Underway

Community Description
Vilkovo is a small town at the very southern tip of the Odessa Oblast near the tributary of the Danube River and the Black Sea. It has a population of about 9,000 spread out in the delta of the Danube River at its tributary with the Black Sea.

Vilkovo's economy is based on the shipping industry. Many men from the town work on cargo ships and on fishing. Vilkovo has a small business district in its downtown area that is host to several small shops and an open air market.

The First School of Vilkovo is located right in the middle of the business district. The school is home to about 300 students, ages 7-17, and 25 teachers.

The students and staff currently use a pit toilet adjacent to the playground. The toilet also serves patrons of the business district. This creates more traffic than the facility was built to accommodate, is a public health hazard, and is likely a source of sickness that puts many students out of school every winter.

Project Description
This project is the addition of a toilet facility and handwashing station to a planned extension of the First School of Vilkovo.

An addition has been planned for the school, to be built in the summer of 2012. The addition will be funded by the local school administration. The project is the addition of a plumbed toilet facility to the school’s new extension.

This toilet facility will consist of separate male and female bathrooms. There will be 4 toilets and 2 sinks in each. Water will come from the city water line and sewage waste will go to an underground septic tank, maintained by a local septic pumping company.

The facility will be open to the public at certain hours on a pay per use basis. This will supply the school with additional funding to cover the costs of the toilets and septic tank maintenance.

The project will be constructed by a local construction company that has worked with the local school administration in the past.

The toilet facility will be funded through a partnership program grant with the Peace Corps and funds from Water Charity.

The local community of Vilkovo will be contributing 50 percent of the total cost.

Project Impact
Approximately 2,500-3,000 individuals will use this toilet on an annual basis.

Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Jeffrey Ball

Comments
This project brings together massive community and school support with funding organizations brought in to provide assistance to create a necessary and substantial sanitary facility for the school.

Dollar Amount of Project
$555.00

Donations Collected to Date
$0.00

ADOPT THIS PROJECT BY CONTRIBUTING THE DOLLAR AMOUNT NEEDED BELOW

Donations of any amount will be appreciated. The full amount will give you "naming rights", if that is something you would like.

Any contributions in excess of the Dollar Amount of Project will be allocated to other projects directed by this PCV and/or projects of other PCVs in this country.

Dollar Amount Needed
$555.00

Community Description
Patzicia, Chimaltenango, is located about 70 kilometers west of Guatemala City.

San Lorenzo is a small community roughly a 45 minute walk from the Urban Center of Patzicia. The members of the community primarily earn their living through agriculture, as much of Patzicia and its surrounding countryside are used as farmland. Community members cultivate a variety of crops, including beans, corn, and a variety of vegetables both for weekly sale in the town market and for exportation.

Escuela Oficial Rural Mixta San Lorenzo is a school in San Lorenzo that serves the 30 families living in the community and their children. There are roughly 70 students, although the number has increased dramatically in the past 2 years and promises to do so further in the future.

The school has been involved in the Healthy Schools program with Peace Corps for two years now, and has made drastic improvements in the health of the children. All children now are practicing healthy habits such as brushing their teeth and washing their hands on a daily basis, and many have taken this practice to their homes, further impacting the community through influencing their families. They've seen drastic changes in the cleanliness and health of the students, even to the extent that children practice these habits second nature and no longer need to be reminded to do so. Teachers also began giving 2 health lessons a week to their classes.

The biggest difficulty the school currently faces is lack of water in the school. During the dry season (October - April) water is very scarce. The community has a water source, but as water is scarce it only arrives in the community for roughly 15 minutes a day during the dry season.

As the school has no manner for storing the water, they have taken to asking the mothers of the community to transport water from their houses in large buckets to use for cooking and hand washing. It makes the practice of healthy habits very difficult in the school as they cannot transport enough water for all the students.

