Environment and Conservation - SueStolberger.com

IDODI SECONDARY SCHOOL ENVIRONMENTAL CENTRE

EMI - ELIMU MAZINGIRA IDODI

13th April 2010:

The dorms from the outside, and finishing the new main entrance

Progress on the dormitories continues - the January deadline was not realized; however, we were pleased to see how near to completion they are now. These photos were taken on the 3rd of April, the students returned to school yesterday after their Easter break, and the dormitories are expected to be ready for use within 10 days from now.

New beds being assembled and corridor to the dorms

The double decker beds, 50 in total, that you all so kindly donated towards, are all ready and waiting to be installed into the rooms. We are also very pleased to tell you that thanks to a very generous donation by Connie Moosbauer, from Austria, we are able to install solar lighting into 2 of the four dorm blocks. This is new solar technology from Australia, that comes via Fiona Oates, of the Anglican church in Iringa. It provides background lighting for each room, so hopefully no more candles.

Ablution block, and drive near dorms

I would like to thank you very much for your generous donations, you have all been instrumental in making these new dorms become a reality.
As you can see from these photos if we all work together a little bit goes a long way.

Heartfelt thanks are bestowed to you too, from the Headmaster and teachers of Idodi, we hope that 2010 is so far, treating you well.

kindest regards, Sue

Sue Stolberger
suestol@fastmail.fm

back to top

December 2009:

We went to the Idodi school last Monday, 30th November 09. The school is actually
closed as the term ended as usual on the 25th. As you can see from the attached
photos the building is progressing well. The roof is now going on, and they hope the
building will be completed by the beginning of term, January 14th 2010.
The Headmaster, Mr Mlasu, showed us around explaining that although the
configuration of the building looks the same some major changes have been made
regarding the emergency exits.

Each room, housing 8 students will have a door to the outside. The bars on the
windows will not be replaced, only mosquito mesh will cover the opening. The corridor
will have exits at both ends. There are now fire extinguishers installed in the school and
fire detectors will be installed in each room.
The new building will be the boys dorms, the girls will remain in the ʻboys dormitories.
The Headmaster feels that psychologically, it would not be easy for the girls to return
into the building that was previously burned, despite it being a new building. There will
be a house built for a matron in the girls wing, up till now there has never been a matron
at the school.
Solar power has been installed into the girls dorms which is a great asset for them. This
was done by a company based in Dar es Salaam. There are plenty of mattresses and
sheets now, but the one remaining item needed are beds. We have ordered 30 double -
decker beds which are the ones they prefer to use, and will order a further 20, making a
total of 100 beds. There are still 100 needed, but feel sure this will realized fairly soon,
there are others helping with the Idodi situation, however, we will continue to monitor the
progress and keep you all posted.
The end of the year examinations took place as usual, and despite the tremendous
upset due to the fire, Mr Mlasu was confident that the exams went well. You may
remember that there were 2 girls still in hospital when I wrote last, well they have both
recovered, and one of the girls even sat her form 4 examinations. So we wish her the
best of luck.
On another note, we were able to help with the Science exams, as the school was not in
possession of the chemicals and equipment needed to perform the practical exams we
provided the necessary chemicals and instruments needed, to the sum of $2,500. This
is the first year they have been able to conduct these examinations so the headmaster
is waiting anxiously for the results!
All in all, the school is progressing, it is a long slow process,facilities, teachers,
equipment etc are all in short supply, So we hope that once the dorms are up and
running we can turn our focus onto other areas of the school. Thank you all for making
this possible.

Prior to our visit to the Idodi Secondary School, we made a short visit to one of the
primary schools we support, Makifu school. We were shown around the grounds by
the head teacher and were very impressed by its neat and tidy appearance. The school
had recently constructed, with the help of the parents, a kindergarten for the younger
children aged four to six. At age seven they begin in standard one. This was a simple
building, with clean sand on the floor, a black board, and big windows. They have
appointed one parent who looks after the children and teaches them basic skills. This is
a great help for the mothers of the area! In addition to this they have a small plantation
of various indigenous trees which provide good nectar for honey. They have installed
bee-hives, and are very proud of all the various species of trees now growing there.
This sort of innovation is really excellent, as not only will the children be able to eat the
honey but the revenue collected from its sale will help with new developments within the
school.

