Ina and I arrived back in Bangor from Williams College at about 2am.  By 9:45am we were on the stage at Waterfront Park thanking the 100+ registrants for braving the weather and coming out in in the rain to support the people of Burkina Faso.  We explained how often our walks for water yield rain- a blessing of confirmation and support of this work from the Other World.  The event was flawless.  The kids were impeccable in their implementation- timing the racers, handling food, beverages, raffles, gift prizes, t-shirts for registrants (special yellow ones for volunteers), thanking the many sponsors, and in showing everyone a really good time.  WABI TV showed up, shot video and ran a story on the news.  They even had live music, although a bagpipe player was the only musician who didn’t cancel.  He was excellent… besides, what’s a multi-cultural fundraiser for Burkina Faso without the sound of bagpipes? 

While walking I began to envision the possibility of having events like these in every state of the US, occurring at difference times or simultaneously.  What a way to engage communities, schools and our nation’s youth in stepping up into their roles as leaders to be the change they wish to see in the world.

Elsewhere in Maine, on the same day, Rotarian Glen Niemy of Bridgton ran the Maine Marathon in Portland to raise funds for BARKA Foundation.   Glen just turned 60 and overcame prostate cancer and arthritis in his knee to run this race.  Although he had to stop after 23 miles, he’s still a champion in our eyes!

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• Dinner discussion led by Ina & I… the theme of the talk: If not Me, Who?  If not Now, When?  A Personalized Approach to Humanitarian Intervention
• Campus-wide workshop on music and activism co-led by BARKA & Burkina Electric, a band that mixes traditional African rhythms in experimental ways with electronica breakbeats and a rare instrument-computer called the marimba lumina
• Workshop with Mt. Greylock High School 9^th graders, who are focused on community service this year, co-led by BARKA and Burkina Electric.  This was an exhilarating event with students chanting “One more song!” at the end- the first time we’ve seen an encore in a workshop!  It also opened up new possibilities in thinking about how BARKA works with and engages students.
• Dance workshop for Kusika, Williams’ West African dance troupe led by Burkina Electric’s amazing dancers Viki and Zoko
• And finally, the much anticipated concert of Burkina Electric on campus on Friday night, with Kusika opening for the band

Ina & I were also invited by Economics Professor Kiaran Honderich to give a presentation at her Gender & Global Economy class which enabled us to get into some of the more complex issues of international development, its challenges, BARKA’s strategies for overcoming those challenges, and issues of gender and women’s empowerment in a development context.  Ina spoke of the 13 Indigenous Grandmothers, and we taught the class about the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues and Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC). We talked for almost an hour after class with some students about everything.  One of them came and found me at the concert later that night and right after Mai, Burkina Electric’s lead singer explained that Ligdi means money, he stuffed some dollars into my hand and said, “Here- Ligdi! You have to have this… you guys are special.”  It might have only been a couple of bucks, however moments like those are absolutely priceless.

One last thing worthy of note: we met with Kate Flanagan and Tara ? of the Lehman Council, and Stewart Burns of the Center for Community Engagement and discussed the formation of an ongoing relationship between BARKA and Williams students.  This would entail regular updates from the field when Ina & I are in Burkina, Williams students passing on those updates to Mt. Greylock students to keep their interest and momentum going, and then collaborating on a walk for water with Williams and Mt. Greylock HS in the Spring when we return after project implementation.  Such a relationship with Lehman Council could also help foster similar outposts of support at other college campuses, as well as possible internship and volunteering opportunities.

All in all, this was an extremely successful, well received and beautifully executed event.  It also received quite a bit of promotion from the local press:

Berkshires Week: Burkina Electric Will Light Up Williams

Berkshire Eagle: BARKA Foundation Aims to WASH Berkshire County

Burkina Electric to Bring Music, Dance, Excitement to Williams College

WAMC Interview with Ina & Esu

Download the full story by Jenn Smith of The Berkshire Eagle.

