By John Telford

On my recent trip to Timor-Leste, I learnt about some inspiring projects enabled by dedicated Australian volunteers, in the same tradition as that embraced by Mike Chapman who spent a couple of years as a PALMS volunteer at the Klobur Domin rehabilitation centre at Tibar, just west of Dili in 2002-2003.

There are a number of PALMS volunteers working with various organizations in many districts. For example, Miriam and Damien work with Fr Adrian in Hatobuilico, the community with which the Blue Mountains is linked in a Friendship agreement. Damien is a nurse and Miriam has an engineering and community development background.

In another project in the Ermera district, west of Dili, Dan and Beth Gilfillan have been volunteering for the past twelve months, working with a local committee to build a central library – Biblioteka Ermera - in Gleno. Dan has been working with the team on the building project while Beth has been working with staff on starting reading groups with children and mothers. I attended the opening of the library which is a beautiful building, both outside and within.

There are 10 to 12 Australians working under the Australian Volunteer International (AVI) program. It is supported by AusAid, which pays for airfare and a local living and accommodation allowance.

Judy Finch, an ICA member from the Blue Mountains is currently working as an AVI attached to a Women’s Cooperative which supports various women’s development projects. She also provides an invaluable link for the BM Friendship Committee in its attempt to help the Hatobuilico community. Given her background in participatory community development, she has been able to sort out some complex issues, and in association with community leaders arranged for a community meeting/workshop in late July. Mary Waterford, also an ICA member, and I, as members of the BM Friendship group traveled there for the workshop. It was a very good gathering of 40 people. They developed a detailed plan for expanding adult learning opportunities and for expanding secondary school classes.

Another AVI, Chris Adams, works with FONGTIL, an NGO Forum. We have been in conversation with FONGTIL for a couple of years about providing an opportunity for ToP training to its staff and to representatives of their member organizations. On this trip, plans were made to further the implementation of this goal.

I also visited PRADET, the organization which an ICA team worked with last October to develop their next 5-year plan, and which Susan Kendall works with in providing training and mentoring. Its director resigned last October but the programs are going well. An international mentor is working with the staff in developing action plans.

On our visit to Dili in October, Elaine and I stayed a couple of nights with Aires Eddie de Almeida, a very creative designer of biogas cookers and small solar-powered appliances. In October, he published a detailed manual on how to produce such cookers and this can now be distributed widely across the rural areas where it is of most value.

The biggest challenges facing this small nation in the physical sphere are building schools and health clinics and maintaining roads, but in the human sphere there is still a big challenge to develop knowledge and skills in new approaches to agricultural production, teaching methods, governance and administrative services.