vista magazine may 2014

5/25/2018 Vista Magazine May 2014

1/16

Issue one 2014

Connecting people transforming lives Vista

The magazine ofVolunteer Service Abroad (VSA)


2/16

As I write, VSA is on track to have a recordnumber of volunteers in the field this year.Between July last year and the end of June thisyear, were likely to have placed Kiwi volunteersin over assignments.

Tis results from more requests for volun-teers from our Asia-Pacific partners, and moreNew Zealanders registering to volunteer,

which is unusual and positive in comparisonwith other high income countries.

Te need for Kiwi volunteers to makea difference remains a very real one, as thestories in Vista demonstrate. Te WorldBanks recent report on the Pacificconfirmed

what we already know lies behind the picturepostcards: the regions extreme vulnerability,its low incomes, high unemployment and

challenges in health, education and trade.All of that illustrates the value of thesestories, which show that people workingtogether can build livelihoods and create abetter future for all.

We have just sent our fifth volunteer towork with Empreza Diak, whose work is high-lighted in this issue. Empreza Diak, working

with VSA, has helped whole communities liftthemselves out of hardship and reinvest in theirpeople. One of the most interesting aspects ofthis is how women have been involved. Teyhave been empowered to become stakeholdersand decision-makers in their communities.

We know that when they have the time,the knowledge and the health, it is so often

women who drive development. And the factthat theyve been supported in this instance byvolunteer Simon Marsters a Kiwi man isalso significant in a region where women aredramatically under-represented in parliament,and levels of violence again women remain aformidable barrier.

In September, Samoa will host the thirdinternational Small Island Developing States(SIDS) conference. Many of our partnerorganisations and volunteers will be attending

what is one of the largest Pacific conferences

ever, and one which will shine a much-neededspotlight on the Pacific, and enable Pacificvoices to be heard around the world.

One of the major conference themes ismulti-stakeholder partnerships. Already, weknow that it is no longer possible for govern-ments to do development on their own. Webelieve that the kind of triangular relationshipsVSA has built with volunteers, Asia-Pacificand New Zealand partner organisations andcommunities is also part of doing developmentdifferently, people to people.

Since late last year, we have been lookingat strengthening our relationships with someof our in-country partners that, like EmprezaDiak, have a clear vision of where they wantto go.

By asking them, What do you need fromus, in terms of Kiwi expertise, to help yourealise your vision? we can ensure a cohesive,strategic approach so that volunteers contribu-tions complement each other in ways that thepartner organisation needs. Te fact that theyare identifying those needs, not us, is the key.Tats at the centre of our work, as I hope you

will see from these stories.

Tn koutou oTe TaoTwhiVSA is New Zealands largest andmost experienced volunteer agencyworking in international development.We bring together New Zealandersand our Asia-Pacific neighbours to

share their skills and experience,working to transform lives andcreate a fair future for all.

Sir Edmund Hillary, VSAs foundingPresident, believed passionatelythat if people work together in equalpartnership they can achieve greatthings. Today VSA knows that we

make the most difference throughpeople, partnerships and the lastingrelationships these create.

Our volunteers come from a widerange of backgrounds, from business

mentors and lawyers, to healthprofessionals and eco-tourismoperators.

VSA believes all people andcommunities deserve to be treated

equally with respect and dignity.

Become a

VSA volunteerGo to www.vsa.org.nzto findout about application criteria, toregister your skills, or to see what

assignments are being advertised.

Become a

VSA supporterWe send people not money, but weneed money to send people. Visitwww.vsa.org.nzto donate or to find

out about becoming a VSA member.

Join a local

VSA branch

Phone 0800 VSA TO GO(0800 872 8646)for detailsof the branch nearest you.

Te Tu-ao Ta-wa-hi VolunteerService Abroad Inc is a registeredcharity (CC36739) under theCharities Act 2005

The New ZealandGovernment isproud to providesignificantsupport through

Kia ora

Te Tu-ao Ta-wa-hi Volunteer Service AbroadPatron:His Excellency Lieutenant General The Right Honourable Sir Jerry Mateparae GNZM, QSO,

Governor-General of New Zealand President:Gavin Kerr, QSOKauma-tua:Awi Riddell (Nga-ti Porou), QSM

Council Chair:Farib Sos, MNZNCouncil members:Professor Tony Binns, Peter Elmsly, David Glover, Shona Jennings,

Juliet McKee QSO, Dr Simon Mark, Evan Mayson, Sandy Stephens MNZN Chief Executive Ofcer:Dr Gill Greer

Te Tu-ao Ta-wa-hi Volunteer Service Abroad,32 Waring Taylor St |PO Box 12246|Wellington 6144,AOTEAROA/NEW ZEALAND

Tel:64 4 472 5759 Fax:64 4 472 5052 Email:[email protected] Website:www.vsa.org.nz

Vistais the ofcial magazine of Te Tu-ao Ta-wa-hi Volunteer Service Abroad Incorporated. Please note that views expressed

in Vistaare not necessarily the views of VSA. Editorial and photographic submissions to the magazine are welcome.

Please address all queries and submissions to the Editor, Vista, at the address above. Please ensure all material is

clearly marked with your name and address.

VSA. All rights reserved. ISSN 1176-9904

Reproduction of content is allowed for usage in primary and secondary schools, and for tertiary studies.Vista is printed on environmentally responsible paper. It is chlorine free and manufactured using sustainably farmed trees.

the New Zealand Aid Programme for

New Zealand volunteers who work ina development capacity overseas.