PITTSFIELD, MA (WAMC) – Burkina Faso, a landlocked country in West Africa, is one of the poorest nations in the world. For the past five years, the BARKA Foundation, a Berkshire County-based NGO, has been working to bring students and residents in Massachusetts together with those in Burkina Faso with the hope of improving the lives of both.

WAMC’S Berkshire Bureau Chief Patrick Donges caught up with BARKA Foundation founders Esu and Ina Anahata to talk about some upcoming initiatives both in Burkina and the Berkshires.

LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW HERE.

Like many people, Glen Niemy rarely gave much thought about how fortunate he is to have clean running water and a reliable sanitation system.

READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE.

“It’s a luxury we all take for granted,” the Bridgton resident said.

His outlook changed after hearing a Rotary Club guest speaker representing the BARKA Foundation who talked about poverty-stricken Burkina Faso, a landlocked country in West Africa which less than half of its population has access to clean water and in rural regions less than 10% of the people have access to adequate sanitation.

To help this region, Niemy decided to use one of his passions — running — to raise $5,000 to be used to improve living conditions in Burkina Faso. Niemy plans to run in the Maine Marathon in Portland on Oct. 2, and is seeking pledges from area residents and businesses.

“Women walk great distances in search of water, and even then, the quality isn’t very good — often it is full of diseases. Children and people die daily because of bad water,” said Niemy who has been a member of the Rotary Club for the past three years. “When we think about water, it is simply there by opening a tap. We see it as a basic right. For these people, it is very hard to obtain.”

Water availability in Burkina Faso has decreased annually for the past 45 years. Poor living conditions has resulted in a life expectancy of 49 years of age, while 50% of all deaths in children under age 5 are due to malaria.

In Niemy’s mind, helping others is just the “right thing to do.”

“I believe we all should give something back — to help those less fortunate than us,” he said.

Last week, Niemy finished his last “big” training run — 22 miles — prior to the marathon. Most weeks, Niemy covers about 40 miles. He likes to run in the mornings, mainly on flat surfaces to prevent strain on a balky knee affected by arthritis. An avid runner, Niemy has participated in both the 26.2 miler, as well as the half-marathon. He was forced to the sidelines two years ago when he was diagnosed with prostate cancer.

“When I had some testing, they found that my PSA levels had jumped. A biopsy revealed that I had third stage prostate cancer,” he said. “I can’t emphasize to people enough the importance of testing. It’s very simple. I know a lot of guys are afraid to have it done because of what they might find. Men over the age of 50 should get tested. I believe it (testing) saved my life.”

Niemy would suffer a relapse 1 . years later. After undergoing radiation treatment for a couple of months, Niemy received a clean bill of health. He returned to the roadway, and slowly worked back into decent running shape. Niemy admits he is “not in race shape,” but has the stamina for a long distance jaunt. He’ll rely upon experience to get him through 26.2 miles. Niemy learned the hard way to be patient, and avoid the temptation of starting too quick.

“It’s about sticking to the plan,” he said. “You don’t want to find that you have nothing left with a couple of miles to go, and all the work over the previous 22 miles is washed away.”

Niemy is excited about running the marathon and helping others at the same time.

“I feel wonderful,” said Niemy who will turn 60 next month. “When you battle cancer, you develop a new perspective on life. It’s scary because suddenly you realize you don’t know how much time you have. You appreciate every day as much as you can. You no longer worry about the little stuff. I believe God gave me a second chance, and I should use my time for a good purpose.”

His cause is to help people thousands of miles away so they can access a basic resource — water.

“I like running, and when I’m doing it for a cause, I seem to run better,” he said.

The local Rotary Club has taken on Niemy’s fundraising effort as one of their international projects. All donations, be it $5 or $25 or more, will be most welcome, Niemy said. Anyone wishing to make a donation can contact Niemy by e-mail at gniemy@yahoo.com or call his office at 647-2600.

As developing countries work to augment their economic growth and corporations continue to search for resources, the lands, and subsequently the way of life, of indigenous peoples are at risk.

