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Face to face with climate change effects at Mutomo- kitui-kenya
Located 2 degrees 04’s , 380 11 ' E with a total area of 12, 965 km2., lies a district called Mutomo, recently created out of the larger Kitui District .With a population of approximately 190,505 ( 2008 projection)with six divisions namely Mutomo, Kutha, Mutha,Athi ,Kanziko and Ikanga. Metamorphosed by rocks with sandy layers and granite sheets , the place has been classified as one of the most drought hit arears with a rainfall of 300 – 800 mm with extreme temperatures.
Women with malnourished children strapped on their bucks, donkeys with heavy loads of water, weakly adults roaming the villages in search of water, are just some of the scenes eminent here.Nothing seems to please anyone here.The scotching sun is just too hot and people are working on empty stomachs.The only animal thats seems to be fine here is the goat, people seem to be fighting a loosing battle, even the donkey that is believed to be drought resistant falls due to hunger and thirst.
Life here seems impossible for me, but again and again i,m reminded that iam on a mission to be one of the facilitators to teach conservation film making to volunteers from an organization called ALIN. Mutomo Mission hospital is our host and this is where ALIN have a coomuninty Knowledge Center where people access information and get connected to the entire world through internet.The only place that has internet connection within the area. We are a group of around six facilitators and 15 trainees who are eager to learn how to make conservation films for communities.Here we have four major topics to handle on climate change.Climate change and food security, climate change and water, climate change and livestock and finally climate change and agriculture.Yes, its true that people here are feeling the effects of climate change , and we sort to find out the adaptation mechanisms that people have put in place to survive.
One hot morning as we walked through out tents , the nurse in charge informs us about the cholera outbreak .Ohhh , my..God, face to face with the deadly water borne disease classified among climate sensitive diseases.Here we are and cholera around us, patients coming in masses totally dehydrated and some loosing the battle. My team plans for an interview at one of the paediatric wards and cholera wards.Everyone feels scared , we all walk in and wash our hands in one of the disinfectants at the entrance.Images of severe malnutrition, helpless people on water drips and the sad mood around, are what we encounter in the hospital. We take afew photograohs after one of the nurses talks to the patiences in >Kamba< the local language, to seek permission from the patients , to allow us take some footage.A sudden moment of silence engulfs the entire filming crew, every one deep in thought about what they are seeing .A colligue who works for one of the media stations tells me..mary ..this is serious …what can we do as journalists to help the situation ?
Our filming mission at the hospital is accomplished and ofcourse we still have many places to visit, come back edit and come out with the final product within two weeks.As days go by, I discover that the mutomo hospital runs on a generator which is switched off after 9 pm in the evening.Renewable energy issue runs through my mind, too much sun going to waste yet the hospital needs energy to run their survices.What if there is an emergency surgery after 9.00 pm ?…..these are some of the questions that run though my mind …….
mary
Women with malnourished children strapped on their bucks, donkeys with heavy loads of water, weakly adults roaming the villages in search of water, are just some of the scenes eminent here.Nothing seems to please anyone here.The scotching sun is just too hot and people are working on empty stomachs.The only animal thats seems to be fine here is the goat, people seem to be fighting a loosing battle, even the donkey that is believed to be drought resistant falls due to hunger and thirst.
Life here seems impossible for me, but again and again i,m reminded that iam on a mission to be one of the facilitators to teach conservation film making to volunteers from an organization called ALIN. Mutomo Mission hospital is our host and this is where ALIN have a coomuninty Knowledge Center where people access information and get connected to the entire world through internet.The only place that has internet connection within the area. We are a group of around six facilitators and 15 trainees who are eager to learn how to make conservation films for communities.Here we have four major topics to handle on climate change.Climate change and food security, climate change and water, climate change and livestock and finally climate change and agriculture.Yes, its true that people here are feeling the effects of climate change , and we sort to find out the adaptation mechanisms that people have put in place to survive.
One hot morning as we walked through out tents , the nurse in charge informs us about the cholera outbreak .Ohhh , my..God, face to face with the deadly water borne disease classified among climate sensitive diseases.Here we are and cholera around us, patients coming in masses totally dehydrated and some loosing the battle. My team plans for an interview at one of the paediatric wards and cholera wards.Everyone feels scared , we all walk in and wash our hands in one of the disinfectants at the entrance.Images of severe malnutrition, helpless people on water drips and the sad mood around, are what we encounter in the hospital. We take afew photograohs after one of the nurses talks to the patiences in >Kamba< the local language, to seek permission from the patients , to allow us take some footage.A sudden moment of silence engulfs the entire filming crew, every one deep in thought about what they are seeing .A colligue who works for one of the media stations tells me..mary ..this is serious …what can we do as journalists to help the situation ?
Our filming mission at the hospital is accomplished and ofcourse we still have many places to visit, come back edit and come out with the final product within two weeks.As days go by, I discover that the mutomo hospital runs on a generator which is switched off after 9 pm in the evening.Renewable energy issue runs through my mind, too much sun going to waste yet the hospital needs energy to run their survices.What if there is an emergency surgery after 9.00 pm ?…..these are some of the questions that run though my mind …….
mary
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Comment by Timothy Barker on November 5, 2009 at 3:48pm
- Thank you Mary for this moving account of a community at the sharp end of climate change. Here in the UK today our ministers have been meeting to discuss the effects of climate change and presumably what we in the 'developed' countries can do to help mitigate the already evident effects of our past (and current) misdemeanours. Its true that we have only fairly recently begun to accept our responsibilities towards our brothers and sisters around the world so progress seems so painfully slow. I believe a deal has been reached as to how much 'developed' countries will pay to 'developing' countries to help ease our conscience but I am afraid that it will be less than required. However, let us wait to see what emerges out of COP15 in Copenhagen soon. The worlds eyes and ears will be on this historic meeting. We can only hope that a few enlightened souls will prevail and that the unerring need to realise our common humanity will win the battle for hearts and minds in the climate change war. Certainly it is only by having people like yourself who are able to communicate the effects of climate change that people's perceptions will be affected. This is a big part of DIYNGO's mission. Thank you for the post and thanks to the people of Mutomo for sharing their lives with us.
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