Envelope #10: Open two days after the last question

Prompt: Now that you’ve had time to process the community member’s response, has there been any change in the way you approach your service? In any case, comment on your thoughts over the last two days related to his/her response. 

In reading this, I realize now that at some point my envelopes got out of order—I had interpreted the heading to mean the last question as in the final Loewenstern prompt. Nevertheless, it’s definitely still valid. Since my conversation with Yuling and my first week adjusting to CURA, I think I definitely placed a stronger focus on the sociocultural factors to take into consideration when developing the survey instrument. I was more keen to pick up on differences. For example, while it’s perfectly acceptable and even encouraged to give some sort of financial compensation for those who volunteer to complete a survey, this is unacceptable in China, where this gesture is seen almost as a bribe of sorts meant to elicit a particular response. Additionally, in my interactions with others while working with CURA, I don’t filter things as right or wrong, but rather understand things to be different than what I’m used to. When I met Grandpa Luo of Anlong Village for the first time, he showed us around his yard, including his 7 beeboxes. I learned that he removed all the honey from the boxes and fed the bees sugar water over the winter. 

On the other hand, a local Houston beekeeper explained to our ASB group that only the surplus honey was harvested, leaving enough for the bees. Finding this contrast interesting, I shared with Grandpa Luo about the more sustainable but less economical practice I saw back home, allowing for an exchange of ideas. I respect both methods and value the insights each beekeeper has shared with me.

Overall, gaining perspective from a community member has helped me have a more open-mindset going into service, and always finding ways to apply what I learn of society and of local culture to my service in the hopes of better suiting the target population. 

Envelope #9: Open one day after the last question

Prompt: Are you still wondering if your service is making a difference?

If no, how can you make the most of your remaining time? What changes can you make to have an even greater impact?

I liked how this prompt swept aside all the potential self-satisfaction and complacency one might accumulate after having deemed oneself successful for one’s contributions. During my last week with CURA, I asked myself the second question, not out of selfish ambition, but out of realizing how quickly my last day was approaching and how much more that could still be done. While the surveys were finished, they needed to be translated. Unfortunately, 45 surveys was not something I would be able to complete in the time I had left. Luckily, a new volunteer recently joined the ranks, and I learned that she was tentatively going to take my place as an English assistant to one of the CURA staff members. In anticipation of this, I talked to her about the position, sharing my experiences and shortcomings as well as encouraging her and reassuring her that she would do great. Despite our short time together, we became fast friends. On my last day, she gave me a jar of home-made chili paste to bring back with me, which was completely unexpected but very touching.  Thus, while I helped with the survey translation, I strove to mentor the new volunteer and help prepare her. This was in line with ensuring sustainability after my departure, and I’m glad that she joined when she did!

In trying to do more with my remaining days, I turned to more big-picture items, such as helping to update the English volunteer manual for CURA. This was a great platform for me to share my own experiences as well, and also pass along what I had learned, about the city, about staying with a host family, and certainly about CURA as well. I’m grateful for the chance to give back to CURA and help indirectly welcome future CURA volunteers as they embark on an incredible journey of personal growth and new experiences during their time here. 

Aside from the above, I have just been making sure to wrap up loose ends, working on my Loewenstern posts, and jumping on the CURA office redesign bandwagon. In addition to helping to translate the presentation introducing the idea, I also folded a set of cranes to hang up in the office. There are 10 total suspended above my desk, 9 for each week I've been at CURA, and 1 more in the hopes of returning again. 

Envelope #8: Open one week prior to the conclusion of your Fellowship

Prompt: How does the local approach to addressing this social issue differ from the approach used in your home country? What, if any, distinct advantages or disadvantages do you see to either approach?

This fellowship has offered me insight into environmentalism and conservation, an area that I previously was not very knowledgeable in. Thus, in answering this question, I will be largely relying on what I have learned during this time, both at CURA and during the preparation for the fellowship, in particular my conversation with Dr. Glenn from the Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC). I would also like to start by noting the similarities I’ve observed between the two. I admire the emphasis both organizations place on involving the local residents and making them stakeholders in the projects implemented. For HARC, it was developing the Watershed Protection Plan (WPP) with Double Bayou residents towards improving the water quality of the West and East Trinity Bays. For CURA, it was working with the residents of Anlong village to implement organic farming and eco-infrastructure. In order to do so, both simply started by trying to get to know the community and understand and accommodate its needs. Thus, CURA ensured that the farmers would benefit economically from switching to organic farming by helping them connect to city customers via a CSA mechanism rather than simply forcing an environmental agenda on the residents. Ultimately, this switch helps improve the quality of the water that serves as a source of drinking water for Sichuan province residents by reducing the chemical run-off. Of course, Anlong is just one of many villages, and serves as an example in the hopes of encouraging other villages to follow suit. Both organizations certainly faced some pushback from the local residents initially, but with time the connection between the organization and its corresponding community thrived.