I also include a photo of the T-shirts for the girls net-ball team donated by Authentic
Tanzania, We were entertained by the children singing us some songs. We had
recently organized school trips for the standard 6 students to spend a day in the park.
We do this every year for 7 of the primary schools in the area. This year a total of 480
students and 14 teachers visited the park in this way. We thank Harry Vlek for making
this possible .

back to top

November 2009:

First of all I would like to thank all of you for such wonderful support. I have received letters of sympathy and donations from all parts of the globe. I have printed out all of your emails and sent them on to Mr Mlasu the Headmaster of Idodi Secondary School. He is extremely grateful for such heartfelt words and donations.

To date we have received just over $10,000 which is tremendous. At the end of this update I have made a list of those who have sent in donations.

Last week I made a visit to the Idodi school and I was heartened to see so much progress.

The old, burned out structure has been removed, the local villagers started the process, then Ruaha National Park stepped in with their road making machinery, the ‘front loader’ and a lorry. These machines picked up the large piles of rubble, mainly fired, clay bricks. These bricks were then recycled by crushing them up further, and then spread along the entrance road. Thus, giving a new all-weather surface to the track.

Although an expensive operation, Ruaha Park covered the costs themselves.

The ablution block was left standing as this part of the building was not so badly burned.

Ruaha Park, plus many others have donated bags of cement, and re-enforcing steel. The buildings are now well underway, the walls are going up fast, and we hope the interior work, doors, window frames etc will be addressed with similar speed.

girls temporary dormitory (lhs) and boys' dormitory (rhs)

girls' new dormitory under construction

I visited the temporary girls dormitories,which is the boys dormitories. All of the girls now have mattresses and sheets. You can see from my photos that these teenage girls are as untidy as any other teenager! The boys however, are not faring quite so well, they are mostly sleeping on the floor of the science lab and empty classroom, with their old mattresses.

We have ordered 30 double-decker beds (so 60 students) from the remainder of the money we had available at the time, But since then ,we have received more money, so I will keep you updated on our progress. Thanks to such immediate support, things are back on a more even keel.

In Tanzania, the school year ends in November, so it is, at this moment, National Exam time for forms 2 and forms 4. As you can imagine concentrating on these important exams was not at all easy, but, despite the extremely difficult conditions the students have been placed under over these past months, the teachers and students alike, are doing their very best to keep on going. These examinations will, for many of the Form 4 students determine their scholastic grade for the rest of their lives. A few will continue on to forms 5 and 6, but many of them will look for employment in less academic fields.

The final photo depicts the ‘study’ period allocated for exam students to revise for the forth coming exams. I was interested to see that after their lunch break, which is taken at 3.00 p.m., each student carried his or her desk to a chosen spot under a tree which is by far the coolest option at this time of year. I spoke to one young man who was one of the first to appear. When I walked up to him he was immersed in a pile of exercise books. I asked him what he was studying, he looked at me shyly but replied with a wonderful smile,“Geography”. I could see copious pages of very neat handwriting, I then asked what he was hoping to do when he left school, he thought for a moment and said, ”Maybe something with Tourism.” this shy reply was followed by another engaging smile. I wished him luck and let him continue with his studies. Looking round at the hot, dusty scene, with heads buried earnestly in piles of exercise books, I couldn’t help but marvel at such enthusiasm for life and the future,

They all seemed to be in good spirits, the atmosphere at the school was vibrant and happy. Mr Mlasu has pulled the school through this difficult time, but it would never have been so easy without the support of all of you. Thank you!

