When three worlds converge: tribal life in Ethiopia

One image sums up my time in the Omo Valley: the remote area in south-west Ethiopia where tribal cultures still flourish. I’m attending a wedding in a village several miles down a dusty path, barely usable by vehicles.  The woman in front of me has the braided, red-dyed hair typical for women of the Hammar … Read more

A hand-made easel, a mango tree, and a goat: resilience training in rural Ethiopia

A hand-made easel, a mango tree, and a goat: resilience training in rural Ethiopia: I feel so honoured and touched that this flipchart easel has been hand-made locally for me: square section steel, painted grey, with a big panel of wood bolted to its front. Its two coat hooks just about fit with the brass eyelets on the pad – ironically, made in China.
Handmade easelWhy here? Why me?

Face-offs with cows, and flying chickens. Lessons in community from Ethiopian roads

Face-offs with cows, and flying chickens. Lessons in community from Ethiopian roads.

It happens so often, you suspect the animals must enjoy it: why else do they spread the full width of the tarmac, instead of using the broad gravel verges? The cows are the worst: they glower balefully as if they might charge, and only turn aside from our approaching vehicle at the very last minute. At least the goats lose their nerve sooner.