PROGRAM OVERVIEW

Environmental Development Youth Movement (EDYM) is a community-based organization established in 1992, with a vision to create a sustainable environment through empowerment on poverty reduction strategies and conservation. EDYM was created by a group of concerned citizens from Have in the Volta Region of Ghana, when the degradation of the environment, and related problems, became apparent. Have is situated in a beautiful mountain range in a tropical climate, just three miles from the Lake Volta, with easily accessible waterfalls, monkey sanctuaries, and caves.

Unemployment and poverty levels are fairly high in rural communities. This leads to an over-reliance on natural resources, such as the forests and soils, to provide materials for survival. Unfortunately, this dependence has environmental consequences such as deforestation, land degradation, soil erosion, etc. If sustainable alternatives are presented, this downward cycle of dependence on the land is interrupted, benefitting both current and future generations.

EDYM strives to spread “alternative sustainable livelihood practices,” which are income-generating techniques that are environmentally friendly. The goal is for rural farmers to undertake these practices to reduce the negative environmental impact of unsound farming practices such as farming on the mountain slopes, unnecessary bush-burning, and mono-cultures of crops.

EDYM GOALS

The principal concern of EDYM is the education and training of youth to restore and preserve the environment for current and future generations. EDYM therefore:

1. Creates environmental consciousness among the youth and communities through educational campaigns, seminars, symposia and conferences.
2. Educates the youth and school leavers on various environmental conservation projects, such as plant nursery establishment, agroforestry, vegetable production, compost making, snail farming, grasscutter rearing, indigenous leafy vegetable production, organic farming, budding and grafting, mushroom production, and beekeeping.

EDYM VILLAGE

To accomplish its goals, EDYM acquired a 25-acre plot, called EDYM Village. EDYM Village is a model of a rural setting farm and demonstration plot to train people in alternative sustainable livelihood practices. Various environmentally sustainable projects are showcased for both productive and educational purposes.

The Village is also home to a nursery of over 35,000 seedlings of Mango, Moringa, Polyathia, and others for reforestation projects. Several types of training take place, and professional trainers are available. Although the training facility is still rudiment, farmers and youth are eager to learn new income-generating techniques.

TRAINING WORKSHOPS

EDYM offers skills training workshops in various environmentally friendly, alternative livelihood practices. The workshops educate and give practical experience to those involved, with the intention that the gained skills will make them less dependent on the environment. Training topics include:

• Grasscutter Rearing
• Snail Farming
• Indigenous Leafy Vegetable Farming
• Nursery Establishment
• Mango and Citrus Grafting
• Fruit Orchard Establishment
• Organic farming Techniques
• Poultry and Livestock Farming
• Floral Gardens and Arboreta
• Beekeeping
• Mushroom Farming
• Fish Farming

PROJECTS

• EDYM Village
• Training Workshops
• Weto Range Conservation Initiative
• Support to local governance
• HIV/ AIDS education
• Moringa farm
• Junior Environmentalist’s Club

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• Rated ‘most active’ environment NGO in the Volta region by the Ministry of Environment Science and Technology in 1998 and 2004
• Established EDYM Village, a training and demonstration center with various forms of economically friendly agricultural practices
• The undertaking of tree growing and community afforestation projects
• Executed, in partnership with CBUD, a project to reclaim and replant lands degraded at Ayamfuri mines on behalf of Anglo-Gold Ashanti
• Trained 80 youth in snail rearing and Indigenous Leafy Vegetable (ILV) production
• Trained 50 people in grasscutter breeding
• Trained 25 Peace Corps Volunteers in budding and grafting, and organic farming techniques (2004 & 2005)
• Donated 3000 seedlings of Polyathia spp. to E.U. Micro Projects for planting at their project sites in the Volta region (2004)
• Establishment of three Junior Environmentalist Clubs at the JSS level
• Weto forest conservation project commence in earnest (2006)

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES AT EDYM

Education:

• Teach at the primary school
• Teach at the Have Technical Institute

Public Health: Have Health Centre

• Provide HIV/AIDS public awareness programs
• Intake processing of patients
• Light paperwork and note-taking
• Monitor blood pressures
• Administer vaccines

Environmental Conservation/Agriculture:

• Assist at the Moringa Farm doing agricultural/farm work (between mid-April and June/July)
• Assist at the EDYM Village
• Work with the Weto Range Conservation Initiative

General:

• Participate in drumming, dancing, drama, wood-carving, kente-cloth weaving, and other cultural activities.

ACCOMMODATIONS AT EDYM

Housing

Volunteers are hosted in one of two houses. Both houses have locks on the doors and mosquito nets on the beds. The first house has one double-occupancy room. There is an indoor flush toilet and bathtub shower. Should there be a lack of water pressure, a bucket of water is available for force flushing the toilet and bucket bathing in the shower.

The second house has two single-occupancy rooms. There is a KVIP latrine for this home, and volunteers bathe from a bucket in an outdoor bathing room. From these accommodations, volunteers can walk to their activities at the Have Health Centre, the primary school or the Have Technical Institute. Volunteers working on the Moringa Farm will need to travel approximately seven minutes by trotro (public transportation) to reach the farm.

Meals

All meals are prepared by a cook who delivers the meals to the volunteer’s accommodations. Volunteers who have special dietary needs or food allergies should note their needs on their volunteer application so Village Volunteers can notify the EDYM staff in advance.

Drinking Water

Purified drinking water is provided for volunteers.

Electricity

There is electricity; however, there are frequent power cuts. Volunteers are recommended to bring flashlights, candles and matches.

Internet Access

The EDYM office has internet for volunteers to use for a small fee.

Laundry

Volunteers will be provided with water so they can launder their own clothing.

MEET EDYM’S PROGRAM DIRECTOR: PAUL KPAI

Reflections on Paul’s childhood and family.

Born to a priest and the 10th born, there was discipline and care but I was deprived of certain basic things including adequate education. This was not intentional but due to the heavy commitment of my poor parents. I had to struggle and find my way.

These and other factors made me work extra hard, and anything I did, I did with due diligence and purpose. I believed I could make it in life and my family would benefit from my toil.

The challenges Paul faced getting an education. 

Because we are many, our parents were not able to see all of us through education. We were given basic education to junior high school level and very few lucky ones were picked to continue. I was asked to go back to the cocoa farm to take care of it, and I had to obey. Going back to school was my own initiative and so I had to be responsible for everything that I needed in pursuing my education, to the level I attained.

What inspired Paul to do this work and how did he get started?

I was inspired by a number of factors. I learned during my middle school level that to volunteer is not only to be rewarded but also to feel and belong .In my community, there was a dire need for somebody to take up organizing the young ones to do periodic clean-up since the issue of sanitation became nobody’s business. I took this up and mobilized the youth for a number of periodic activities that metamorphosed into a community-based organization, and today the same has turned into an NGO.

 What obstacles did Paul face?

The obstacles were mainly financial and material and this had remained an obstacle. Other obstacles are people not cooperating and others proving difficult to change.

What are your hopes for the future of EDYM?

I am hoping to get a partner to invest time and resources to boost our work and also to help me further my education so that at least I can achieve my goal of having my Masters in the next few years to come.

How does your community benefit from having volunteers?

My community has benefitted from a number of activities and from some of the individual volunteers. My community is lucky to show a refurbished building stocked with books by Village Volunteers, adopting the Catholic school, and providing them with a lot of learning materials and other facilities. There is the hope that in time Village Volunteers will help reconstruct part of the school blocks.