Ukraine Apt Address:
Bobbie Lydick
ул. Мира, дом 20, кв. 13
г. Запорожье, 69035
Украина (Ukraine)
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
Benefits of Foreign Aid in the lives of Women
Okay so my friend sent me this article about the benefits Foreign Aid can have on women. The article is long, but I seriously suggest reading the whole thing. It's worth your time.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/23/magazine/23Women-t.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&emc=eta1#
If you're pressed for time here is a 5 minute summary in video form that you can just watch:
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/08/20/magazine/kristof-audioss/index.html#
If you only have a minute...then read the insert below about why MFIs focus on giving loans to women!
WHY DO MICROFINANCE organizations usually focus their assistance on women? And why does everyone benefit when women enter the work force and bring home regular pay checks? One reason involves the dirty little secret of global poverty: some of the most wretched suffering is caused not just by low incomes but also by unwise spending by the poor — especially by men. Surprisingly frequently, we’ve come across a mother mourning a child who has just died of malaria for want of a $5 mosquito bed net; the mother says that the family couldn’t afford a bed net and she means it, but then we find the father at a nearby bar. He goes three evenings a week to the bar, spending $5 each week.
Our interviews and perusal of the data available suggest that the poorest families in the world spend approximately 10 times as much (20 percent of their incomes on average) on a combination of alcohol, prostitution, candy, sugary drinks and lavish feasts as they do on educating their children (2 percent). If poor families spent only as much on educating their children as they do on beer and prostitutes, there would be a breakthrough in the prospects of poor countries. Girls, since they are the ones kept home from school now, would be the biggest beneficiaries. Moreover, one way to reallocate family expenditures in this way is to put more money in the hands of women. A series of studies has found that when women hold assets or gain incomes, family money is more likely to be spent on nutrition, medicine and housing, and consequently children are healthier.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/23/magazine/23Women-t.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&emc=eta1#
If you're pressed for time here is a 5 minute summary in video form that you can just watch:
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/08/20/magazine/kristof-audioss/index.html#
If you only have a minute...then read the insert below about why MFIs focus on giving loans to women!
WHY DO MICROFINANCE organizations usually focus their assistance on women? And why does everyone benefit when women enter the work force and bring home regular pay checks? One reason involves the dirty little secret of global poverty: some of the most wretched suffering is caused not just by low incomes but also by unwise spending by the poor — especially by men. Surprisingly frequently, we’ve come across a mother mourning a child who has just died of malaria for want of a $5 mosquito bed net; the mother says that the family couldn’t afford a bed net and she means it, but then we find the father at a nearby bar. He goes three evenings a week to the bar, spending $5 each week.
Our interviews and perusal of the data available suggest that the poorest families in the world spend approximately 10 times as much (20 percent of their incomes on average) on a combination of alcohol, prostitution, candy, sugary drinks and lavish feasts as they do on educating their children (2 percent). If poor families spent only as much on educating their children as they do on beer and prostitutes, there would be a breakthrough in the prospects of poor countries. Girls, since they are the ones kept home from school now, would be the biggest beneficiaries. Moreover, one way to reallocate family expenditures in this way is to put more money in the hands of women. A series of studies has found that when women hold assets or gain incomes, family money is more likely to be spent on nutrition, medicine and housing, and consequently children are healthier.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Support, Service, School, Solo, Spain
Why hello friends of mine. It's been a while since I posted last, but I really don't have too much to fill you in on. My life is pretty chill to say the least. I've been keeping myself busy with work, walks, skype, cooking, sleeping, and a lot of episodes of The Office.
Here's a brief update on my life. As of today, I have been outside of the US for exactly 3 months; I've been in Zaporizhzhya, Ukraine for 9 days; and I started my new job 4 days ago. Things have been going pretty smoothly. I took the first couple of days to find an apartment. While the apt-hunt was underway, I stayed with my boss' family. They were super sweet to house me and drive me around everywhere I needed to go. I'm very thankful for them and all their support! I also got pretty close to their 12-year-old daughter named Katya. She's AWESOME and a huge blessing in my life. I will actually be staying with her for a few days while her parents are out of town. I'm excited for some fun girls-nights :).
