our place magazine, 31, centre for appropriate technology au

8/9/2019 Our Place Magazine, 31, Centre for Appropriate Technology AU

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The Bshiht apprach t

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Hdi traditi adcari r ctr:a digital media training program

The Reia AssistaceMissi t the Sm Isads

BUSHTECHS: Smart DeSert GarDeninG WinDmillS for Water PumPinG BuSh airStriPS PoSter

HEAlTHIER

DogS, HEAlTHIER

CoMMunITIESK

people worKing with technology in remote communities

Number 31


2/20

Our PlaceISSN: 1325-7684

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Healthier dogs, healthiercommunities is the topic o ourcover story in this issue o Our Place

magazine.We take a look at a pilot program

acilitated by Animal Managementin Rural and Remote IndigenousCommunities (AMRRIC), which aimsto create opportunities in Indigenouscommunities or improving the health odogs, which in turn has a lasting impacton the health o the community.

In our International eature AlysonWright takes an in-depth look at theTe Regional Assistance Mission to theSolomon Islands (RAMSI) a response

to civil unrest and ethnic violence in thatcountry.

Paul A Coull explains the approacho Bushlight in implementing RenewableEnergy Systems, and shares some

eedback rom Indigenous communitymembers about the project.

A digital media training project or

Indigenous Elders is providing moderntechnology to record and preservetraditional knowledge. James Newmanreports on this important project onpage 7.

Also in this issue we have atranscript rom an Our Place radioprogram interview with stockman AlanCreek, and a review o the book LolaYoung medicine woman and teacher.

I hope you nd this issue enjoyableand inormative.

CollEEn DAnzIC

Publications Ofcer

The Centre or Appropriate Technology

Alice Springs

3 bushlieAan Ck a Ka hman:Edited transcript o Our Place Radio Segment 1 2007.

5 NeWs

7 eduCAtioN ANd trAiNiNg hn an an can cny:

A digital media training project is documenting traditional knowledge usingmodern technology. Storyby JameS NewmaN

10 projeCts ha , a cmmn:

A three phase program in Kintore Community is creating opportunities toimprove the health o companion animals. Storyby amrrIC

centre pages: bushteChs Smartdesertgardeningby NaomI KeNdell Windmillsforwaterpumpingby NerIda beardaNd lyall rogerS POSTER:Bushairstripsfordaytimeuseby NaomI KeNdell

12 livelihoods TheBushlightapproachtodesigningandimplementingrenewable

ny. Storyby Paul a Coull

16 iNterNAtioNAlt rna Aanc Mn smn ian:Fiteen Pacic countries, including Australia join together to respond to civilunrest in the Solomon Islands. Storyby alySoN wrIght

19 revieW LolaYoungmedicinewomanandteacher.revIewby ColleeN daNzIC


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AdriAn: In 2006, I travelledthroughout Cape York in ar NorthQueensland collecting stories in remotecommunities. I had the pleasure omeeting stockman Alan Creek who hasbuilt his own cattle station on the Kulpa

Homelands. Ater getting to know Alanyou come to understand that he is avery determined person who wants hiscattle station to succeed no matter whatthe challenges are. Alan Creek grew upas a stockman with his amily and overthe years has worked with many othercattlemen in Cape York.

AlAn: Ive been with the best o the bestcattlemen and the best ringers that everrode this country. Tats where I got myskills rom, especially working beside my

old dad, my grandather and my uncles.Tey were top ringers, and o course Iworked with a lot o white pastoralists andthey were airly strict blokes, hard workingmen. Indigenous ringers, even i theywere a head stockman, did the hard yards.Tey did the mustering, the hardest part,bringing the cattle in. Tey told me thetop ringers always ride in ront o a bigmob o wild cattle up in the lead Ihad to be up there too because I wanted tobe a top ringer.

AdriAn: Back in December o 2002,Alan moved his amily back onto hiswies traditional land at Kulpa to buildthe cattle station with some help romthe ILC (Indigenous Land Corporation).

When they arrived at Kulpa they had noreal inrastructure in place, just a tent andtheir determination to build and managetheir own cattle station.

AlAn: Four years ago this area was just

an open area. We come down here aboutChristmas time and we pitched the tentover near the spring there. We stayed inthat tent through the wet, and we encedhere, and then we gradually built romthere. Over our years weve done a bito house building, a bit o yard buildingand making paddocks and we just kepton, kept on growing. You can see todaywhats been built in our years. Youknow, it takes time, a lot o work, a loto sweat, but i youre willing and yourekeen enough to do it you know it could

be done.All my lie I wanted to be a top ringer,

head stockman or even one day sort omanaging my own place. Tat day hascome now. Here I am in Kulpa on ourown traditional land. Te place that Ireally built here, the yards, the paddocksaround here, the little old shed that westarted in. When we got the paddockswe bought our own horses and we did abit o a mustering around here and nowwe got about 250 head o cattle behindbarbed wires. My aim is to really improve

the livestock, the breeding stock and getbetter blood in them. And weve alreadystarted that. We have got about six purebred Brahman bulls and 50 head o heierswith a bit o support rom the ILC.

AdriAn: In 2002 the cattlemeno Cape York ormed the NorthernCattlemans Alliance. Te CattlemansAlliance was established not only toimprove the quality o their cattlebut also to ease some o the tense

relationships between the Aboriginal andnon Aboriginal cattlemen o the Cape.Alan is the President o the NorthernCattlemans Alliance. Five years ago hespoke to a riend, John Fraser, about howthey could get Indigenous stockmenmore involved in other aspects o theindustry.

AlAn: Being an Indigenous ellow andwanting to start a property rom thisland here, I wanted to know some moreabout the managers side o it. I knew

about mustering and all that but notthe managing. You know those days weused to just bring cattle in and soon asthe cattle hit the drating yard the blackellows were all just hanging o gates andall that. And the white man would do thedrating and do the ordering. John couldsee that and so we got talking and we saidwell, lets start a Alliance like the CattleAlliance with black and white cattlemenjoined together. A lot more Indigenouspeople joined the Cattle Alliance and Ithink thats made it a bit easier or me.

I can go around now and talk to a loto non-Indigenous cattlemen and wesit down and talk as cattlemen. Wherebeore, youre a blackella and you sit overthere and thats it and you dont really get

Aa Creek K he f o p r s 1 2007

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BUSHLIFE 3


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BUSHLIFE

talking about these cattle or breeding andmanaging. But the Northern CattlemansAlliance changed that thing and the aimo it is to get black and white cattlementogether.

AdriAn: Operating his cattle stationat Kulpa, Alan also has a uniqueagreement with the Criminal JusticeSystem o Queensland. Men who havebeen in trouble with the law are sent toKulpa to become stockmen. Alan knows

that people get bored easily just doingthe one job so when hes working withhis stockmen at Kulpa he makes surethat the younger stockmen have plenty odierent jobs throughout the day.

AlAn: Well, I nd now that Im incharge o everything, I make the plansand I have learnt over the years how toget the young men working well. Youcant let them get bored doing the onething. But Im pretty lucky here with thehorses and the cattle and this place here

so we do a bit o everything. Tey can dothe buildings and then they can changeabout and do a bit more yard work.

