"The western preoccupation with time as an exact, linear unit of measurement with a future dimension is generally foreign to traditional African cultures. This seems to cause no end of anxiety for westerners. In Africa the importance of an event or activity is that it happens, not the timing or the quality. In fact, I think that the essential different between western and African cultures is that Africans are concerned with the form of life and westerners dwell on the content."
~David Mozer, Bicycling in Africa: The Places in Between
Kata-kata, my feet pound softly on the grassy earth - one after the other. The cool morning air rushes into my lungs replenishing heavy breaths. Sunlight fights its way through the billowing trees only to then be dispersed by the red dust of the dry season. I pass by the Area 3 market guys on my way back to the World Camp house. Slowly unpacking fruit and veggie stands, they casually sway to the gentle beat of reggae, nodding good morning at one another as the deep orange African sun appears from the end of the dusty road. I relish this time of day. These last moments of calmness before the world around me fully awakens.
The stillness of the Lilongwe Golf Course during my 5am run is a stark contrast to a few hours later when small hands will grasp mine tightly in anticipation of clapping our arms above our heads and shouting “Bananas of the wooooooorld, UNITE!” as 300 students, staff, and volunteers dance together ridiculously in the middle of the African savannah.
Yet somehow these paradoxical moments evoke the same feeling. A feeling transcending time and space. A feeling that whatever is happening is enough, is all that matters. A feeling that reminds me why I am here.
Indeed, even on my worst days in Africa or India, I woke up feeling grateful that this work –- a mix of happiness, stress, challenge, struggle, disappointment, frustration, hope -- happened.
Because real change does not *BAM* strike or come out of an AH HA! moment. That may be the moment we look back on and declare the point of impact. But the change, in fact, is the amalgamation of a million tiny moments, everything leading up to that manifestation. It is slow, brutal, full of failures, and so inconspicuous at times that we don’t even know it’s happening until that moment of ‘impact.’
But that meaningful moment is a mere reflection of the importance of everything that has happened and will happen. I’ve seen it in myself. In the boy who gleans a new perspective in empowerment session, however fleeting it may be. In the girl who dares for a second to assert herself before shrinking back into a predefined role in life. In the smile behind unspoken understanding between field assistants and volunteers.
And that is what kept bringing me back to Malawi and India. To volunteer, coordinate, and now serve on World Camp’s Board of Directors. Those small, insignificant, transient moments that somehow, together, make a world of difference in who we are, how we relate to one another, and our impact on this planet.
Malawi and World Camp have changed a lot over the years. Not all of it has been good, not all of it has gone as planned, not all of the good things that have happened stuck. And it certainly hasn’t been easy.
But today HIV transmission rates are lower, reproductive health has been mainstreamed into the Ministry of Education’s curriculum, conservation efforts are gaining ground, and while female secondary school rate may still be dismal, at least people are talking about ways to keep girls in school.
World Camp joined forces to get shizzaz done in three countries; expanded from working with kids to conducting outreach with teachers, communities and local NGO staff; started the Camp Hope project working directly with HIV+ kids. Nearly 15 years later, World Camp is still prominent figure in Malawi.
Change has happened.
And over the years, weaseled its way to alter the path of my own life and career as well. Several years with World Camp in India and Malawi -- two vastly different environments and cultures -- spurred a deep interest in the connection between environmental and human health.
This carried me back to Washington DC and down to Costa Rica and Colombia, where I pursued a dual masters at the University for Peace and American University's School for International Service. I studied water quality, watershed protection, stormwater, low impact development, and climate variability, change, and adaptation. I had found my niche in water resource management and climate policy. Currently I'm finishing a multi-agency project on water utilities and extreme events (e.g. when treatment plants flood during a hurricane, how do you get potable water back online as quickly as possible?).
As World Camp transitions into a new era of programming and leadership, I'm excited to once again be a part of this community. Change is happening. We're reassessing to figure out how we can best meet needs in Malawi that are different than when we first began, how to expand Malawian ownership, how to promote sustainability. We’ll have questions and struggles along the way, but the importance is that change happens.
I look forward to working with current and former board members, staff, donors, volunteers, and World Camp supporters. Be sure to check in frequently to hear more about our on-going initiatives and upcoming opportunities. And please, share any feedback or ideas you may have! After all, you're already part of the change that has happened and is happening now.
Katy Lackey
Joined the WC Board: Fall 2013
Education: Dual MA International Affairs and Natural Resources/Sustainable Development
Age: 29
Originally from: Frisco, Colorado
Current Location: Washington, D.C.
Current Position: Research Consultant, Water Environment Research Foundation
WC Experience: Malawi and India Program Coordinator 2008-2011
First Volunteered: Malawi Summer 2005
Most Excited About: increasing Malawian ownership, connecting alumni, Camp Hope
Favorite Malawian Dish: does John’s enchiladas or curry count?
Favorite WC moment:
- When strangers go crazy together during the banana song.
- Seeing a room of 60 Malawian teenagers immediately respond “no!” and applaud when a volunteer shared that he was not married because he is gay and asked if they thought different of him knowing that.
- Full moon futbol game on homestay at Mt. Nkoma.
- A female student in India listening to her entire empowerment group state they wanted to be doctors, lawyers, truck drivers, and then saying “I want to be a stay at home mom. It makes me happy and I provide a good life for kids.” That’s empowerment. Having the opportunities, but making the choice.
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