Day 12 - Mon 6.13.2011

This morning, Dale, Sam, and the GPP team met at Dan Taylor’s development at Keyhole Bay, where we got a tour of the properties, then were able to sit down for a more formal discussion with Dan and Mitch regarding our involvement in the island. Dan and Mitch reiterated that the island needs a master plan for growth and suggested that GPP-NAU might be able to contribute to its creation. We also discussed that starting a project in an islander community such as Flowers Bay would be beneficial and  a way to gain local support and cooperation from the local government. This could possibly be a future project, we plan to focus most of our efforts on the community of Policarpo Galindo on this trip. 

            In the afternoon, we Introduced Dale and Sam to Henry Zittrower and Enrique Valdez of LW4R and Marvin Membreno of the colonia water system to hear about their organizations and upcoming plans that we could assist with. Went over some water distribution system questions with Marvin to get a better idea on ways to control the individual distribution zones to prevent water theft. Some residents have figured out way to obtain water on days they are not scheduled to get their water barrel filled. We also visited a proposed water well site in the nearby Monte Fresco colonia. The location looks promising for getting water, but the well drilling truck available here on the island can only drill to 220’, which may not be deep enough.

There is an existing well located about ¼ mile down the canyon, Marvin will find out how deep it is. LW4R is also considering purchase of a nearby terraced lot to build a multi-use field and education center and has asked us to do some site mapping and advise if it is suitable for what they have planned.

Day 11 - Sun 6.12.2011

               We stayed in the cool of the hotel most of the day, transcribing notes and working other project documents. Dale and Sam Gray arrived today from Arizona, Dale serves as an advisor and benefactor to NAU-GPP and has extensive international aid experience. We met with them at their hotel along with Dan Taylor (local developer who is on Mayor Galindo’s advisory council for infrastructure) and Mitch Cummins (Roatan Rotary) for dinner and conversation.

                Dale explained his perspective of GPP- NAU’s involvement in Roatan in big picture terms such as looking for projects to benefit the island instead of just the colonia. Mitch and Dan explained that for our efforts to be accepted and gain cooperation and involvement by the locals, we need to also work on projects that benefit the islanders instead of just the colonia. Islanders see many charitable organizations helping the mainlanders, which they feel makes it easier for them to stay and continue settling.  The islanders need similar help themselves in most cases. Have to be very much aware of the tension between islanders and mainlanders.

Day 10 - Sat 6.11.2011

Josh and Shannon went to the colonia to look at the water system valves for each distribution zone, and headed back to base at around 1 pm thoroughly baked from the heat - there’s a definite climate change compared to Flagstaff. Mercedes and McWane, in the meantime, went to Coxen Hole to activate another cell phone internet connection and get plastic trash bag for McWane’s solid waste study, and then they spent the remainder of the afternoon trudging around the hills of the colonia to do some mapping of the watershed and enlist some households to participate with the solid waste study.  

We had heard of recent efforts to encourage colonia residents to reduce debris, and finally got the opportunity to see these efforts in action. There are several new neighborhood trash collection structures being built of concrete block in various locations that can be reached by the municipal garbage truck each Tuesday. In addition to being more visually appealing, it is hoped that the construction of these structures will reduce the amount of refuse on the ground and in the stream channels.

         

The other interesting project encourages residents to recycle plastic water and soda bottles to help the construction of a new community multi-use field and ball court located along the entrance road into the colonia. The bottles are filled with sand and then mortared into a wall being built to separate kids and balls from the road. Benches and trash bins will be built the same way. Old tires are being collected, probably to make retaining walls on the slope behind the new field.

Another handwritten sign says 2,567 bottles have been used so far and about 10,000 bottles will be needed to complete the project. Several collection bins like this one below are located throughout the colonia. The attached sign refers to this as the Sandy Bay Recycling Project and asks residents to help build it one bottle at a time.

Mercedes and McWane started on the Monte Frisco side of the colonia and hiked up to the ridge that is between Monte Frisco and Policarpo Galindo. They then hiked the entire ridge of Policarpo Galindo and stopped at the 65000 gallon water tank. They met 2 people that live close to the tank and interviewed them and asked them to participate in the trash collection project. Mercedes and McWane found out that they compost a lot of the food scraps they have left over. Also, much of their trash is burned, because their location is so high up on the hill top. It appears that the location of the people in the colonia can affect the trash disposal practices. After a very pleasant interview, Mercedes and McWane walked back down to the bottom of the colonia, taking the opportunity to talk to a few other people people left and right as they trudged back to the hotel. 