AdriAn: During the monsoon seasonwhen it rains non-stop or about a monthAlan cant do much work or obviousreasons, but when the storms settle downhes out and about enjoying the rain withhis cattle and horses. Years ago, people inthe Cape understood the paths and thepatterns o the storms. But the patternso the storm seem to be changing.

AlAn: We have unny years nowyou know, not like the old days. Tenyou could ollow the storms with yourmonsoons coming in about January,

February, March, with rains or a monththen it breaks o and then comes backin again. We had cyclone Monica herewhich let some damage in the place knocked a ew trees down over thepaddocks. But the rain was denitelyneeded here because in the three yearsbeore that rain was just on and o andwe never, never got the average rainall.When Monica come through it did llup all the springs and let us with a airbit o water. A lot o the springs are dried

up now although a lot o the permanentones have still got plenty water in them.Hopeully theyll see us till the stormstarts again.

You get bored just sitting down inthe wet season. I do anyhow and I keepmoving whether it s raining or not. Notin the big wet, but when its raining onand o rain, we go out and do a lot ohorseback mustering. It eels good toride about in the rain and the horses arecooled o by the rain, the man is too, andthe cattle are a bit easier to work when

theyre cooled down. We do a muster andbranding when the storms come and thenater the wet, depending on the mainroad access, we get them ready to put onthe truck to sell to Mareeba.

AdriAn: Working on his cattle stationeveryday, Alan has to deal with variousproblems that come up rom time totime. Hes constantly doing some sort owork to maintain his property. He alsobelieves that when dealing with problemsyou just have to resolve them as soon as

you can so you can get on with your work.

AlAn: Its like anything you alwaysgot teething problems, thats what I say.You always have a toothache but you can

get rid o that and keep going again. Iyou let that bit o worry or stress beatyou well you might as well pack up. Wekept nudging along steady, steady andas you can see we are shiting rom theold shed and shiting into a new house

here where we sitting now. We have tobattle on, nothings nished yet, nothingsever nished because its building yourdreams. Teres about a million and onethings to do i you want to really improveyour homeland and youve got to get inand do these things.

AdriAn: Alan understands that iKulpa is going to be a protable cattlestation in the uture they need to investtheir money in the right areas so that oneday he can live his dream.

AlAn: We invest our money into tryingto get more cattle, better breeders and allthat. Tats going to be the uture o thisplace. Te better stock you got the bettermoney youll get later on. My dream islike when Im about 90, i I live that long,I want to be sitting over there on the toprail o those yards just watching Brahmancattle run through the drating yard andshiting out young Brahman cattle to thesale yards. Tats really what my dream is.I can see its a air way o yet doing that

but it s coming.Im glad that you come down here

and had a look at Kulpa to see what hasbeen done here. Teres lot o storiesgoing around that blackellas only goback on their homelands just to sit downand live in the little humpy and dontwant to do anything. And thats whyIm so determined to prove that theyrewrong. Show people that we blackellascan do a lot good or our country.

AlanCreekbuilthisowncattle

an n Ka hman.


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While this program is being rolled out Australiawide,CA will be working specically in the Queensland andCentral Australian regions.

For more information and to apply, please contact:Andrew Crouch: Alice Springs (08) 8951 4325 orCheryl Prestipino: Cairns (07) 4031 0505.

dv

In late October 2007, CA in Alice Springs hosted aworkshop or researchers working with the CA/DesertKnowledge CRC project called Desert Services that Work.Researchers working with the communities o Dajarra(Qld), Wunara (N), Ali Curung (N) and Parnpajinya(WA) attended with community residents who have been

participating in the research. Tey included:Mick Marshall and Henry Dempsey (Dajarra), Keith

Marshall and Margaret Punch (Wunara),Lucy Jackson, Janet Simpson, Rosie Holmes, Savannah

Long and Martha Poulson (Ali Curung), and Neville aylorand Leonie Attwood rom Parnpajinya.

Trough the sharing o experiences across the communities the Dajarra/Wunara mob had also visited Ali Curungon the way to Alice Springs a lot was learned about thepracticalities o doing research, and how it might be a source oongoing employment or the community researchers. Anotherworkshop is planned or 2008 to continue strengthening theconnections that have been made.

F

f i

Late in 2007, the Centre or Appropriate echnologywas appointed as a Regional Agent or the AustralianGovernment Backing Indigenous Ability computers andtraining program. Tis program is designed to assist Indigenouspeople to access the range o educational, liestyle and businessopportunities provided by computers and the Internet.

CAs role in the program or the next couple o years is toacilitate the provision o services to all larger IndigenousCommunities in our main program areas:

public access computer packages including PersonalComputers, Oice sotware, printers and webcams,

particularly or use by adult residents o the community.Annual unding will be provided through to 2010 or abroadband internet connection, and to supplement thesalary o a person in each community who will manage theacilities and assist people to use them;provision o training in a variety o computing topicsranging rom basic to advanced (communities nominate thetraining they need, and trainers will come to the communityto deliver the training);provision o video-conerencing equipment;unding or communities to develop new online webcontent, or enhance existing web sites. hese projects willtypically be o up to a years duration and could involve

contracting external expertise to deliver the technicalcomponent, or training and supporting communitymembers with the appropriate experience to develop thecontent in house.

rac Ayn W () m t Cn Aa

Technology,withcommunityresidentLucyJacksonfromAliCurung,

attheDesertServicesthatWorkworkshop.

NEWS 55


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Any parent o a teenage boy knows how hard it can be tokeep them ocused on school and to get them to completeat least Year 10. For an Aboriginal parent this is twice as hardas a lot o our young men drop out o school or a number odierent reasons. Tese can be a lack o sel esteem, culturalreasons, or any number o social issues. Indigenous boys start todrit away rom school at about year our and most leave schoolor good beore year 10.

Former coach o Fremantle Dockers, Gerard Neesham

has seen rst hand the lack o interest in school within theAboriginal community while doing some relie teaching at theClontar Aboriginal College in WA. On a good day there wouldbe at least 30 kids at school and on a bad day there would bemore teachers than students.

On one occasion at a school ootball match where only13 boys turned up or the game, one o the players mentionedthat his brother was there and asked i he could play withthem as they were looking like they would be thrashed. Gerardasked how old he was and what school he goes to. Te youngman replied that his brother was 16 years old and hadnt beento school or three years. Gerard allowed him to play on thecondition that he came to school the very next day and he

promised he would. Tis same young man graduated highschool and was drated into the AFL a couple o years later.

From this experience Gerard Neesham spoke to the Collegeand they agreed that he could set up an Academy that wasattached to the school, and so the Clontar Football Academywas born. oday there are six locations in WA where theAcademy is operating with requests to start new Academiescoming in rom other WA locations as well as interstate.

Tere are our Academies in Alice Springs at the moment.Tere are the Anzac High School Academy, Alice Springs HighSchool Academy & Yirara College Academy which all startedin 2007. A Centralian Senior Secondary College Academy isthe latest edition. Te rst year (2007) o operating saw about

120 students sign up. Tis year (2008) there are approximately200 students to date.

