We will be serving with Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) in the state of Paraíba, in northeastern Brazil from July 2007 until June 2010. This semi-arid region of Brazil is very poor relative to the rest of the country, and is plagued by drought. In rural areas, people spend considerable time carrying water long distances on their heads and the sources are usually dirty. During severe droughts these sources dry up -- crops fail, animals and people die, and many are forced to migrate to cities to look for work and food. The effects of global warming make this region even more vulnerable.
Despite the low rainfall in the region (about 19 inches per year), the root problem of the drought is water storage. There is insufficient infrastructure to capture the rain that does fall and over 90% of it is lost. A popular saying here asserts “in the Northeast, water isn’t lacking – justice is lacking”. The “politics of drought” are complicated by the fact that political candidates commonly offer favors in exchange for votes. Unfortunately, this means that it is more convenient for politicians to offer short term fixes during times of crisis than to invest in long-term solutions.
MCC has been working for a number of years to increase water security in this region, and to promote sustainable approaches to living within the semi-arid context. John, an electrical engineer by training, is working in MCC’s cistern project – constructing family and community cisterns in rural areas that collect rainwater for drinking and cooking. This project is in partnership with a larger network of organizations known as “The Million Cistern Project”. Julie, a family nurse practitioner, is working on developing several public health projects in the area including capacity-building workshops for public health workers, presentations to community groups about climate change, and a community gardening project at the local high school. Although our daughters, Kristin and Kyra, do not have official MCC projects to complete, they have been active in raising awareness about Care of Creation!
Kristin picks up empty plastic water cups during a Peace Walk near Recife.
Kyra shows two bags of litter that she picked up on the grounds of the public high school across the street from our house in Monteiro!