•are the opening lines of ‘Herdsmen of the Sun’, an exceptional ethnographic documentary by Werner Herzog. The NYTimes calls it•
Their travel routes stretch for thousands of miles, from southern Niger, through northern Nigeria, northeastern Cameroon, and the western region of the Central African Republic…
It•'s July 2012, and YL volunteers and readers chip in to facilitate an encounter between Nassamou, chief of the Puelh Wodaabe and YL Magazine•'s Eric Schneider. One week later, they have met. This account is the prequel to adding a new, unprecedented chapter to a 5,000 year long story.
relates an elder who recently passed on (5min40) and he goes on telling about the experience of the cataclysmic drought, unprecedented in their thousands of years of history, that struck their world towards the end of the past century, how it forced them off their traditional paths, only having to return when no hope was found elsewhere. Their rich herds of cows died, to be followed by countless tribesmen and women. "We were perishing".
This was a few years before Werner Herzog visited them and captured their world on celluloid. Their story. Their men. Their women. Their animals. Their dance. The Gerewol celebration, Beautiful people in the pounding heat, the desert stretching endless, the water gone. But their inner strength never breaking, enduring, staying in the place they call home. And their nation has survived.
And the very men, women and children you see in this film are the neighbours of the people that WE are meeting. Isn't this amazing? What a fateful coincidence. You Cannot Imagine their world! Watch the film here.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6496997289561369407
After years of witnessing that the change of climate has made their traditional livelihood impossible, they have taken the decision to strike a balance. That part of their tribe settled, to give their young generation the opportunity to go to school, and broaden their opportunities of choice for the future. The other half, the elderly and very young – still travel the Sahara. This was in 2001. There is a village now, of tent houses well crafted from wood and tapestry. Some clay houses. Around three hundred and fifty families live in Foudouk. That’s around five hundred to one thousand people, depending on their movement. Grounding “mil”, a cereal and basic food source of the Wodaabe More droughts. In twelve years, not much has changed. Still, no water. The well, seventy metres deep, has run dry. The camels are gone. Again, the cows have died. The three months of rainy season have not picked up enough to get livestock through nine months of 40+ degree heat. Back in the days, it was not uncommon for a herdsman to own a hundred cows. Today, they are lucky to have two. Many have none. But two chicken, giving nine and twelve eggs per month.
“Has it been a hard decision?” “No. We decided it has to be done.” “Do you miss travelling? What do you do all day long?”
“The children go to school. The women do crafts.” “And the men?” “The men - don’t really do much."
“Do you feel good in the village? Are you at peace?” “Yes, we feel good. We decided to do it.”
Women pounding "mil", a cereal, the Wodaabe's basic food source.
And still, some things have changed. In Foudouk, ninety-one students visit the elementary school. First, one teacher joined the village to live there. Today, there are four. They feel good, the people are very hospitable. Today, thirty-four youth visit the college in Agades. When I hear of them, and writing these lines, I see what hope and potential they represent for the future.
Thirty-four teenagers, who go to a residential college. Their residence? UNICEF tents, 500 meters from school. Agades is one hundred and seventeen kilometers away- and the village has no car. From time to time, a guarded government convoy comes to visit. They come to check on options for drilling a new well, and a promising spot has been made out. It would be one hundred metres deep, and should hit on sufficient water to support the village and start some agriculture. Agriculture, here, is modest. It means growing grass, so the goats have something to bite.
Learning techniques for irritation to grow meadows of grass and planting food crops is a new goal. It will get the men occupied and provide for the village. It’s a challenge, too. “We have never done this.” For nomads, this is not much different from your next-door farmer going to settle in the Sahara and getting started. With hatchets. With no clue. And it’s hot. That’s why the Wodaabe have a much better start. So, once there is water, it should work. Because there’s you. Us folks from abroad who care about travelling herdsmen. This is something new, in the twenty-first century. Back in the Nineties, one or two decades after the drought literally brought traditional history to an end, the region was much visited by tourists. There was trade. There were ethnographers, photographers, there was Werner Herzog. There was peace. There was a Frenchman, who made friends and witnessed how Nassamou’s wife entered difficulty in delivering her fourth childdifficulty that required medical assistance, a hospital. Put yourself in her position. The next hospital is in Agades, one hundred seventeen kilometers away. Now put yourself in Nassamou’s position. And there was no car. By the time he got to Agades, to get a car, and back, and back to Agades again… it’s dawning on you … his wife and her child had died.