Day 9 - Fri 6.10.2011

We woke up today at 5:30 today, ready to go. Our first order of business was a meeting with a local man who has been conducting a personal survey of the Sandy Bay colonia to determine demographic information and identify critical issues in the community. His primary concern is the construction of a rehabilitation center as the nearest center is located on the mainland. Following that meeting, we hustled off to get tour of a few other colonias and, thus, a better understanding of the bigger picture.

The first colonia that we toured was Luz y Vida, started by two pastors to provide affordable housing for families in the Dixon Cove area. The road to the colonia passes a spot with sweeping views of the beach and ocean. Set in the middle of a palm forest, about an hour’s walk from the main road, the location of Luz y Vida is not ideal. The community benefits, however, from greater planning. The homes are all made of concrete block and have metal roofs. Water and gas are supplied by trucks. They pay about 50 Lempiras for each barrel of water. Water barrels in this community, just like those in the Sandy Bay colonia, were mostly open to the elements. Some also have rain catchment systems on their roofs. Electricity has not yet arrived there. The Patrinatos in charge of this colonia are currently seeking funding to afford the installation of solar panels for each home. There were also suggestions about using gasoline generators, but the idea was not preferable as gas on the island currently runs about $5.00 per gallon.

The second colonia we visited was the colonia Santa Maria. The main dirt road ran along seven parallel side streets with about 20 homes on each block. There is a total of 138 homes. The houses were also constructed of cement block. In back of this community, excavation is under way for a new colonia. It appears that a hospital is being built on the cliff just beyond the new colonia.We drove back into the colonia and Tom asked a man on the street where he could find the colonia leader. We were fortunate to have the opportunity to meet and chat at length with the founder of this colonia.

Day 8 - Thurs 6.9.2011

Shannon, McWane, and Josh arrive

             We arrived in Roatan at 12pm and we were greeted by Henry Zittrower, Enrique Valdez and Enrique’s wife and his son, and Mercedes. After a typical Honduran lunch at “Bojangles” we did some grocery shopping and then headed for the Pirate’s Den Hotel where we unloaded and met with Henry to get caught up on what’s been happening in the community.

            We are learning that electricity is a critical issue on the island. Major price increases are quickly putting the water committee’s electric bill out of reach. There are also concerns over unfair billing and distribution practices that price electricity out of the realm of many residents. Henry indicated that one of the goals is to computeriz the the water board's billing and accounting system bills.  Henry also has plans to construct an education center in the colonia. We are turning up lots of interesting opportunities for the education department to get involved in GPP.

            Later in the evening, we headed over to the colonia, where we did an informal assessment to find out what people are paying for electricity, and to see some of the systems that people are using for cooking, sanitation, and erosion control within their properties. One resident of a neighborhood in the Colonia called Caracol planted bamboo around the perimeter of his home and said that he was able to stop his land from eroding away when the rains came. Bamboo has an added advantage for this man because he uses the bamboo to make furniture and flute-like instruments.

Mercedes - Day 6 - Tues 6.7.11

This morning at breakfast, Alexander, an employee at Pirate's Den mentioned that he had seen me at Sunday's water committee meeting. Since I'll have easy access to him, he'll be a good person to interview about the community. I don't know why it didn’t occur to me to talk to Phillip's staff. I really need to start interviewing more unaffiliated locals. By the end of this week, I should be done with most of my gatekeeper interviews and will be ready to interview residents - perfect timing since the guys will get here tomorrow.