Traditional Dance in Tantiaka

One crucial aspect of the 2007 UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii/en/drip.html), or UNDRIP, is the right of indigenous communities to free, prior and informed consent (FPIC). This right requires that states gain the free prior and informed consent of indigenous peoples before public or private institutions take actions that may affect the lands, resources, intellectual property and cultural and spiritual practices of indigenous populations.

Governments have agreed to follow each individual aspect of FPIC:

Free – decisions must be allowed without coercion or force of indigenous peoples

Prior- ample time allotted to communities before final decision

Informed – the nature and duration of the project, the areas that will be affected and other necessary, unbiased information are all provided to indigenous peoples in a language and form that can be understood by the community

Consent – explicit agreement of indigenous people to allow the project

Despite UNDRIP and agreements from states, governments often ignore FPIC and other rights in UNDRIP. Due to a variety of economic concerns governments and corporations forcibly strip land and resources from indigenous peoples.  The international community, especially countries that are home to indigenous populations, and proponents of sustainable development have a duty to find the neglect of indigenous rights unacceptable and counterproductive to the true nature of progress.

From the beginning, the BARKA Foundation has committed to an approach to sustainable development that respects, preserves and involves indigenous peoples and cultures. What community-led development means for BARKA is working with a community to identify its needs and partnering with that community to find and implement sustainable solutions. All of BARKA’s development projects are planned and carried out with a deep respect for indigenous culture and the direct consultation, consent and participation of the villagers of Tantiaka in Burkina Faso.

Young girl retrieving water for her family

In October, BARKA will go to Burkina Faso to continue work to address what villagers determined to be their most pressing need: clean water.  BARKA’s partnership with Tantiaka started with water, and it will continue with all other development projects in the small village.

The UN, through its annual Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII; http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii/) continues to work towards a world where there is stronger protection for the rights of indigenous peoples. This year’s forum, held in May, established the UN Indigenous Peoples Partnership, UNIPP, which aims to support indigenous communities, increase access for indigenous leaders in the governance process and continue to strengthen indigenous rights (http://bit.ly/mPiWBV).

These UN actions and events help the fight for indigenous rights, but popular awareness of these issues and NGO support for indigenous communities are crucial as supplements to UN policy. It takes regular people and determined NGOs to pressure governments into a greater concern for indigenous rights. Even more importantly, anyone that works on global development, whether it is in government or in the nonprofit sector, must realize the essential nature of indigenous communities in efforts to pursue sustainable development.

- Arthur Tarley, BARKA UN Youth Representative

Want to stay updated with BARKA’s projects and activities?

Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/BARKAFoundation

Join our Peace, Water and Wisdom Cause: http://www.causes.com/causes/274528

Like our Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-BARKA-Foundation/156328579285

And sign up for our newsletter! You can do it on the right side of this page.

BARKA with the Student Environment Action Committee at John Bast High School in Bangor Maine

Each year on August 12th, the UN celebrates International Youth Day. The International Year of Youth (IYY) started in August 2010 and will end August of this year.  The IYY website (http://social.un.org/youthyear/) contains information about the year, related events, how youth can get involved and how the year has helped youth gain a more significant voice.

The UN program on Youth (UNPY) has created a guide describing actions youth can take to address societies problems during the International Year of Youth and beyond.  The guide titled, “Activities Kit: A Guide to Celebrating the International Year of Youth” can be downloaded from (http://social.un.org/youthyear/participate.html).

The UNPY guide to getting involved is a great resource. It lays out strategies and techniques to connect and organize with others, and creates initiatives to make an impact, whether it is an impact on local business or international development.

Just some things that the UNPY guide suggests youth can do after proper organization and planning:

- Create awareness through a call to action and public service announcement video/audio

- Put together concerts or arts festivals with social messages

- Mobilize and engage with youth-led town hall meetings

- Work with local businesses to shift towards more sustainable practices

Children in Tantiaka

Youth volunteerism and community engagement on a local, national or international level is necessary in order to generate real progress in our society.  Climate change, sustainable development and peace are core to our current and future existence.