Project Description
The project that the school of San Lorenzo will complete is a holding tank with faucets. The tank will be ample enough to hold 2000 L of water, ensuring sufficient clean water for practicing healthy habits in the school and for cooking the school snack, so that the mothers do not have to use their precious supply of water in the school. This will further ensure that children will be able to practice healthy habits in the home as the families will be able to save the water they have.

The structure will be constructed with cement using a design previously used in several schools throughout Patzicia and using a skilled mason who already has much experience building the design. The cement water deposit will be surrounded by 8 metal faucets to be used by the children for the daily practice of healthy habits.

It will be located at the top of the stairs leading to the bathrooms, ensuring that students have a constant reminder to wash their hands upon returning to their classrooms. The 8 faucets will also aid in ensuring that students have as much time in the classroom as possible, as practicing healthy habits will be much more efficient with more faucets and ample space.

The structure will take up a space of roughly 3 meters x 3 meters, and have a height of roughly 2 meters, with an opening for periodic cleaning.

Project funds will be used to buy materials such as cement, tubing, metal, sand, wood for the foundation, and various accessories for the faucets.

The Mayor’s Office will pay for the work of the skilled mason and also the cost of the gravel.

The community will contribute unskilled manual labor to the mason and will also contribute with small amounts of materials that can be found within the community, specifically rocks for building the foundation and small amounts of sand that can be found in the river running through town. The remainder of the materials will be purchased from a local hardware store in the urban center of Patzicia.

Project Impact
This project will benefit the 70+ students and 4 teachers that use the school, as well as the 30 families in the community that often use the space for events and community meetings.

Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Abigail Harper

Comments
This project uses the appropriate technology to make water available for cooking, sanitation, and hygiene during the dry season.

Abigail previously completed the Escuela Oficial Rural Mixta La Muchacha Handwashing Station Project - Guatemala.

Dollar Amount of Project
$555.00

Donations Collected to Date
$0.00

ADOPT THIS PROJECT BY CONTRIBUTING THE DOLLAR AMOUNT NEEDED BELOW

Donations of any amount will be appreciated. The full amount will give you "naming rights", if that is something you would like.

Any contributions in excess of the Dollar Amount of Project will be allocated to other projects directed by this PCV and/or projects of other PCVs in this country.

Dollar Amount Needed
$555.00

Community Description
Barskoon is a village of roughly 7,300 residents living in approximately 2,000 family units located on the south shore of Lake Issyk-Kul. The main source of income of most families is from growing crops or raising livestock for sale or personal use.

Some families have additional income from the major employers in the village. These include Kindirbaev Secondary School, Kumtar Gold Mine, Barskoon’s Hospital, Bakyt Craft Factory, and shops located in the village.

Kindirbaev Secondary School is currently the only secondary school in Barskoon. Over 1,500 students from 1st through 11th grade study at this school. The school is staffed by 115 teachers and another 30 people who work as support staff.

Although the teachers’ toilets have for some time been unfit for use, the school has always made it their priority to replace and repair the facilities used by students first. In 2005 the school built a permanent outhouse structure for students, and in 2010 the school built a state-of-the-art outhouse for their handicapped students.

The facilities currently used daily by the staff were built using second-hand wood that is now falling apart and rotting. They are now unfit for use and extremely unsafe.

Project Description
This project is to create two toilets at Kindirbaev Secondary School for the use of teachers and support staff.

The new facilities will be built on school grounds more than 50 meters from the closest water source to ensure there is no negative impact on the water supply. The structure will be built out of concrete and bricks to ensure the facility will be safe to use over the years.

A professional construction worker completed the design and blueprint of the facility at no cost. He will be available to help oversee this project.

Completion of the project is scheduled to take 12 days. The activities will include preparing the location, digging the hole, installing support beams, laying concrete for the platform, laying the foundation, building the brick walls, placing the roof, and installing doors and windows.