Gill Greer CEO

Hardship and Vulnerability in the Pacific Island Countries


3/16 Vista Connecting people transforming lives May 2014

Contents

We areconnected

we aretransformed

Cover photo:Clockwise from top left:

Meriam Soares, Simon Marsters (VSA),

Adao Marques and Ariana Simes de

Almeida (Empreza Di'ak)

Photos: Kees Sprengers

3

Arise, Sir DavidArchbishop Sir David Moxon

on being a school-leaver

volunteer

Researching VSANew projects improve under-

standing of VSA's work

Growingbetter lives

Creating sustainablelivelihoods

SustainableLivelihoodsHow VSA is helping

communities thrive

Building futurestogetherWorking with NZ and

regional partnerships

News roundupLatest news, views

and happenings

In the midstof the floodsVSA volunteer Ken Lewis

in the Solomon Islands

4

10

14

6

12

15

7

13


4/16 May 2014 Connecting people transforming lives Vista

Volunteer Recruitment Manager

Carolyn Mark joined VSA in

1984 and has held a number of

titles in the intervening years

though probably her most

valuable, she jokes, is institu-

tional memory. Wellington staffundertook clandestine opera-

tions to surprise her on April

30, her anniversary. Carolyn

aced the Who Wants to Be a

Millionaire-style quiz prepared

by Recruitment Coordinators

Pam Francombe and Margie

Meates, and MC'd by Fundraising Manager Karla Paotonu.

It traversed fashion crimes, surprise appearances from Sir

Edmund Hillary and a proposal from the King of Bhutan.

Carolyn reminisced about her own recruitment, saying that

the only concern VSA had about hiring her at the time wasthat I wouldn't stay for very long.

News roundup

4

Volunteering key tosustainable development

Nominations for VSA Council open

Volunteering is both a means and an end to the creation

of healthy, vibrant societies and the achievement of future

sustainable development goals. Thats the message at

the heart of a plea to the international community to put

volunteering at the centre of future development goals.

The statement was put out in March by the International

Forum for Volunteering in Development, of which VSA is

a member. It is the largest international network of global

volunteer oranisations. VSA CEO Gill Greer chairs the Forum

Post-2015 Working Group, and says they're "maximising the

opportunity to highlight the value of volunteering in every

aspect of development of the last 14 years."This year, nations will start negotiations on the next

phase of the global development agenda, which will pick

up where the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

leave off in 2015. Forum asserts that volunteering has been

crucial to delivering successes under the MDGs.

Volunteering organisations will be able to attend High

Level UN meetings during negotiations, and Forum has a clear

ask: that volunteerism be recognised and supported as a

mechanism for the successful delivery of all post-2015 goals.

Carolyn Markcelebrates years at VSA

VSA Council has four vacancies to fill in the Council elec-

tions in September. Nominations forms have been sent out

to financial and honorary members, and nominations must

be received by June 30. If you havent received nomination

papers and would like to nominate someone, please email

Kelly Nelson: [email protected]

Please note that proposers and nominees must be

current financial or honorary members of VSA, resident in

New Zealand and 18 years of age or over.

Voting papers wil be sent to members on 31 August,and will need to be returned by 30 September.

We will continue to cover developments in the UN and onsustainable development follow the news at vsa.org.nz

Since flash floods hit the Solomon Islands in April, several

VSA volunteers have been working with their partner organ-

isations and other NGOs on the recovery effort.Lance Cash and Emily Steel, both at the Honiara City

Council, compiled information coming in from communities

and other organisations to inform the Councils response.

Engineer Simon Trotter, working with the Solomon

Islands Ministry of Education and Human Resources

Development, was already assessing school infrastructure,

so began working on prioritising flood damage to school

buildings. Blair Millar, with World Vision, was responsible

for much of the news footage seen on Kiwi screens. Blairs

partner Rachel Skeates, also a World Vision/VSA volunteer,

has been working on distributing supplies to evacuee

shelters, and they have both been working on communica-

tions and disaster relief fundraising.

Ken Lewis took a break from volunteering as a Commu-

nications Adviser for The Nature Conservancy when

Solomon Islands Programme Manager Alexa Funnell

offered his services to the Red Cross. Ken managed

interview requests, and helped with local communication

to make sure people were getting timely and accurate infor-

mation. See his personal account on page 14.

Alexa says the disaster highlighted the value of having skilled

volunteers in the field. They have been able to apply their

knowledge and experience to help in critical areas of recovery.

Emily Steel (far left) and Lance Cash (centre) at Honiara City Council

Carolyn Mark at her 30th

anniversary celebration

Connecting people transforming lives

BlairMillar2014

VSA supports Solomons


5/16 Vista Connecting people transforming lives May 2014

Volunteers run, row and dance to raise funds

News roundup

5

Launch ofVSAs new series of speaking events will launch in August this

year, with at least 20 community events around the country.

Returned volunteers will be trained

in VSAs new presentation format, designed

to be a snappy, thought-provoking takeon volunteering in the Asia-Pacific.

Audiences will be challenged on what

they think they know about New

Zealands closest neighbours as each

presentation will revolve around six

unexpected facts about volunteers

experience abroad.

If you would like to volunteer

as a speaker, contact Helen Carter at

[email protected], and if you

know of a group who may be

interested in hosting a speaker, [email protected]

Save the date for Congress

VSAConnect launchesnew online platform

After the success of VSAs last annual Congress at the Royal

Society of New Zealand, we return to the scene this year on

Saturday, November 8. The theme this year is Connecting people transforming lives. Full details in the next issue of Vista.

VSAConnectis VSAs new alumni association for

its returned volunteers and their accompanying

partners. Membership is free.

