Ain Leuh, Morocco: Reflections and Perceptions

The following is a post from AUA Mosaic Fellowship recipient Laura McAdams. Laura has just returned from volunteering in Morocco, working with women in the textile field. To find an amazing volunteer opportunity, search the AUA Directory of Recommended Organizations© today.

Sitting in this air-conditioned Starbucks in Portland, Oregon, Ain Leuh, Morocco feels a world away. I recently returned from two months working and living with Amazigh (Berber) artisans. I am very happy to be home, yet am also missing the women of the weaving cooperative.

I left Morocco in the middle of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. As a general rule, all Moroccans in Morocco are Muslim, so all of Ain Leuh and every member of the cooperative were celebrating Ramadan. This meant observing a daily fast from dawn until dusk, over 12 hours during the heat of the day without food or water. Most people didn’t even brush their teeth, to prevent any possible foreign substance from being swallowed. I am not Muslim, but I didn’t eat most days. Since I lived with a family, it was just easier to do as they did. More than this, though, Ramadan was a month of eating, visiting, and chatting with family and friends. I missed this social aspect of life so much that as soon as I returned, I spent a week with my grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins catching up and talking about my experience in Morocco.

Many interesting questions and comments came up during this time, and I was forced to reflect deeper into my experience than I had expected. There are so many stereotypical representations of Muslims and Arabs in American media; I shouldn’t have been surprised by some of what my own family was asking me.

No, the Amazigh women of Middle Atlas Morocco do not travel on camels and sleep in tents. They live in apartments in the wooded mountains, where snow is common. Many have never even seen a camel, although some own a working donkey or two.

No, the women I worked with did not wear burkas, nor was it absolutely forbidden for them to leave the house with their heads covered. In Morocco, wearing the hijab, or headscarf, is a purely personal choice.

No, I did not meet any terrorists or face any anti-American sentiment. Most Moroccans were genuinely curious to hear about my family, how much food cost and what American weddings and funerals were like. They liked to discuss the apparent differences between my country and theirs, but were also aware of many similarities. Mehma, one of my favorite artisans at the cooperative once told me, “we are all the same, really, we all love our families and will do all we can to provide for them and protect them”.

The Moroccans I lived and worked with were neither innocent victims nor evil terrorists. They are a group of friendly, welcoming artisans who work to preserve their Amazigh culture and provide for their families through weaving. I am so thankful for the opportunity to share a summer with them and then be able to share this experience with people back home. I’ve really come to believe that cross-cultural exchange through one-on-one experiences encourages tolerance, the first step toward achieving understanding, and ultimately, peace.

In the fall, I will be attending a graduate studies program in International Educational Development with a focus on the Middle East and North Africa. I hope to use this experience in my studies and in the future in the field as a development professional.

I am still in touch with Khadija Ouchkak, the treasurer of the cooperative and the woman I lived with during my fellowship, and through her, the other women of the cooperative. They are looking forward to seeing pictures of their weavings displayed at the Human Rights Institute at Kean University in New Jersey later this month. They are also hoping to welcome a new Peace Fellow through The Advocacy Project next summer to continue the work of increasing the cooperative’s exposure and their message of Moroccan Amazigh cultural preservation.

AUA Fall Communications Internship

America’s Unofficial Ambassadors is seeking a dedicated Communications Intern for the fall semester. The internship is open to students and recent graduates committed to AUA’s mission. Details are below:

Creative Learning – Communications Intern

Creative Learning, a Washington-DC based not-for-profit, seeks a part-time Communications Intern for the America’s Unofficial Ambassadors (AUA) initiative. AUA is increasing the number of Americans who volunteer in the Muslim World. This position is mission-driven. The Communications Intern has to have a passion for volunteer service and a demonstrated interest in some aspect of the Muslim World (Africa, Asia, or the Middle East). Superior communication and organizational skills are equally necessary. This position carries a stipend of $1000 for successful completion of the full internship, 16-20 hours a week, from September 10 to December 14, 2012.