I finally got to meet with Thomas of the Bay Island's Voice. It looks like we are going to try to coordinate efforts on the Photovoice project! We may need to share the cameras we purchased, depending on how much funding Tom and his partner, Camilla O'Brien, are able to amass. They aren't planning to get their project going until some time around July, so ours would be a bit of a pilot project. Camilla runs a school in Sandy Bay, a few miles from the Pirate's Den, called the Sand Castle Library and Education Center. She has a classroom I could use that has computers, air conditioning, and - get this - a projector. The distance means that we would have to pay to put everyone in a cab or find someone willing to transport the kids (and us) back and forth. Camilla would also like us to help her with the electric bill. At 40 cents per kw/hour, electric rates on this island are out of control. I'm not sure our budget can handle all this. Granted, we have budgeted about $500 for the Photovoice project, but I wanted to use most of that on some sort of implementation project with the kids. At any rate, I can't see us throwing away the opportunity to connect this project to a larger picture and, generally, extend our tentacles (bwahahahaha). We'll have to sit down with our budget and decide how to best allocate these funds; we may also have to barter a bit with Camilla.

An anonymous source that I spoke with today strongly recommended that we consider making any multi-year agreement with the municipality rather than with any of the patronatos, given their history of corruption and manipulation and their lack of cohesion and stabilty. It was also recommended that we keep ourselves open to the possibility of working with other colonias as well. There are a lot of sorely neglected colonias that are much more stable and not tied up in the kinds of legal problems that the Policarpo, Bella Vista, Monte Frisco, and Belfate colonias are. Something to keep in mind. I'm going to try to do a tour of the other colonias in the area on Thursday morning. If nothing else, it will be informative and will give me an overview of the other communities we will be working with if we do move forward with the photovoice collaboration. I think the key is for us to contribute to the colonia in ways that will reward stability and commitment to the community, whether we are talking about individuals or institutions. Clearly, LW4R is one such institution, but perhaps there are ways we can involve individual families, and maybe try to inspire a slowly creeping chain reaction. I want to better understand the history of giving in that community, and I want to better understand the legal issues. I had been under the impression that legal issues in the Colonia had been ironed out - but that doesn't seem to be the case at all, which gives me cause for a little concern.  

Day Five - Mercedes - Mon 6.6.2011

Today was another long day. Enrique picked me up at 8:30am and I went with him and the mission team  that's in town to Enrique's house where the crew finished framing the roof on an addition he is building.  Tomorrow, they will add corrugated metal sheeting.

At two, I met with Irma at Carambola Gardens, which, as luck would have it, is only a mile or so from the Pirate's Den. Irma spoke with me at length about erosion problems at the colonia and potential solutions. This might be a good project for increasing interdepartmental collaboration. Erosion is a major concern in the community. Just last year, a small landslide caused one home at the top of the colonia (the Bella Vista region) to collapse onto another below it. Carambola Gardens, like the Colonia, has a creek running through it, which, as she explained to me, rises several feet during the rainy season. The same happens, as local informants tell me, near the ocean by the Pirate's Den. According to my key informant, people in the area have problems with a foot fungus that he attributes to the dirty water that collects on the streets after the rain. He tells me that when he was a boy the water that would swell up during the rainy season ran clear (and not muddy red as it does now), and it was clean enough to swim in.

At any rate, Irma said that if we do a door to door survey of the community to find out how open people would be to a reforestation program and what bushes and trees they would want to plant, the Gardens would be willing to support us with implementation (obtaining seeds and cuttings, youth education). She indicated that this data would be beneficial to her and her efforts. She made a lot of interesting recommendations, which I have summed up below:

• Plant cashew trees: they grow prolifically and need little water or tending and the fruit can be eaten or juiced and the nut roasted and sold.
• Plant fast growing trees that can be used for fire wood; apparently, some residents are chopping down limbs and trees on other people's property, which (among other practices) is not endearing residents of the colonia to the locals
• Plant along both sides of the creek and road and use old pieces of wood, etc. to help bound the water and reduce erosion
• Speak with owners who have larger properties about composting
• Teach residents to gather sea grass after large storms to use as fertilizer for fruit trees (must first rinse well to remove salt or leave it out in the rain)
• Determine the following:
1. Would people be interested in reforestation? Why or why not?
2. What would they want planted (fire wood, fruit, ornamental)?
3. I would add to this: what have people already planted? Where? How are they tending it?

We both agreed that all this is easier said than done. Homes and businesses are pretty tightly packed on that hillside, which severely limits the area available for reforestation. Erosion control would be an excellent source of interdepartmental collaboration. I'm thinking that the geology and sustainable communities programs, in particular, might  be a good start.