Check out VSAConnects new platform

through the VSA website. Just click on the

VSAConnect tab on the top bar of any VSA

web page, and follow the simple registration process. You

will then be able to stay in touch with VSA, reconnect with

returned volunteers and find out what they have been doing,

as well as obtain up-to-date development news and infor-

mation, share and comment on interesting topics, and learn

about upcoming events.

VSA volunteers have worked up a sweat fund-

raising. Anne Bradbury, who will be volunteering inPapua New Guinea, tackled the hazardous Bush to

Beach half-marathon in Kuaotuno in April. Anne says

the hazards list cracked me up. We saw all of them

apart from the wasps the wild pigs gave me a fright!

Richard Robyns, in Vanuatu with his partner Elena

Procuta, undertook a Waka Ama paddle-athon in

February. Both Anne and Richard have raised well

over $1,000 each at this stage, which will go to

support VSA'as programme, with one of Richards

benefactors noting, I wish it could be a million!

Amanda Patterson plans to inject some Latin

flair: she and partner Marti Alegre are hosting asalsa night in June before departing for Timor-Leste.

Fundraising Manager Karla Paotonu says

volunteers have thrown themselves into it this

year, with a variety of activities. Its great to see

volunteers so enthusiastically supporting VSA, and

getting their home communities involved, too.

VSA partner praises volunteers

In May, VSAs Wellington team had the rare treat of meeting

a member of one of our partner organisations, when Arch-

bishop Francesco Panfilo visited to talk about the Catholic

Archdiocese of Rabaul. The Archbishop was in Wellington for

the Federation of Catholic Bishops Conferences of Oceania.

Over the last decade, VSA has sent more than 20 volun-

teers to work with the Archdiocese, which focuses on health

and education. His Grace spoke about the value VSA has added

to the services in Rabaul. VSA volunteers have trained teachers,

nurses and physiotherapists. They have educated families about

healthcare and widened access to health services.

He was pleased to say that Dr Tim Fletcher, a volunteerat St Marys hospital, has recently extended his assignment.

Under Tim's tenure, the hospital's maternal and infant

mortality rates have fallen drastically. He works from early

in the morning, and is available all the time, His Grace said.

If Dr Tim were to leave today, I would say half of all of the

services at the hospital would be jeopardised.

VSA CEO Gill Greer with Archbishop Francesco Panfilo


SpeakOut VSA

This years March Appeal highlighted the support

needed for people in the Asia-Pacific to make agood living off the land. The appeal was a great

success, raising donations of over $19,000.


6/16 May 2014 Connecting people transforming lives Vista6

Troughout the Asia-Pacific, one in five people live inhardship, unable to meet their own basic need for food, waterand healthcare. Tat figure rises as high as in imor-Leste; in Papua New Guinea. An even greater proportionlive a subsistence lifestyle. Nearly of the population ofthe Pacific Islands live in rural areas most work, paid andunpaid, is on the land.

But it is also the region in the world most susceptible tonatural disasters. Of the countries in the world with the

worst economic losses due to natural disasters, eight are Pacific

Island nations.VSA currently has volunteers working with partnerorganisations to build sustainable livelihoods, and ensure thecommunities we work with can make a meaningful living fromthe land and sea.

Supporting market gardens in SamoaIn Samoa, agriculture has taken a series of hits from the

global financial crisis, the tsunami and Cyclone Evan,which caused more than US million in damage.

Volunteer Glenn Cant has worked as Horticulture andMarketing Adviser with the Poutasi Development rust(PD) in Samoa for the last two years. PD is a cooper-ative market garden, which supplies vegetables and saladgreens such as mesclun, rocket and fresh herbs to restau-rants and supermarkets. Not long after Glenn's arrival,Cyclone Evan destroyed all the seedlings he and membersof the PD had planted, demonstrating the risks facedby growers in this region.

Within three months, they were back up and running,and with substantial support from the indall Foundation they

were able to construct growing tunnels to provide shade andshelter to their seedlings.

In April, PD hosted a delegation from the United Nations

Development Programme (UNDP) interested in the model ofdevelopment at PD, which combines funding from the NZ

Aid Programme with a new philanthropic partner in the indallFoundation.

Sara Ferrandi, from Apia's UNDP office, praised the PoutasiGardens project as a great example of community-led devel-opment. "Te success stems from the engagement of a villageunder the inspiration of the communitys recognised leaders.It builds on achievements and learns from the successes andfailures. In our view it can be considered inspirational for a devel-opment model.

Glenn and his wife, fellow volunteer Sharyn, will return

home later this year. Prime Minister John Key plans to visitPoutasi in June.

Streamlining processes in Papua New GuineaJohn and Jenny Spencer volunteered with the Wide Bay

Conservation Association (WBCA) in Kokopo, Papua NewGuinea, returning home earlier this year.

WBCA works with communities in the Wide Bay areato secure land rights and teach good stewardship of that land.Its field officers spend weeks in remote areas with no internetconnectivity or phone coverage, and must deal with all theirrecords when they return to the office. John and Jenny stream-lined processes throughout WBCA freeing time for WBCACEO Elizabeth ongne to plan field work and report more effi-ciently to her funders. Elizabeth said what once may have takenher a day to find in her records is now at her fingertips, and

John and Jennys work has allowed her field officers to concen-trate on their field work without worrying about anything else.