Some folks have really come up with miracles. One is the automobile, some really amazing workhorse. The Frenchman, struck by the experience, set out to get the region an ambulance car. In a matter of months, together with Christine, they founded Yaadal, - “Let’s work together” as a charity in France. Their first project was the car. Think ‘desert and basics’, - anything would do. So here’s the ambulance! At a cost of 3,422 Euros. If you think of a high school of one thousand students, that’s the cost of a big ice cream or a burger and fries per student. I’d forgo that to invest in an ambulance. Next, think dirt road. Our favourite new workhorse friend, the little car, has trouble there. It’s not his best territory, you see? But they’re managing.
Also, Yaadal has financed two water tanks, pulled by donkeys, to carry large amounts of water from the next well, which is two and a half kilometres away, to Foudouk. This water covers their needs, but is not enough to start agriculture. Their latest contribution is fuel-powered mills for grounding the “mil”, a kind of cereal and their basic food source. The mills even had priority over water, so their women are relieved from spending a great part of the day grounding the “mil”. The bonding bridge between our two worlds may be tiny, but it is solid. It is the typical kind of citizens-make-friends-witha-tribe model. A handful of people, with much potential for more. It’s open for good people to join in. And that’s where we come in, a thriving global network of youth leaders.
So, here we are in Christine’s Paris apartment, sharing “who we are”. You’ve heard their part. When I was to say what I actually do, and why I think I have some helpful ideas to share, it took me a while to decide where to begin. I went all the way back to 1995, to the initiation to Australia and falling in love with the planet. I shared my 1996/7 journey with my first native American teacher and the growing appreciation of traditional cultures, to building bridges between industrial city youth and tribal environments for dialogue, visits and cooperation, to expo2000 knowledge of sustainability solutions of all sorts, to today’s thriving onlinebased cooperation networks, YL’s endless list of content partners and to the option for long-term school partnerships, to our evolving alliance programs and our coming special edition on Africa Rising. I shared the story of 14 year old William Kamkwambe building a windmill from trash to bring electricity to his village. Of his TED Talks, of a TED director who started an initiative that allows citizens to donate for the construction of windmills, some as cheap as three hundred dollars. That’s not even half a ball of ice cream per student at my favourite example, “a 1,000 people high school”. I mentioned “The Man who stopped the Desert” by digging drip irrigation holes with a stick. And the Japanese artist who taught Kenyan villagers to grow a forest in the Savannah by putting seeds into a ball of clay, - so the seedling was nourished with enough water to grow strong enough to withstand the heat. For a desert plant, the water in a ball of mud can be plenty. Just like for these people of the desert. They need just a tiny little bit to thrive.
A tine little bit.
I mentioned their love and care for their youth before. The students wish for electric light in their tent camp. Can you imagine? It’s not available. They wish for some, so they can study around the clock. Night falls at 6pm. Starlight or firelight aren’t exactly helpful for studying. Also, they wish for a place for themselves. A home, like a house. And they have already found an option. There exist large 4 room houses with two big rooms, one for the boys, one for the girls, another one for studies, plus kitchen and bathrooms. Buying such a house is 13,000 Euros. That’s too much for me, but with four partner schools, that’s only three balls of ice-cream per student. I know a medium sized German high school who raise 25,000 € in a single day, every year. So we can improve this situation. Tent camp... in the city.
Our coming Superstars - the BOYZ.
And the Superstar GRRRLZ. Agree, it would be good to enhance the study situation a little. What do you think? And those 13, 000 â‚Ź ... it can be done.
“What do you wish?” “There shall be cattle.” This is neat. They are the centre of all. Like the Buffalo for the Native American plains tribes. “Okay, what do we need for cows?" “First of all, we need a well. This well will help grow grass. This grass will feed the cows.” Without a well, the cows would be gone after the next hot season. This well will help grow food, too.