This position will entail:

• Managing  the AUA Facebook and Twitter pages;
• Conducting and tracking outreach to student organizations on college campuses;
• Maintaining relationships with contributing bloggers, promoting the AUA blog, and promoting returned volunteers’ community presentations;
• Supporting the AUA team with communications to potential partners, stakeholders, and volunteers;
• Supporting and promoting AUA Network webinars;
• Supporting AUA fundraising campaigns and events; and
• Representing AUA at fairs, conferences, and meetings

The Communications Intern will report to the AUA Program Coordinator.

This position requires the following:

• Excellent organizational, written, and oral communication skills
• Proven track record of  dependability, a respect for details, the capacity to multi- task, and a can-do, team-oriented, entrepreneurial, and enthusiastic attitude;
• Previous experience and/or interest in the Muslim World
• Previous experience volunteering
• Working knowledge of  MS Office Suite, Word Press, Facebook, and Twitter

Creative Learning (www.creativelearning.org) is located in Friendship Heights in Washington, DC. Please send letter of interest, resume, an 800 word writing sample and three references to   StefanC(at)CreativeLearning.org with “Communications Intern” in the subject line. 

A Bottle of Hope

The following is a post from AUA Mosaic Fellowship recipient Anina Tweed.  Anina is currently volunteering in Bangladesh during the summer of 2012. To find an amazing volunteer opportunity, search the AUA Directory of Recommended Organizations© today.

“I feel like I carry with me a bottle of hope that is being continually filled by the power, voice and support of my fellow sisters” – WPSP Fellow

Our year of service has begun with attending the State Department’s Women in Public Service Institute at AUW. The WPS Project aims to “build a generation of women leaders who will invest in their countries and communities, provide leadership in their governments, and change the way global solutions are forged.” For a week now, international human rights expert Dr. Rangita de Silva has been leading 43 women from Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, and Vietnam in workshops covering issues from norms in international domestic violence lawmaking to the importance of encouraging men to act as caregivers in the family.

Throughout the institute, the fellows have proven themselves to be critical thinkers and relentlessly inquisitive. They confront their guest lecturers with critical, difficult questions even the most senior development workers and advocates struggle with. Just today, two of the girls asked a leading law enforcement official what should be done in cases where the police themselves are the perpetrators of violence against women. Others expressed concern over how domestic violence programs could be accessed by poorer women living in more remote, rural regions. Unfortunately, for most of these questions, even lawyers, doctors and police chiefs have no clear answer. When not listening to guest presenters, the fellows engage in role playing scenarios and brainstorming sessions to strategize their own policies. Their presentations on sexual harassment, anti-corruption, child marriage, and educational reform give me hope that this generation of women will find ways to answer their own questions and pose their own solutions where others have failed.

The most moving part of the institute has been the focus on the power of women’s narratives. Each one of these women has a story to tell, and Dr. de Silva has encouraged them to hone their public speaking skills in order to become effective leaders. The fellows have risen to the challenge, sharing with us personal hardships. They’ve not only revealed the biases they’ve overcome and stereotypes they’ve shattered, but have gone farther to derive from these struggles the dreams and goals they will now work towards. Above all, they approach their stories with a sense of humor, humility, and passion that resonates in their words. Throughout their narratives, themes such as the centrality of education, the hardships of being born a girl, and the struggle to overcome stereotypes are woven. They make themselves vulnerable when admitting “Since I was born, my existence as a girl has been denied”, “to be an Afghan was a humiliation”, and “I was born into a family expecting a boy.” Yet in the same breath they prove their strength and resolve as they are determined to use their skills to become change makers.

Though these women may be interested in diverse areas of change, from environmental advocacy, to the technology sector, to child’s rights, they all acknowledge the strength they derive from each other. Overall, the WPS project emphasizes the importance of forming women’s networks in order to empower and build partnerships for change. These fellows embody that spirit. One stated: “we come from different countries but we have a common pain.” For most, the pain of being discriminated against based on their gender is quickly turning into a sense of power, resolve and partnership. While they may have felt “abnormal” and out of place in their home communities, they see their own passions reflected in each other and garner strength. We World Teach fellows in turn feel our bottles of hope overflowing for the year to come…

 

The Advocacy Project: Cooperative des Tisseuses d’Ain Leuh, Morocco

The following is a post from AUA Mosaic Fellowship recipient Laura McAdams. Laura has just returned from volunteering in Morocco, working with women in the textile field. To find an amazing volunteer opportunity, search the AUA Directory of Recommended Organizations© today.

