add caption

Levi and Jeff enjoying some sugar cane in the village of Nteko Uganda.
I have received an email from Levi sharing his willingness to help me get my research questions answered!  I will be working on these questions as they pertain to the video and to the Batwa history collection project. I am excited to say the least . . . I will be working with one really nice guy who can communicate with James and Mangerie, the two people I want to interview most.  The project really is under way!!!

History

Well, the history proposal is done and submitted.  I am so grateful to have this class during this time as it is helping to clarify the focus and my own understanding of the philAnthRopisT.  Blending art and philanthropy to benefit non profit organizations isn't a new concept, but it is new to me and I have run with this idea . . . which is now a working model.   I am excited to be preparing a paper that will help keep the video project on point.  The people of Uganda, specifically the people of the BDP (Batwa Development program), are so willing to assist with this research paper, I hope they can meet my deadlines.  I have to plan very far ahead since our time difference and sense of urgency is not the same.  This will be a true "fieldwork" assignment, now and in 2012!  Let's get it done!!

This is a link you may be interested in . . .

Can you be of any assistance?

http://app.e2ma.net/app2/campaigns/archived/1408651/7c81f3dca23c89b0d050931fc453a2ae/

Good morning. I am in the throws of trying to decide what exactly to research for this project while here in the U.S. I have some outlines done and ideas rolling around in my head, but nothing truly committed to paper. I will have a proposal ready before the weekend, but I still have concerns about where to get valid, useful information. I would like this Batwa project to have legs. It should be able to stand on its own when I am done and the body of work, hopefully, will be strong. Keep your fingers crossed, it will be a long couple of days here for me!

This was my first adventure with Jeffrey from Gorillas, Villages & the Ugandan Spirit - his not-for-profit that will be benefiting the Gorillas of the forest, the Batwa and the hospital in Bwindi. Jeff is an amazing guy and I believe our next trip there will be an amazing example of what you can do to help.

So here I am, looking ahead to 2012 and returning to Uganda to work at saving the traditions and oral histories of the Batwa. While I am planning ahead, I am also working on a Master's degree in Liberal studies. I will be utilizing my contacts to do some preliminary research into Batwa genealogy, as if there is something written somewhere. Wish me luck.

The Beginning

Well, I have arrived here on the web! I will be sharing with you the events as they unfold for Gorillas, Villages & the Ugandan Spirit along with the philAnthRopisT and media 401. We will be traveling to Uganda in 2012 to meet the Batwa elders and record their traditions. It will be a mission with purpose as we set out to record the traditions and oral histories of the Batwa pygmy people.