Post 2

  1. Give three compelling examples of how cultural issues affect your project.

 

From what I have gathered during our last lecture, there is a different emphasis on time in Sierra Leone. I am used to the hustling, bustling world where time is money so you cannot waste it. This approach has led me to live a very structured, scheduled life where I know what I am doing every minute of the day. However, it seems that SIerra Leone may be different. From what  have learned it is much more relaxed and laid back. People think of time as more circular and infinite whereas western culture has enforced my perception of time as something finite and measurable. So, when Kanjan gave his example in class of his lecture being scheduled at 1 PM and people showing up at 2:30 PM, I was a bit taken aback. Here, some people would take offense, however the concept of time is just seen differently.

Another cultural issue I need to be mindful of is religion. I grew up in a very liberal, agnostic environment where my religious views did not dictate much of my lifestyle. However, the majority of people in Sierra Leone are muslim, with a high population of Sunni Muslims. I think that this difference in culture isn’t really an issue, however navigating the society of Sierra Leone is something I need to be mindful about. I cannot be as loud about bodily issues as I am here or as uncensored with my language. So when I go out into the field I need to be aware of how I carry myself in order to respect the community I am working with.

However, my main concern of what will affect the project is how women are treated in Sierra Leone. Women have extremely limited reproductive rights. In fact, women could be forced into marriage without consent until 2007. This will be hard to navigate coming from a country with progressive women’s rights – I need to be careful not to control the narrative of my project and create a biased story surrounding this. THis is imperative because I am working on the Safe Motherhood project – a documentary focusing on the initiatives being taken to improve the maternal mortality rate. Most of the subjects I work with will have firsthand experience with this area of oppression, so I must be mindful when navigating my topics. 

  1. Have you experienced or observed any of these social situations at home? Describe at least three such situations.

 

Growing up, I lived in a very diverse environment surrounded by people from every walk of life. One of my friends was from Palestine and in eighth grade, she told me that she was in an arranged marriage since elementary school. Now, she was not married but she was already promised to a boy our age that was the son of her parent’s friends. This was a shock to me, but she was okay with it so I was okay with it. I think this situation resonates with the cultural differences I will be experiencing on site – it is not my job to enforce my beliefs on the lives of others. 

Or in terms of censoring myself a bit, when I visit my grandparents I have to tone it down. They are very kind, conservative people that don’t really appreciate it when I am outspoken about the things we disagree on. Sometimes, it is best not to talk politics on Thanksgiving – out of respect for the people around me. 

Lastly, I have many friends that view time differently than me. Sometimes I will make plans and they don’t come through until hours after they were supposed to. As much as it drives me crazy to be late, I have started to learn that there is no reason to rush for most things. Time will continue and I will live on, I will just have to make say things are an hour before they actually start.

  1. Give three examples of cultural practices that can be leveraged to address community / market problems.

One networking tool in SIerra Leone is Whatsapp – it is the primary communication source. Currently, my team is looking to use it for a part of our marketing campaign because of how accessible and popular it is.

Another wonderful cultural practice is the Midwives of Sierra Leone. We have already covered a local midwifery school, but if we were able to document the life of a midwife by following them throughout their day, it would be an interesting way to show how one community member can have such a big impact. 

Also, by implementing more contraceptive health and family planning services in schools, the education system of Sierra Leone can help lower the maternal mortality rate. This may be a bit harder to do considering how controversial it would be, but it could make a hige difference.

GSIF Post 1

 

I enrolled in this course because I have a genuine interest to make films that matter. This past semester, I started exploring filmmaking – the techniques, styles and ethics behind it all. I took a class at Lafayette and it changed my academic course. Also, I have always had an interest in journalism. This past year I wrote for a newspaper covering the civic governance of the Southside community. In high school, I wrote for my school newspaper. I have always loved to write and I have always wanted to film. So, when I heard about the Safe Motherhood project I was genuinely over the moon to hear there was an opportunity like this at my school. First of all, I have a passion for community building. I work as a CSO officer, which means I interact heavily with the community partners on the Southside. Coming from Oakland, I have witnessed a lot of unnecessary disparity that was extremely deep rooted in the education system. I went to a school that always fought because they always had to fight for the basics – printers, paper, and the wages of teachers. We would strike or walkout, sometimes marching to city hall if it came down to that. So when I came to Lehigh, I still wanted to be involved in the world around me. It started with the CSO but with the GSIF I have the opportunity to be even more involved in the world. 

 

One thing that was discussed that really resonated with me was how this fellowship is going to push my boundaries outside of the classroom. Traditionally, I have been taught to listen to what I am told and do what I am supposed to. This model of authority based learning has followed me throughout my education – from elementary school to college. I am used to taking notes on what my professor in front of the class says. So, when the students mentioned how the majority of their work is independently structured I was beyond excited. Right now, I feel stagnant in my academics. I am getting tired of only soaking in what I am told and I look forward to learning more from the world around me. For example, during the panel there was a question asked about how to respectfully interact with the residents from Sierra Leone, and the panel agreed that the best thing they did was ask questions. We are learning from each other with every step of this process, not looking to be guided by our advisors. I have just started being exposed to this framework of learning, and I have a ways to go before I see my professor as my peer. So, this class will help me be a better student by pushing me to think for myself and learn from the people around me.

 

There is actually an eye care hospital in India that uses a philanthropic business model to meet the needs of people while making a marginally positive profit. This model, created by Dr. G. Venkataswamy, allows further access to affordable eye care in regions that have high rates of cataracts. Cataracts have become an epidemic in India, despite how easy it is to treat and prevent them with modern medicine. IIt is all too common for people in the regions Dr. V works with to have never received professional eye care their whole life. In fact, 75% of eye care cases in India are considered avoidable. The extreme poverty creates financial boundaries that prevent people from seeking preventative care and treatment and oftentimes communities go their whole life without realizing that this condition is treatable. There is a lack of treatment and a lack of awareness regarding eye care which means that proper eye care, even if financially accessible, is not always taken advantage of. So Dr. V charges regular patients a reasonable price which sponsors two free eye treatments for his clinic patients. Furthermore, his pop up clinics cater to the communities that need it most by being fairly mobile and moving from town to town. This business model has proven to be extremely successful. It allowed Dr. V to open up his own lense production factory above his clinic, creating eyeglasses for eight dollars apiece and distributing them to nearby clinics. This vertical production strategy lowers the cost of production and increases the rate of distribution. So, I propose that Lehigh partners with Aravind Eye Care Systems to send students interested in ophthalmology to India to learn more about this business practice and work with Dr. V’s team to expand his realm of influence. Maybe, with the help of interdisciplinary collaboration and Lehigh funding, Aravind Eye Care can bring its mission statement to other medically isolated communities in other parts of the world.