Diversified farming in VanuatuIn Vanuatu, Jane Rutledge volunteered as Marketing Adviser

to World Vision from to the end of last year. Jane helpedform the Market House Committee, which gave women a voicein the Santo markets, and provided essential income for their

families. (Vistaissue , ).She also helped start a coconut jam business, Coconut

Gold, which continues to flourish.As she left Vanuatu, Jane was exploring more options for

farmers, such as aquaculture: in south Santo, nearly farmershave already established ponds for farming prawns and tilapia,alongside their coconut trees.

Diversifying will give them better resilience to weather anyproblems, she says, and vital extra income streams. Janessuccessor, Grace Savage, has been in Vanuatu just a few months,and says that already shes seen how welcome VSA and WorldVision are. We often stop to talk with people. Te sense I get is

that VSA/World Vision has become a welcome and appreciatedpart of these communities.

Growing better lives

. World Bank: highest average annual disaster losses scaled by gross domestic product

Most people in the Asia-Pacific make their living through agriculture. VSA supports them in a numberof different ways, but the goal is always the same: to enable a better future.

John (second

from left)

and Jenny

(far right)

Spencer with

WBCA CEO

Elizabeth

Tongne(centre)

and staff



7/16 Vista Connecting people transforming lives May 2014 7

For years, Volunteer Service Abroad has been sendingvolunteers to work in communities experiencing hardship, totransform the lives of the people they work with. In return,their lives are transformed, too. VSA CEO Gill Greer saysI havent met a single volunteer who hasnt said it was a life-changing experience, or that they gained more than they gave.

Te world is moving away from development being some-thing governments do with other governments, she adds, andtowards people working with people to bring about change,

just as Sir Edmund Hillary envisaged when he founded VSAfive decades ago.

VSA International Programme Manager Junior Ulu saysthe value that volunteers bring to development is cumulative,and we think carefully about how were going to work withother NGOs and donors in a space to be really effective.

He adds, Volunteers are at the top of their game beforethey go, but they go to work with local partners with a real

sense of humility.We always ask ourselves, are we making a difference? While we try to measure the difference we make by

the numbers (page ), Gill says Volunteers are part ofthe community. Learning from each other, sharing skills,knowledge, understanding this is transformative, and ripplesout across communities, organisations and generations.

We always have to remember, Junior adds, that the localpeople have plenty to teach us.

Making positive connectionsTe unique relationship between volunteer, partner organ-

isation and the communities they work with is well illustratedby imor-Leste NGO Empreza Diak ('Good Business').

We are connected we are transformed

Empreza Diaks co-founders Ariana Simes de Almeidaand her husband Filipe Alfaiate had been working in Londonbefore returning to Filipes home country. Ariana says shegot frustrated watching other NGOs developing communityprojects because they had no sustainability. So for instancethey were saying, Pineapple jam is great, you should do that.So communities start producing pineapple jam, and then there

was no one to buy it. Te sponsors would go away and theproject would collapse because there was no business analysissupporting it.

We always have to remember

that the local people have plenty

to teach us.

VSA and Timor-Leste NGO Empreza Di'ak are building on a relationship that has seen remote villagesable to increase their earnings and reinvest in their families and communities, and that has shown the positiveimpact of people-to-people development on communities, partner organisations and volunteers.

Tis, Gill says, has never been how VSA has operated. We donot go in and say, heres the money: this is what you should do,this is how you should do it.

Ariana and Filipe decided to experiment, look at whatcommunities were already doing, and support them to createbusinesses based on existing practice. One of their earliestprojects was with dried fish, which they called Ikan Diak(Good Fish). Tey helped communities build drying tents forfish, introduce quality control and brand the product to sell tosupermarkets.

It took off from there, Ariana says. Te first communitiesinvolved in Ikan Diak soon doubled their income, and women

Junior Ulu, VSA International Programme Manager


VSA volunteer Simon Marsters (right) working with Meriam (striped shirt)

and Adao (green shirt)

Empreza Diak co-founder Ariana de Almeida (crouching, white shirt) with

the Arlo community

Kees

Sprengers2014

Kees

Sprengers2014



became empowered in the business, too, as theyd buy fish fromthe fishermen then sell it on once dried.

Simon Marsters is the third volunteer to work with EmprezaDiak. Our fourth, Melanie McIntosh, arrived in Dili in Marchand another is due in June.

Ariana says since theyve worked with the first of their VSAvolunteers, racey Wemyss and Stephanie Hopkins, were ayear ahead of where we would have been otherwise.

When Simon went to imor-Lestes Atauro Island, he wasalso working with coastal communities on maximising theirincome from fishing.

But when, almost by chance, Simon and the teamventured inland on Atauro, they found two women in their s

who still practised another imorese tradition: pottery. Simonknew he should turn his attention to Joana and Catarinaquickly: When youve got a -year-old and a -year-old asthe repositories of technology, you need to move a little quickerthan you normally would.

A fading tradition

When Catarina, , was a girl, imor-Leste was a Portu-guese colony. Her mother had taught her how to make simpleclay pots, but as stainless steel pots became cheaper and morereadily available, she returned to making an income the way somany do: living off the land and selling what fresh produce shecould at the markets.

imor-Leste is one of the worlds newest nations, and alsoone of its poorest: more than a third of its citizens live belowthe global poverty line.

Reviving the tradition could give Catarina'sdaughters and granddaughters a new source of incometo add to what they make from their market sales.Simon and Empreza Diak supported Arlo village tohold a two-day pottery workshop, and Ariana says most of thecommunity turned out to watch.

Ariana says Simon has been invaluable to the pottery

project. His experience, not only as a professional, but also hislife experience, has been incredibly inspiring. Hes one of thosepeople whos always looking for opportunities to have an impact.He never says, this is not my assignment, he just brings itout and offers to help in any way he can. It would not bepossible to move the work in Atauro as quickly as it has beenmoving if it wasnt for Simon and his energy and commitment.

