WHO ATTENDS THE ELP?

Since the inaugural Beahrs ELP summer certificate course in 2001, 268 people from more than 60 different countries have come to UC Berkeley for interactive training in Sustainable Environmental Management. Among the ELP Alums are agronomists, foresters, environmental lawyers and journalists, social and biological scientists and development practitioners, from non-profits, academia, the private sector and government ministries as well as international organizations such as the UN and CGIAR. Gender equity has almost been attained, with numbers of women increasing each year. Learn more about the Alums on the Alumni Network page.

HEAR INTERVIEWS WITH 2007 ALUMS
Three alums of the 2007 ELP summer certificate course in Sustainable Environmental Manangement - Alifah Lestari (Indonesia), Tahir Rasheed (Pakistan) and Emmanuel Wirsiy (Cameroon) were interviewed about their experiences in the course. Click here to hear the interviews on the web site of the College of Natural Resources, UCB.

REPORTS FROM THE FIELD

Letter from Bill Sonnenschein:
ELP people contribute to Madagascar's Environmental & Economic Future

L–R: Jean-Solo Ratsisompatrarivo (’06), Lisa Gaylord (’01), Joely Ratsirarson (’04), Haja Rakotomanana (’05), Bill Sonnenschein, Zoley Ramanase (’06), Tiana Razafimahatratra (’07), Jeanneney Rabearivony (’07);  Photo: Zoley Ramanase

Something incredible has happened to my life. The President of Madagascar has asked me to be his Special Advisor on Leadership and Communication. A former Beahrs Environmental Leadership Program student, Joelisoa Ratsirarson, is now Chief-of-Staff of the President.  He asked me to come to Madagascar to talk with the President about the position, as well as research several aspects of the job.  At first (and several times more) I said no, but Joel was persistent. I finally agreed to travel to Madagascar to check it out.
What the President wants me to do is nothing less than amazing (and amazingly challenging).  Madagascar is one of the poorest countries in the world, with one of the lowest life expectancies.  It also has one of the most unique environments in the world, with almost 80% of its natural wildlife and vegetation only found within Madagascar.  This biodiversity is at risk as 75% of its rain forests have been destroyed, endangering many species of endemic flora and fauna.  The country needs development as well as conservation and reforestation.  The President wants me to help with leadership issues around the harmony between business and agricultural development and the environment, or sustainable development, as well as work on women's equality.

More specifically, the President wants me to advise him on how to communicate to the 12 different tribes of the country the messages concerning cultural changes people need to make to make sustainable development a reality.  For instance, how do you show traditional slash and burn farmers that they are not only destroying their environment, but also can have better yields and healthier goods through alternate methods?  And how do you convince young people to continue their education beyond the 5th grade so they can be trained for better jobs?

Another aspect of my job would be to visit all 22 regions of the country, both to find out more about the leadership communication it will take to sway the diverse population, and to do grassroots work.  The country is attempting decentralization, and has a system of fukotany (or community) chiefs who work closely with their communities.  Can I bring them specific communication tools?  Can I work with the regional chiefs and their staffs on delivering the President's messages, and also train them on communication tools with which they can then train the fukotany chiefs?

The women’s equality initiative is another concern.  In parts of the country, men have more than one wife.  Traditionally, men have great power over women (not unlike most of the rest of the world).  Women's health is also a big issue.  The main reason life expectancy is so low is because of the number of children who die before six, and the number of women who die in childbirth.  I have given presentations at Women In Leadership conferences around the world (one of my areas of diversity is gender communication), and the President believes that I might be of help in this area, as well.

As a final stretch of my time and abilities, he wants me to help create a business school/academy in the capital city, Antananarivo.  The idea is that leadership needs to come from all levels.  Helping him frame his messages to the diverse groups of the country is top down.  Working with regional and fukotany chiefs is bottom up.  He wants to create a middle leadership area of people trained in business skills to help with development.  The more that businesses see more people trained in this way, the more attractive Madagascar becomes as a place to build sustainable business.  I don't think I need to tell you what an honor this offer is, its importance, or its challenge.  While one person cannot transform a country, I have been given the task of helping achieve such lofty goals.

Bill Sonnenschein is a senior lecturer in Communications at the Haas School of Business, at UC Berkeley.   He is on the advisory board for the Beahrs Environmental Leadership Program and has taught “Leadership Skills for Sustainable Development” for the program for the last 4 years.  He has taught and consulted in leadership, diversity and communication in Singapore, Great Britain, Guatemala, Russia and Hungary to name a few countries.  Bill has consulted for Fortune 500 companies, NGOs and government agencies.  His distinguished work and teaching has been recognized with numerous awards from institutions such as Santa ClaraUniversity as well as UC Berkeley.       

Joelisoa Ratsirarson (’04) Malagasy ELP Alum Joelisoa Ratsirarson was instrumental in Bill’s new appointment.  He has held positions as the Assistant Dean of the University of Antananarivo, as the Secretary General of the Ministry of the Environment and most recently as the Chief of Staff for President Ravalomanana.  He has a Ph.D. in ecology from the University of Connecticut and is very active in conservation work in Madagascar.

ELP comments on post-election chaos in Kenya

Photo: AP

January 21, 2008
Since the contested results of 27 December 2007’s election results, Kenya has erupted into violence After the government of Mwai Kibaki declared him President on December 30, some 700 people have been killed, and a quarter-million have been displaced. Opposition protests led by supporters of Raika Odinga have been vigorously suppressed by the police, and many of the protests have degraded into inter-ethnic clashes.