My role as a Peace Fellow with The Advocacy Project in Ain Leuh was to facilitate online purchases and to generate interest in the cooperative’s work. I also aimed to lay the groundwork for future volunteers through The Advocacy Project.

To facilitate online purchases, I overhauled the existing website and provided basic computer literacy training. The site (www.tissageainleuh.beep.com) includes translations into Arabic, French, German and Spanish, and now features the following content that was collected over the summer:

Welcome Page- Basic information on the Cooperative des Tisseuses d’Ain Leuh

Who We Are – Photos and descriptions of each full-time weaver at the cooperative.

Our Products – Photos and descriptions of products for sale

Our Process – An eleven-minute video on the process of creating a weaving

Our Motifs – Photos and descriptions of traditional Amazigh design motifs used in the cooperative’s weavings

Place an Order – Customers are able to order products directly on the site.

Once a week I provided computer literacy training at the local internet cafe for all interested artisans of the cooperative. I began with the very basics, that is, explaining each computer component and their function, and ending with e-mail basics. Unfortunately, no member of the cooperative is yet able to take pictures of new products, write a small descriptions of them using Google translate, post them online, and then be able to read and respond to orders sent via email. One cooperative member’s educated daughter was recently sent home from her work in Syria, and has agreed to temporarily take over this work once I leave. It is my hope that a future volunteer with The Advocacy Project can continue these computer literacy courses with the members of the cooperative.

To generate interest in the cooperative’s work, I created content on the cooperative in a number of different places:

A Facebook page for the cooperative that currently has 46 “LIKE”s.

A Flickr page with nearly 100 photos.

11 blog posts on The Advocacy Project site.

6 short videos on various aspects of the cooperative and Amazigh culture (to be posted shortly on the cooperative’s channel; ainleuhtissage).

The artisans of the cooperative also were excited to participate in creating an Advocacy Quilt. Eleven women produced a panel featuring traditional Amazigh design motifs. The panels will be connected by a quilting guild in the United States to create one large tapestry for a three-month exhibition at the Human Rights Institute at Kean University, New Jersey with other Advocacy Quilts.

This summer has been one of great personal growth. I’ve learned how to shoot and edit simple videos and photos, update a website with basic HTML, and how to fully utilize social networking sites like Facebook and twitter.

More than this, though, I’ve come to understand more about Moroccan Amazigh culture. Throughout my volunteer period, I lived with Khadija Oujkak, the cooperative’s treasurer. I am thankful to her for her patience and willingness to share with me her immense body of knowledge. She introduced me to each woman at the cooperative and made sure I was completely involved in the cooperative’s activities.

Thanks to her and the women of the cooperative, I was able to improve my Moroccan dialect, learn some key Tamazight (Berber) words, understand the importance of weavings to Amazigh culture and catalogue traditional motifs used in their weavings.

I was invited into their homes and they shared their lives with me. I met their husbands and children, and in many cases, their entire extended families. I broke the Ramadan fast with them, celebrated a birth and a circumcision, mourned at a funeral, attended a birthday party and countless lunches. Each day I spent at the cooperative felt like spending time with friends as I got to know them and understand what was important to them. I thank them for their generosity and for welcoming me as part of the family.

Thank you so much to America’s Unofficial Ambassadors for their support and for making this summer possible.

First Encounters

The following is a post from AUA Mosaic Fellowship recipient Anina Tweed.  Anina is currently volunteering in Bangladesh during the summer of 2012. To find an amazing volunteer opportunity, search the AUA Directory of Recommended Organizations© today.

The first breath of Chittagong smacks you in the face and pulls you under in a wave of sensory overload. The most immediate threat being the ridiculous chaos of honks and swerves that result from a complete lack of traffic laws, lanes, signs or guidance. The throngs of elaborately painted rickshaws, green mini taxis, overcrowded buses, imposing trucks, and the occasional car seem to navigate based off of a continuous game of chicken, daring the other to see who will swerve first. Our morning van ride is best survived by trying to ignore the near collisions we face from moment to moment. And god forbid you should navigate the masses on foot. Crossing the road is like real life Frogger, except it’s not as fun when you yourself are the frog.

