On the road again – it’s not easy

We’ve just received some great photos from Stilgherrian’s mission to Tanzania that I’d like to share.

Stil and our Campaigns Manager, Lena Aahlby, have had an incredible week and everyone at ActionAid Australia is thrilled with the results.

We’d really appreciate feedback from the online community on the project and where we could take this. Your opinions will largely shape our future work and the selection of the next blogger!

I think this week has been both incredible and challenging for Stil. Someone like me who’s been working in the development world for 15 years can quite easily forget one’s first opportunity to see life through the lens of people living in poverty.

Stilgherrian’s Tweets reflect what that’s actually like as well as the exhaustion from the endless hours on the road while you’re working in a developing country.

His Tweets remind me of a trip I had in Northern Uganda a few years ago when I was the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Regional Conflict Prevention and Recovery Advisor in Africa. My Ugandan colleagues and I spent something like 42 out of a possible 72 hours on the road.

The rest of the time was spent with displaced people in Gulu and the surrounding areas or trying to get some sleep when we could!

It’s physically exhausting work but absolutely fascinating, inspiring and shocking….often all at the same time!