7-29-2010

7-29-2010
Community Engagement: Farmers and Funerals

One of the biggest challenges to accessing the farmers that I am working with is finding a time to meet. They are often busy with their farms this time of year, because it is harvest season. I found that a great way to find time to work with them is through attending community events where everyone in the community is already coming together. My friend Samuel mentioned that he was going to a memorial service for an elderly man who had died, and politely extended an invitation to me. I say ‘politely’ because I am not sure he expected me to attend, and he appeared quite surprised when I eagerly accepted.

The event was not so much of a funeral, as it was a ceremony to celebrate the life of a well respected member of the community. I found he actually had died in January, so the service was well after the initial mourning process. The man who died was apparently very involved in the Anglican Church, and the ceremony featured five different church kwaya (that’s the kiswahili word for Choir), each of which brought a surprisingly large/loud sound system. The music was loud enough to attract a few hundred people, and was entertaining enough to keep everyone there for several hours. Samuel made it a point to introduce me, and I explained my research to the crowd.

Afterwords, I got a chance to sit down with a group of seven farmers to discuss their production systems. They were very happy to work with me, and they were extremely patient with my kiswahili. Overall, this was the most successful way that I have found to really access the community members that I want to work with, and I see this as a valuable lesson in how to continue with my research.

As of now, I am working with some of my friends in town to arrange similar events in the area. By participating in community events, its clear that I have access to the community members that my research demands I work with, and it makes the research process much smoother for me, and for the farmers that must donate their time.