These problems are especially important to young people, because these are the issues that youth will be dealing with on the world stage throughout our lives. Youth need to take a leading role to address climate change and violent conflicts to prevent future crises. Youth must realize that creating sustainable societies, lessening the effects of climate change and fostering peace in the world are issues that will continue to plague the world and humanity unless we begin to take action now.

The challenge of making an impact on policy and government behavior is a difficult one for youth; creating a strong coalition of youth that commit to addressing development, peace and the environment on an international scale will make a difference in today’s policy and, even more so, in the international policy in the near future.

Social media (Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, etc.) can be a great way for youth to connect with other youth and link up with NGOs. It can also be an effective tool for NGOS to use to reach out to youth.  Social media is just the jumping off point though; once connected, youth and adults, alike, must commit to put their common ideas into action.

Beyond engaging the communities that are near you, reaching out to political leaders and effectively using social media, to solve the pressing problems of the day it is necessary to reach out to communities and cultures across your nation and throughout the world.

The first step of development is exploring the needs of a community with the people in that community. This enables an outside group to work with that community to address these problems and work towards achieving the UN’s Millenium Development Goals (http://www.undp.org/mdg/basics.shtml).

BARKA speaking with children at Pleasantville Middle School

BARKA realizes the importance of community-led development and engaging with different communities. In the village of Tantiaka in Burkina Faso, BARKA first spoke with villagers to determine that the most pressing need of the community was access to clean water. BARKA has joined together with the community to improve villagers’ access to clean water and will continue to work with Tantiaka towards addressing Millenium Development Goals (MDGs).

One of BARKA’s initiatives in Tantiaka is the WASH in Schools program (http://www.unicef.org/wash/schools/), which places hygiene education in schools at the center of the strategy to address the community’s water and sanitation needs. Youth are of critical importance in this program, as UNICEF has found that children take the hygiene principles that they learn in school and share them with their families and wider community. And with BARKA’s water initiatives, the burden on women and girls to retrieve water will be lessened and more girls will be able to attend school.

It is important that youth and those involved in global development promote inter-cultural dialogue and respect the cultures of the communities that they work with in order enrich communities abroad and at home.

There are plenty of ways to take action, so it is up to the individual and all the youth out there to create awareness amongst friends and communities and put the time and effort towards affecting positive change. You can even get involved with BARKA’s bridge building initiatives and Walks for Water with U.S. schools, kindergarten through college. Join the conversation; tell us your ideas about youth involvement and your stories of engaging communities.

- Arthur Tarley, BARKA UN Youth Representative

Want to stay updated with BARKA’s projects and activities?

Follow us on Twitter: http://twitter.com/BARKAFoundation

Join our Peace, Water and Wisdom Cause: http://www.causes.com/causes/274528

Like our Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-BARKA-Foundation/156328579285

And sign up for our newsletter! You can do it on the right side of this page.

In the email blast we uploaded several photos of water (my partner Ina & I live in a one-room cabin that rests three feet off the shore of a pristine spring-fed lake in Maine and have almost 10,000 photos of water in its various forms).  We wrote of how water is understood within the indigenous paradigm, particularly the Dagara five-element cosmology of Burkina Faso. For the Dagara people, the Spirit of Water is about grief, forgiveness, reconciliation, healing and ultimately peace.  Within Dagara numerology, years that end in the number 1 or 6, correspond to the element of water.  That makes 2011 a “double” water year.

We linked the indigenous African wisdom with the ancient wisdom of Lao Tsu who said,

“THE SAGE’S TRANSFORMATION OF THE WORLD ARISES FROM SOLVING THE PROBLEM OF WATER.  IF WATER IS UNITED, THE HUMAN HEART WILL BE CONNECTED. IF WATER IS PURE AND CLEAN, THE HEART OF THE PEOPLE WILL READILY BE UNIFIED. THE PIVOT OF WORK IS WATER”.