Te Academy is not about grooming uture AFL stars,although i this happens Im sure it would be a bonus to all thehard work put in over the years by the dedicated sta. Clontar

is more about getting the young men to attend school andengage in activities with a goal to graduate with condence atthe end o year 12 and with the possibility o urther education,traineeships, apprenticeships or ull time employment.

Te ocus or sta is to not only coach ootball but to buildsel esteem and condence by interacting with the students asa mentor and inuence them in lie skills, anger managementand healthy liestyles. All participating students must attend

school regularly, apply themselves to their studies and abideby the Academy rule o good behaviour and sel discipline.All Academies are involved in arranging orums with guestspeakers, visits to local businesses around town and contactingsurrounding area businesses such as mining companies.Ongoing support rom local businesses has been vital to theprogram and very much appreciated by sta and students. ripsto other regions to play a game o ootball are also an incentiveor the students to attend school and excel as the teams thattravel are chosen on these merits.

Academy sta are in the process o building up arelationship with the surrounding communities where they arelooking at aligning each o the town based school Academies

with a community school. Tey are working towards havingthe community schools visit their partner school where theywill have group activities as a part o social skills and leadershipbuilding as well as a game o ooty thrown in or good measure.

According to Brad Puls, director o the Alice SpringsFootball Academy, there was a 100% retention rate o students(50 boys) that went rom Year 9 in 2007 to Year 10 in 2008 inthe rst year o the Academy in Alice Springs. I this continuesIm sure we can only expect to see bigger and better thingscoming out o this program or our young men o the uture.

a s c On March 10 Alice Springs became the th ofcialAustralian Solar City. Australian Government Minister orthe Environment, Heritage and the Arts, Peter Garrett, and theNorthern erritory Chie Minister Paul Henderson, ofciallylaunched the project outside the Smart Living Centre in oddStreet.

CAs Grant Behrendor is Chairman or the Solar Cities

Project and was Master o Ceremonies at the launch.A large number o Alice Springs locals gathered to witness

the launch o the six year project which aims to empower thecommunity to become energy champions and to make AliceSprings a model or the rest o Australia and the world to ollow.

NEWS

ClontarfFootballAcademyinaction.

PeterGarrettpresentsschoolchildrenwithaplaqueforbeing

eny Camn.


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Cs pg 8 >

he well-being o peopleand country is based oncenturies-old knowledgeabout caring or country.With other cultures en-croaching on traditional

lives it is difcult to maintain cultural

practices, and to educate uture genera-tions o Aboriginal people about theircultures.

With this in mind, Longreach-basedDesert Channels Queensland (DCQ)

has run a project designed to documenttraditional knowledge on behal o threeother participating regional naturalresource management (NRM) bodies.Te use o modern technology has helpedmany Aboriginal custodians throughoutQueensland in their quest to maintain

culture, and as a means o passing theirknowledge onto uture generations.

Te aim o the project was to in-struct senior Aboriginal people and theirElders in the use o digital video and

audio equipment, editing sotware, andelectronic storage equipment. o achievecultural sensitivity, all data was recordedby Elders or a respected senior person,all o whom maintained strong involve-ment throughout the project. It assistedElders in rebuilding inter-generational

knowledge transer processes. Data thatis not culturally sensitive, and which mayassist landholders with land managementmay become available at the discretion osenior traditional owners.

bnan Wyman (baa

traditionalowner),PhilEulo

(Budjititraditionalowner)

andFloydRobinson

(Bidjaratraditionalowner)

acan n

TraditionalKnowledge

pc. Photoby dallaS loCK

&Hdi traditicari r ctr:

EDUCATION AND TRAINING 7


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Te seven case studies producedaimed to recognise and strengthenAustralias understanding o Indigenousknowledge and land management prac-tices. Tis was achieved by highlightingthe relevance o traditional knowledge incontemporary resource management set-tings, particularly the sustainable man-

agement o sensitive ecosystems.Tis project was inspired by two

Elders rom Cape York who decided touse modern methods to assist in caringor country. Tis idea expanded through-

out Queensland with the assistance o aNatural Heritage rust grant o $1.3m.Ater initial plans were stalled, DesertChannels Queensland, oered to admin-ister the project. As DCQs ExecutiveOfcer, Leanne Kohler said, I didntwant to see such a great opportunity passor traditional owners to record tradition-

al culture and language, and have it saelystored or uture generations. As part othe project, DCQ also provided technicalsupport or one traditional owner groupin western Queensland.

o help promote learning and to opencultural networks, three workshops wereconducted to provide participants withknowledge about digital video cameras,audio, editing and interviewing skills. Terst workshop, at Yungaburra, was a goodintroduction to the types o equipmentavailable. It gave participants an oppor-

tunity to handle dierent cameras andinvestigate the capabilities o ApplesiMovie editing sotware. Te secondworkshop, at Laura, provided a morehands-on learning approach. Tis work-

EDUCATION AND TRAINING

Photo: JameS NewmaN

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shop coincided with the Laura Culturaland Dance Festival, and allowed par-ticipants to put their interviewing skillsto the test. Tey conducted interviewsand other exercises that were great orincreasing condence.

Desert Channels Queensland hostedthe third workshop in Longreach to con-solidate the inormation already obtained.Tis workshop ocussed on editing andcomputer training. But in order to edit,participants had to rst use all the skillsthey had already learnt to prepare andlm stories beorehand. Tey were trained

on storyboarding, composition, light-ing, audio and interviewing techniquesas well as editing and storage o the nalproduct. Aboriginal people were involvedin every aspect o all these workshops.

Apart rom Desert ChannelsQueensland and South West NRM,other organisations who were involved

with local administrative and technicalsupport within their respective regionswere Mackay-Whitsunday NRM, Gir-rungun Aboriginal Corporation andBalkanu Aboriginal Corporation. Eleven

traditional owner groups were providedwith support, which attracted attentionrom other Aboriginal people and organ-isations. Custodians who were involvedindicated that urther unding shouldbe sought to provide similar projects

to other traditional owners throughoutQueensland. As a consequence, SouthernGul Catchments (SGC) decided to as-sist one o their traditional owner groupsin a similar project. Wanyi Elder, KenIsaacson, and SGC Cultural HeritageOfcer, anya Willis, who both attendedthe Longreach training workshop, have

since helped theMitakoodi traditionalowners begin a similarproject in their region.

Tree groups were

involved in westernQueensland Waluwarra, Budjitiand Bidjara whereDesert ChannelsQueensland andSouth West NRMshared the respon-sibility or technicaland administrativesupport. Waluwarracountry lies withinthe Desert Channels

Queensland regionalboundary, and Walu-warra and Eastern Ar-rernte custodian, Su-san Dean, was grateul

to be given the opportunity to recordsome stories. Te project allowed Susanto record stories on bush tucker, and toteach some young Waluwarra womenabout locating and collecting certainanimals, bush oods and medicines.

In the process, Susan became moreadept at using video cameras, computer

editing sotware and electronic storagedevices. Susan Dean had a traditionalupbringing and says, Te traditional wayis still best in terms o making childrenlisten when we are out bush, but using

digital video technology can help main-tain traditional knowledge as a lot o kidslike to watch television. So the two waysshould be able to work well together.