There’s a government program for Niger, which should provide for their well. That’s why the government people visited, and if I have well understood, the materials are even available, somewhere nearby. But when it will happen is unclear. Considering the way government works in many places, it may never happen. And the responsible people won’t tell you, because they don’t want to lose face, which is ok. So, we should see if we can come with a proposal saying “Look, we got some funds, and some folks to drill the well. Just join us, and we’ll get it done.” If we got the numbers right, the costs can be less than 5,000 Euros. That’s awesome, considering the impact on
the village development. In the meantime, we can also introduce solar stuff and other devices. There’s plenty of people to involve and things to do over the period of building a well. I told them about my favourite model of connecting to schools, worldwide. Not only are they a resource of one-time donations, but they are also long-time partners. They are partners for more than one well. If we can get the Wodaabe College students involved, we can offer them a most powerful learning experience of multimedia dialogue with their global peers, with win-wins on both sides!
Micro development knowledge on either side, campaigning, English, French and Wolof language, recipes, arts and crafts, the dance festival, especially the connection of Stone Age and Star Trek, - I mean, any school that’s talking intercultural or sustainability education and not joining is really losing out big! Imagine a couple of high school teenagers taking their summer vacation in Foudouk and documenting the trip back at home? You’ll get half a page in any local newspaper of a city of 300,000! That’s 300,000 balls of ice-cream.
Wanna go?
Okay, I learned that we cannot send school students. Not even you. Because this is the real thing. And in the past three years, there’s some errant folks caught in lunatic Al Qaeda fantasies, terrorising the region, abducting and killing city people. That’s why the convoy or cars visiting Foudouk for exploring the well construction is armed. Anyway, we cannot go for the time being. But they can move. And times change. So here they are - in Paris! No electricity in their village, speaking four languages, plus French, but illiterate, beaming through Paris by metro, following lines on the map, which they cannot read, pressing the green button on the cell phone so voices start squeaking, learning which archaic symbol (number) to press when taking the lift in the code-protected apartment building where all corridors and doors look alike … to get back to Christine. They’re even taking hikes through France to sell their amazing jewellery and crafts on markets. Obviously much of this is new to them, more bizarre than me waking up in China or Saudi Arabia, everybody talking in a “secret language”. They haven’t even seen Europe on TV before. So, I guess it’s more like Star Trek. I have no idea how they perceive this “trip”, - the funny thing is that to me they appear as if they had grown up here. And we’re having a lot of fun together.
Nassamou, chief of the village of Foudouk.
There is so much in this project. It touches on everything around making a sustainable living in the desert. And this teaches us an incredible amount about what matters for a Good Life. It focuses on the essential and strips away all the superfluous, the waste, distractions, short: the unsustainable. They have their vision. They have trust in cooperation. They know the world. They have a base. They are in good spirits. Their village is a strong community. They want cows, again. They can have a well in their village. They are ready to learn irrigation techniques, like their neighbours use, to learn to grow food. They have started digging irrigation lines for growing grass. They have brilliant youth in a city of 100,000, where internet access is possible. They want to create an own home base in the city for their youth, so they can live and learn properly, with kitchen, bathrooms, learning area, separate dorm for girls and boys. They have an adult on site for their protection and support. The youth know what they want, and they start learning how to handle computers and the internet. In their own house, the computers will be safe from dust and heat, - it’s the desert, my desktop is already slowing down on this warm Paris summer day, already, - and they can have fast cable internet. The situation on-site is utterly serious, yet is also simple. We have YL Magazine, Monthly Actions, a global community of enthusiastic youth and young-at-heart adults, Africa Rising and other works attracting a global public. That’s plenty!