All materials will be bought locally or in the city located 2 hours away as needed. All labor and transportation of materials will be supplied by teachers. They will also pay any expenses in excess of the budgeted amount

Materials to be purchased with project funds will include, sand, cement, brick, metal roof, door, iron support beams, wood and boards, windows, and nails.

Project Impact
145 teachers and support staff will benefit from the project.

Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Joanna Ison

Comments
This is an extremely important project that needs to be completed as quickly as possible. Having a clean, safe, and sturdy toilet for staff members to use while at work is an important sanitation issue.

Joanna previously successfully completed the Kindirbaev Secondary School Handwashing Station Project – Kyrgyzstan.

Dollar Amount of Project
$555.00

Donations Collected to Date
$0.00

ADOPT THIS PROJECT BY CONTRIBUTING THE DOLLAR AMOUNT NEEDED BELOW

Donations of any amount will be appreciated. The full amount will give you "naming rights", if that is something you would like.

Any contributions in excess of the Dollar Amount of Project will be allocated to other projects directed by this PCV and/or projects of other PCVs in this country.

Dollar Amount Needed
$555.00

Community Description
As the regional center of Samtskhe-Javakheti in southern Georgia, Akhaltsikhe is home to approximately 30,000 people. Every evening from spring through fall, the central park is filled with young men smoking. There are bars and gambling halls on every street in the main part of town, and virtually every family makes their own wine.

The old and decaying sports field in town is almost always empty, except for small groups of boys sitting around the outside, smoking and drinking. Indeed, in Georgian culture, where heavy drinking is encouraged and a pack of cigarettes can be purchased for less than the price of a banana, there are many barriers that prevent men and boys from living a healthy lifestyle.

This fact contributes to a major public health concern in Georgia. The life expectancy for Georgian men is only 67 years, compared to 76 for American men. According to the Georgian National Center for Disease Control, 51.1% of men smoke, 59.4% regularly consume alcohol and nearly 59% are overweight.

Fortunately, there are people and organizations working hard to buck the trends. The Akhaltsikhe Boys’ Fitness Center is one such organization.

The Fitness Center is located in a room connected to the town's Armenian school. It is the only fitness club in Akhaltsikhe. A former boxing champion, now the town's Emergency Services Coordinator, operates the center on a strictly volunteer basis. He conducts boxing lessons and makes the gym generally available for anyone to use every evening, Monday through Friday.

The center is equipped with an old boxing ring, several heavily worn punching bags held together by duct tape, a small array of rusty kettle bells and dumbbells and a bench station. There is no running water, no working bathroom and no shower. People who use the gym have no way to wash their hands or wipe off equipment. After sweating profusely during their workouts, young men and boys get dressed in “clean” clothes and go home, still sweating and unclean. If someone needs to use the bathroom while at the gym, they simply go outside behind the building.

These basic sanitation issues not only pose real health concerns, but also dissuade the target population from even coming to the fitness center. Indeed, the number of people using it is less than half what it was a few years ago when running water was still working.

The community benefiting from this project will be young men and boys who live in Akhaltsikhe. This population is extremely susceptible to peer pressure and cultural traditions that can lead to them making unhealthy lifestyle choices.

Project Description
This project will renovate the bathroom and shower facilities at the Akhaltsikhe Boys’ Fitness Center. By the conclusion of this project, the fitness center will have six functioning showers and two toilets.

Fortunately, much of the infrastructure is already in place. Six tiled shower stalls and the two toilets already exist. However, the piping needs to be replaced and connected to the main water supply, a water heater needs to be purchased and a pump needs to be installed.

Project funds will be used to purchase a water tank, water pump, water meter, electric water heater, electric meter, pipes, and fittings. In addition, they will pay for the required skilled labor.

Work will be performed by a qualified local plumber, the fitness center’s director, the Peace Corps volunteer, and his two local counterparts at the fitness center. In addition, the young men and boys who use the fitness center will help clean the facilities.