Our grateful thanks go to:- Harry Vlek, Jongomero Camp, Mdonya Camp, Nabaki Ltd, Kigelia Camp, Sanders Thompson, Cornelia Felber-Moosbauer, David Wood, Mary Hunter, Steven Ronis, Sopie, of Reasonable Behavior .com, Authentic Tanzania, Brian Gaisford.

back to top

October 2009:

Dear All,

Just a quick update on what is going on at the school.

Yesterday  Dr Dulle delivered 150 mattresses to the school, 50 from

Mdonya  Camp, and 100 from us, Ruaha Conservation fund.  He says they

now have enough mattresses but what the Headmaster says they really

need now are beds.  140 of them are still required.  We have agreed

to purchase as many of these double decker beds as we can.  I will

find out the cost of these later on today.

We are also about to purchase about 150 pairs of

sheets . He said that tin trunks and school books are still needed

but the Headmaster says that as it is nearly the end of term what is

urgently required  are the beds, so that the students can at least be

more comfortable,  the other smaller items can be purchased during

the holidays as these are not needed so urgently.

Also he was pleased to see that the school was operating normally the

students seemed happy, it was Sunday, and he said they had a

debate going on in the hall and all seemed to be getting along Ok.

Kind regards Sue

Sue Stolberger

Ruaha National Park

PO Box 369

IRINGA Tanzania

back to top

September 2009:

Six weeks ago, we had a tragedy at the Idodi Secondary school. A candle left burning in the girls dormitory lead to a massive fire, which claimed the lives of 12 girls. 7 were admitted to hospital, 2 were seriously injured. The dormitory housed 400 girls, and with only one exit for them to use, it became a terrifying experience. Sadly a couple of girls raced back into the fire to help their friends only to be consumed themselves. It was devastating for the school and community alike. Rob and myself attended the funeral, which was an extremely sobering event.

The fire became a national tragedy, with Government officials from Dar es Salaam attending, plus many hundreds of people from all walks of life. The girls were buried in the school grounds.

The funeral

One cannot aptly portray the sadness and grief that was felt by all, but non more so than by the parents of the girls who had died. One young girl was weeping beside me, in her hand she clutched a plastic red rose, which was neatly wrapped in a piece of newspaper. A final gift for her beloved friend or sister.

I have taken time to inform you about this as I wanted first to know how best we could help. Many promises for new buildings were made on that day, however, things take time to materialize. As the school has been closed for some 3 weeks it wasnt possible to find out what exactly we can do to help. However Dr Dulle has recently been
participating with the Idodi Headmaster Mr Mlasu and I can report the following.

Dr Dulle has been several times to see the two girls that are still remaining in the hospital. He went again to see them on Wednesday with the Idodi headmaster, Mr Mlasu, and Mr Mwangosi the District education officer. The girls he says are doing very well, they are improving all the time and are being looked after well. He doesn't think they need to go to another hospital of a higher standard. The school has resumed classes, the girls are now housed in the boys dormitories and the boys are sleeping on the floor in the 2 buildings on the hill that have just been finished, but not in use yet. (the science lab and the new classrooms) . So far things are progressing slowly. The Government are taking their time in finding funds and the phone company Vodacom have not yet come forward with any of the promised money.

The Headmaster says, though he has been round to all the various people who pledged money, so far nothing is happening and he has no clear answer as to what will happen. Though, we are confidant that eventually the Government will give substantial help for the building, and in the interim many individuals are coming forward with money and help. There is still an awful lot needed.

Apparently 30 girls have not reported back. So far only 130 mattresses are available for the girls, (each student buys their own mattress at the onset of school) So the immediate needs are mattresses, bed sheets, beds, tin trunks and educational materials such as books and pens etc. for about 400 students. As you can
appreciate, many of these girls are form local farming families so the purchasing of necessary items a second time is often impossible. The community is presently working to remove the old buildings and the plan is to make 2 separate girls hostels. They are also trying to build toilet facilities near to the science labs for the boys to use, in the interim. It sounds a bit difficult and chaotic, but they are doing their best to continue with their studies.

