SKWIDing in Ottawa

We've just finished our intensive course in international development (SKWID) sponsored by CUSO-VSO. My head is still spinning with it all. We explored power and privilege, gender equality, intercultural communication, corruption and negotiation and more. We learned to accept that we will experience culture shock and have to manage conflict in sweltering heat under a blazing Tanzanian sun. There are no right answers in this world but there are certainly many stories.

About thirty-five were in attendance and as is usual with these sorts of things the people were the best part. There were film makers, photographers, journalists, accountants, business consultants, nurses, a psychologist and us, the teachers. Every one had a wealth of skills, real-world experience and career success. How the facilitators kept us focused and on track is still a mystery to me.

All of the discussions were lively and stimulating. The food was delicious but the talk over meals was the best. We never stopped trading information and experience. I laughed every day.

In one of the many role plays five of us were assigned the task of building a model bridge over a river in a small village in a developing country. With a paper river and a bag of Lego in hand we were told to interview a local woman as to what sort of bridge was needed in her village. We got right to the point, snapping Lego together like engineers on crack. All task oriented, right to the point, on task and efficient. One of us, a Haligonian, suggested a toll bridge. After all it works well between Halifax and Dartmouth.

To our dismay, we discovered that ours was the wrong approach, at least for the developing world, and certainly for our local resource woman, who had her own agenda. She refused to talk to the men in our group but was very interested in setting up her son with one of our American female members. There were visions of Green Card dancing in her head. Cut out the chit-chat, I kept thinking, this should be about the bridge and we're running out of time.​​​

I couldn’t have been more wrong. I learned that the first and formost task was to spend time building a cultural bridge rather than physical one. By this time though, most of my hair was pulled out. I learned to slow down, form relationships and make the effort to understand the local values. A difficult task for me whose life has been spent pursuing goals in the most efficient way.

There is still lots to do before we climb on the big bird at the end of the month. I shudder when I think of it all. See, there I go with the goals again. There is never a dull moment. Stay posted, and for heaven’s sake press that secure donation button and get your tax receipt. You know you want to.

Peter