Once the renovation is complete, those who use the facilities will be asked to contribute a small amount of money every month to help pay for water, electricity, and maintenance.

Project Impact
This project is expected to benefit 140 people, consisting of the approximately 35 boys ages 12-19, another 35 young men in their twenties and early thirties, who currently use the center, and an equal number of people of both categories expected to return to the center upon the resumption of water service.

Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Sean Fredericks

Comments
The creation of six functioning showers and two toilets will benefit the region's young men and boys, now and into the future, and will play a part in helping to encourage active lifestyles over sedentary and unhealthy alternatives.

Dollar Amount of Project
$555.00

Donations Collected to Date
$0.00

ADOPT THIS PROJECT BY CONTRIBUTING THE DOLLAR AMOUNT NEEDED BELOW

Donations of any amount will be appreciated. The full amount will give you "naming rights", if that is something you would like.

Any contributions in excess of the Dollar Amount of Project will be allocated to other projects directed by this PCV and/or projects of other PCVs in this country.

Dollar Amount Needed
$555.00

Community Description
The vibrant community of Barkedji is 35 kilometers southeast of the departmental capital, Linguere, nestled in the semi-arid region of the Sahel. The community is home to approximately 250 family compounds. The population, consisting largely of subsistence farmers and animal herders, fluctuates between 2,000 and 4,000 people.

The project will be working with a primary school located in the poorer outskirts of the village, Barkedji Sud. This intervention is phase two of the Primary School Water and Sanitation Project – Senegal previously completed under the direction of Peace Corps Volunteer Ann Marie Albright. (She also finished the Barkedji Kindergarten Water Project - Senegal .)

In the prior primary school project, water was brought to the school and bathroom facilities were constructed for the growing school population, this year numbering 163 students.

The dynamic school director, Daye Sow, aims to integrate the community and school. Mr. Sow states that “the community needs to believe in education and needs to play an active role in supporting their children’s education”.

Project Description
This project is to construct a water tap near the newly constructed bathroom facilities and basin at the site of a new community garden.

A trench will be dug and 30 meters of plastic PVC piping will be laid. Then a water tap will be constructed and a small half-meter square cement basin will be built to serve as a permanent sink for bathroom needs and hand washing.

The community has agreed once again to dig the trench to save on costs, and to bring the necessary sand for the construction.

Appropriate Projects funds will purchase the cement for the sink, PVC piping, glue and water tap. They will also pay the fee to transport the materials and pay all skilled labor.

Toward the end of integrating the school and community, a community garden will be created on school grounds. The school will provide the water, thanks to the previous Appropriate Projects project, and the parents of the students will provide tools and manage the garden. All proceeds will be split between parents and the school.

For the second part of this project, a square two-meter water basin, one-meter deep, will be built for water storage. The basin is essential for a successful garden in this semi-arid region, with the threat of water shortages.

Project funds will pay for the cement and for the skilled labor for building the basin.

The community will raise funds to construct a stick fence around the plot and purchase a hose and all other necessary tools to begin the community garden.

Project Impact
The 163 students of Barkedji Sud along with the 75 active members of the Parents Association will directly benefit from this project. The secondary health benefits of adding more vegetables to the village market will spread throughout the greater Barkedji community.

Peace Corps Volunteer Directing Project
Ann Marie Albright

Comments
This project exemplifies the Appropriate Projects model of implementing staged projects that build upon the successes of their predecessors.

Dollar Amount of Project
$555.00

Donations Collected to Date
$0.00

ADOPT THIS PROJECT BY CONTRIBUTING THE DOLLAR AMOUNT NEEDED BELOW

Donations of any amount will be appreciated. The full amount will give you "naming rights", if that is something you would like.

Any contributions in excess of the Dollar Amount of Project will be allocated to other projects directed by this PCV and/or projects of other PCVs in this country.

Dollar Amount Needed
$555.00