Despite her fragility, Catarina was insistent on being presentfor the entire two days of the workshop, against her familysprotests that she should rest. She says It is a privilege to havean opportunity to pass on this local tradition before I die.

While she and Joana work to save this nearly extinct bit

of imorese history, Simon has been working to ensure conti-nuity of supply for their materials.

It is a privilege to have an

opportunity to pass on this tradition

before I die.

Catarina with one of her hand-made pots

Catarina demonstrating pottery to young women from Arlo

Meriam (left) and Adao (right) filleting fish for smoking

Catarina, , passing on her pottery skills


Kees

Sp

rengers2014

Kees

Sprengers2014

Kees

Sprengers2014



Ariana already has interested customers for the pots includingmuseums and archaeologists fascinated by this living history.

Te women learning pottery have called themselvesHakusara (Haburas Kultura Sana Rai, etun for revivingthe culture of pottery), and Cristina, whose grandmother

Joana led the workshop alongside Catarina, says I am veryhappy to be part of this group and feel very lucky to betaught this important tradition from my community. I want

to continue to learn and do more and better pots that wecan start selling.

Te fact that Simon is a volunteer was a surprise toCristina: o come all this way and work for no money?

We are very happy. (Volunteers do receive a living allowance.)Te pottery is something Arlos women can fit in around theirday-to-day activities, and is a respite from the usual labour-intensive farming and selling they must do to survive. I wantto be able to buy better food for my children, give them abetter life than what I have.

Making life easierSimon hasnt turned his back on the coastal communities,

however hes introduced marinating and smoking to thedried fish business, as a way to increase Ikan Diaks offerings.

Adao Marques has been involved with Ikan Diaks microbusiness network for enough time to have reaped benefits fromthe solar drying tent his community built. Hes now able tomaximise the revenue from the fish he does catch as it dries

without going bad. Because dry fish lasts longer than freshfish, he can wait and sell it when the best offer arrives, ratherthan fearing that it might spoil, as access to ice is very limited.By selling his fish to the Ikan Diak network, for distributionin Dili, he saves time, and the increase in his income meansMy family now has money to pay school costs, buy better foodand even some luxuries, like coffee.

Hes learning new skills from Simon to increase theproducts he can sell, and says its admirable someone will

work for us for no money.Meriam Soares adds shes thankful for Simons presence

on the Island as she, too, gets involved in Ikan Diak. Untilnow, Meriams income came only from a restaurant she runsfor visitors at weekends and what fresh produce she can sellat the market, a two-hour walk away. Ikan Diak benefits

women especially, as they are empowered to buy fish from thecommunity fishermen, dry them then sell them on. Womenhad traditionally done the drying, but saw little or no personalincome for their efforts.

Simon is typically self-effacing about what he does inimor-Leste, joking that at my age, its just another lifeexperience. Junior says sometimes it might seem insignificantto a volunteer, but when you pool it all together, it really does

make an impact. Meriam has the final word: It will make mylife easier.

I want to be able to buy better

food for my children, give them

a better life than what I have.Cristina, Ikan Di'ak Micro Business Network

Volunteer

Partnerorganisation Community


One volunteer touches the lives of many, and

they are just one part of a much greater whole.

Between June 2012 and June 2013

166volunteers spent a cumulative 76years

in the field. They worked with 114partner

organisations in 10countries, each with

networks that extend throughout their

communities and nations. They mentored

2716people, all with their own families to

provide for, and trained 382teachers,

who will teach countless children. 177health

professionals were trained, who will tendto their communities for years to come.

Just a drop in the ocean?

166volun

teers

workedw

ith114partnerorganisations

mentored2716p

eople


10/16 May 2014 Connecting people transforming lives Vista

Career experience and education developmentTe first of six VSA/Downer NZ cadets found himself in thethick of it when the Solomon Islands were hit by severe floodingin April.

Simon rotter had only been in Honiara for a month whenthe floods hit, working with the Ministry of Education andHuman Resource Development (MEHRD). His role is to helpimprove vital school infrastructure in a country where only of the population is fully literate.

Following the floods, he was able to move immediately

into helping MEHRD with recovery: assessing damage toschools and planning any repair work needed.Already, he says, schools were in desperate need. He notes

one of the "better schools he saw was an incomplete building(pictured, right) that has been waiting for a second story for threeyears. Te exposed reinforcing steel work was corroding and ithad no windows or doors.

VSA's partnership with Downer NZ began when ChrisMeade, Downers Executive General Manager spent a month onassignment in imor-Leste last year, working with ChildFundto tighten their human resources processes.

She says It is fantastic that we can offer opportunities to ourcadets and graduates to volunteer their skills on a real project,and at the same time with VSAs help assist the people of theSolomon Islands improve their education facilities. Tis is truepartnership for the good of others.

Continuing Sir Ed's legacy

VSA has formed several more New Zealand partnerships inthe past year, including one that takes us back to our roots withSir Edmund Hillary.

Later this year, well be recruiting teacher trainers for Nepalwith the Himalayan rust, another New Zealand organisationfounded by Sir Ed in the s. Himalayan rust CouncillorDiane McKinnon was a VSA volunteer, with husband John,in Nepal from -. She went on to serve as chair of theVSA Council for a number of terms, and is one of threelife members.

Having formally reconnected, VSA and the Himalayanrust will recruit teacher trainers to support the rusts

Rural Education and Environment Development (REED)programme in the Solumkhumbu region.