The burnt-out dormitory and bathroom after the fire

Jongomero Camp is doing its best to raise more money for this urgent issue. Ruaha Park is also doing what it can both from TANAPA and many individuals at Park HQ. We
would be most grateful for any support you can give us. You can do this by wire transfer to the Ruaha Conservation Fund account details are below.

Thank you very much indeed for helping us at this time.

Best wishes, Sue

CRDB BANK LTD
IRINGA BRANCH,Tanzania
A/C Name: Ruaha Conservation Fund
A/C No: 01J1070956800
SWIFT:CORUTZTZ
Branch Code: 3508

Sue Stolberger
Ruaha National Park, PO Box 369 IRINGA, Tanzania

Idodi Village Program Update May 2009

World Environment Day Celebration at Idodi - June 5, 2008 (MS Word File, large)

Idodi Environmental Center Opening - Jan 2008

LINK: WONDERFUL SUPPORT FOR IDODI
SECONDARY SCHOOL FROM ALASKA!

For more information on this project, please email suestol@bushlink.co.tz

Rob Glen and Sue Stolberger have initiated the building of a center, which will be a large multi-purpose, solar powered building, encompassing a Library, a large hall for showing films and lectures, a display area focusing on the environment, a reception room for the Headmaster and teachers to use for small discussion groups We hope that on Saturdays we will have an active environmental club that will utilize the building for their activities. We also visualize that the room will be used for film documentary shows, talks by invited speakers from the University of Dares Salaam, Mweka Wildlife College, employees from Ruaha Park, Teacher training sessions, etc. The list is endless, but certainly we feel it will be a well used and is a much needed facility for this underdeveloped area.

The building has been constructed in an environmentally friendly way and the simple brick making device that we used, will be donated to the school on completion of the project. This hand operated machine makes hollow blocks of cement and sand, and due to its economy on cement we feel it will prove popular, and we hope it will revolutionize the way that subsequent buildings are made in the school and surrounding village. As, at present in the villages, bricks are made from clay, which is dug out from vital wetland areas, thus, subsequently destroys the wetland. These bricks are then baked hard in large ovens which are fired by burning lots and lots of wood, which means the felling of many, many trees. As a result this traditional method has a very negative effect on the environment, so one of our 'missions' with this building, has been to introduce more eco-friendly methods, which we hope will become the new way forward for all new buildings there after.

Fiona Oates is the architect, and works for the Diocese of Iringa. Fiona makes regular trips down to oversee the process and Lucas is the project foreman and is doing a fantastic job. All money for this project is being channeled through the Ruaha Conservation Fund, Dr Dulle, who is the founder and Chairman of the Fund is the chief co-ordinator of the project. We hope that the building, which is now up to the ring-beam stage, will be completed by the end of the year. Though we say it ourselves, the Centre is beginning to take shape, Fiona's design with the big windows over-looking the magnificent view of the valley is working well.

The school is extremely excited is about this new facility, and on our last site visit we had some of the fourth form students, who will be leaving this year, come up to us to say how disappointed they were that they would not be able to use the centre!

Due to the sudden rise in the cost of building materials, we are looking for additional funds to complete the building.

For more information on this project, please email sue@ruaha.com

Return to Environment and Conservation Page

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Idodi School update : May 2007

The Environmental Center really is coming along well now as I'm sure you will see by the pictures below. We suffered a series of set-backs earlier this year due to the heavy rains we 'enjoyed' this season. Plus we had a minor 'blip' with the construction of the roof, which has now been resolved. However we are thrilled by the way it is all taking shape.

The school and local communities are very excited about this new facility that they see emerging and we receive any positive comments on how much this center will be useful to all.

Thank you so much for your interest and support.