In addition to the huge blessing of my boss' family, I also got the pleasure of meeting an older missionary couple from Canada. After some small talk about Alaska, they lent me some cook wear, bedding, and some other random things I needed for my apartment. This would be Huge-Blessing-#2. I'm excited to get to know them more and see a little of what their ministry looks like here.
As for my job/service project, I'm starting to put together a questionnaire for a marketing focus group here in Ukraine. HOPE is "hoping" to find out what kind of items their clients would purchase if given small consumer loans. These loans would be for home-appliances or other personal use items. They are hoping to market the new consumer loan products in order to get more clients. I'll be testing some of these ideas. My boss also told me about another project we will be starting soon. We will be making a client catalog. So our clients can buy products they need from other HOPE clients. It will specifically be targeting clients that are having trouble paying back their loans. For example: Client A sells towels. Client A also can't pay back his loan. If he sells his merchandise, towels, he will then be able to use this money to pay back the loan. So, Client B comes into the office and says, "I need a new towel." If Client B buys it from Client A after seeing it in the catalog, then Client A will have more income to pay his loan back. Not only does it help Client A, but also...1)helps the MFI (microfinance institution) get their money; 2)it helps the individual loan officers PAR %(portfolio at risk - which is the % of clients per loan officer that aren't paying back their loans on time). If their PAR % decreases then their salary increases; 3) and it also helps our clients advertise their products. In the future, we hope for all this to be done by shopping online and develop some kind of delivery procedure for all our clients.
Other than that, school starts tomorrow at NWC, and I too will have to start my Advanced Accounting class. It will be interesting to see how my study habits get better or worse while being outside the classroom setting. With this said, it's hard for me not to be back at NWC. I've been pretty successful keeping myself busy so that I don't get too homesick. I'll try to keep this up until I acquire some kind of life here in Zap-town. I still feel like I'm in transition after leaving Moldova. I have to be honest and say that I have very little friends here. My Russian is not good enough to have conversations with strangers, let alone build a relationship. I've met very little people that actually speak English. Some days I go the whole day without taking to someone here (and we all know how strange this is for me...bah!) I'm trying to stay positive through everything and looking at this time as one big "solo" trip. Trying to get the most out of living with myself and seeing what God has for me personally. It's funny how we get so wrapped up in what everyone else is doing that we don't have time to listen to what God is trying to tell us. That describes my life perfectly the last couple of years - being so busy that I have very little time to sit and reflect on the small things of life. I think I'm learning more than I can understand right now.
In another month, I will be taking a vacation. I'll be heading to Western Europe with my dad! I'm so excited for the trip. We've been planning the trip for a while now...okay, so he's mainly the one that's been planning it ;). We will be going to Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, and where ever else we decide to go when we get there. I'm really looking forward to seeing a familiar face and to have the ultimate father-daughter experience. If anyone has any contacts where we can stay feel free to e-mail me!
There's my life in a nut-shell. I hope you enjoy reading about it, because I enjoy living it.
I miss you all...A LOT!
Apartment pictures are up in case you're interested! http://bobbielydick.shutterfly.com/
Here's a brief update on my life. As of today, I have been outside of the US for exactly 3 months; I've been in Zaporizhzhya, Ukraine for 9 days; and I started my new job 4 days ago. Things have been going pretty smoothly. I took the first couple of days to find an apartment. While the apt-hunt was underway, I stayed with my boss' family. They were super sweet to house me and drive me around everywhere I needed to go. I'm very thankful for them and all their support! I also got pretty close to their 12-year-old daughter named Katya. She's AWESOME and a huge blessing in my life. I will actually be staying with her for a few days while her parents are out of town. I'm excited for some fun girls-nights :).
In addition to the huge blessing of my boss' family, I also got the pleasure of meeting an older missionary couple from Canada. After some small talk about Alaska, they lent me some cook wear, bedding, and some other random things I needed for my apartment. This would be Huge-Blessing-#2. I'm excited to get to know them more and see a little of what their ministry looks like here.
