Reflections on returning to Ireland

Its been about three weeks since I last posted an article in the blog. A lot has happened in that time. I have been back in Ireland about 2 weeks and much of that time here has been spent with my 12 year old son Osian who as usual brings me down to Earth, opens my eyes to what is important and always brings it home to me the simple message that in the age of virtual connections and digital lives how crucially important genuine human interactivity is for us to thrive and grow.

Firstly, I miss all the amazing volunteers in the workshop in Mombasa. They are an incredible bunch of people who touched me deeply and have given me the energy and commitment to keep going with this project. They have also made me realise that the Camara project will be successful if we can harness thier marvellous energies and abilities in the right way.

Secondly, the trip this summer has opened my eyes to my own prejudices about peoples abilities in the developing world. There is a tendency to doubt peoples capability simply because one feels more educated or more experienced as a result of living in the 'developed' world. Nothing is further from the truth. On a number of occasions this summer I was left staggered and amazed at peoples ability and potential.

And the technological tools we are putting into peoples hands are helping realise that potential. That is the key point that needs to be stressed.

Thirdly, and on a more sobering note, it is clear however, that it is non trivial to set up 'bases' in Africa and manage them remotely. Given that it is a key step in Camaras evolution, we will have to evolve a model of what works and what does not work as we go along. Initial reflections are:

(a) When picking a partner roles need to be defined and clarified from day one.
(b) At least one full-time person from Camara per hub is required.
(c) The board of directors needs a neutral person from neither of the main partners.
(d) Camara needs to initially hold the chair to get the technical side of the hub setup.
(e) The hub needs to be a separate legal entity with its own executive governance structure.

There is no doubt that we can choose partners that we can trust and work with as Camara grows. However, given the pioneering nature of what we are doing its going to be a bumpy ride!

Good Publicity

Camara got very good publicity this week. Check out the following link:


http://www.rte.ie/news/features/globalclassroom/index.html

This link includes the 6 O'Clock news broadcast last Monday, some extended interviews with various people involved in the project and the radio interview I did with Miles Dungan that morning.

There is a great story about what was involved in actually securing a landline for the interview which I will relate a little later in another note (for reasons that will become obvious when I tell the story!).

The Camara volunteers head home tomorrow - I will stay on for another week or so. Its always a sad occasion when they go home - for the volunteers themselves, but also especially for the local people. A month is actually a short time out of here but because of the context of the project its enough time for people to become good friends and for people to miss one another when everyone goes their separate ways.

That said, there will be some celebrating done tonight! Its been a great achievement for all concerned...