A family compound in Nawantale. Note the traditional mud huts Drought is devastating to a traditional farming community like Nawantale Never enough food for the children. Famine often targets the most vulnerable. The Mother Tree before it collapsed The Mother Tree fell on the borehole well, the village's primary water source Climate change causes the desertification of major water sources like Lake Kyoga Supplies like potatoes and charcoal are transported by bicycle Famine temporarily averted with emergency food distribution One week's worth of food for villagers UCSP Director Samson Kawuzi and founder Mama Kaay The village turns out for lunch with Mama Kaay Mama kaay gives as many soccer balls to the kids as she can bring The land for UCSP has been purchased Edible garden at UCSP Compound Kids growing peppers from seeds donated by Montessori kids in Texas Local teachers are graduated from word processing class A library and computer lab have been established Computer training provides marketable skills A tent rental service generates revenue for the village The Drama & Music Group earns money by teaching about disease prevention and other issues New uniforms for Drama and Music Group Future Montessori students thank you for your help

My Cause – The Village of Nawantale

A Community in Crisis

Climate change isn’t debated in the traditional Ugandan village of Nawantale. It’s a reality that has been going on for a long time. An ecosystem that was once lush jungle is now parched and starved for rain.

For a farming community, that spells famine. When you are poor, famine destroys your family by seeking out the weakest, and causing a severe loss of empowerment to take care of your family’s needs.

Compounding the problem of drought and famine is a combination of disease (e.g. malaria, HIV/AIDS), outdated agricultural practices, extreme poverty and widespread illiteracy.

The Creation of the Uganda Community School Project

When I discovered the plight that Nawantale faced, I started the Uganda Community School Project (UCSP), an organization dedicated to addressing the village’s immediate needs and to put them on the road to self-sustainability.

Samson Kawuzi, an ambitious, compassionate man and resident of Nawantale, was a natural choice to lead the organization in Nawantale. He organized a group of volunteers to become a pro-active force addressing the challenges they faced.

Addressing Nawantale’s Immediate Needs

When the rains don’t come as expected, crops die and the people suffer. The lack of potable water also puts people at risk for parasites and dehydration.

UCSP, under Samson’s leadership, has built a bore well and installed water containment systems to help the community through the drought and to keep water free of parasites.

Samson has also worked tirelessly to secure funding for emergency food distribution and organized a Food Crisis Co-Op. Families can offer a fee or labor to become partners in the co-op. In this way, the organization can buy food throughout the year, store it in a locker available to the village, and educate the villagers on co-operative ways to keep food in storage for those in need when the rains stop again.

Training has also begun on teaching more sustainable agricultural practices that address the concerns of ongoing climate change.

Becoming Self-Sustaining

UCSP’s overarching goal is for Nawantale to be self-sustaining, primarily through the creation of a school. A school offers so much to a community, including literacy, skills training, health education, jobs and ongoing income.

To date, UCSP has purchased the land for the school, trained teachers, started literacy classes, and established both a library and a computer training lab. Help is needed to complete construction on the school, particularly the Montessori preschool which will better prepare Nawantale’s future generation.