MADA GLOWS

Representing the far northern region of Madagascar at the 2016 National GLOW 
Camp!

We did it...and we rocked it!! For the first time ever, 100 young women from 20 villages across Madagascar gathered for Peace Corps Madagascar's National Girls Leading Our World Camp. This was a huge project that took months of planning, preperation, and problem solving with our team of organizers, Volunteers, partner organizations, and participants. But when it happened, it didn't just happen... it set a high standard for the National GLOW camps we hope to continue for years to come! In other words, it was a total success.

Attending camp was a big and special opportunity for the students, who rarely have the means to travel outside of their villages or regions. For most of them, this was the first time to be in the capital city and experience the people and cultures from other areas of Madagascar! As they united, they were able to learn more about Madagascar's diversity and beauty. Throughout the week, they also leanred about women's health and empowerment, building leadership, teamwork, and goal-setting skills, and how to pursue education and job opportunties. For many of them, camp was a life-changing experience!

Babies, Brushes, & Banana Peanut Butter

This April I had the awesome opportunity to work at an orphanage, La Maison d'Arnaud, in northern Madagascar. As part of a site-exchange*, I and two other Volunteers (one third-year education Volunteer who lives at the orphanage and one health Volunteer from my Peace Corps entry group) facilitated a week of health-related activities with the children and staff!

A nutrition cooking demonstration was our first activity on the week's menu. First, we made our own peanut butter with the Malagasy orphanage cooks and nannies, then mashed some sweet bananas into it. We got to feed it to the babies for morning snack, and they went BONKERS for that stuff. One baby actually cried when we ran out of it! Then with enough vegetables to feed a small elephant, we went on to make a hearty, nutrient-rich soup. If you don't believe kids like eating vegetables, then you wouldn't have believed your eyes to see the kids slurpin' up this soup at lunch. But they did enjoy it, and so did the staff! (Shout out to my Volunteer friend Jenna, who was the mastermind behind our cooking plan).

Stomping Out Malaria in Madagascar!

Shaking. Chills. Vomiting. Sweating. Aching.  

It's anything but fun. It's painful. It damages your body. It can even kill you. It's malaria: the world's buzz kill.

Malaria cases and deaths are prevalent in multiple regions of the world. Just in 2015, there were about 214 million malaria cases and 438,000 deaths throughout the globe. However, while malaria can be devastating, it is also completely preventable! One day, it can be totally eradicated. So as part of the global effort to eradicate malaria through education and resources, April is designated as World Malaria Month and April 25th (today!) is World Malaria Day.

In accordance with World Malaria Month, I and two other Peace Corps Volunteers facilitated a malaria training over two days at a women's prison in Madagascar. In our training we discussed malaria symptoms, science, and prevention methods. All the women participated with excitement and especially had fun acting out how malaria is transmitted! On the second day, we hung bed nets for all the women in the dormitory, which is one of the most practical and effective methods for malaria prevention. The women created a great atmosphere with their enthusiasm and energy during the activities. In the end, we had 40 women empowered to stomp out malaria with their new prevention education and resources!