10

Building futures togetherWorking with New Zealand and Regional Partners has given VSA volunteers more scope to spreadKiwi expertise to our Asia-Pacific neighbours.

VSA/Downer NZ volunteer Simon Trotter is assessing Solomon Islands

school infrastructure

VSA and the Himalayan Trust are expanding their shared legacy

VSA/UNW volunteer Marni Gilbert celebrating International Women's Dayin the Solomon Islands

This is true partnership for

the good of others.Chris Mead, Executive General Manager of Downer NZ


RachelSk

eates2014

VSAarchives

SimonTrotter2014



World-class expertiseOn the other side of the world, ornithological experts

Karen Baird and Chris Gaskin have just begun the hunt forthe breeding ground of the Elliot's storm petrel. In partnership

with Friends of the Galapagos New Zealand (FOGNZ), Karenand Chris hope to add to what little knowledge there is ofthis species.

Te techniques that Karen developed for catching petrels atsea in the Kermadecs will be passed on to the Galapagos ParkRangers, empowering Ecuadorean science.

Empowering Pacific womenIts been a little over a year since VSA and UN Women

(UNW) partnered to work on UNWs four programmes in thePacific: Advancing Gender Justice; Ending Violence Against

Women; Womens Economic Empowerment; and Gender,

Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management.Women in the Pacific face high rates of domestic andsexual violence and massive gender inequality. VSA CEOGill Greer says it is exciting to be able to provide volun-teers with the opportunity to work on assignments that willmake a real difference to the lives of women in the Pacific.Tere are currently six volunteers on assignment with UNW inFiji, the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. Teyve helped developcommunication strategies around the Markets for Change(MC) projects, deliver training programmes for women sellingat the markets, worked on activism and awareness raisingand collected baseline data for research undertaken by UNWand UNDP.

VSA volunteer Karen Roberts, who is UNW's Commu-nications Officer in Vanuatu, says Working with committedstaff on long-term projects that focus on the economic empow-erment of women and ending gender-based violence gives me agreat sense of contributing to the future of Vanuatu.

Te first of three MC projects launched in Suva in April.Launches in the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu will follow laterin the year. VSA/UNW volunteer Olivia Owen, who worked

with fellow volunteer Ellie Van Baaren on the Suva launch, saysthat while most vendors at markets are women, they weren'tinvolved in any of the decision-making, so MC gives vendorsa say in the running of the markets.

Marni Gilbert, Projects and Communications officer forVSA/UNW in the Solomon Islands, says its important toensure markets are safe, equitable places because markets play asignificant role in Pacific economies. Women dominate marketplaces in the Pacific and their earnings are a large part of theincome of poor households. So, improvements and interven-tions that encourage the economic empowerment of womenin market places are going to have ripple effects throughoutcommunities and across the nation.

Gill says these partnerships allow VSA to increase its presencein the Asia-Pacific while maintaining cost effectiveness andquality-and being able to demonstrate clearly what we do the

ongoing support of these partners makes it possible for us tobuild a better future for all.

ADRA New ZealandBusiness Mentors New ZealandChildFundDowner New ZealandFairtrade Australia and New ZealandFamily Planning NZ

Friends of Galapagos New ZealandGHD New ZealandHabitat for Humanity New ZealandMassey UniversityPacific Islands Forum Fisheries AgencyRotary New ZealandSave the Children NZSecretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC)Society for Local Government Managers (SOLGM)Te Himalayan rustuia InternationalUN Population Fund (UNFPA)

UN Women (Pacific Programme)World Vision New Zealand

Partnerships

VSA has sent 25volunteers on assignment withsupport from 20NZ and regional partners:

A young woman performs at the launch of Markets 4 Change in Suva


Olivia

Owen2014



Researching VSA

While we know a lot about the benefits of volunteering tothe communities we work with, VSA Recruitment ManagerCarolyn Mark says we've always been interested in thebenefits to New Zealand, and how volunteers experiencesmight impact on their working lives back here.

Researcher Sheena Hudson, who completed her PhD onthe motivations of VSA volunteers and who has acted as a VSAselection adviser for a number of years, will undertake the studyas a volunteer.

Te research, which is expected to be completed by theend of the year, will involve interviews and surveys of a cross-section of our returned volunteers.

What makes it different to other similar research, Carolynsays, is that employers and family members of the returnedvolunteers will be interviewed too, giving a fuller picture ofthe benefits to volunteers themselves, as well is their employersand communities in New Zealand. Carolyn says were really

looking at the wider impact.VSA Communications Manager Lesley Smeardon will

oversee another study looking at the added value volunteersbring to their host communities above and beyond theirassignments.

We know that our volunteers do so much more than theirjob while theyre on a VSA assignment. As they are living in thecommunity, sometimes for as long as two years, they tend totry to get as involved as they would do back in New Zealand.

Our volunteers in the past have coached rugby teams,taught English at the weekends, assisted the local fire service,and helped communities where they are volunteering make

connections with groups back in New Zealand. North OtagoRugby Union for example, donated a whole set of rugby kit to

Several VSA staff members are undertaking research this year to broaden our understandingof the work we do and continue to improve the way we deliver our programmes.

VSA UniVol Sarah Gwynn (back, second from right) with cricket team VSA Volunteer Jul ia Sherrif f VSA Volunteer Jess Bensemann


the Bulls rugby team in East New Britain thanks to returnedvolunteer Bill Kingan.

Equally, the work that our accompanying partners do whiletheir partner is volunteering is immense, tapping into theirconsiderable professional experience. Programme Manager inimor-Leste Karen Horton comments, Partners are alwaysgetting involved and encouraged to volunteer themselves withlocal groups where their skills can be used. In imor-Lestealone weve had writers teaching English and blogging, artistsrunning drawing classes for young artists, and professionalphotographers taking on small projects for other local NGOs.

