All Work, All Play

It's hard to believe my last post was almost 10 months ago. I suppose in leaving Bolivia, I also left behind my inspiration to write.

I'm walking the walk, having retired from a promising career in hotels to move into the field of international aid and development. The corporate threads lie neatly folded away somewhere at the back of my closet in Dubai. And as I sit here a million miles away in Cochabamba (or 13,000 kms to be more accurate) I know there's no looking back. And I'm positive there will be no regrets.

So I'm back volunteering with Proyecto Horizonte, who have just completed 7 incredible years of successfully laying the foundation of a sustainable village for the residents of Ushpa-Ushpa. There are a few areas I want to focus on over my 6 month stint, which involve bringing the organisation into the limelight by maximising the online presence, establishing international fund raising initiatives, and via strategic partnerships with large local corporates.

I've got approximately 26 weeks or thereabouts to count, to improve someone's life, or several lives. It's a tall order in a country that doesn't embrace change at a pace I may be used to. I'm going to have to really dazzle them with my marketing spiels (in Spanish!)

If you'd like to get involved by spreading the word, supporting the project financially, or even helping out with some of your time, please let me know. There's plenty of work to go around!

I look forward to sharing an incredible summer (winter) of experiences on my work and life here in Cochabamba.
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El Poder De Las Palabras

The word for 'advertising' in Español, interestingly, is propaganda. Which in English is associated with a chiefly derogatory term, a biased opinion used to push ones point of view. The Spanish-speaking world - they call it like it is!

Working on the overall communication strategy for Proyecto Horizonte involves so many different areas. There's the overall project 'brand' that needs to be promoted, the women's handicraft group - Tantakuna, kindergarten and the school, micro enterprise units such as the Panaderia .... each element have activities to be organised, brand collateral and designs to be produced or centralised, online marketing, partnership programs .... it goes on and on.

The potential with our project is immense. I'm really enjoying working on all aspects - from our 'Cochabamba Cupcakes' to building a stronger relationship with the boutique Jalsuri designer stores that stock our products, to launching of the new website, and starting a girls group - finding professional women in the region to host discussion groups and inspire the children that presently cannot see past completing school, if that, before falling into the same social trap.

We're all seeking ideas and messages to change perceptions - about products we market, services we offer, projects we believe in, lives we want to save.

I was asked today why I chose a career in marketing. ... porque yo creo en el poder de las palabras (I believe in the power of words).

There is so much the project has to be proud of, and hopefully through all of the communication efforts, it will bring to light what is being done, what can be done, and how little it really does take to make a serious difference.

Watch this space and see how we can inspire you to help. It won't take much to convince you that there's so much you can do to help, even sitting at home, a million miles away.

In the meantime, you'll simply have to take my word for it.
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Que mas? (what else can I do here?)

Sarah Sinnott (blog 3)

The great thing about working with Proyecto Horizonte is that you can pretty much do what you like! In the sense that if you see somewhere you and your expertise can help then by all means, help. So aside from working in the school I have my fingers in a few other pies. Last week I realised it might be a few too many pies, but with just over three months left here I know that time will show me what will rise, what is burnt, what tastes good and what is just a little under-cooked in the middle. So in terms of what else I’m doing here:

A little marketing and PR – I’m working with Tantakuna, this is the women’s microenterprise group that consists of a bakery and a handicrafts group. Their banana cake is good, very good, and I love banana cake so I will call myself a connoisseur. We’re trying to sell their cupcakes ´Cochabamba Cupcakes´ at some of the nice spots around town to not only make a little money but also as a channel to talk about the Proyecto and Tantakuna to local Cochabambinos and travellers.
A little communications – A new website takes a lot of work! Fingers crossed I can help get this thing live...soon!

A little branding – Tantakuna is a group of mothers that has a story to tell and we need to tell it in the best way possible. I am working to develop some new words and branding for us to get the word out, both here and abroad.

A little product development – The women of Tantakuna produce some beautiful (and very technical) weaving and knitting but not all of it appeals to the western world. So one of my first ideas when I saw the products of Tantakuna was how cute the key chains were and that with a little work we could appeal to the baby/kid gift market abroad. So along with a fellow Kiwi volunteer here (who had a lot of persistence, patience and better Spanish than me!) we have worked with the group to produce the first samples. I think they rock! Still samples that I think we can make some more improvements on but so far, so good (no pictures yet, it is all still top secret)!

A little design – It’s quite funny to think I’m working on Xmas cards here after all the time, politics, sweat and maybe tears that were involved every year in the process in my old job working for a large corporate with a strong CRM programme! Here in Bolivia, they are still an excellent tool for communicating with our international audience, so we’re looking at running some art classes or the like to get some creative designs rolling from the kids at school.

A little social marketing (fingers crossed) – I’m not sure why this is last on my list, maybe because it is what I am most excited about and therefore most nervous and anxious about. I want to do some social marketing/behaviour change work on nutrition and/or health in the Ushpa-Ushpa community, no small task given my budget (zero) and my Spanish (slowly creeping above zero). I’m still in the research phase and from the first few interviews the most used phrase has been “Es muy dificil” (“It’s very difficult”)!!

I won’t let that deter me (yet)!

To contact me directly on my experience so far, and for any further information I could help with, please send an email to sarah.sinnott@gmail.com

Bolivian Rhapsody

Aditi Daga
Current volunteer with the project for a total of 2.5 months
Field: Marketing Communications
Currently employed with the InterContinental Hotels Group as PR & Marketing Manager, IHG Dubai Festival City

I chose Proyecto Horizonte as the place to challenge myself and offer my skills in communications because of all I had read about on the website, and eventually my conversations with Christian Ruehmer, one of the founders of the project.

I was overwhelmed by how much progress was made within a span of a few short years, and how lives have already seen improvement. Proyecto Horizonte is a village development project, and it is through external funds and aid agencies that we are able to accomplish all we have. Which is why I believe a strong communication plan and marketing focus is essential.

This is and will continue to be my area during my 3 month sabbatical, and hopefully beyond as well.

Cochabamba is like the brochure. It's laid back, easy going, and exciting all the same. As with every city, you have your contrasts, and there's a little bit of everything for everyone. Spanish is essential, and you would need to have the basics in place before ou get here. There are some excellent Spanish teachers that can easily be recommended and arranged as well to help you develop your language skills while working at the project.

While the project has 5 main areas that it works within, volunteers are encouraged to find their niche and develop those when here. However we will also shortly have definite job profies within each sector which will help further.

To contact me directly on my experience so far, and for any further information I could help with, please send an email to aditi.daga@hotmail.com

Gracias!