Pubdate: Tue, 17 Jul 2007 Source: Herald, The (South Africa) Copyright: 2007 The Herald. Contact: http://www.theherald.co.za/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2961 Author: Mike Loewe, Grahamstown Correspondent Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/youth.htm (Youth) STUDENTS LAUNCH TOWNSHIP PROJECTS DRUGS such as tik and cocaine are being used in Grahamstown schools, township residents toss their rubbish in the streets because they don't know where else to throw it, and a restaurant promoting street children's art could be linked to American cafes. These were a few of the research findings and suggestions presented by 23 American and 23 African students at a press conference in Grahamstown yesterday. The group, which included NMMU students Anelisa Ngcibi and Andiswa Nikata, attended a three-week research course which resulted in the launch of nine township-focused community projects. The course, backed by the New Jersey-based Global Partnerships for Activism and Cross-cultural Training at Rutgers State University New Jersey, saw students from Ethiopia, Tanzania, Kenya, Zambia, Zimbabwe and South Africa pair up with American students for a course led by Rutgers International Affairs academic Dr Denise Horn. The NMMU students were chosen by the Ubuntu Educational Fund to attend the course. Ngcibi said there had been a bit of cultural miscommunication at the start, but they had become good friends with the Americans. Students in the Isiko group said their project was aimed at marketing arts and crafts created by Eluxolweni Shelter kids through a restaurant which would be linked to cafes in the US. The Sisonke project found that township residents were not informed about municipal refuse removal procedures, where to dump or what could be dumped. "People feel they can't change anything. They feel alone and there is a lack of motivation." Home owners who cleaned their yards were said to be overwhelmed by litter from neighbours. The project said residents needed to be inspired to take collective responsibility for removing waste and promoting alternatives such as trading packets for meals from the Grahamstown Feeding Association, and bottles and their own scrap metal for money. Apathy and a lack of community discussion led to a situation where residents did not think about how they disposed of their litter. The president of the 20/20 project, Jonathan Simpson, said their research into drug and alcohol abuse among the youth revealed a "serious problem" in schools. They spoke to teachers, administrators and teenagers who said "tik, weed and glue" were being used, and there was mention of cocaine being brought in from Johannesburg and Cape Town. On the positive side, they felt Grahamstown was too small to allow for the drugs to be marketed and this had an inhibiting effect. The 20/20 project discovered that schoolchildren found their life orientation teachers "too boring". to heed their advice. The project concluded that young, hip anti-drug campaigners, such as American "The New Dare" group needed to be brought to the schools. The Galela Amanzi (Pour the Water) project said it wanted to raise R2 368 for 5 000-litre community rain tanks to be put up at schools which would provide water for school gardens and flushing toilets when water supply failed. Other projects promoted the teaching of English to second-language speakers in a bid to provide access to jobs, and for clothing to be donated to the poor. Global Pact site director Paul Kuehn said the projects would be handed over to the community, but if the students wanted to continue with them, supporting funds would be found. - --- MAP posted-by: Derek