CORPSAFRICA
  • Home
  • About
    • About us >
      • The Model
      • Human-Centered Design
      • Impact
      • Development Partners
      • Junior CorpsAfrica
    • Team >
      • Staff
      • Board of Directors
      • Advisory Council
    • Work With Us
    • Press
    • Videos
    • Testimonials
    • Contact us
  • Countries
    • Morocco
    • Senegal
    • Malawi
    • Rwanda
    • Ghana
    • Kenya
  • Volunteers
    • Meet the Volunteers >
      • Morocco Volunteers >
        • Group 1 Morocco
        • Group 2 Morocco
        • Group 3 Morocco
        • Group 4 Morocco
        • Group 5 Morocco
        • Group 6 Morocco
      • Malawi Volunteers >
        • Group 1 Malawi
        • Group 2 Malawi
        • Group 3 Malawi
        • Group 4 Malawi
        • Group 5 Malawi
        • Group 6 Malawi
      • Senegal Volunteers >
        • Group 1 Senegal
        • Group 2 Senegal
        • Group 3 Senegal
        • Group 4 Senegal
        • Group 5 Senegal
        • Group 6 Senegal
      • Rwanda Volunteers >
        • Group 1 Rwanda
        • Group 2 Rwanda
        • Group 3 Rwanda
    • Podcast - "My CorpsAfrica Story"
    • Featured Projects >
      • Dzaleka Basketball Court
      • Kitchen Gardens
      • Coronavirus Response
    • Featured Volunteers
    • Alumni Association
    • Apply
  • Events
    • Events >
      • PROJECTing Resilience
    • All Country Conference
  • Blog
  • Donate
    • Donate to CorpsAfrica
    • Pay It Forward Campaign
    • Holbrooke Campaign
    • Corporate Council for CorpsAfrica
    • Planned Giving
    • Amazon Smile

A New Dawn

1/16/2018

0 Comments

 
Written by CorpsAfrica/Malawi Volunteer James Matipwiri
 
“Doing your best is the only option even if it results in failure,” said Christopher Walken in the movie Eddie the Eagle. This is one of my favorite quotes because it shows the important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle. How much do we struggle to attain triumph? This is a question I ask myself frequently, and I hope to find out in the coming year. I am James Matipwiri, born and raised in Dwangwa, Nkhotakota. I am serving as a CorpsAfrica/Malawi Volunteer in Dedza East. This blog space will be used to update you on my experience serving over the next ten months.

When I heard about CorpAfrica my ignition system sparkled … vroom! And that is when I knew my journey started. During PST at the Malawi College of Forestry and Wildlife in Dedza District I spent four weeks training, interacting and absorbing the best tools that will help me serve well in my community. Some of these tools are Human-Centered Design (HCD), Asset Based-Approach to Community Development (ABCD), and Permaculture. Allow me to say that it was a life changing experience for someone like me, with a background in Science, used to solving problems from experiments to laboratory prototypes. Now my community is my laboratory. I don’t have the answers to the problems and challenges I will learn here, but my job is to make sugar dissolve in hot water so that we can all drink tea come breakfast.
​
I am now living in my new community and have stayed here for approximately three weeks. I had a warm welcome by my host family and the chief and have already held a few meetings with key people and groups in the community; like Traditional Authority Kmoto, police officers, the head teacher, and members of the Area Development Committee.
 
During my time here I have also started to work with The Hunger Project Malawi Epicenter. Working with them has helped me to integrate well because I have taken part in training locals in leadership, self-reliance, project management and monitoring and evaluation. Frankly speaking, this institution has made it easier for me to get rid of my fears and negative expectations. There is already mindset change taking place here when it comes to participation in local development activities.
Picture
Leading a Monitoring and Evaluation session for the local people with The Hunger Project.
Picture
Me at my house in my new community.
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    Support
    Welcome
    ​to the CorpsAfrica Volunteer Blog! 
    Get an inside look at the experiences of CorpsAfrica Volunteers in the field.

    Archives

    December 2022
    November 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    December 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    August 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016

    RSS Feed

Picture