GENSEN

I have been terrible about updating my blog. I can attribute this to my recent change in jobs. I am currently working for GENSEN, an umbrella organization for a bunch of NGO projects that mainly work within ecovillages in Senegal. An ecovillage is a village that pledged to be sustainable, there are various stipulations that must be adhered to in order to be accredited. The villages use alternative energy, grow their food, etc. GENSEN has established mirco-credit projects and literacy programs in these villages. For more about GENSEN, visit: http://www.gensenegal.org/.

My particular project is the Centre Culturel Vivre et Apprendre. I am working with a team of people to create a cultural center that is focused on Senegalese cultural and fosters exchange between foreigners and Senegalese. We offer dance classes, drum classes, Wolof classes, Senegalese cooking classes (with my old host family, the Sambas), a week-end immersion, as well as English, French, and Spanish classes. I am in charge of event coordinating, such as the grand opening on February 28 and a film series. I also do promotion and general coordinating within the center.

A cool project that is starting with the Cultural Center is an ecotourism project where tourists can visit an ecovillage and actually live and participate in village life. The tourists live in the same kinds of structures as the villages, help out in the gardens, and can even use the solar ovens. One of the main destinations is, Dinde Felou, in the Southeast of Senegal next to a chimpanzee reserve, so tourists can visit the park and learn about the various initiatives in the park.