Brick by Brick Promotes Sanitation that Supports the Environment

For the past year Brick by Brick Uganda has been performing a study to research whether Ecosan toilets are feasible alternatives in primary school communities in Uganda. Ecosan are composting toilets that can replace pit latrines as the dominant sanitation system in sub-Saharan Africa. Led by Peace Corp volunteer and environmental engineering student, John Trimmer , we have learned that with appropriate community education and sensitization, this technology is readily accepted by students and teachers alike. Interviews and focus groups were held in a sampling of communities, including that of UMEA Primary and St. Andrews Matale Hill Primary schools. Our findings clearly show that after a year of experience with this technology, negative attitudes can change.

Ecosan toilets produce fertilizer that can be used to replenish the soil and can even be a potential source of income for struggling rural school communities. We hope to begin Phase II of this project by  having Ecosan address the entire sanitation needs of a school community.

Brick by Brick's Expanding Mission

[portfolio_slideshow id=1995] For the past five years Brick by Brick has widened the scope of its work with partnering communities in rural Uganda. Since our founding in 2003, our focus has been on improving the quality of education by building sound infrastructure for free Universal Primary Education (UPE) schools. With the success of our social enterprise, Brick by Brick Construction, which employs 12 skilled masons and has turned a profit in each of its four years, we began to realize the value of a more holistic approach to development. Brick by Brick has a unique opportunity to partner with local communities to promote sustainable development. Over the last three months, our Board of Directors has been developing a new 5-year Strategic Plan. After receiving valuable feedback from both Ugandan and US staff and stakeholders, we will now expand our work to partner with communities to address the following critical needs:

• Access to quality health care: Brick by Brick will now work to address critical gaps in health care delivery, focusing on improving the physical infrastructure of health centers and hospitals and the knowledge and skills of providers.
• Health Education: We will continue to expand on the success of our My Pads Program, which educates young women about reproductive health, while teaching them to fabricate their own reusable menstrual pads. In 2015, we plan to launch a new program, an HIV Peer Education Program    (HI PEP) for secondary school students.
• Water and sanitation: Brick by Brick has already built water and sanitation systems throughout Uganda and we will continue to implement community-based solutions in this critical sector.
• Economic Opportunity: We will continue to expand Brick by Brick Construction Company, which provides good paying jobs and training for our communities, while providing revenue to support our programs.

As our new Mission Statement affirms Brick by Brick will:

Create partnerships that improve education, health and economic opportunity in East Africa.

Together with our Ugandan partners, we have accomplished much in the last eleven years. We look forward to even greater change in the future!

Nearing the Finish Line at UMEA Primary School

We have begun one of the last major steps towards completing our partnership with UMEA Primary School, a Sister School of Kennedy-King Elementary School in Brooklyn, New York. This valuable partnership has thrived for over five years. Kennedy-King has helped UMEA to complete the steps necessary to reach a level of infrastructure that qualifies as a Brick by Brick Standard UPE school. This current project involves the renovation of a two classroom block with an office in the center. The renovation will cover the removal of the old iron sheets, plastering, flooring, installing the verandah, painting the walls, as well as shuttering the windows and doors.

As you can see in the picture, the roofing has kicked off our construction in order to prevent the upcoming rainy season from interfering with future construction. We plan to complete the full renovation in just under a month. The UMEA and Kennedy-King partnership has been incredibly productive and we couldn't be more excited to finally complete all construction plans to reach all appropriate standards of infrastructure.

Empowering Girls Through Health Education

The excited looks on these girls faces was incredible! They had just completed the fabrication of their own Re-usable Menstruation Pads. (RUMPS) This was the final class of a 7-week program that educates girls in primary schools regarding reproductive health. Throughout the program we addressed topics such as: Healthy Choices, Adolescent Pregnancy, Puberty, HIV/AIDS, and other STIs. The girls have been incredibly responsive to this program thus far: providing thoughtful responses in class and picking up on the making of their RUMPS quickly.After the success of the My Pads pilot project last year, we have completed this second phase in two schools: St. Tereza Kajaguzo Primary School and Nakasoga UMEA Primary School. The initial results of the post-course tests have been very promising with a solid improvement of scores from the pre-test. We are very excited to continue and expand this program in the coming year.