Lesley says: Te research we are planning to conduct laterin the year is about trying to quantify and qualify this addedvalue work of volunteers and their partners. We know its beingdone on a daily basis but we havent looked back and seen justhow significant this contribution is over the past five years. Itsone of the key things in my view that gives added value for

in-country partners and the communities they support.

Timor-Leste programme reviewMike Lee, Programme Officer for Polynesia and imor-

Leste, is assisting an independent reviewer to perform a fullreview of VSAs imor-Leste programme, which began in .Tis study is the first in a rolling review system and, as such,it is also the pilot study for that system. Te ultimate goal,Mike says, is to get better outcomes for in-country partners,their communities and other local stakeholders. He adds thatthey will be on the look out for relevant findings that could beapplied to other country programmes.

Te review will cover the three-year period from July and is expected to be complete later this year.



Archbishop Sir David Moxon, who was knighted in the New Years Honours, says his year in Fiji, establishing the Dukeof Edinburgh Award scheme there (its still running), wasdue to a little bit of late adolescent altruism combined withexcitement and a bit of gung-ho derring-do We were reallyinspired by Sir Edmund Hillary, VSAs founding President.

Sir David grew up in Palmerston North, and after his yearin Fiji went on to study at the University of Canterbury, MasseyUniversity and the University of Oxford Honours School ofTeology. He was ordained in and became the youngestBishop in New Zealand in .

He has continued to work for youth and humanitariancauses now, in Rome, he works with an NGO to preventhuman trafficking. In New Zealand, he worked with troubledyouth and young offenders.

He says now If I hadnt been on a VSA assignment Iwouldnt have been as oriented to community-facing issues.

I think the church would have helped me, but I think thevisceral, experiential engagement wouldnt have been as strong.

I would say that VSA completely reoriented my approachto culture, and to bicultural and multicultural developmentand realities, sensitivities. It also developed a healthy respect forother faiths, because of the Muslim and Hindu communities inFiji. I hadnt had any experience of that before I left NZ. Tatturned out to be really valuable.

Tose things have stayed with me all my life since then.Bi-culturalism has played a role in his personal life:

Sir Davids wife, ureiti, has Ngati Kahungunu and Ngati ahulinks, and is currently the Managing Director of Hamilton

primary health provider e Kohao Health. With Sir David inRome, theyre a global whanau, and he jokes his appointment

Arise, Sir David

has made him very popular with their four adult children, whoare happy to have a handy base for European travel.

VSA, of course, has no religious affiliation. But while SirDavids subsequent work has been in faith-based organisations,he says there can be a real benefit to working together towardsa common cause. Te non-religious NGO and the faith-basedNGO can find ways to support one another and collaborate.But I think the personal skills and the dynamics the structuralanalysis, methodologies, are very similar.

As the Anglican Churchs representative in Rome, Archbishop Sir David Moxon moves in exalted circles.But he credits his first foray into the wider world as a Volunteer Service Abroad school leaver in 1970for the path his life has taken.

Sir David at VSA Manawatu Branch's 50th Anniversary with fellow

returned volunteer Michael Joyce

Its just a question of which base you want to mobilisefrom. And sometimes it helps to work from a faith base, because

the spirituality of the people youre with is faith-based.Whichever background you come from, he says, theres

something special about Kiwi volunteers, though it is hard todefine. He says coming from a small, multicultural country

with a pioneer heritage means were curious about the world.We like travelling. Comparatively speaking, we have quite a lotof resilience, endurance and we work hard. Were pretty downto earth, we dont have ideas above our station when it comesto other cultures, or people, or classes.

With one or two exceptions theres a latent sort ofhumility, not too proud or arrogant, by and large, not too loudand I think that helps you segue in and do your best and make

a go of it. A fair go thats another thing egalitarianism.I think that helps.

I would say that VSA completely

reoriented my approach to cultureArchibishop Sir David Moxon, the Anglican Church's

representitive in Rome and former VSA volunteer.


Sir David with Pope Francis

VSA2013

TheAnglican

Centre

,Rome



In the midst of the floods

I thought it might be serious when anew river appeared on the road ahead ofme. For days rain had fallen on Honiara.

Really heavy rain. Fat, pounding dropsthat had drenched the capital for days.But thats the tropics right?

My office was just another metreson from this pop-up river. Would theborrowed car I was driving ford thedeluge? More importantly, would it makeit back! I had to collect my computer andget back into town quickly!

Outside Te Nature Conservancy office people stood intense groups staring at the river that normally flows quietlypast. Over the morning, it had become a huge, roaring torrent

erupting from a culvert under the main road.Now I knew it was serious. With this raging torrent threat-ening to break over the only road linking the city and a newtorrent already axle-high down the road, I feared being trapped.

I raced upstairs where my colleagues were only just realisingthe danger outside. As I packed my bag, VSA Solomon IslandsProgramme Manager Alexa Funnell phoned with instructionsto get home. We quickly arranged pick up of fellow volunteers.

now faced the final leg of our journey across the hugelyswollen Mataniko River to reach West Kola Ridge high aboveChinatown.

Mataniko Bridge is a modern two-lane concrete span thatlinks the city to Chinatown on the opposite bank. With noidea whether the bridge was even open, we joined a crawlingqueue of traffic edging towards the river.

