PDM

(Does anyone actually know what this acronym stands for?)

I attended PDM with 9 other Peace Corps Volunteers and their counterparts, in Garuso (about 15k from Vanduzi). The purpose of the conference was to learn about secondary projects that volunteers can start/continue in their communities. We each brought a colleague from school, who ideally we would work with on these projects, and who could continue them once we finish service and return to the states. Overall, it was incredibly successful, and was the exact forum I needed to show a colleague of mine what Peace Corps really is, and the potential I as a volunteer, have to start projects in our community. It was also great to finally learn about grants that are available for volunteers.

At the last minute I asked another English teacher, Simao, to come along with me to PDM and he agreed almost immediately. The weekend before the conference he insisted on meeting up and discussing potential project ideas-because he only had a few days notice to prepare, he was worried others would think we were weren’t prepared (note: there was no required prep for this conference). Still, his desire to prepare made me even more excited that I was bringing him along. During the conference Simao and I brainstormed a number of different ideas for projects we could start in Vanduzi. We made a list and then decided to focus on one of the easier/more short-term projects, and agreed to return to our list at the start of the next school year, when there would be more time.

We decided we will form a student group at school and together will teach them more about HIV/AIDs. These students then, will have the chance to educate their community about HIV/AIDs through theatre, dance, music and poetry. This group will be very similar to JUNTOS—a nationwide group that many volunteers are involved with in Mozambique. We set meeting dates and agreed to talk to other teachers about our group when we returned to Vanduzi. We also agreed to form an English club and really get started with our English theatre group (today I got a list of interested 8th graders who want to participate!)

Overall, the conference was a huge success. For me, I was able to share with a colleague more about what Peace Corps is, and because the conference was so professional, my colleague was able to trust or understand better what kinds of projects would be possible if we worked together. More importantly, I was able to chat with Simao about what he thought was really needed in Vanduzi, and through these conversations gauge a better idea of what the community wants and needs.

Now that I’m back at site, I’ve met with Simao and we are still planning to meet with our colleagues---it’s the first week of the semester and unfortunately very few teachers, and students have returned to school. I’m excited though I think our student group, along with our English club, is going to come along great. Simao is well-liked as school and the students really respect him, so I think together we will be able to get more participation and excitement from our students. Wish me luck!