With regards to differences, I would say there is one notable difference that stood out to me. HARC has a closer affiliation with the government than CURA does. When speaking with Dr. Glenn, she told me the WPP project had been initiated at the EPA’s request and funding. On the other hand, CURA receives most of its funding from grants not affiliated with the government. The health survey project was funded by a National Geographic grant. Of course, I am not fully versed in CURA’s history, so this is solely my observation. Nevertheless, I learned from Dong that about half of the 160 or so dry-compost toilets he helped install with the Anlong residents were demolished by the government as part of an initiative to move the residents into more ‘compact’ communities to free up much-needed arable land. This seemed to reflect that there wasn’t as strong a collaborative effort between the government and CURA, though this probably applies to other NGOs in China as well.

Overall, these approaches seemed fairly similar in what mattered the most--maintaining a community focus, certainly advantageous in any setting or project.

Envelope #7 Open on a day when you're pondering the value of your service

How do you measure your successes on a daily basis? How does your host agency measure successes over a longer period of time? How do your daily successes impact their overall success? Do you believe you are making a difference?

I wouldn’t say I’ve consciously used some itemized metric to evaluate my success on a daily basis before I leave the office, rather it’s something I’ve kept track of subconsciously. I’m happy with my day’s work if I was able to do what I had set out to do, staying on track with the projects I had. At the same time, successful isn’t necessarily all work—a large part of it certainly has to do with the people I have had the privilege of knowing and the relationships I’ve formed with them. So, success can just as much be making progress editing and correcting the health survey as it is occasionally helping杨姐in the kitchen. In all circumstances, the common link is that I’m always learning and getting to know others better. Sometimes, it’s also about knowing myself better, not only my strengths but also my weaknesses. During the implementation of the health survey, I was feeling quite confident with my grasp of handling communication as I could understand the residents’ heavy accents and was also getting to know the volunteers. However, I saw how lacking I was with respect to the most basic aspects of communication when twice our English-speaking project leader didn’t know where we were going until we had arrived. Luckily, he was very generous and graciously went with the flow, but it was certainly humbling for me. It was a grounding experience to realize that at the end of the day, I couldn’t let myself forego the everyday communication essentials in favor of the communicating with others to learn and exchange. Thus, after returning to the office, I consciously made sure I was enabling communication among the members rather than ‘selectively filtering.’ Aside from all the jokes exchanged, ideas were presented and change was initiated.

In terms of long-term success as measured by CURA, I would say this hinges upon the sustainability of the project itself. For example, this health survey will likely be considered a success if it yields useful demographics and statistics which can then serve as a baseline relative to future anticipated improvements. A success story for CURA would be Anlong village, which has 8 organic farmers, most of which run a CSA (community supported agriculture) program as well. Additionally, the village has a lot of eco-infrastructure, including methane biogas digesters, wetlands and dry-composting toilets. Since being installed, they have tangibly improved the residents’ standard of living, not to mention improved the eco-friendliness of the village itself. Anlong is now a ‘model village,’ that is regularly visited a variety of people interested in following a similar model. Nevertheless, infrastructure aside, CURA certainly measures success in terms of relationships as well. Dong, a CURA staff member, lived in Anlong for at least a year when he was overseeing the construction of the eco-infrastructure. Despite having a difficult time at first fitting in, he was eventually accepted and is now always greeted warmly by the people we pass in the street. Likewise, with the village in which we did a health survey—shuitianping—it was just as much about cultivating our relationship with the community as much as it was about gathering data. Thus, prior to the health survey, we hosted a health lecture in a villager’s house discussing the advantages of DIY vinegar in household chores, both in terms of environmental friendliness and effectiveness. This gave us the chance to get our foot in the door and actively contribute for the betterment of the community.

As for the tie-in between my own successes and CURA’s, I would like to think that my daily successes do impact CURA’s overall success—i.e. developing the survey, recruiting volunteers, organizing the survey training. Because CURA doesn’t have a large staff—I believe this means volunteers can contribute a lot more. It meant a lot to me when Dong said of me that I had been working like a full time staff member in terms of time and effort. From this, I knew I had helped contribute to furthering CURA’s mission and vision.  

Envelope #6: Open on any day after the mid-point of your experience

Prompt: Consider the service you are currently doing. How does your current service align with the best practices and recommendations identified in class (UNIV 305)? What are further areas for alignment and improvement? How would you implement these improvements? 