With best wishes, Sue and Rob

For more information on this project, please email sue@ruaha.com

Return to Environment and Conservation Page

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Life in Tanzania

African Art

Environment

All content ©Susan Stolberger 2005, Site design by J. Hill, SafariShots.com

IDODI SECONDARY SCHOOL ENVIRONMENTAL CENTRE

EMI - ELIMU MAZINGIRA IDODI

13th April 2010:

The dorms from the outside, and finishing the new main entrance

Progress on the dormitories continues - the January deadline was not realized; however, we were pleased to see how near to completion they are now. These photos were taken on the 3rd of April, the students returned to school yesterday after their Easter break, and the dormitories are expected to be ready for use within 10 days from now.

New beds being assembled and corridor to the dorms

The double decker beds, 50 in total, that you all so kindly donated towards, are all ready and waiting to be installed into the rooms. We are also very pleased to tell you that thanks to a very generous donation by Connie Moosbauer, from Austria, we are able to install solar lighting into 2 of the four dorm blocks. This is new solar technology from Australia, that comes via Fiona Oates, of the Anglican church in Iringa. It provides background lighting for each room, so hopefully no more candles.

Ablution block, and drive near dorms

I would like to thank you very much for your generous donations, you have all been instrumental in making these new dorms become a reality.
As you can see from these photos if we all work together a little bit goes a long way.

Heartfelt thanks are bestowed to you too, from the Headmaster and teachers of Idodi, we hope that 2010 is so far, treating you well.

kindest regards, Sue

Sue Stolberger
suestol@fastmail.fm

back to top

December 2009:

We went to the Idodi school last Monday, 30th November 09. The school is actually
closed as the term ended as usual on the 25th. As you can see from the attached
photos the building is progressing well. The roof is now going on, and they hope the
building will be completed by the beginning of term, January 14th 2010.
The Headmaster, Mr Mlasu, showed us around explaining that although the
configuration of the building looks the same some major changes have been made
regarding the emergency exits.

Each room, housing 8 students will have a door to the outside. The bars on the
windows will not be replaced, only mosquito mesh will cover the opening. The corridor
will have exits at both ends. There are now fire extinguishers installed in the school and
fire detectors will be installed in each room.
The new building will be the boys dorms, the girls will remain in the ʻboys dormitories.
The Headmaster feels that psychologically, it would not be easy for the girls to return
into the building that was previously burned, despite it being a new building. There will
be a house built for a matron in the girls wing, up till now there has never been a matron
at the school.
Solar power has been installed into the girls dorms which is a great asset for them. This
was done by a company based in Dar es Salaam. There are plenty of mattresses and
sheets now, but the one remaining item needed are beds. We have ordered 30 double -
decker beds which are the ones they prefer to use, and will order a further 20, making a
total of 100 beds. There are still 100 needed, but feel sure this will realized fairly soon,
there are others helping with the Idodi situation, however, we will continue to monitor the
progress and keep you all posted.
The end of the year examinations took place as usual, and despite the tremendous
upset due to the fire, Mr Mlasu was confident that the exams went well. You may
remember that there were 2 girls still in hospital when I wrote last, well they have both
recovered, and one of the girls even sat her form 4 examinations. So we wish her the
best of luck.
On another note, we were able to help with the Science exams, as the school was not in
possession of the chemicals and equipment needed to perform the practical exams we
provided the necessary chemicals and instruments needed, to the sum of $2,500. This
is the first year they have been able to conduct these examinations so the headmaster
is waiting anxiously for the results!
All in all, the school is progressing, it is a long slow process,facilities, teachers,
equipment etc are all in short supply, So we hope that once the dorms are up and
running we can turn our focus onto other areas of the school. Thank you all for making
this possible.

