Crossroads — The First Post

April 3rd. 1:20 am. Markham, Ontario.

I edge close to the embers of the fire pit in my aunt’s backyard, shying away from the crisp cold of the spring night. I think back to October, when I was writing up an application to Engineers Without Borders’s (EWB) Junior Fellowship (JF) program. I vaguely remember describing my passion for international development, and relating it to the hot embers of a fire. It seems like eons ago when I spat out draft after draft, trying to put into words why I wanted to work for EWB in Africa this summer. What I, an average second-year engineering student, could possibly have to offer the fight against extreme poverty. A lot has happened since then…

Relaxed after an amazing family dinner and a much-needed day off, I decide to reflect on thoughts that have been simmering in my mind over the last few days. I figured, hey, why not kick-off this blog, which I’ll be using throughout this summer to chronicle my work in Ghana.

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Three days ago I attended a year-end appreciation night held by Leaders of Tomorrow, a student organization under the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Toronto. There was a distinct buzz of excitement, passion, and energy in the room as upwards of 30 students, professors, and faculty shared the successes of the year. Social leadership, collaboration, and critical thought was in the air and my heart leaped at the amazing drive of the people around me.

One conversation stood out in particular. A student at my table spoke with strong dedication about his ideas around education and the native peoples of Canada. “[In some parts of Canada] it’s like a third-world country!” My ears piqued, and I listened in as he explained how it is rare to see First Nations people in U of T, and he wants to start up tutoring and education initiatives in his community that encourage native people to pursue university. He argued how they are stuck in the cycle of poverty, and that parents “don’t send their kids to school because they didn’t go themselves.” The woman sitting on his other side, enamored, encouraged and supported his words.

My mind exploded in a series of thoughts, starting with “I really want to ask this guy some tough questions around the root cause of the problem, and what leads him to believe this is the right approach to a solution,” “what right (or experience) do I have that enables me to ask him anything,” and ending at “leave him alone; we’re all learning, he’s showing strong leadership skills and initiative, which the world needs.”

In the end I said nothing, but it did get my mind whirring though. I can be pretty critical, but I also don’t think it was my place to discourage an absolute stranger who didn’t ask for my opinion. What was interesting was that the woman beside him was all for building schools and setting up programs; it’s easy to see the connection between education and a school building. And hey, it may very well be what’s needed… but it may not. It just concerned me that all I heard were plausible solutions to the problem, but no real analysis of the cause. I say ‘plausible’ because that is our point of view; we know very little of native culture, society, interest, beliefs, tribal governance, history… and all that plays a very real part in big issues like education.

How do you encourage good intentions when the best thing you can do to help – challenge ideas – may be seen as discouragement? What would the world look like if all the programs for the poor, were designed with an understanding of the poor? If what Canada is implementing on-the-ground in far-off countries, came about in cooperation with the local people rather than in the government offices of Ottawa?

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So, hey, my name is Amir. I’m an engineering student at the University of Toronto. I’ll be spending about four months working in Ghana (West Africa) this summer, with the Governance and Rural Infrastructure sector of Engineers Without Borders Canada. This blog is not meant to be processed or structured. Rather, I’m going to aim to be as real and grounded as possible. I don’t know if what I write on here (or what I wrote above) will be right or appropriate; it will, however, be completely honest. And I expect no less in return; comment, discuss, and share your thoughts. If there was a defined and correct way to approach international development, poverty would have ended a long time ago.

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So here we are.. I already feel uneasy about posting this, but I will. The last six months have been a roller-coaster ride of learning and personal development: about leadership, about change, about Africa, about poverty. Oh, and engineering, of course (how could I forget school?)

In just four weeks now, I’ll be joining the 15(?) other Ghana Junior Fellows (short-term volunteers) when they fly in to Toronto for six days of pre-departure training. Then on May 8th we’ll fly out to Ghana. I’ll post on this blog again at least once before I go, probably twice; watch out for the next post where I’ll talk about what I’ll actually be doing this summer. I really hope you all follow this blog over the summer, and join me in what’s sure to be an interesting experience to say the least.

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The fire has died out now, it’s 2 am, and I’ve already written more than I wanted to. I think about my values, about my family (both here and back in Vancouver), about what lies ahead… after unending amounts of preparation, reflection, and thought, I feel even less sure about it than I did back in October when I wrote that application. Questions about poverty, society, politics, economics, and their interconnectedness plague my brain; so much to learn, so many questions to which answers don’t exist. In me, though, the fire is building pressure; the hot embers are about to have a new log thrown on them.

This is just the beginning. Feels like the end, and in a way it is; the truth is I’m at a crossroads. Despite all the uncertainty, I think it’s time to check out how all this plays out on the ground. It’s time to put ideas into action. A last stretch of exams and assignments lie before me, then, come April 29th, it’ll truly be the beginning of an opportunity – and an experience – of a lifetime. 5 weeks from now, I’ll be boarding a plane… to Ghana.