Five hours later the newsletter was complete (click here to see the newsletter and gorgeous water photos) after which came the following slew of water-related activities:

• It had been snowing all day and the ice-covered lake now had enough snow to ski on it once again.  I got on the water for possibly one of the last cross-country ski outings of the winter because the ice on the lake is beginning to become rotten.  I’m going to miss these short intense blasts of exercise which help balance out long stretches in front of the computer. As I skied I offered my gratitude to the Spirit of Water on which I was skiing, and respect for my life being in its hands.
• I had worked up such a sweat that I took a bucket shower outside in the snow with hot water that we heat on the wood stove.  We have no running water so we bathe like we do when we’re in the bush of Burkina, with a bucket of water.  As I took my bath, World Water Day, water conservation, and our small water footprint were foremost in my mind.  After the bath, to submerge fully into water I jumped into the icy lake through a hole in the ice we keep open all winter, partly for this purpose.  To do this on World Water Day felt appropriate… and felt great.
• I went up the hill to our Ancestor shrine to say my daily prayers. Ina had gone to a spring a few hundred yards into the forest and I decided instead to find her.  The spring is a sacred place that never freezes over.  It too would be a perfect to visit on this day.  When I arrived Ina had already gone.  I performed a small ceremony and prayed for the healing of our earth’s waters… the following thoughts arose:

Water is our greatest healing agent.  Our bodies are 80% water. Dr. Masuro Emoto, the Japanese research scientist made famous in “What the Bleep?” has shown that water has the power and ability to reflect our intention.  If we look at the state of water today- oil plumes in the Gulf, dead baby dolphins washing up on shore, depletion of the ocean’s fish due to over-fishing, melting glaciers, privatization, it’s easy to see what water is reflecting- Koyaanisqatsi: life out of balance.

The gift of this water year of 2011 is the cleansing and purification required to navigate through the crucible of 2012, what indigenous prophecies have called the end of time.  To our understanding that doesn’t mean that the world will end in 2012.  It simply means that systems that have been revealed to be corrupt and unjust will fall, and society will undergo major transformations.  This process has already begun.  One need look no further than wikileaks, Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Japan, Haiti, US Homeland Security, Wisconsin, food security, the housing market, etc. to see evidence of this.  We have created a world in which the richest 1 percent have more financial wealth than the bottom 95 percent combined and almost 1 billion people lack access to clean water, life’s most essential natural resource.  Water is raising our consciousness as we raise water consciousness on the planet.

• Ina arrived- followed my tracks in the snow.  We kiss by the spring because it was so gosh darn romantic.  There isn’t another human being around for miles.  We live way out in “unorganized territory”.  We walk home along the route that we have walked many times carrying water from the spring.  Like our family in Burkina Faso, we too walk for water.
• I finally get to the Ancestor shrine to complete this prayerful day.  Ina stepped onto the lake.  She began belting out the Native American water song, echoing among the neighboring hills and mountains.  I joined in, my voice resounding the sacred water song throughout the forest… a duet of honoring and thanking the Spirit of Water.

For the co-founders of an NGO working to procure clean drinking water and basic sanitation for the poorest of the poor in rural West Africa, every day is Water Day… however World Water Day is special because we get to share this focus with the rest of the world.  It’s a celebration of solidarity, a birthday for every water activist on the planet.

Each day I ask Spirit and the Ancestors to walk with me every step of the way… today was a day like that, a day in which that happened…

The BARKA Foundation held its 1st Peace, Water & Wisdom Walk in 2009– a 500-mile journey through 20-cities-in-20-days to raise awareness and funds for clean water for the people of Burkina Faso, West Africa. On Peace Day BARKA held a walk for water in Ouagadougou, Burkina’s capitol. BARKA now walks with schools and communities in North America to build cultural bridges which help secure the human right to clean water & sanitation for all. Join us!