South West NRM region encom-passes a large proportion o Budjiti and

Bidjara countries. Budjiti Elder, PhillipEulo, indicated the project was a greatlearning experience and provided an op-portunity or him to take his Elders oncountry to instil his knowledge. Both Philand Bidjara custodian, Floyd Robinson,appreciated the support they were givenby South West NRM and DesertChannels Queensland. Floyd said he hadlearnt a great deal about video camerasand editing.

Tere were many highlights romwestern Queensland including: op-

portunities to care or country throughcooperative eorts with landholders;eorts to improve water quality man-agement; investigating ways to improveregional biodiversity; building capacityby providing custodians with knowledgeon digital technology, and managing theinter-generational knowledge transerprocess to aid in cultural survival.

Te project has been instrumental incombining traditional knowledge andcontemporary multi-media to enhanceIndigenous knowledge systems and

contemporary land management prac-tices. Te use o digital equipment canonly help to maintain Indigenous storiesrelated to language, culture and cer-emonies and where appropriate use thatknowledge to care or country in cultur-ally aware and sustainable ways.

Tis project has been a signicantundertaking and builds on DCQssuccessul Indigenous programs saysExecutive Ofcer, Leanne Kohler.

JAMES nEwMAnTraditional Knowledge Support Ofcer,

Desert Channels Queensland

Longreach QLD 4730

M: 0488 571 968 W: (07) 4658 0600

The project has been instrumental in combiningtraditional knowledge and contemporary multi-media to

enhance Indigenous knowledge systems and contemporary

land management practices.

EDUCATION AND TRAINING 9

Photo:JameSNewmaN


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Apilot program,acilitated by AnimalManagement in Rural

and Remote IndigenousCommunities(AMRRIC),

commenced in Kintore in November/December 2007. Te program isin collaboration with the Kintorecommunity, AMRRIC, the Departmento Families, Housing, CommunityServices and Indigenous Aairs(FaHCSIA) and the ARK AnimalHospital. Te three phase program willcreate an opportunity to improve not onlythe health o the dogs but have a lasting

impact on the health o the community.Following community requests or an

animal management program, FaHCSIAcontracted AMRRIC to develop andimplement a dog health program.AMRRIC took on a coordination role

and liaised with the community regardingappropriate services and then acilitatedthe engagement o veterinarians and

nurses rom the ARK Animal Hospital.A participatory planning process

was undertaken by the Executive Ofcero AMRRIC, Julia Hardaker, anddiscussions were held with a wide rangeo community organisations and groups,including the council, health and womenscentres, the schools and various places olocal employment, to enable communitymembers to voice concerns or animalmanagement issues and to participatein planning the work o the program.Long consultations occurred with each

household to discuss the program, thetreatment choices and to give reassurancethat, despite rumours, the programwould not be indiscriminately killingpeoples dogs. At the same time, data wascollected to establish statistics on the dog

numbers per house. Julia was assistedin these discussions and surveys, and inthe planning process by local Pintupi

Homelands Health Service (PHHS)workers ommy Conway, and communityemployee im, who also helped with theveterinary aspects o the program.

Veterinarians, Drs Jan Allen andStephen Cutter and veterinary assistantMelissa Reid rom the ARK AnimalHospital arrived on the community oneweek later and were then able to proceedwith the logistical work o the program.

With the assistance o ommy andim, all the community dogs and puppieswhich could be ound were ed bread

impregnated with a dose o Ivomecto control parasites. Tis medication isvery eective in the control o internaland external parasites such as intestinalworms and scabies and mange.

In total, 143 o the estimated 180

Dog health programs can have tangible, immediate and ongoing benefts or the well being o animals and people in remote

communities. Animal companionship is important and or many Indigenous people there are also strong traditional associations

with dogs as hunters and guardians. The ability to access veterinary and other preventative health services is aected by

remoteness and cost and can lead to difculties in managing and maintaining the health o dogs on communities. The Animal

Management in Rural and Remote Indigenous communities (AMRRIC) is an independent group o veterinarians, academics,health workers and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people that works to acilitate sustainable dog health programs in remote

communities. AMRRIC engages with elders and individuals in communities and coordinates the services o veterinarians and other

sta to ensure that western veterinary medicine is delivered in accordance with local expectations. Community involvement in dog

health programs is critical to their sustainability. AMRICC is currently undertaking a dog health program at Kintore in the Northern

Territory, which is approximately 500km west o Alice Springs.

K c d h p

Heathier ds,heathier cmmities

PROJECTS0


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12/20

Itrdcti

Te provision o reliable energyservices, to small remote Indigenouscommunities presents major challenges

or governments in Australia. Tesechallenges can be summarised asollows:

poor reliability o Renewable Energy(RE) in remote locations;lack o trained personnel to maintainand service RE systems;lack o back-up or RE systems inremote areas (especially Indigenouscommunities).

Te Bushlight Project at the Centre

or Appropriate echnology commencedin 2002. Bushlights vision is to improvelivelihood choices or Indigenous people,through access to sustainable renewableenergy services.

Key outcomes or the project are:

to educate and enable communitiesto manage and maintain their energy

systems;to improve the quality and reliabilityo RE systems;to establish skilled technical serviceprovider networks.

Bushlight helps build the social andtechnical capacities o people in remotecommunities to better utilise their energyservices and to engage with servicenetworks to better maintain them.

Demad Side MaaemetTe range o Demand Side Management(DSM) measures used and developedby Bushlight are integral in ensuringthat the energy services provided are

sustainable (reliable and aordable) andadequate or supporting communities toachieve their livelihoods goals.

DSM reers to an approach to energy

services which emphasises the need orenergy users to be aware and managetheir energy demand and use patterns,allow residents to operate within theamount o energy available rom asystem, and optimise how it is used. TeDSM tools adopted by Bushlight assistresidents to monitor and measure theamount o energy consumed and howquickly it is being used, to help themdecide how to manage the amount oenergy available, and to provide methodsor reducing unnecessary energy waste.

Cmmit eer pai

Using a range o pictorial resources viaworkshops and community mappingexercises, Bushlight invites communities

Cmmny

members,Jason,

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The Bshihtapprach t desii

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LIVELIHOODS22


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to consider how they use energy, howmuch it costs and to look at what optionsare available or improving their access toreliable energy services.

Te outcome o this process isthe Community Energy Plan (CEP).It details the communitys currentenergy needs as well as their uture

aspirations. Te CEP is accompanied bya Community Service Agreement (CSA),an agreement between Bushlight, thecommunity and their service provider,laying out household energy budgetsand the roles and responsibilities o thecommunity, their service provider, thesystem installer and Bushlight in regardsto the RE system.

Bushlight involves the community inall key activities and decisions, allowingthe specic needs o remote communitiesto be identied and adequately addressed

and ensuring that the delivered product:

is socially appropriate;meets current and uture needs;is integrated into a technical servicenetwork; andis accompanied by appropriatetraining and resources.

The Cmmit EerPai Mde

Te model consists o ve phases:

PrePAre StAge

Tis involves visits to remotecommunities to establish their eligibilityand discussions with unding agencies,Regional Councils and ResourceAgencies about unding or energysystems. Te available unding is taken

into account by community residentswhen assessing their energy supplyoptions.

Select StAge

Communities identiy their aspirationsand development priorities anddetermine which energy services will help

them achieve these aspirations. Duringthese discussions, inormation is providedabout the costs, benets and limitationso dierent energy supply options toenable residents to make inormeddecisions.