Prior to our visit to the Idodi Secondary School, we made a short visit to one of the
primary schools we support, Makifu school. We were shown around the grounds by
the head teacher and were very impressed by its neat and tidy appearance. The school
had recently constructed, with the help of the parents, a kindergarten for the younger
children aged four to six. At age seven they begin in standard one. This was a simple
building, with clean sand on the floor, a black board, and big windows. They have
appointed one parent who looks after the children and teaches them basic skills. This is
a great help for the mothers of the area! In addition to this they have a small plantation
of various indigenous trees which provide good nectar for honey. They have installed
bee-hives, and are very proud of all the various species of trees now growing there.
This sort of innovation is really excellent, as not only will the children be able to eat the
honey but the revenue collected from its sale will help with new developments within the
school.

I also include a photo of the T-shirts for the girls net-ball team donated by Authentic
Tanzania, We were entertained by the children singing us some songs. We had
recently organized school trips for the standard 6 students to spend a day in the park.
We do this every year for 7 of the primary schools in the area. This year a total of 480
students and 14 teachers visited the park in this way. We thank Harry Vlek for making
this possible .

back to top

November 2009:

First of all I would like to thank all of you for such wonderful support. I have received letters of sympathy and donations from all parts of the globe. I have printed out all of your emails and sent them on to Mr Mlasu the Headmaster of Idodi Secondary School. He is extremely grateful for such heartfelt words and donations.

To date we have received just over $10,000 which is tremendous. At the end of this update I have made a list of those who have sent in donations.

Last week I made a visit to the Idodi school and I was heartened to see so much progress.

The old, burned out structure has been removed, the local villagers started the process, then Ruaha National Park stepped in with their road making machinery, the ‘front loader’ and a lorry. These machines picked up the large piles of rubble, mainly fired, clay bricks. These bricks were then recycled by crushing them up further, and then spread along the entrance road. Thus, giving a new all-weather surface to the track.

Although an expensive operation, Ruaha Park covered the costs themselves.

The ablution block was left standing as this part of the building was not so badly burned.

Ruaha Park, plus many others have donated bags of cement, and re-enforcing steel. The buildings are now well underway, the walls are going up fast, and we hope the interior work, doors, window frames etc will be addressed with similar speed.

girls temporary dormitory (lhs) and boys' dormitory (rhs)

girls' new dormitory under construction

I visited the temporary girls dormitories,which is the boys dormitories. All of the girls now have mattresses and sheets. You can see from my photos that these teenage girls are as untidy as any other teenager! The boys however, are not faring quite so well, they are mostly sleeping on the floor of the science lab and empty classroom, with their old mattresses.

We have ordered 30 double-decker beds (so 60 students) from the remainder of the money we had available at the time, But since then ,we have received more money, so I will keep you updated on our progress. Thanks to such immediate support, things are back on a more even keel.

In Tanzania, the school year ends in November, so it is, at this moment, National Exam time for forms 2 and forms 4. As you can imagine concentrating on these important exams was not at all easy, but, despite the extremely difficult conditions the students have been placed under over these past months, the teachers and students alike, are doing their very best to keep on going. These examinations will, for many of the Form 4 students determine their scholastic grade for the rest of their lives. A few will continue on to forms 5 and 6, but many of them will look for employment in less academic fields.

The final photo depicts the ‘study’ period allocated for exam students to revise for the forth coming exams. I was interested to see that after their lunch break, which is taken at 3.00 p.m., each student carried his or her desk to a chosen spot under a tree which is by far the coolest option at this time of year. I spoke to one young man who was one of the first to appear. When I walked up to him he was immersed in a pile of exercise books. I asked him what he was studying, he looked at me shyly but replied with a wonderful smile,“Geography”. I could see copious pages of very neat handwriting, I then asked what he was hoping to do when he left school, he thought for a moment and said, ”Maybe something with Tourism.” this shy reply was followed by another engaging smile. I wished him luck and let him continue with his studies. Looking round at the hot, dusty scene, with heads buried earnestly in piles of exercise books, I couldn’t help but marvel at such enthusiasm for life and the future,

They all seemed to be in good spirits, the atmosphere at the school was vibrant and happy. Mr Mlasu has pulled the school through this difficult time, but it would never have been so easy without the support of all of you. Thank you!