I'm glad and grateful to have this service experience through a Loewenstern Fellowship and the framework it entails. Prior to the actual service trip, I was better prepared through the training which came in the form of a workshop given by FSD (Foundations for Sustainable Development), the weekly classes and discussions, the journal entries, and especially the independent study project, which was specific to my service trip and social issue. This training helped me prepare my mindset going into the trip and formulate a working definition of sustainable service and community-centered development. The journal prompts were an opportunity to reflect on what this might look like in practice and challenge myself to go deeper on topics relevant to international service. As for recommendations, I think it would be helpful to take time to better understand more of the country and the local community beforehand. This would allow for more insightful analysis while in the host community. For example, having done research for a CHIN 411 presentation about Western influences on fast food in China, I knew the Pizza Hut in China was entirely different from what we were accustomed to in the US. Thus, I made sure to try it out in the good company of my fellow Chengdu LW Fellows. On a more serious note, one conversation I had with my host mom was about retirement and nursing homes. There is a Chinese phrase ‘three generations under one roof,’ which has been a gold standard of sorts with respect to filial piety; children are expected to house and care for their retired parents. However, I learned from my host mom that cultural attitudes, at least for some, are shifting. To her and her friends, she would not consider it unfilial of her children if she and her husband did not live with them. In fact, she said she would much rather live in a senior residence with her friends. By having a solid foundation of background knowledge—knowing what matters to them and what differs from the US—one can have more substantial and engaging conversations. Nevertheless, no amount of preparation beforehand can fully equip you for your time abroad; the beauty of an extended service trip abroad is the continual learning and adapting it entails. Only upon arriving in Chengdu did I learn about the Uber vs. taxi predicament.

Additionally, based on my work with CURA, I would say it is also important to understand what skills, language or otherwise, are needed by the NGO or community. In most cases, any and all skills are welcome. For the health survey project I worked on while at CURA, there was definitely a language prerequisite as I translated back and forth between English and Chinese for myself and for my project leader. Good intentions and enthusiasm are not sufficient in the reality of limited resources. This was apparent in a discussion over the upcoming arrival of three FedEx administrators coming to volunteer with CURA for a month in the hopes of improving the delivery system of CSA (community supported agriculture) produce from Anlong village to Chengdu. While their skill set was relevant, the CURA staff was debating whether they had to turn them away because of the lack of funding to procure a full-time translator. Luckily, the issue was resolved as the NGO that matched the volunteers to CURA agreed to provide a translator.

Of course, there’s plenty more to say about the best practices that I think were met during my trip so far: providing long-term opportunities (6-10 weeks) and fostering of communication between the LW fellow and the local community. Even up to the day of my flight to China, the concept of a 9-week long service trip was both exciting and intimidating to me. At what point would the novelty of being abroad wear off, leaving me homesick? But that turned out to be a question I never had to answer. As I quickly adjusted to my new environment, I found myself seeing the 9 weeks I’d been granted in a new light. When measured by projects and goals, it was just barely enough, if not altogether too short. While each day in the office was productive, it would not have been very feasible to complete the health survey in any less time, especially considering the other mini-projects that came along as well. Developing the health survey entailed multiple drafts and numerous revisions, while implementing it required recruiting experienced volunteers and organizing various logistics. At the end of 9 weeks, there were still things to do and places to go, but I was glad to have been able to contribute during what now seemed to be my short time there. Nevertheless, 9 weeks left me enough time to form lasting memories and relationships with the people I had the pleasure of working alongside everyday. 

Envelope #5 Open at the midpoint of your experience

Prompt: How has your experience thus far met or not met your expectations? What, if anything, do you intend to change about your personal interactions or work for the remainder of your time?

Prior to arriving at CURA, I honestly did not know what to expect. In fact, I recall reading the following in an email I received from Mark, the project leader, two days before my flight to China:

"Hannah, clear your mind of expectations. All will be as it is."

Nevertheless, this message was not so shocking to me, as I was mentally prepared to be flexible and adapt to whatever was awaiting me. My only concern at the time was that I would not be able to contribute much either due to insufficient language abilities, technical skills, or a mix of both. But, I was lucky enough to have a phenomenal experience that exceeded all expectations. I found myself fitting in easily, contributing to both the playful office banter and to the project at hand--developing (and later implementing) a health survey to be implemented in a village upstream of Chengdu. Each day entailed new experiences, such as walking alongside the city's rivers to the Living Water Park, which purifies 200 cubic meters of river water each day through a fish-shaped wetland system. Another time, it was meeting with Professor Wang Jintao of HuaXi School of Public Health to discuss my first rough draft of the health survey. CURA was a family, its members united by a love of protecting rivers and exchanging good-natured jests. Every day over lunch, business was set aside as stories and advice became the currency of communication. During these meals, I continued to learn, about the Sichuan dishes made by our chef Mrs. Dong, about Chinese culture and perspectives. It was also good practice for me to as I trained my ear to understand the Sichuan dialect. Sometimes, we would also have a visitor or two--a former CURA member, people hailing from other NGOs, once even someone from the Australian Embassy, who admitted a good part of his job was surprisingly dedicated to visiting incarcerated fellow countrymen.