For communities who wish touse RE, Bushlight helps residentsidentiy their energy requirements andtechnical sta subsequently design anRE system appropriate to their needs.Each communitys energy planningoutcomes and service and maintenance

agreements are recorded in their CEP. Astorybook copy o this CEP is held in thecommunity or uture reerence.

inStAll StAge

Te RE system is installed and training insystem operations and basic maintenanceis provided to community members.

MAintAin StAge

For the rst year ater the RE systemis installed, Bushlight sta supportcommunity residents and service provider

or Council sta to service Bushlightsystems. Tey visit communities regularlyand provide training sessions ontroubleshooting and energy management,and provide technical assistance asrequired.

During each community visit,observations and issues discussed are

documented and logged on a centraldatabase. Data is also downloaded outo the RE system during each visitto identiy any aults or evidence ooverloading. Tis allows Bushlight tomonitor the situation in a community onan ongoing basis and assess any problemsthat arise.

Ater the rst year a review o theCommunitys Energy Plan is undertaken.Amongst other inormation, Bushlightasks residents how things have changedor them ater the RE system wasinstalled.

SuStAin StAge

Bushlight continues to provide technicaland training support as needed tocommunity residents, service provideror Council sta and service contractorsand record important observations and

discussions along with system data. Tisallows Bushlight to continue assistingcommunities to work towards theirlivelihoods aspirations and monitor thelevel o satisaction residents have withtheir energy services.

By this stage, Bushlights goal is orresidents to be largely sel-reliant inmanaging their energy systems.

Techica measres

In order to improve the quality, reliabilityand longevity o RE systems, Bushlight

has developed a range o technicalsolutions to the challenges aced in therigorous operating environment theywork under.

Reiabiit spp

Bushlights intent is that essentialenergy services will be maintainedalmost indenitely; to achieve this aimBushlight have developed the concepto Essential and Discretionary power.In consultation with the community,all community loads are divided into

essential (rerigeration, some lighting,and in some instances, vital medicalequipment), discretionary (most lighting,ans and appliances), and generator-only(heavy use appliances, air-conditioningand heating).

I the systems capacity is exceeded,discretionary loads are disconnected toallow continuation o supply to essentialcircuits.

Demad side maaemet (DSM)

Bushlight has developed a number

o DSM measures to assist the user inmanaging their budget, in conjunctionwith user training. For example, circuittimers and individual load timers helpthe householder manage their energy use.

Cs pg 14 >

LIVELIHOODS 13


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Apprpriate desi

Regular battery replacement canorm a signicant ongoing expense ininappropriately designed RE systems soprotection o the batteries is paramountin Bushlight systems. Bushlight designsor an average battery Depth o Discharge

(DOD) o no greater than 20%. Underthis cycle regime, it is projected thatbattery lietime will be considerable.

Bushlights RE systems aredesigned to supply the energy required.Scheduled generator runtime is notused to supplement the RE load.Experience shows that systems that dorely on scheduled generator operationare only as reliable as the generator. In

the remote communities that Bushlightworks, generators are rarely reliable,either through a lack o uel, a lack omaintenance, a at battery, or generatorbreakdown.

Apprpriate cmpets

Over the course o the project, Bushlighthas developed a range o standardised,robust electrical enclosures that arespecially designed and tested to optimiseheat removal to prolong the lie o thecritical components housed within. Allenclosures are rigorously tested prior toleaving the actory.

Specially developed user interacesare a eature o the Bushlight enclosures.

O note is the car dashboard analogy,with a battery voltmeter or LED displayorming the uel gauge, and an ammeterthe speedometer which inorm the usero their rate o energy consumption, andthe remaining available energy in theirbatteries or budget.

Eer Maaemet uit (EMu)

Te EMU maximizes battery lie and,in conjunction with the CEP process,provides residents with the technicalknowledge to manage their energy use inrelation to available supply.

During Bushlights communityenergy planning process, each householdidenties their daily and seasonal energy

LIVELIHOODS44


15/20

requirements. As part o the designprocess, each EMU is allocated a dailyenergy budget which varies over the yearto match seasonal variations in energyuse and the capacity o the system. Inaddition, an essential buer is allocatedto each EMU to ensure essential power is

not lost.Programmed with its allocated daily

energy budget, the EMU monitors andcontrols energy use in relation to thehouseholds energy budget. Every midday,the EMU resets the energy budget.

Protection against energy demandexceeding energy budgets is enabledby the wiring o essential appliances,such as rerigerators and essentiallighting, onto essential power circuits;the remaining discretionary loads areallocated discretionary power circuits. As

energy is consumed the energy budgetcounts down, as indicated by the visualdisplay, with a warning lamp ashingwhen the supply is nearly exhausted. Iavailable energy is exceeded, power tothe discretionary circuits is discontinued,however power supply to the essentialcircuit continues. Supply to all circuitsis reconnected at the ollowing middaybudget reset.

With wider use in non BushlightRE systems, the EMU will save thesignicant maintenance costs currently

arising rom replacement o prematurelyailed batteries.

Partia Reset

A novel unction o the Bushlightcommunity system is the Partial Resetunctionality o the EMU. In conditionswhere the batteries ail to attain ullcharge (or example, very overcastweather), the daily energy budget is resetto only 75% o the normal budget toensure protection o the batteries.

Qait istaatiAll systems are installed to the Bushlightechnical Specication to ensure a highquality o installation is achieved at allsites. Several additional resources havebeen produced to assist installers inmaintaining quality.

Bushlight supplies all electricalenclosures containing the systems keycomponents to installers. Contractorsare ree to use batteries and PV moduleso their choice rom those listed onBushlights pre-approved component

list. All components on this list arerigorously screened or quality toensure their suitability or Bushlightinstallations.

Finally, Bushlights Project Managers

commission every installation to ensurecompliance with specications.

Maiteace, spprt ad traii

o maximise reliability and sustainability othe RE systems, Bushlight ensures that anappropriate repair and maintenance regimeis in place. Tis occurs via a three tiersupport structure or each o the systems,involving community residents, resourceagencies and electrical contractors.

level One cOMMunity:

Bushlight provides training to as manycommunity residents as possible in theoperation and maintenance o their REsystem, basic troubleshooting and DSMpractices.

level twO reSOurce Agency:

Bushlight assists resource agenciesdevelop their technical support capacitiesthrough on-the-ground training coursesin RE maintenance.

level three technicAl

Service PrOviderS:

Tis level includes the provision ocomprehensive scheduled annualmaintenance as well as unscheduledmaintenance by appropriately qualiedcontractors. Bushlight provides specialisttraining and support to these contractors.

Each system is covered or deectsor the rst year. Ater this rst year ooperation, Bushlight has a maintenanceprogram where electrical contractors areengaged under contracts to deliver LevelTree maintenance.

Fiacia impicatis ad tcmes

Lie Cycle Costing (LCC) is carried outor every Bushlight installation during

the design phase in comparison with

24 hour diesel (a similar service) andintermittent diesel (the typical case in thecommunities that Bushlight work in).

ypically a Bushlight systemcompares avourably with theintermittent diesel scenario, and providesa ar more reliable and user riendlysupply. Added benets include theability to keep ood resh in 24 hourrerigeration and reduced need or tripsto town or the purchase o generatoruel.

