The Botswana Association for Positive Living ~ BAPL

We have officially become an NGO through the Register of Societies here in Gaborone!  After hearing it would take ages because of the slowness of the government, I was fired up to make it happen quicker.  It should have taken a minimum of 14 business days from January 15th, but a little persistence worked in our favor and the process was done in 7 days.  We are in the flow of things, gaining momentum to begin the pilot in a couple of weeks.  The establishment of a local NGO is key for the public-private partnership we are cultivating.  BAPL is the body through which we can link with civil society and become a part of a larger network of efforts to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa.     

As an organization, we are focusing on youth, seeking to empower them through mentorship. Our project team is young itself, all of us between the ages of 22-27.  We are youth, working with youth, with the vision of collaborating to cultivate a positive lifestyle that encourages people to connect with each other and to live healthy, vibrant, and fun lives.  As human beings, we are connected with others around us and it is by reaching out and connecting that we create synergistic forces that can make great feats possible.  Synergy is a force that is greater than the sum of its parts.  As we seek to have a significant impact on the HIV/AIDS epidemic, this project will need the force of synergy to fly and spread to the many communities that make up Botswana.      

There is a beautiful concept here in southern Africa, that comes from Zulu, known as ubuntu.  Ubuntu is the philosophy that as humans, we are made up of the people with whom we interact; we are not solitary individuals acting in a vacuum.  In Zulu, it means, "a person is a person through other persons."  If we support each other and teach each other, then we are strengthening the whole.  If we choose to act selfishly, then the whole is undermined.   

Within BAPL, we will be mentoring youth in areas of IT, public relations, NGO and business operations, and patient relations.  We hope to eventually employ a few of them to run the NGO and mentor the next wave of youth.  In the future we want to mentor youth to be peer to peer educators who will be involved in educating  each other about HIV/AIDS, spreading knowledge about how the virus works, how antiretrovirals (ARVs) work, and how to get social and emotional support.  Our first activity is to host a soccer/football tourney in Gaborone to raise awareness and funds for our organization and of course, to have FUN while doing so.  We'll keep you posted.  

 

lagoon and avocado

All work and no play makes Katy a dull girl.

Obama!

All of us are pumped about Obama's innauguration into the White House, which George Clinton of Parliament/ Funkadelic aptly predicted, "we may call it the white house, but that's a temporary situation." I was sad that Odetta did not live long enough to perform at the innauguration as was scheduled, but Aretha "the Queen of Soul" Franklin filled in beautifully with style and grace. People in Bots are pumped about Obama, too. This morning I saw a guy wearing a tshirt with "Obama is my homeboy" across the front.

It was quite powerful to see Obama stand next to Bush on the steps of the White House. The juxtaposition of the two is striking. I see Bush as a tired, ragged man who couldn't wait to step out of office, having held on for as long as he did with a clenched jaw and stressed face. Although it takes some work to be president, I feel as if Bush fell into place as a former president's son, taking a position almost handed to him. At nearly the polar opposite, Obama is a natural leader with profound intellect, charisma, fresh energy, and (damn, Obama!) a six-pack. It is clear that Obama wants to be in his own position and is eager to make changes. Thank you, people, for voting Obama into office.

Although former president Bush will go down in history as the worst president in the history of the United States (I'm being real), he did make a gigantic contribution to the struggle against HIV/AIDS. In 2003, Bush made the "largest commitment by any nation to combat a single disease in history" (http://www.pepfar.gov/about/index.htm) through the President's Emergency Plan of AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). PEPFAR focuses on countries most severely affected by the epidemic, notably Sub-Saharan Africa. The budget for 2008 was 3 billion USD. Initially a 5 year plan, the US Government has extended PEPFAR through 2013. Thank you, Bush, and don't let the door hit you on the way out.

It's a new era. The demand for innovative solutions to the world's problems is building as are responses and the necessary political will and financial mechanisms to make multiple great ideas- silver buck shot- into realities. Here in Gaborone, we are working on one. If all goes well, replication is the next step. In the states, Obama and his supporters are working to make things happen between grassroots and changing skies. Yes, we can.

To wrap things up, Claibourne, I was happy to see that you have finally come around when you noted on facebook that you "found change in the washer and wanted to thank Obama."

eish, my head is spinning

So we are back in Gaborone after an amazing trip to Capetown and there are so many exciting things going on with the project that i dont even know how to keep track of them. The project team is  really great and we are adding a few new members not to mention we are trying to see if we can find some money to pay people for all of their hard work, yup i mean salaries. sounds too good to be true? it may be. but if all goes to plan than people wont have to hustle 24-7 to try and save money or keep hitting up their parents to help cover their day to day expenses. 

we have also decided to start both an NGO and a company that owns the rights to the software. we are hoping to make the company something truly unique and more general than just SMS. in fact we want to start a company that utilizes technology that already exists in a creative way or makes slight modifications to current technology in order to, in Prentiss's words "improve human security". We want to work on different diseases, on water sanitation and other issues that impact humanity all over the world. sounds a bit lofty doesnt it? well i guess we will take it one day at a time. first things first... for the NGO and for the company, we need names....

New Years, Sunshine and Merry Brazilians

Most of the team decided to head down to Cape Town to join in on the New Years festivities. After much worrying and speculation we were able to contact and meet up with one of our newer team members Prentiss. After a long flight she was still rearing to tear it up with the rest of us. To start off the games we were treated to an extravagaza of cinnamon and fire blazing atop our shots of tequila. Unfortunately I was the last to place my shot glass on the tray so i downed the remaining tequila on the plate which did burn my throat quite a bit. Yasemin ran into some merry Brazilians who were quite amorous but in a comical way. We can't fault Katy for trying to show us that she feels very strongly about the new years holiday. After alot of sun and relaxtion without any pestering insects we reluctantly left the sandy beach, glistening water and headed back to hot and humid Gaborone. I must admit i feel extremely rejuvinated and ready to hit the ground running with our project.