Former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan is now in Nairobi, as is Ugandan President Museveni, to encourage mediation efforts. Cosmas Ochieng, Policy Director of ELP’s close associate organization, Ecoagriculture Partners, wrote to describe the volatile atmosphere in Nairobi, where he is based, and to make the point that mediation is a process, not an event, and that it takes time. He also pointed out that all parties need to be interested in that process. The current government has rejected the term ‘mediation’, insisting that there is no crisis in the country. There is currently a ban on rallies and live broadcasts, though a new round of rallies and protests is being called for by Odinga supporters.

In response to our email of concern for ELP alumni, their families and communities, and the future of Kenya as a nation, we’ve heard back from many of you. Below are some excerpts from those emails describing the past weeks from their perspectives. Most who responded ultimately said they are looking forward to regained peace in Kenya, though many have suffered personal losses and are horrified by what is happening in their country. Many alumni and friends from other countries have sent messages of support.

Photo: AP

“Many thanks for your wishes, prayers and support at this difficult time of political divide in Kenya along tribal and ethnic dimensions. Paradoxically, the problem is historical and the current situation was not necessary but inevitable on the basis of a single decision by the chairman of the electoral commission announcing presidential results that he was not sure off.” (Patrick Karani, 2003)

“Kenyans voted for a reliable, hopeful and good leadership and not for political divisions characterised by ethnic hatred….” (Stephen Wanyoike Wamiti (Wams), 2005)

“Despite the pain and the loss, this has taught us to look deeply into our assumptions about ourselves, our fellow Kenyans, and address causes not the symptoms.

I have been in Nakuru in post-election duration, one of the hotspots, transit, and holding camp for the internally displaced persons. Seeing the people and hearing their traumatic stories of inhuman acts, rape, their painful experience is unbearable. My brother and uncle lost their homes, this only brought the experience right home... it is happening to peace-loving Kenyans, who happen to have a different dialect and historical origins.” (Muthoni Ngotho, 2003)

“The crisis in Kenya is affecting all of us. My family was based at Eldoret, scene of the worst clashes, and had to move under armed escort to Nairobi. Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi- eastern Congo- immediately affected by lack of fuel, whose prices went up fourfold before convoys brought new supplies.” (Simon Thuo, 2001)

“I live in Eldoret town, in western Kenya where fighting was fierce. I was confined in the house for 4 days and it is only today that I have had access to internet. ,,,,, Life is coming back to normal in the town and evacuation is ongoing.” (Eric Nahama, 2007)

“In short we are facing an unprecedented crisis. Kenya has been a promising democracy and symbol of hope for the region but may be we have been living in denial of the hard realities that characterise Africa; ethnicity, inequality, corruption, nepotism, marginalisation, etc all of which have now come to the fore, triggered by the flawed election. The Rainbow coalition of 2002 running on a platform of change never took off and the Orange Democratic Movement has just been nipped in the bud and so the violence. However, there can never be a justification for brutal killings and wanton destruction of property.

Every situation, however horrible, presents choices and opportunities. The tribal animosities currently in display present us with clear choices: we can choose to treat the symptoms by pretending that this is a passing post-election anger, or we can seize the opportunity to comprehensively address root causes.

Kenyans have the capacity and the will to change course for the better!” (Philip Kisoyan, 2002)

“This has taken us 40 years back...Let's believe that Kenyans will find a solution to this problem as I don't believe that this will be solved by foreign mediators.” (Abou Bamba, 2003)

“Neutral bystanders in Nairobi (central business district), Kisumu, Mombasa and Eldoret were engulfed in the clashes because once the police start confronting protesters anywhere near the major cities, they tend to order everyone - including those going about their normal legal business out of the cities; they block entries into the cities by both public and private means. Protesters in return barricade roads with stones and all sorts of obstacles (in one scary incident in Kibera last week, protesters derailed nearly 3kms of railway line - cutting off rail connection between Kenya and Uganda).

The mass rallies thus disrupt normal business and traffic because one's movement becomes very limited as one never knows when one might be chased out of town by police or have the road to one's destination blocked or barricaded. The end result is that most offices…were closed for a better part of last week and will remain closed during days slated for mass action by the opposition.,,,,,, “Subjectively, I believe in this country and I know a majority of the people here subscribe to certain fundamental democratic ideals - they will ensure that this political impasse is resolved amicably before thecountry degenerates into anarchy.” (Cosmas Ochieng, Policy Director, Ecoagriculture Partners)

“As local and national leaders, many of you are probably involved in seeking the solutions for this situation, and we are hopeful that your wisdom, creativity and skills will yield good results.” (Sara Scherr, President, President, Ecoagriculture Partners)

2008 is here with us.  A country and its people are facing a crisis.  Kenya.  The international community is looking at the crisis from a tribalism perspective.  I am at a loss to explain that tribalism is a very far fetched "reason" for the madness we are experiencing. 

The problem is Kenya is not about tribes.  It is about - access to resources, the rights to land, the economic disparities, modernity which requires you to own abut your own country denies you those rights of ownership (creating insecurity).  I could go on. 

Politicians have taken advantage of the situation and converted it to a tribal issue.  This tribe this and this tribe that.   And for the majority of those who can not make a living "within the promised greatness of modernity", it is obvious that the fault is not in the system but in a physical enemy in the form of tribe..... (Peter Kuria, 2001)