Signicantly or the end user the

operating cost comparison showsBushlight as clearly a more sustainablesolution or the community. Evidenceshows that many communities havebeen able to make good economic use othe money saved on generator uel orcommunity development projects andenterprise activities.

Ccsi

Independent evaluation has oundthat Bushlight is meeting or exceedingexpectations and that recipient

communities are universally satised withboth their system perormance and theirrelationship with Bushlight.

Trough Bushlight, manycommunities now have access to reliableand sustainable RE services.

PAul A Coull

Centre or Appropriate Technology

Alice Springs

Situated on a ridge o sand onthe McArthur River oodplain,near Borroloola is the community oSandridge. Traditional Owner, NancyMcDinny and her husband Stewart

Hoosan are both successul artistswho wanted a place to live andwork with their amilies that was quieterthan Borroloola. With the Bushlightsystem the community saves about$9000 a year on diesel and as Stewartsays: When the river is over thepowerlines, Wandangula (the closestcommunity to Borroloola on gridpower), has no power; but Sandridgehas power.

Chuula community is occupiedby the Kaanju people and sits ontheir traditional homelands on theWenlock and Pascoe Rivers o Cape YorkPeninsula, Queensland. The residents

o Chuula stay on their homeland allyear and are well established witha proven track record o efcientlyusing, maintaining and servicing theirinrastructure and resources. Even so,the introduction o the Bushlight RESystem has provided them with moretime and fnances to urther developtheir aspirations. Even during the wetseason when there were overcast dayswe managed our power use and neverran out o power.

Sme Bshiht sccess stries:

LIVELIHOODS 15


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Backrd

From 1997 through to 2001 socialtensions in the Solomon Islands wereincreasing (see timeline page 18). Tetensions were driven by a culmination

o actors, including: poor planning bypast administrations; mismanagement othe country s resources; corruption andland ownership problems. Te SolomonIslands has been represented in mediaand research reports as a ailed state.Te notion o a ailed state is interestingbut difcult to contextualise. In the caseo Solomon Islands the term was used toexplain the clash between strong pre-modern Melanesian decision makingsystems and modern state systems. Tisis said to have weakened governance

processes leading to violence and unrest(Wainwright 2003).

Te Regional Assistance Mission toSolomon Islands (RAMSI) was initi-ated in 2003 at the request o the then

Solomon Islands Government. Teintervention was planned to respond tothe civil unrest and the claims o ailedstate. RAMSI is a partnership betweenthe people and Government o Solomon

Islands and teen pacic countries,including: Australia, New Zealand, Kir-ribati, Fiji (RAMSI 2007). RAMSI hasthe goal o helping the Solomon Islandsto instil the oundations or long-termstability, security and prosperity. o dothis RAMSIs mandate is to:

ensure the saety and security oSolomon Islands;repair and reorm the machinery ogovernment, improve governmentaccountability and improve the

delivery o services in urban andprovincial areas;improve economic governance andstrengthen the governments inancialsystems;

help rebuild the economy andencourage sustainable broad-basedgrowth;build strong and peaceulcommunities (RAMSI 2007).

Tis article explores some issuesarising rom the implementation oRAMSIs mandate.

Sm Isads

Te Solomon Islands is a Melanesiannation, east o Papua New Guinea andnortheast o Australia, consisting omany small islands. ogether the islandscover a land mass o 28,400 squarekilometres. Te capital is Honiara andis located on the island o Guadalcanal.

Te Solomon Islands are believed tohave been inhabited by Melanesianpeople or thousands o years. Te UnitedKingdom established a protectorate overthe Solomon Islands in the 1890s. Sel-

S isds s pyd s pc dp d s c vc, gv scdc

d c v dd cys cc d sc sby d cv scy. t wg

pvcs Gdc d m d spsb c gg d s s

bd cy sc 1998. t c s s s ppd css y cys s

sds. ov css s sd v dspcd 35,000 S isds d csd d b 200. i s s dvsd cy (h 2006). i J 2003, rg asssc

mss S isds (ramSi) vd s pc d ds c s.

AustralianandNew

ZealandIroquois

c an n a

stoneybeachatthenew

policebaseatKolina,

onthetroubled

Waca

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PhotoCourteSy aaP Image/JIm bayNeS

The Reia Assistace Missi t the

Sm Isads

INTERNATIONAL6


17/20

cs pg 18 >

government was achieved in 1976 andindependence two years later. Te countryremains a part o the Commonwealthrealm.

Esri the saet ad secrit the Sm Isads

Te short term goal o RAMSI was

to quell the violence and establish lawand order in the Solomon Islands.Te longer term phase was to bringstability to the budget and rebuild themachinery o government. In terms osaety and security, RAMSI organised thesurrender o rearms and within weeks2500 weapons and 30,000 rounds oammunition had been handed in (Moore2007). RAMSI also pursued corruption.It bought in magistrates and lawyers, andimproved court acilities. By November2003, over 160 Royal Solomon Island

Police had been charged, several memberso the Supreme Court were sent to prisonand more than 6,000 militia men werearrested (Sodhi 2008: 8). Nonetheless,many Solomon Islanders are disappointedthat so ew senior corrupt politicians,police and public servants were detained(Kabutualaka 2004).

Despite the initial success in sta-bilising law and order, serious tensionsbetween RAMSI, the Solomon IslandsGovernment and societal groups beganemerging in 2006. It has been argued

that RAMSI has done little to reduceentrenched actional and ethnic rivalry.Te perceived ambiguity o the intent oRAMSIs initial plans remains centralto the on-going turmoil experienced bythe people o the Solomon Islands andtheir government. Te dismissal o theAustralian High Commissioner and theriots in April 2006 (see timeline page 18)

that rocked Honiara are signs o continu-ing tensions. Hameiri (2007) argues thatmilitary deployment is no real solution tothe deep-seated problems that underliethe riots. He believes that the riots signiya growing disaection o many SolomonIslanders with their marginalisation rompolitical and economic processes. RAMSI

priorities have tended to underminetraditional structures and have not beeneective in reducing tensions caused bypatterns o high but uneven economicdevelopment. Increasingly, the argumentsagainst RAMSI suggest that the inter-vention is exacerbating local conict.

Repairi ad rermi the machier vermet, imprvi vermetacctabiit ad imprvi thedeiver services i rba adprvicia areas

RAMSIs approach to governancereorm approach included the policy oplacing o Australian personnel into keypositions in the Solomon Islands publicadministration the Cabinet Ofceand Finance, Public Service, Health,Justice, Lands and Police Department.Whilst great achievements were madeby RAMSI in the rst twelve months inre-establishing law and order, the rapiddeployment o the intervention meantthere was little long term planning,personnel management nor attention

given to building transparent andaccountable reorm processes. Tere hasalso been a key ailure in prioritising andcoordinating public diplomacy acrossall areas o the intervention and withboth government and opposition parties(OCallaghan, 2006). Tere have beena series o parliamentary elections andleadership resignations since 2000, each

tainted with allegations o corruption,partisanship and since 2006 at least,increased rumblings o dissatisactionwith RAMSI. Tere is an emergingperception that RAMSI is able toexercise considerable power within theSolomon Islands and across governmentdepartments with little accountability

(Sodhi 2008). Te previous PrimeMinister, Manasseh Sogavare, accusedAustralia o using the current partnershipas a license to inltrate almost allsectors o the public sector. In the samestatement, he alleged oreign nationalscan be appointed to key governmentpositions with no restrictions rom theSolomon Islands administration, securityand leadership.