Our grateful thanks go to:- Harry Vlek, Jongomero Camp, Mdonya Camp, Nabaki Ltd, Kigelia Camp, Sanders Thompson, Cornelia Felber-Moosbauer, David Wood, Mary Hunter, Steven Ronis, Sopie, of Reasonable Behavior .com, Authentic Tanzania, Brian Gaisford.

back to top

October 2009:

Dear All,

Just a quick update on what is going on at the school.

Yesterday  Dr Dulle delivered 150 mattresses to the school, 50 from

Mdonya  Camp, and 100 from us, Ruaha Conservation fund.  He says they

now have enough mattresses but what the Headmaster says they really

need now are beds.  140 of them are still required.  We have agreed

to purchase as many of these double decker beds as we can.  I will

find out the cost of these later on today.

We are also about to purchase about 150 pairs of

sheets . He said that tin trunks and school books are still needed

but the Headmaster says that as it is nearly the end of term what is

urgently required  are the beds, so that the students can at least be

more comfortable,  the other smaller items can be purchased during

the holidays as these are not needed so urgently.

Also he was pleased to see that the school was operating normally the

students seemed happy, it was Sunday, and he said they had a

debate going on in the hall and all seemed to be getting along Ok.

Kind regards Sue

Sue Stolberger

Ruaha National Park

PO Box 369

IRINGA Tanzania

back to top

September 2009:

Six weeks ago, we had a tragedy at the Idodi Secondary school. A candle left burning in the girls dormitory lead to a massive fire, which claimed the lives of 12 girls. 7 were admitted to hospital, 2 were seriously injured. The dormitory housed 400 girls, and with only one exit for them to use, it became a terrifying experience. Sadly a couple of girls raced back into the fire to help their friends only to be consumed themselves. It was devastating for the school and community alike. Rob and myself attended the funeral, which was an extremely sobering event.

The fire became a national tragedy, with Government officials from Dar es Salaam attending, plus many hundreds of people from all walks of life. The girls were buried in the school grounds.

The funeral

One cannot aptly portray the sadness and grief that was felt by all, but non more so than by the parents of the girls who had died. One young girl was weeping beside me, in her hand she clutched a plastic red rose, which was neatly wrapped in a piece of newspaper. A final gift for her beloved friend or sister.

I have taken time to inform you about this as I wanted first to know how best we could help. Many promises for new buildings were made on that day, however, things take time to materialize. As the school has been closed for some 3 weeks it wasnt possible to find out what exactly we can do to help. However Dr Dulle has recently been
participating with the Idodi Headmaster Mr Mlasu and I can report the following.

Dr Dulle has been several times to see the two girls that are still remaining in the hospital. He went again to see them on Wednesday with the Idodi headmaster, Mr Mlasu, and Mr Mwangosi the District education officer. The girls he says are doing very well, they are improving all the time and are being looked after well. He doesn't think they need to go to another hospital of a higher standard. The school has resumed classes, the girls are now housed in the boys dormitories and the boys are sleeping on the floor in the 2 buildings on the hill that have just been finished, but not in use yet. (the science lab and the new classrooms) . So far things are progressing slowly. The Government are taking their time in finding funds and the phone company Vodacom have not yet come forward with any of the promised money.

The Headmaster says, though he has been round to all the various people who pledged money, so far nothing is happening and he has no clear answer as to what will happen. Though, we are confidant that eventually the Government will give substantial help for the building, and in the interim many individuals are coming forward with money and help. There is still an awful lot needed.

Apparently 30 girls have not reported back. So far only 130 mattresses are available for the girls, (each student buys their own mattress at the onset of school) So the immediate needs are mattresses, bed sheets, beds, tin trunks and educational materials such as books and pens etc. for about 400 students. As you can
appreciate, many of these girls are form local farming families so the purchasing of necessary items a second time is often impossible. The community is presently working to remove the old buildings and the plan is to make 2 separate girls hostels. They are also trying to build toilet facilities near to the science labs for the boys to use, in the interim. It sounds a bit difficult and chaotic, but they are doing their best to continue with their studies.