Walking down the street here is a test in multi-tasking and appreciating the beauty along with the hardships. The clutter of colors, smells, people and sounds mix with the oppressive heat to make you all at once uncomfortable and excited. You can only look up momentarily to wonder what all of the exotic sweets in the mishti stands are before turning away to avoid children, garbage and potholes. You pass chickens next to pharmacies and piles of bananas next to carts of sandals. One second you’re holding your nose as you pass by a man sifting through a garbage pile, and the next your trying to take in the smell of the ambiguous food being fried and wondering just how sick you might get if you tried it. Perhaps the most shocking is the presence of a Baskin Robbins and Pizza Hut in the midst of the Bangladeshi madness. They make no sense but we’re all secretly thankful to see some familiarity amongst the chaos. Above all, Chittagong is a series of juxtapositions and contrasts that leave you feeling confused as to whether your entertained or disheartened.

Often, the thrill of adventure is overshadowed by the harsh realities of life here. The level of poverty in Chittagong, one of the more affluent cities in Bangladesh, is something I have always known but never had to encounter. As white, American women we stick out like sore thumbs and attract a constant stream of followers asking for food and money. The beggars here are not only poor and hungry but suffering from diseases, lost limbs, and deformities that make it difficult not to cringe. The hardest to endure are the mothers who hold their children’s diseases in your face.  Even more depressing, is the realization that you will eventually become hardened to them, accepting that there are simply too many to ever help or feed or clothe. Perhaps the trade off is an increase in motivation to find larger, more sustainable solutions. To look at root causes and get out in the community to work with organizations already addressing these issues.

Today, Kassi (our fearless field director) and I ventured into a more peaceful side alley to visit her tailor and explore the smaller lanes of the neighborhood. We were instantly met by a throng of smiling kids greeting us in English. I tried out my new “what’s your name? My name is…” Bangla vocab on them and they giggled while pronouncing that I was learning Bangla “little by little.” As soon as Kassi pulled out her camera the photoshoot was on. More and more kids flocked to us, each one tinier and cuter than the last. They wanted pictures with us both and were ecstatic to glimpse their faces flashing peace signs on the display screen. The simple act of seeing their own picture brought them so much joy. We broke away and continued down the alley, the warm feelings from the exchange slowly subsiding as we passed the tiny, dirty one room shacks that were their homes.

At the end of our walk, sweaty and exhausted from just going around the block, Kassi gave me a nugget of wisdom: in Bangladesh, there is no easy crossing, you just have to become part of the traffic.

School 2 School: One Teacher’s Experience in Jordan

The following is a post from School 2 School recipient Brittney Scott. Brittney recently returned from Jordan where her students from Colorado raised money to purchase an interactive  SMART board during the summer of 2012 for the students in Jordan. To find an amazing volunteer opportunity, search the AUA Directory of Recommended Organizations© today.

The morning I arrived at the Queen Noor school to teach English, I had butterflies. much like I did before my first day of teaching at Panorama Middle School in Colorado Springs. It is exciting and nerve-racking to have a classroom full of students depending on you to learn. The stakes are high for students at the Queen Noor School, as well as for my students at Panorama. Both schools draw from low income communities in which education is seen as a path out of poverty. For all the apparent differences between my American students and my Jordanian students, there are striking similarities. They smile when they answer a question correctly. They have a natural curiosity about the students in their partner school and their questions for the teacher seem endless. They want to go to college, although their paths to college may be filled with many hurdles to overcome. They have to work harder to succeed than their peers in wealthier communities and both classrooms of students demonstrate extraordinary potential to do so.

It was an eye-opening experience for my American students to learn about what a “low income” school was like in Jordan and as a teacher, it was an eye-opening experience for me to have a chance to teach at this school and get to know the students and staff. Yes, their technology was inferior compared to even a “low income” school in the US and their building was in need of some renovations, for example in the unevenly paved courtyard where the girls played sports in the hot Jordanian sun. But, the Jordanian students do not seem phased by these monetary issues. Their dreams and goals are just as big as my students in Colorado Springs and their desire to learn was striking. Title 1 school districts in the US, like mine, are often plagued with a lack of culture of achievement. It is difficult to inspire to students, teachers, families, and administrators to overcome economic disadvantages in order to achieve at the same rate as wealthier schools. This crisis of confidence that I was exposed to at times in my classroom in the US was completely undetectable in the attitudes of students, teachers, and administrators in Jordan. This is the one thing that I want to relay most when I return to teach in Colorado Springs this fall. The girls at the Queen Noor School seem to work harder and find inspiration in the challenges they face. They dream bigger and consistently push themselves to strive for improvement. The girls speak very highly of their teachers and have pride in the school and their school work. A handful of the girls beamed proud smiles as they showed me their picture on a bulletin board that displayed students by their academic ranking.