Critics o RAMSI have argued thatRAMSIs top down approach wont work.Kabutaulaka (2005) makes the observa-

tion that in the Solomon Islands therehas always been a signicant power baseoutside o the state. He suggests that thekey to governance in Solomon Islands isa orm o power sharing between societalinstitutions and the state. Because RAMSIhas not engaged with these alternativeand possibly useul sources o legitimatepower, it is perceived as more beholden tooreign interests than the interests o theSolomon Islands people and government(Hameiri 20007). Overall, RAMSIslong-term relationship with the Solomon

Island Government remains unclear andthere appears to be no exit strategy orthe intervention.

Imprvi ecmic veracead strethei the vermetsfacia sstems

Te Solomon Islands has experiencedthe astest gross domestic productgrowth among many o the other pacicnations since the RAMSI intervention.Te growth has been underpinned byan expansion in shing, agriculture

(especially cocoa and copra) and orestry.However, this is in the context o aloss o 25% o gross domestic productduring 1997-2003 (Sodhi 2008). It couldalso be articially inated by the inuxo RAMSI based cash into the localeconomy as well as the escalation ooreign aid since 2003. Te sustainabilityand continued improvement o theseeconomic wins is difcult to determine.

Hepi rebid the ecm adecrai sstaiabe brad-based

rthWhilst the economy has experiencedundeniable growth, RAMSIs acilitationo private sector activity has urtherenriched already better o elites,

INTERNATIONAL 17

LEFT:FormermilitantsatAvuAvu,onthetroubledWeathercoastoftheSolomonIslands

handinreamstotheAustralianledinterventionforcetodestroyinabonreonAugust

10, 2003. PhotoCourteSy aaP Image/JIm bayNeS


18/20

and amplied the lack o progressin the provinces. Carrol and Hameiri(2007) argue that the emphasis ongood governance as a key to povertyreduction and security is undamentallylimited. Tey say that in ocussing ongood governance RAMSI neglectsundamental poverty reduction issues

such as education, employment,access to nance and capital and ruralinrastructure and development, whilepromoting policies that are difcultto implement and highly problematic.RAMSIs economic ocus has been onreducing regulatory barriers to businessin Honiara and encouraging oreigninvestment (Sodhi 2008). However, 85%o Solomon Islanders live in rural areas,do not participate in the cash economyand thereore remain largely unaectedby these initiatives.

Bidi str ad peacecmmities

It has been our years since RAMSIstarted and the process o rebuildinga nation and its communities post-conict remains a challenge. Carroland Hameiri (2007) suggest that whileRAMSI promotes good governancein a variety o areas, this has ironicallybeen associated with increasing violence.By supporting institutions that localpoliticians with little popular legitimacy

(example Sini Rynder) are able tomanipulate to their advantage, civil unresthas been inadvertently cultivated. Teco-operative eort needed to achievethe reorms instigated by RAMSI isundermined by a lack o capacity andcohesion in the Solomon Islands. It isalso questionable whether the SolomonIslands at this point in time has thecapacity to engage on an equal basiswith the intervention mission in a truepartnership arrangement. Sodhi (2008)argues that RAMSI needs to better

service the rural areas. People in theseareas still lack services such as education,health, roads, inter-island transport andother important rural developments. Heurther suggests that RAMSI is at risko becoming the latest agency promisingto deliver development with littleimprovement to show or their pledges(Sodhi, 2008: 2).

lesss eart

RAMSI was developed at the requesto the Solomon Islands Government. It

was conceived as a regional assistancepackage, however RAMSI is otenportrayed as inuenced and controlledby the Australian Government. Whatcan RAMSI tells us about the process o

rapidly deployed law and order reormocussed missions? Tere are importantlessons rom this work that could beapplied liberally to other developmentcontexts. I highlight some o these here:

assistance needs to be directed inthe irst phase to achieving small

but important wins or increasedcommunity support;at the same time there is a needto plan or the long term, becauseshort term wins are unlikely to besustainable without on-going support;communities are not likely to be ableto engage on an equal basis;assistance teams need to be aware andact to mitigate against the inluentialpower imbalance o their work;there may be negative spin-os andthose involved should be prepared or

this, including managing the risks;rebuilding communities requires aholistic approach not a band-aidsolution to law and order problems;top down approaches that are notdriven by community identiiedpriorities are requently unsustainable;those working in regional assistanceprograms need to work with localcommunities to achieve their supportand their trust;work on improving governanceshould be linked to supporting local

and legitimate decision makingprotocols;clear agreements with the communityneed to be made, including on-goingplanning and exit timerames;building the capacity o thecommunity to remain resilient,secure and sae post the assistancemission is paramount in planning andimplementation process;on-going evaluations o the missionthat incorporates assessments by

INTERNATIONAL8

1997-2007:A timeie evets ithe Sm Isads

1997: Annual General Elections, electiono Bartholomew Uluaalu, a Malaitan.

1998: Uluaalus Government survives amotion o no confdence. Fighting breaksout between the two rival militias theIsatubu Freedom Movement (GuadalcanalIsland) and the Malaitan Eagle Force (MaliataIsland). At least 20,000 Malaitans are orced oGuadalcanal.

June 2000: The Malaitan Eagle Force stagesan attempted coup. It takes BartholomewUluaalu hostage. He is subsequently orcedto resigned.

June 2000: Parliamentary election oManasseh Sogavare.

Oct 2000: A broad peace treaty brokeredbetween the Malaitan Eagle Force andIsatabu Freedom Movement. Unarmed peace-keepers rom Australia and New Zealand aredeployed to supervise the handover o arms.

Feb 2001: Marau Peace Agreement attemptsto bring together the two warring actions.

Sept 2001: Murder o prominent rebelleader Selwyn Sake o the Isatabul FreedomMovement threatens peace agreement.

Dec 2001: Annual General Elections, electiono Allan Kemekeza.

July 2003: RAMSI was initiated in the SolomonIslands at the request o Kemekeza.

Aug 2003: Harold Keke, prominent rebel lead-er o Istabu Freedom Movement surrendersto Australia orces. He is charged with murder.

Dec 2004: Australian Federal Police Ofcerkilled whilst serving the RAMSI police orcein Honiara.

Mar 2005: Harold Keke and two o hisassociates are jailed or lie or the 2002murder o MP Father Augustine Geve.

Apr 2006: 6th Annual General Elections,

election o Synder Rini.

April 2006: Black Tuesday Riots: Many peopleangry at the election o Synder Rini stormedthe streets o the capital and completelydestroyed the citys Chinatown district.

Apr 2006: Synder Rini orced to resign.

May 2006: Parliamentary election o ManassehSogavare.

Sept 2006: Australian High Comissioner, PatrickCole, was expelled rom the Solomon Islands.