The burnt-out dormitory and bathroom after the fire

Jongomero Camp is doing its best to raise more money for this urgent issue. Ruaha Park is also doing what it can both from TANAPA and many individuals at Park HQ. We
would be most grateful for any support you can give us. You can do this by wire transfer to the Ruaha Conservation Fund account details are below.

Thank you very much indeed for helping us at this time.

Best wishes, Sue

CRDB BANK LTD
IRINGA BRANCH,Tanzania
A/C Name: Ruaha Conservation Fund
A/C No: 01J1070956800
SWIFT:CORUTZTZ
Branch Code: 3508

Sue Stolberger
Ruaha National Park, PO Box 369 IRINGA, Tanzania

Idodi Village Program Update May 2009

World Environment Day Celebration at Idodi - June 5, 2008 (MS Word File, large)

Idodi Environmental Center Opening - Jan 2008

LINK: WONDERFUL SUPPORT FOR IDODI
SECONDARY SCHOOL FROM ALASKA!

For more information on this project, please email suestol@bushlink.co.tz

Rob Glen and Sue Stolberger have initiated the building of a center, which will be a large multi-purpose, solar powered building, encompassing a Library, a large hall for showing films and lectures, a display area focusing on the environment, a reception room for the Headmaster and teachers to use for small discussion groups We hope that on Saturdays we will have an active environmental club that will utilize the building for their activities. We also visualize that the room will be used for film documentary shows, talks by invited speakers from the University of Dares Salaam, Mweka Wildlife College, employees from Ruaha Park, Teacher training sessions, etc. The list is endless, but certainly we feel it will be a well used and is a much needed facility for this underdeveloped area.

The building has been constructed in an environmentally friendly way and the simple brick making device that we used, will be donated to the school on completion of the project. This hand operated machine makes hollow blocks of cement and sand, and due to its economy on cement we feel it will prove popular, and we hope it will revolutionize the way that subsequent buildings are made in the school and surrounding village. As, at present in the villages, bricks are made from clay, which is dug out from vital wetland areas, thus, subsequently destroys the wetland. These bricks are then baked hard in large ovens which are fired by burning lots and lots of wood, which means the felling of many, many trees. As a result this traditional method has a very negative effect on the environment, so one of our 'missions' with this building, has been to introduce more eco-friendly methods, which we hope will become the new way forward for all new buildings there after.

Fiona Oates is the architect, and works for the Diocese of Iringa. Fiona makes regular trips down to oversee the process and Lucas is the project foreman and is doing a fantastic job. All money for this project is being channeled through the Ruaha Conservation Fund, Dr Dulle, who is the founder and Chairman of the Fund is the chief co-ordinator of the project. We hope that the building, which is now up to the ring-beam stage, will be completed by the end of the year. Though we say it ourselves, the Centre is beginning to take shape, Fiona's design with the big windows over-looking the magnificent view of the valley is working well.

The school is extremely excited is about this new facility, and on our last site visit we had some of the fourth form students, who will be leaving this year, come up to us to say how disappointed they were that they would not be able to use the centre!

Due to the sudden rise in the cost of building materials, we are looking for additional funds to complete the building.

For more information on this project, please email sue@ruaha.com

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Idodi School update : May 2007

The Environmental Center really is coming along well now as I'm sure you will see by the pictures below. We suffered a series of set-backs earlier this year due to the heavy rains we 'enjoyed' this season. Plus we had a minor 'blip' with the construction of the roof, which has now been resolved. However we are thrilled by the way it is all taking shape.

The school and local communities are very excited about this new facility that they see emerging and we receive any positive comments on how much this center will be useful to all.

Thank you so much for your interest and support.

With best wishes, Sue and Rob

For more information on this project, please email sue@ruaha.com

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