As I left the Queen Noor school after a week with these girls, I wondered how the school cultivated such a sense pride in their school and community and after some contemplation, I have a theory that I will use to inform the way I motivate my students here in the United States. Although resources like the new interactive white board at the Queen Noor school will undeniably aide in the learning process, the real motivating factors in education are the people involved. A desire to learn must originate within and exude from each student. This desire must be met by a teachers’ faith in their students to succeed and an energy that will keep the students engaged. When these catalysts for learning exist, like they did in the English classes I taught at the Queen Noor School, it feels like magic! What the Queen Noor School may lack in resources, they make up for tenfold in their culture of achievement. They understand how to use the resources they have to make the most of the education they provide for their students. This is why I am so proud to have been part of acquiring an interactive white board for the school. We have over 20 of these boards in our school in Colorado Springs and yes, they make a difference in how our students learn but what the girls at the Queen Noor School taught me was that a Smartboard alone can not inspire learning. The passion for learning must come first. Technological resources have an impact that is directly correlated to the strength of the students’ desire to achieve academic success and the teacher’s high expectations for their students to do so.

Panorama may have given the gift of a Smartboard, but the students and staff at the Queen Noor School inspired me to bring something back that our Smartboards in Colorado will be useless without: an intense and unwavering culture of achievement for students, regardless of their socioeconomic status. I hope to inspire my students to cling to learning like the girls in Amman. After all, for students in either part of the world, education can be the great equalizer that will allow them to challenge the status-quo and chase the possibilities of their limitless potential.

Storytelling & Web Design: AUA Webinar Is Up!

On August 10th, 2012, Sarah Hassaine led a second AUA Network webinar titled ”Social Media, Storytelling & Web Design: Tying it All Together.”  Her webinar focused on the important factors of designing your organizations site and linking it to various social media sites. Key tips to keep in mind is the mood of your  organization’s message, exploring different fonts and typography and most importantly to knowing your audience.

How do you make sure your site is user friendly and attractive?  Sarah advises to always remember the five main take-aways:

1. Start with your goals and audiences

2. Pick one or two goals

3. Focus on interesting and effective use

4. Empower your audiences

5. Storytelling is intergral to human culture

For more useful facts and tips on how to utilize social media for your organization, check out the recording of both her webinars under the “Advocacy and Outreach” tab on our resource page.

Pre-Departure Perspectives Or A Lack Thereof

The following is a post from AUA Mosaic Fellowship recipient Anina Tweed.  Anina is currently volunteering in Bangladesh during the summer of 2012. To find an amazing volunteer opportunity, search the AUA Directory of Recommended Organizations© today.

I can’t explain the itch I get to travel to the places I know the least about. When I told people I was leaving for Jerusalem as not only a non-Jew, but a follower of no organized religion, I was met with a resounding “why?” Now, as I announce my latest decision to move to Bangladesh for a year, I’m met with even more blank stares. It seems that not everyone understands my love for conquering the unknown. The feeling of transforming from a fish out of water in a new culture, into a (semi) suave resident finally grasping its complexities, is unparalleled. Venturing outside of my comfort zone has taught me how to adapt, laugh, listen, and be patient. Above all, it has given me the ability to see issues from multiple perspectives and to value viewpoints different than my own. I am convinced that there is no other experience that can leave you feeling all at once more ignorant and more wise than moving to a foreign country.