Outside of my time in the office, my expectations have certainly been surpassed as well. I was told Chengdu would be unbearably hot in terms of weather and cuisine. Nevertheless, the summer has been relatively mild (or perhaps I am accustomed to worse as a native Houstonian), and with Chengdu now more 'globalized,' the same could be said of the cuisine. Unlike the days when my father first visited Chengdu years back and was unable to discern what he ate, registering only the fiery numbness, Chengdu was now a famed city of gastronomy with much more to offer than hot pot and stir fry chock-full of peppercorn. Thanks to the Chinese equivalent of Yelp, 大众点评, and my host family, I got to try roast fish, Italian-Asian fusion, Xinjiang, Korean, French, Japanese cuisines to name a few. One local specialty I loved was 'stir-fried yogurt.' After having read about it in the morning subway newspapers, I was determined to try it. It's made by mixing yogurt with fruit and flavorings, if any, and fanning it out in a metal pan to be frozen (something below cools the surface of the pan). The yogurt is then broken up and served in chunks, as shown below.

The 'stir-fry' process

The finished product!

So while it's technically frozen yogurt, this treat was termed 'stir-fried' yogurt because of how it's prepared, given the use of a pan and spatula. Crunchy, cold, and available in some of my favorite flavors (matcha, mango, coffee), it was refreshing in the summer heat.

Of course, Chengdu has a lot more to offer than just food--the city is also known as a cultural center. I had the chance to go see the Sanxindui ('three star mound') Cultural Site, exhibiting what's left of an advanced ancient civilization unconnected to the rest of Chinese history. The prominent features protruding eyes of the bronze masks were unlike anything I had ever seen before, and bore more resemblance to the Mayan artifacts I had seen in Mexico than to those of the Chinese Han civilization. That same day, we also got to visit the 4th largest Confucius temple in China. Walking around the perimeter of the shrine, we read the wishes left by earlier visitors. Especially because Confucius considered the patron sage of knowledge and education, the handwritten requests were overwhelmingly for good gaokao scores, enough to get into China's top-tier universities. Two also aspired to attend Harvard, and at the other end of the spectrum, a few humbly asked only to pass a test or course with a 70. I think what struck me the most was how strong an emphasis was placed on gaokao, understandable given that students only have one shot to prove their worth. And that's the problem--students have wholly attached their self-worth to the outcomes of this test. Every year, there are students who commit suicide for causes related to gaokao. While on the plane back to Chengdu from Hunan, I spoke with a the passenger next to me, a parent who said just this year a girl from the area had committed suicide as a result of poor gaokao performance. It's a problem that people has come into focus, and some families have found a way out, by sending their children abroad. My host family serves as an example of this increasingly prevalent phenomenon. To these families, education abroad is superior to what's offered in China. Some high schools even form classes of students intending to go abroad, preparing them for AP and SAT tests rather than for gaokao. Of course, these doors have been opening thanks to the rapid economic development in China and the subsequent increase in disposable income.

Coming back to the subject of experiencing culture, a visit to the Chengdu panda base was not to be missed. And, thanks to a few connections, we even got to hug a one-year-old panda cub. But, just as memorable to me was the conversation I had with the retired veterinarian who had worked at the panda base. He told us about his role in nurturing the panda population from the original 10 to the current 160. At one point, a panda epidemic had dropped the number down to a meager 4, but thanks to him leading a team of researchers, the cause and cure were identified, saving the remaining pandas. His crowning achievement was the risk he took to act on his theory of ensuring the survival of both panda cubs when twins were born to the mother, a frequent natural occurrence. The method he devised proved successful and is now used at panda breeding centers around the world. Despite all his accomplishments, he was very humble, always more than happy to answer our simple questions about the pandas as we strolled through the expansive base.

These experiences are just a few of the countless that have made my time so far in Chengdu so exceptional. Ultimately, it comes down to the people I've met and the relationships I've developed. I'm looking forward to the rest of my time here as we continue preparing the survey and as I continue to learn about the city and its people. What would I change? Nothing, other than continuing to be open to new experiences and serving as a bridge between cultures.