It's fantastic for school activities on Intercultural Learning. Development. Africa. Indigenous People. Sustainability. Youth Empowerment. AdoptA-Village. ICT for Development. Fair Trade. Micro-Solutions… We even have the Werner Herzog documentary as the most splendid cultural medium imaginable for the intercultural part of the “lesson plan”. I mean, this is not a 2 pager with 3 images, this is a fat one hour film by one of the best directors on the planet, whom French cinema godfather Francois Truffaut calls French cinema godfather Francois Truffaut calls "the most important film director alive". Ha! Can you tell me ANY partner project that has such a rich catalogue of learning topics and opportunities? Tell me, I’d like to feature them in YL Magazine! On top, it’s all in the beginning! Everyone joining in can really see the transition and big changes. This is so exciting! And I know some day we, you, me, anyone will be able to go there, again. And join them on a camel train. This adds Eco-Cultural Travel and Volunteering to the list. What an educational project! It’s guaranteed that students’ reports make waves in local newspapers. I am convinced we can do it. What do you think?
At this point, I wish to thank Helmut (Toronto), Ruhallah (Toronto), Payal (Pune), Jasmin (New York), Jasbir (Pune) and myself (Berlin) to have made this encounter possible by donating to the travel costs. Also to my French Berlin neighbour Gilles, who is managing the rental of my apartment, to my auntie Odile, who has given me the golden key to her apartment so I have a place to stay whenever life takes me to Paris, to Alexandra who has guided me to Paris in the first place, to my son Leo and my cats Goldi and Pando who grant me the freedom to travel. Furthermore to Christine, Nassamou and his friends for trusting me from the start. And – the good guiding spirits. A little anecdote on the flow of things.
“Despised by all neighbouring people, who call them Bororos, something like ‘herdsman in tatters’, they call themselves Wodaabe, ‘those under the taboo of purity’. They consider themselves the most beautiful people on this Earth.” ~ Herdsmen of the Sun We should go see these Beautiful People.
On my trip to Christine’s apartment I took a train in the wrong direction, - I may not be illiterate but confused – and when I hopped back in at “Stalingrad”, in the right direction, right there, around me, in my metro wagon, were three guys that I identified as Tuareg. I opened a conversation, finding out they were not Tuareg. When they said they were looking for development help, I exchanged cards and emails. And when I found out which district they stayed, I said “Man, that’s where my chief lives, too! Maybe we can meet and do something together. My friend Christine has an NGO.” “But it’s us! You are Eric?!” LOL!!!
… to be continued.
Five thousand years. A new chapter. You can have a part in it. Get your Ticket here. www.youth-leader.org/alliances.html
I meet with the group, once again. This time, also with Doula Mokao, the president of the Association of Herders, another formidable character.
The Guerewol Festival takes place around the final week of September.
I learn that in these times, the price for "mil" is double the normal price.
After this, the college students will once again leave for Agades. From October until June, for 9 months.
I also learn that they predict the region will soon be peaceful again.
For this time, they wish them to have a SAFE PLACE. They wish to acquire a house. Once, there is a house, it can be equipped with stable internet.
Yesterday, one of our friends' cows died. he only had three left, anyway. Also, Assamou lost one of his three remaining cows has died. An outgrown cow is worth 350 Euros. They are worried. How are their families coping. In a few days they will be leaving for Switzerland. Will their journey to Europe be successful? They are really glad about the perspective for international cooperation. They understand the win-win for both their youth and schools worldwide. They will do everything they can to realise this program.
They will return to Foudouk in mid-September.
I ask them about skype. They respond that this was rather for their youth, they themselves were too old to learn the internet things. Well... with three clicks, I give them a quick skype demonstration. There we are "live" via video, with our friend Andrea of Noticias Positivas, in Argentina. Wow. Imagine the cheers. They know they can handle this. And it's going to be really helpful.
The plan is set. For October, we wish to work towards 13,000 Euros. Then, soon, you can connect "live" via video with the Wodaabe youth to share, learn and bring water, energy and cows to Foudouk.
The Time is Now. We wish to see them succeed! We are making this Alliance a YL magazine priority throug August, September and October 2012. We are going to activate our YL Clans & Tribes program with school youth, worldwide, with this Alliance. Are you joining us for this endeavour? We need your help, and we wish to make it an exciting experience for everyone!