Pictures Are Worth A Thousand Words

A Message from Brick by Brick Executive Director Marc Sklar who is in Uganda to meet with our local staff and plan our work for the coming year. Greetings from Kalisizo, Uganda. Today I visited one of our newest partnering school communities, the St Tereza Kajaguzo Primary School, a free Universal Primary Education school in rural Uganda. Meeting with students, parents and teachers we shared the dramatic transformation that has occurred in this school over the past six months. Seven classrooms and a staff office that were crumbling, with dirt floors, have been completely renovated. Thanks to the full partnership of the local community, who have contributed significantly in labor and materials, we have accomplished the first two phases of our work plan for just over $18,000. Today I heard words of thanks for Brick by Brick's work at St. Tereza and I in turn thank all of our partners both here and in the US who have made our success to date a reality. There is much more to do but today was a day to acknowledge how far we have come in just six months.

New School Building Completed at UMEA Primary School

Brick by Brick Uganda has been partnering with the UMEA Primary School community since 2007. During these past six years we have built and stocked a library, renovated multiple classrooms, and addressed the water needs through the construction of rainwater harvesting systems. This month Brick by Brick Construction completed a new multi-purpose building. Now the students and teachers of UMEA Primary School will have a performance space, place to study, and space to meet and hold assemblies. In addition, this beautiful new building will provide much needed classrooms for the 420 students of UMEA. Our work has been made possible through the support of the students, parents and teachers of Kennedy-King Elementary School in Brooklyn, New York. Thanks to Kennedy-King and many matching fund donors we have made much progress at UMEA Primary School.Thank you to all who have made the dreams of UMEA's families a reality.

TRAINING UMEA STUDENTS ABOUT ECO-SAN TOILET

A training of P.6 female students was conducted at UMEA primary school. The training was to help them understand how to use an Eco-San toilet and its advantages. From our research and the experience of others using this technology we know that success is dependent on proper usage and maintenance. The trained students will be able to teach other students how to use it. This is a pilot facility and it was designed for a small part of the school population to help us learn as much as we can about this technology and whether it can be operated effectively in a primary school environment.

Max training P.6 students of UMEA P/S

Max in class training

Max taking students to the Eco-san toilet to show them how it works

Max showing students how the chambers work

My Pad Project: Empowering Girls with Knowledge and Skills

Brick by Brick Uganda has launched a new project to help girls and young women learn about their own bodies, while creating their own re-usable menstrual pads. In Uganda, as is true in many parts of the world, women often lack access to simple yet expensive menstrual hygiene products. Every month, many female students are forced to miss days of school, with direct impact on their academic progress. In 2012 Brick by Brick Uganda funded a needs assessment to research this problem and inquire from the girls themselves, about a practical solution. Thus, the My Pads Project was born. With assistance from Peace Corp volunteer Aditi Desai, and led by Kalsizo's own midwife and Brick by Brick staff member, Nalango Susan Kyambadde, we are implementing this educational and practical course as an after school program in three primary and one secondary school. So far the program is a smashing success, with great attendance and participation at every session. Our long-term goal is to integrate this program into the work we do at all the schools participating in the Brick by Brick schools program. At each school, teachers are being trained to carry on this program, consistent with our mission of sustainable change. Congratulations Nalango and to all of our partners for making this program a success!

Construction Continues at UMEA Kalisizo Primary School

Brick by Brick Uganda has been partnering with the UMEA Kalisizo Primary School for the past five years. Over that time, we have built a rainwater harvesting system, providing clean drinking water for UMEA's students and staff, constructed a library, built an energy efficient kitchen and renovated multiple classrooms. Now nearing the completion of our work together, we are building a large multi-purpose building that will provide classrooms, a study hall,and a performance/assembly hall. From the beginning, with matching donors, the students, teachers and parents of the Kennedy-King Elementary School in Brooklyn, New York have helped to raise funds for this important work that has literally re-built UMEA. Projected completion date: November 30th!