Five hundred metres downstream, a settlement perchedalong the river mouth was being swept away. A wide-eyed youngcouple weaved past the windscreen, each clutching a smallchild as they headed inland. Shouts of panic sounded over thedrumming rain and as we neared the bridge, we saw their fragilethatched homes tumbling end over end into the sea.

Stalled in traffic, our anxiety climbed as we could now clearlysee the river we were about to cross; three times its normal size,the Mataniko was a roiling dark cauldron of trees and debris.

And then the traffic moved. Our sedate drive across thesolid tarmac ridiculously mundane relative to the disasterunfolding on either side. Later, we discovered the bridge wasclosed minutes after we crossed, although it was opened,closed and reopened numerous times over the coming days

without obvious logic.With instructions to stay put, confinement became surreal

with news footage via the Internet showing flood devastationjust kilometres away, but invisible to us downriver. And withthis news footage came messages of concern from New Zealandfriends. Our families were told by VSA on day one that we

were safe, but for these others, the two-day old floods wereunfolding anew in front of them at .pm. It seemed a weirdecho or ghostly dj vu to us.

Honiara is now swathed in dust as the clean up of silt anddebris continues. It will take months or even years to repair themany damaged bridges and roads across the province, but Illbe home again, safe in my own flood-prone and shaky country.


Several volunteers in the Solomon Islands, including Ken, lent their skills and experience to the recoveryeffort in the weeks after the floods.See pages and for more details.

With two passengers in tow, we edged into the traffic alreadybanking up at the pop up river. Large branches were now beingswept across the road. wo young men pulled the debris awayand directed traffic through. Tis spontaneous public service

would be seen throughout the city in coming hours and days.From the centre of town, things looked deceptively normal.

Despite the lakes forming around blocked storm water drains,bus conductors still shouted destinations and the footpaths

were busy with hurrying pedestrians. More frustratingly,

Honiaras ubiquitous traffic jam had proved impervious.With the car full of fellow volunteers we made for Mboko-

navera, up over the ridge from the City Council. We forded asmall lake at an intersection and continued up past screamingboys delighted by the new hydra-slide gutters.

At the top, solemn groups looked on the Mataniko Rivervalley below. Entire leaf-hut neighbourhoods were understill brown water, only their roofs and coconut palms pokingthrough. Chatter inside the car died as we drove on. What hadbeen something of an adventure now was deadly serious.

With one VSA group safely delivered home, two of us

Honiara police control traffic crossing the Mataniko bridge

Chatter inside the car died as we drove

on. What had been something of an

adventure now was deadly serious.

Rach

el

Skeates2014

Ken Lewis


15/16

13 partner organisationssuch as the National Fisheries College in Papua New Guinea ,Poutasi Development Trust in Samoaand Empreza Diak in Timor-Leste.

The skills and support that 19 volunteersprovide means the communities they work in can:

Sustainable livelihoods

77%of the Pacicpopulation is rural

partnerorganisations in

. UNDP: Asia-Pacific Regional MDGs Report /

Facts and figures

Right now,there are 19

VSA volunteersworking with 13

Lift their incomes

Have a say in how theircommunities develop

Empower women

6 countries

60%of the worlds poorlive in the Asia-Pacic1

Around

Send theirchildren to school

85%of Pacic Islandspopulations relyon agriculture for theirincome or subsistence

Up to

Donate

today

It is your support that allows VSA towork alongside our partner organisationsand share skills increasing the ability ofpeople in the Asia-Pacific to generate

sustainable livelihoods. Your donation canhelp VSA send more volunteers to support

many others who need the advice andskills that our volunteers share to create afuture for themselves and their children.Use the form attached to this page.

You can use the Freepost option but a stampsaves us the cost of postage!

VSA supports sustainable livelihoods


16/16

Me

lanesia

PNG

EAST NEW BRITAIN

NEW IRELAND

WEST NEW BRITAIN

SAMOAPo

lynesia

Timo

r-leste

BOUGAINVILLE

TIMOR-LESTE

NAURU

TONGA

Find out more atwww.vsa.org.nzTe Tuao Tawahi Volunteer Service Abroad Inc is a registered charity (CC36739)under the Charities Act 2005

Chris LeatherWorld Vision,

Arawa, Bougainville

Graham Hadlee

Kairak Vudal Resource & Training,Kokopo, East New Britian

Fay Mooreld

The Tonga Business

Enterprise Centre

Tennant FentonWorld Vision,

Maliana

Nick HayPacic Islands

Forum FisheriesAgency, Nauru

Sara RoySavaii SamoaTourism Association

Barbara WilkinsonTonga Export Quality

Management Limited

Ken WongScientic Research Organisation

of Samoa

Charles LloydSamoa Association of

Manufacturers and Exporters

Eth LloydSamoa Association of

Manufacturers and Exporters

Glenn CantPoutasi Development Trust

Sharyn CantPoutasi Development TrustMelanie McIntosh

Empreza Diak,

DiliSimon MarstersEmpreza Diak,

Dili (Atauro)

Arnold HawkinsNational Fisheries College,

Kavieng, New Ireland

Asinate TikocaMahonia Na Dari,

Kimbe, West New Britian

Bridget RobinsonNational Fisheries College,

Kavieng, New Ireland

Moniek KindredWorld Vision,

Buka, Bougainville

Bruce JohnsonWorld Vision,

Arawa, Bougainville

Atauro

Maliana

Where our volunteers are working tosupport sustainable livelihoods in the Asia-Pacific:VSA

vista magazine may 2014

Documents

recordnumber of volunteers

kiwi volunteersin

people workingtogether

volunteers contributions

vsa5252018 vista magazine

asiapacific partners

terms of kiwi expertise

volunteer towork