Upcoming. You have what you need: the film, the article, wikipedia. Do you need tips for fundraising? You can have some. We can also meet to discuss action. Subscribe to our Newsletter to follow updates.
Do you feel the call to support the development or our YL Alliance? Are you intrigued to open this opportunity to your friends, to school students? Everyone can help! As a youth, as a citizen, as business colleagues, as a journalist, as a foundation... You can support through donations, funding, sponsoring, fundraising or networking – for example into schools, or to media for mobilising support and finance for the college youth camp, a village well and other things of value to 21st Century Herdsmen, or even suggest other alliances, drop a line to alliances@youth-leader.org, or to me, to eric@youth-leader.org. You can also find out more about our Youth & Heroes / Youth Go Tribal YL Alliance program at www.youth-leader.org/alliances.html
Photography COLOUR PHOTOS: www.yaadal.fr BLACK & WHITE PHOTOGRAPHY: Ronald Vriesema. Copyright Permission PENDING. Incredible Flickr Photostream at http://www.flickr.com/photos/57597477@N03/6826 344590/in/photostream/
Star Trek Stuff for Desert People Biochar. Terra Preta The miracle mix from charcoal, food waste and soil that can raise productivity of deleted soils by up to 1,000%. It has to be tested and attuned to local grounds, but definitely something to explore. www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biochar The Man Who Stopped The Desert www.treehugger.com/lawn-garden/the-man-who-stopped-thedesert-how-one-man-saved-the-soil-video.html
Mysterious Links Yaadal: http://yaadal.fr/
Clayball Afforestation www.pnyv.org/index.php?id=34&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D= 912&tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=553&cHash=a06bf3f7c3
Herdsmen of the Sun: On YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVaoTKZV9Ns http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wodaabe_%E2%80%9 3_Herdsmen_of_the_Sun
Plastic Tarp Covers to Catch Soil Humidity in Dry Regions
Werner Herzog: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Werner_Herzog http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Werner_Herzog
Solar LED Lamps require very little energy to provide very bright light. In greenhouses, they reduce energy consumption by 98%! They only cost 3% of many solar lamps on the market!
Solar Lamps - bring light to places without electricity - provide stable lighting for reading. Dancing fire doesn’t help.
The Wodaabe: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wodaabe The Fula: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fula_people The Gerewol Festival: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerewol
"Open Source Solar Technology” Moritz von Buttlar, Germany. Take a playing card sized solar panel, add an empty soda, an LED light, some wire, there’s your solar lamp. They cost 2.50 Euros and can be assembled by children. Here’s an image of the guy doing it in Berlin. The trick is that he buys the needed parts in bulk, and you can order them cheap. It takes 5 minutes to assemble. It only takes a 5 dollar thingy to melt
and connect the contacts. Every mechanic has that. So, for little money, the college kids can have a fun afternoon and begift their entire UNICEF camp with round the clock lighting. Plus their village. See www.opensource-solar.org Wood Stove to USB Electricity Sounds crazy but says it all. http://www.blueeconomy.eu/m/news/view/USB-Powerfrom-Fire-Wood Solar Cookers Make a Google Image Search. They come at all prices. Solar Water Cookers. 50$. www.solarexergy.com Solar Modules. Like Grameen Shakti in Bangladesh www.global1.youth-leader.org/2011/10/grameenshaktisolar-muhammad-yunus-shares-grameensuccess-stories/ The Solar devices reduce the need for wood, which can become a scarce resource for a thousand person village. They also reduce the time needed for collecting wood, for cooking… it’s not about changing their ways, but some modern stuff can be handy. If the solar cookers can be connected to the USB electricity device, they could have plenty of power in the village. Be it for tools used for crafts, for computers … also in their school building.
Computers I met an amazing guy, Dirk Fließner, who works with a social business oriented “used computers” company. He has been working in village development from water to housing to computers with Uzbekistan and Pakistan. He must have done all sorts of amazing things, because there are films about him on the internet. He knows he looks like an everyday sales guy, and that’s what I thought, but he is a jack of all trades with a planet-size heart, who does magic. I’ll talk to him.