Oct 2006: Sogavare threatens to expel

Australia rom RAMSI.Dec 2007: Solomon Islands Parliament cast ano confdence vote over Manasseh Sogavare.

Dec 2007: Parliamentary election o Dr DerrickSikua.

AustralianDefenceForcepersonnelwalk

an man hnaa a

Australian-ledinterventionforcebegins

toestablishitselfintheSolomonIslands

caa. PhotoCourteSy aaP Image/deaN lewINS


19/20

lola YounG dc w d c (l Yg d a Vbgs) Pbsd by f as C Pss 2007 160 pgs ps CD .

avb rd Kg Bks, tdd m, ac Spgs, nt.

all stakeholders are necessary tounderstand the outcomes;clear and concise communication

between all parties, rom the Headso Government to the people in ruralvillages, needs to be undertaken;wage and accommodation disparitiesbetween deployed sta and thosealready working in the communitiesneeds to be handled sensitively;strategies, technologies and processesneed to it the local context;assistance programs need to remaintransparent and accountable to allstakeholders.

CcsisRAMSI has had some success in termso restoring law and order, stabilisingthe economic and social conditions andbeginning institutional strengthening butthe hard part is yet to come. It is difcultto argue that the achievements in theSolomon Islands can be solely attributedto RAMSI.

Tis article highlights the realtensions that exist between interven-tion teams and local organisations andpeople. Clearly, the on-going relation-

ship between the Solomon IslandsGovernment and RAMSI needs to beaddressed as a matter o urgency. Terecent re-emergence o rioting andunrest, at times directly targeting security

orces deployed as a part o RAMSI orethnic groups (Chinese) perceived to bebeneting excessively because o RAMSI,

highlights that a review o RAMSIaims and processes is pressing. Giventhat desperate circumstances ratherthan mutually benecial collaborationdictated the necessity o RAMSI, theissues in managing mounting tensionsgenerated by the presence and actionso an intervention orce, even one thatwas so enthusiastically invited in, willbe ongoing. Te degree o honest sel-examination, imagination and skill withwhich such issues are resolved by boththe Regional Mission and its hosts, be it

the Sikua Government or the ones thatsucceed it, will be pivotal to the successo RAMSI and will also determine theuture o the Solomon Islands and itspeople.

AlySon wRIgHT

Centre or Appropriate Technology

Alice Springs

referenCeS

Cia (1989) p://www.wb./w/rWB.nSf/

db900lgmps/SKar-64GBhC?opDc,

ccssd 17/12/2007.

C, tby d h, S. (2007) Gd gvc

d scy: s ass w d pg,

J Cpy as, 37(4): 410-430.

h, S (2007) t tb w ramSi:

rxg rs Cc S isds,

t Cpy Pcc 19(2).

h, S (2006) W ry W Wg

Ss, t ag (24 ap): 11.

Kbk, tcss (2004) Byd v:

nvgg Ss isds , p, es Ws

C d appd rsc u, h.

Kbk, tcss (2005) as g pcy

d ramSi v S isds,

t Cpy Pcc, 17(2): 283-308.

m, Cv. (2007) hp : S isds

2003-2007, t J Pcc hsy, 42(2): 141-164.oCg, m.l. (2006) ramSi: t Cgs ad.

Pp psd Wksp Solomon Islands:

Where to now?5 my 2006. ogsd by S

Scy d Gvc ms Pjc d

Pcc C, Cg as d Pcc, as

n uvsy.

rg mss S isds (ramSi) (2007)

p://www.s.g/, ccssd 16/12/2007

Sd, Gv (2008) fv t: a pc p

rg asssc mss S isds

(ramSi), iss ayss, t C idpd

Sds, n. 92.

Wwg, es. (2003) o g gb: as

d S isds, Sgy d

i Pg aSPi Pcy rp, as

Sgc Pcy u, Cb.

Wwg, es. (2005) hw s ramSi g? Pgss,

cgs d sss d, as Sgc Pcy

is, Cb

p://www.sp.g./pbcs/pbc_ds.

spx?CiD=68&pbyp=6, ccssd 25/11/2008.

Lola Young begins thisbeautiully presented book

by explaining the importanceo accurate identication ouseul and medicinal plants,and how she gains her

knowledge o bush medicinerom her grandparents.

She goes on to share thestory o her lie, rom the

happy early days, to the hardtimes that begin ater herather passes away.

Lola longs to return withher amily to their traditionalland near om Price, andeventually she does.

Out on her country, Lolahas her rst experience ohearing the spirits o herAncestors singing to her andrevealing to her things aboutthe land, and that she should

teach.Lolas amily join her, and

her dream o establishingWakuthuni (laughing

kangaroo) community isrealised.

Despite some setbacksand illness, Lola begins a

business making toiletries,utilising her knowledgeo the healing propertieso indigenous plants. Lolaalso begins plans or herlatest project, to start up ahomework centre to serveas a place to provide careor the children, the elderlyand to service the localcommunity.

In the Second sectiono the book, Lola provides

inormation on 60 plantspecies and their uses, givingtheir Aboriginal, commonand scientic names, with

multiple colour photos oreasy identication.

Troughout the bookare a number o asides with

inormation on variousauna and ora, cookingmethods and interestinganecdotes.

Since returning to hercountry, Lola has received sixsongs rom the spirits o herAncestors over a period otime, and Lola has includedthese songs on the CD romaccompanying this book.At the back o the book thesong meanings are described.

Humorous, sad,insightul and inormative,this book is a pleasure toread.

19REVIEW

lolA young medicie ma ad teacher By lolA young AnD AnnA VITEnBERgS


20/20

CAAMA 8KIN FM (100.5 FM),

Alice Springs

Radio Larrakia (93.7 FM),

Darwin

Walpiri Media, Yuendumu

6AR, Perth

Nggaayatjarra Media, Wingellina

Mulba Radio, Port Hedland

6GME (99.7 FM), Broome

6FX (936 AM), Fitzroy Crossing

6PRK (98.1 FM), Halls Creek

6WR (693 AM), Kununurra

3CR (855 AM), Melbourne

3KND, Melbourne

Gadigal Information Service

(93.7 FM), Sydney

4AAA (98.9 FM), Brisbane

4CLM (98.7 FM), Cairns

4K1G (107.1 FM), Townsville

4MOB (100.9 FM), Mt Isa

5UV Radio Adelaide (101.5),

Adelaide

5UMA (89.1 FM), Port Augusta

5NPY Media Umuwa (101.3 FM),

Pitjatjantjara Lands

BRACS stations in the Top End

via TEABBA (Top End Aboriginal

Bush Broadcasting Association);

in the Pilbara and Kimberley via

PAKAM (Pilbara and Kimberley

Aboriginal Media Association); in

the Torres Strait Islands on Moa

Island, Yam Island and via TSIMA

(TSI Media Association).

Other stations pick up the show

via the National Indigenous Radio

Service and TAPE, the Aboriginal

Program Exchange.

o p r b

a t

s i.

Tune into

Our Place RadioWITHADRIAN SHAW

32 pest Steet, Alce Sgs nT 0870

po BoX 8044, Alce Sgs nT 0871

phe: 08 8951 4311 Fax: 08 8951 4333

0

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