That being said, I REALLY don’t know much about Bangladesh. My decision to move to Chittagong is based more on a desire to challenge myself and learn than on any intimate knowledge of the country’s politics or people. As I suspect most Americans do, I use India as my main reference when contemplating Bangladesh (same thing, right?). I vaguely remember having a classmate from Bangladesh and I know enough to realize that Islam is the majority religion. I have a sense of floods and development projects and poverty surrounding the country. I also see a lot of bright colors, exotic spices, and beautiful fabrics in my Bollywood-tainted minds eye. I know that Mohammad Yunus is a big deal and that Bangladesh is the birthplace of the Grameen Bank and the women’s micro-finance movement. I know that it used to be a part of Pakistan. This may be more than the average American knows, but it probably isn’t enough to recommend me as a future resident of the country. My more ignorant thoughts wander to questions of what exactly I’ll be eating there and whether they do yoga there too? What are the chances of spotting a Bengal Tiger and of finding a place that serves french fries? How much does it really flood and is the call to prayer broadcasted from speakers like in the Middle East?

Feeling a bit insecure, I started asking my friends and family what they know about the country. Turns out, they know even less than I do. No one could tell me where Bangladesh was on a map, no one guessed that it’s a Muslim majority country, and most people assumed it was a place in India. Those closest to me have begun frantic google searches to fill in the gaps, but these overwhelmingly produce daunting tales of flooding and struggle; a google image search of Bangladesh does not muster the most beautiful pictures. The fact remains that Bangladesh is almost invisible in the average American’s consciousness, even among my most educated and worldly friends. It seems that no one including me truly knows what to expect of my adventures in Bangladesh and perhaps it’s better that way. The amount I have to learn and experience seems daunting, but after realizing what an enigma the country is I am even more resolved to explore it.

Twenty Cents More for a Life Lesson

The following is a guest post from AUA Mosaic Fellowship recipient Adam Kruse.  Adam is currently volunteering in Bangladesh through The Advocacy Project during the summer of 2012. To find an amazing volunteer opportunity, search the AUA Directory of Recommended Organizations© today.

I met an Italian woman in Gulshan 2. If you’ve ever been to Dhaka there is a good chance you’ve been there. It seems like the only place in all of Dhaka where you might see a face that doesn’t quite fit in with the rest. It turned out that we were both headed in the same direction so we decided to split the cost of a CNG. We searched for over an hour asking CNG driver after CNG driver if they would take us, they all would, but for an astronomical amount… The Italian girl said “man, it’s hard having a white face in Bangladesh”.

That statement has stuck with me. I think about it daily when I’m trying to get across town and my rickshaw driver quotes me three times the average cost, or when I’m eating at a restaurant and I have made the mistake of not asking how much it was going to be before I order. This little girl selling flowers tried charging me ten dollars for something a Bengali would pay 15 cents for. It hurt the most coming from a little girl, but I was proud of her audacity and confidence and it gave me hope for her future.

A great feeling is when you look at whoever’s trying to rip you off in the eye and hand them the money knowing they know you’re getting screwed. Then, magically, something in them takes over and they hand you the change for the actual cost, not the quadrupled cost. Its literally one of the greatest feeling I’ve had while living here. When your both looking each other in the eye and no words are exchanged but respect is felt.

How does this all relate to my experience? I can see the connections between the individuals who try to get a little more, the ones who don’t, and the ones who decide they don’t actually want to charge four times the cost. While it most often happens in the market, I have seen it work the same way with Micro-Credit. People ask for money rather than a loan, they don’t want to pay it back (so they don’t), or they have no problem paying and often times pay for their neighbors who are defaulting. Some borrowers have taken money with the intent to not pay back the entire loan and find themselves so grateful for the opportunity that they pay it back in full, happily. Much like when I give the mango salesman the opportunity to rip me off and he doesn’t, the borrowers are stepping up to the challenge and finding worth in doing honest work.

Getting ripped off is not something I’m very good at. I tend to become quite angry and upset for two reasons. One, there is no respect for someone when you are knowingly taking advantage of them. Two, I worked very hard to get here and it frustrates me to no end when the hard work I’ve done is taken for granted. I am volunteering, I don’t have a lot of money to be throwing around so It’s hard to face the assumption that I am a “rich man” from literally everyone I meet. The good thing about all of this is that it allows for me to take myself less seriously and to challenge feeling that arise. I’m able to take a step back from it all and just let it be. Its kind of like practicing a very loud, aggressive, fast paced meditation. Its exactly what I need and its probably contributing to the most personal growth I’ve experiences since my growth spurts as a teenager, if you could equate emotional growth with physical growth.