My Pad Project Launched

Written by Susan Kyambadde, Staff Midwife at Kalisizo Hospital and Member of Brick by Brick Staff

On July 12th, Brick by Brick Uganda hosted a training for all of the teachers that will be involved in the My Pad Project. This new program is intended to teach students about their reproductive health, while providing young women the opportunity to make their own re-useable menstrual pads. We trained a total of twelve teachers - eight Senior Women teachers and four Senior Male teachers from Kirumba Primary School, Matale Hill Primary School, St. Andrews Secondary School, and UMEA Kalisizo Primary School. Each teacher was taught life skills, the menstrual cycle, and how to make a reusable menstrual pad. By the end of the day all of the teachers managed to make a sample of the reusable menstrual pad, even the male teachers! The male teachers embraced the training components just as much as the female teachers did, suggesting this project has real potential.

Overall, the training was a success. All of the teachers expressed great interest in the project. Additionally, the teachers expressed their appreciation towards Brick by Brick Uganda for implementing a project that would educate all of their students and would provide a sustainable solution to help their female students manage their monthly menstruation.

MY PAD: Empowering Girls' Education

In the fall of 2012 Brick by Brick performed a needs assessment in three primary schools, asking 139 menstruating girls about their experiences. We found that 34%  the girls surveyed missed on average 3.3 days per month due to their menstrual periods. 43% reported pain as the cause of their absences, while 28% cited fear of blood soaking through their clothes, and 13% stated the reason was the lack of a private place to change their pads or cloths. Many girls lack affordable products to support their menstrual health. Almost all the girls told us they would welcome more information about their reproductive health. In the next 6 months, Brick by Brick will launch the My Pad Program to address this pressing need. We have assembled an international team who, with significant input from local communities, will design a program that  will sustainably fabricate and provide Re-useable Menstrual Pads for girls in need. In addition, the My Pad Program will educate girls and boys about basic reproductive health, encouraging informed healthy choices as our students grow to become young women and men. With an initial investment and support from Brick by Brick, we intend to launch programs that will continue without our direct involvement.

If you would like to invest in girls receiving an uninterrupted education please click here

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

In 2009, Chessa Forer was a member of a team of eight teachers who traveled to Uganda to work collaboratively with their Ugandan colleagues. Over a two-week intensive workshop led by Bank Street College faculty member, Ginny O'Hare, teachers from both countries learned innovative techniques to improve the quality of teaching and learning at each of our five primary schools.

Returning to New York, where she teaches at the Chapin School in Manhattan, Chessa wanted to continue to contribute to the children she came to know and love. Through her art, she has found a way. Chessa recently sold four of her beautiful photographs and donated the proceeds, $600 to Positive Planet. Chessa, your photographs are made even more beautiful by your generous gift. As we say in Uganda:

Webale-Nyo!! Thank you very much!!

Working With the Peace Corp on Behalf of the People of Uganda

2011 marks the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Peace Corp. The Peace Corp was founded to allow Americans to answer President Kennedy's call to service in the developing world. Positive Planet is pleased that beginning in October, one of our country's best and brightest, John Trimmer, has answered that call and is already a major contributor to our work in the Rakai and Masaka Districts of Uganda. John is pursuing a Masters Degree in Environmental Engineering at the University of South Florida. He will be working on expanding Brick by Brick as well as our school-based initiatives.

Three School Libraries Completed

Most primary school children in Uganda never know the joy of opening a book. Recognizing this gap in education, Positive Planet started its Library Project, with the goal that each of our participating schools have a working lending library. In 2009, we shipped over 6,000 used books donated by public schools in Long Island. We then met with parents and teachers at each of our schools and developed a cooperative plan to make the dream of a school library, a reality. Last month, with the support of Brick by Brick, we completed three new libraries at Kirumba, UMEA and Matale Hill Primary Schools, including desks, chairs, shelving, and of course, books! This month, we will begin construction of the fourth library at Lwamaya Primary School.

Starting next year, local school administrators who have experience managing lending libraries, will assist their neighbors to ensure that their skills and knowledge are shared fully. For the first time, over 2,000 students will be able to do what we all take for granted, open a book and learn.

Books Sent to Sister Schools

It’s hard to imagine schools without books, but for the over 2,000 students served by Positive Planet programs this is the case. Now for the first time all of these children will know the joy that comes from opening a book and reading. Approximately 6,000 donated books recently arrived in Uganda where they will be distributed to the five schools participating in our program.  The books were part of a shipment that we participated in with two other East African non-profit organizations.  Positive Planet is working with our Ugandan teachers to establish libraries in each of our schools so that all of the students and teachers can enjoy this precious resource.