Sawadeeka from Thailand for the last time!
The last four months have absolutely flown by and somehow, we're down to the final ten days of our program here in Khon Kaen. In the last few weeks, things have really picked up as we've completed the pivotal component of the public health coursework - our data collection and intervention.
After looking at all of the information that we'd received from our initial community stays, my group decided that we wanted to focus on the waste management problem that became in our third community, Mittraphap. As we conducted health surveys and interviews, our group noticed a significant accumulation of trash along nearby railroad tracks and under the stilt houses that were situated towards the back of the community. Many of the community members we spoke with expressed a concern about the health implications of the waste and a desire to live in a clearer, safer community. With that information in mind, we headed back to the community armed with 50 surveys and questions for some of the community leaders. Our primary goal was to figure out where all of the trash was coming from and what, if any, disposal system existed in the community. In survey responses, nearly everyone said that they disposed of trash in individual household trash bins before emptying those into a larger municipal dumpster.
Just before leaving the community, we asked the community headman, "Pah Ooh," to take us to see all of the community trash cans and the municipal dumpster where all of the trash was supposedly going. As we stepped out of his home, we were surprised as he began pointing to small boxes and buckets around the community. These, we quickly realized, were the "bins" that everyone had been referring to. Even more surprising - the "municipal dumpster" was nothing more than a few large trashcans that were overflowing with garbage and emptied with questionable regularity.
Two days later, we returned to Mittraphap to meet with community members and to share some of our findings with them. After taking their feedback into consideration, our team decided on a three pronged approach to conquer the waste management issue. 1) We would work with the kids in the community to make sure that they knew how to properly dispose of their trash. This included enthusiastically teaching them the "Clean Up" song from Barney and Friends, something that relayed an important message and satisfied their parents desire for us to teach the children English. 2) We would provide new, larger trash bins to replace the makeshift trash collection bins that currently existed in the community. If time permitted, we would have all of the children help to decorate the bins to establish a sense of ownership. 3) We would replace the trash cart for the community, which had been broken for some time and presented an obstacle for some of the older members of the community to get their trash from their homes and out to the municipal dumpster for collection.
Today, we arrived in Mittraphap armed with 11 big black bins, four cans of paint, lots of prizes for the children, and a new, sturdier trash cart. The intervention engaged much of the community and incorporated the energy of the children who many of us have grown close to over the course of our many visits and overnight stays. By the end of the program, posters with the "Clean Up" lyrics were hung in the community center, eleven bins were covered in painted handprints, and the cart was ready for action.
Getting to know this community has undoubtedly been the most meaningful thing that I've experienced during my time in Thailand. We've been fortunate to live in the community for three separate periods of time and have formed strong bonds with our host families and other children in the community. Leaving at the end of our intervention tonight was incredibly bittersweet as we knew full well that this could be the last time we get to spend time with this community that has embraced us and welcomed us with incredible generosity and kindness. For anyone considering participating in a community based study abroad program, I can assure you that it is the way to go. While I may not have had all of the flashy experiences that students in big, more developed cities got, I came away with a much deeper appreciation for my community, the people that live there, and the Thai culture.