As for my job/service project, I'm starting to put together a questionnaire for a marketing focus group here in Ukraine. HOPE is "hoping" to find out what kind of items their clients would purchase if given small consumer loans. These loans would be for home-appliances or other personal use items. They are hoping to market the new consumer loan products in order to get more clients. I'll be testing some of these ideas. My boss also told me about another project we will be starting soon. We will be making a client catalog. So our clients can buy products they need from other HOPE clients. It will specifically be targeting clients that are having trouble paying back their loans. For example: Client A sells towels. Client A also can't pay back his loan. If he sells his merchandise, towels, he will then be able to use this money to pay back the loan. So, Client B comes into the office and says, "I need a new towel." If Client B buys it from Client A after seeing it in the catalog, then Client A will have more income to pay his loan back. Not only does it help Client A, but also...1)helps the MFI (microfinance institution) get their money; 2)it helps the individual loan officers PAR %(portfolio at risk - which is the % of clients per loan officer that aren't paying back their loans on time). If their PAR % decreases then their salary increases; 3) and it also helps our clients advertise their products. In the future, we hope for all this to be done by shopping online and develop some kind of delivery procedure for all our clients.
Other than that, school starts tomorrow at NWC, and I too will have to start my Advanced Accounting class. It will be interesting to see how my study habits get better or worse while being outside the classroom setting. With this said, it's hard for me not to be back at NWC. I've been pretty successful keeping myself busy so that I don't get too homesick. I'll try to keep this up until I acquire some kind of life here in Zap-town. I still feel like I'm in transition after leaving Moldova. I have to be honest and say that I have very little friends here. My Russian is not good enough to have conversations with strangers, let alone build a relationship. I've met very little people that actually speak English. Some days I go the whole day without taking to someone here (and we all know how strange this is for me...bah!) I'm trying to stay positive through everything and looking at this time as one big "solo" trip. Trying to get the most out of living with myself and seeing what God has for me personally. It's funny how we get so wrapped up in what everyone else is doing that we don't have time to listen to what God is trying to tell us. That describes my life perfectly the last couple of years - being so busy that I have very little time to sit and reflect on the small things of life. I think I'm learning more than I can understand right now.
In another month, I will be taking a vacation. I'll be heading to Western Europe with my dad! I'm so excited for the trip. We've been planning the trip for a while now...okay, so he's mainly the one that's been planning it ;). We will be going to Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, and where ever else we decide to go when we get there. I'm really looking forward to seeing a familiar face and to have the ultimate father-daughter experience. If anyone has any contacts where we can stay feel free to e-mail me!
There's my life in a nut-shell. I hope you enjoy reading about it, because I enjoy living it.
I miss you all...A LOT!
Apartment pictures are up in case you're interested! http://bobbielydick.shutterfly.com/
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Kiev, Ukraine
I arrived in Kiev, Ukraine on Saturday after a 10 hour bus ride from Moldova. When I got here I soon realized that I had jumped into fall. The weather was perfect and the heat was gone. I spent an hour and a half waiting at the bus stop because my bus had arrived early. After a chilly morning of waiting with two suitcases, I got settled in for a week of new sites and transition to a new country.
Saturday: A team of Americans went to buy souvenirs at Andriyivsky Uzviz. We looked a
round for a bit, but then Meredith and I decided our money would be better spent on coffee. After a quick stop at St. Andrew's Church, we proceeded to a place called Кофе Хауз (Coffee House in Cyrillic). Afterwards it started raining so we retreated to a cheap Ukrainian cafeteria and caught a quick glance at Kiev's Golden Gate. Later that day we got to see the World War 2 monument accompanied by the Motherland Monument. The Motherland Monument is on top of the Museum of the Great Patriotic War. Motherland stands 204 feet tall and is said to weigh 530 tons. She still holds a large shield with the Coat of Arms of the Soviet Union – a blast from the past to say the least.
Sunday: Meredith and I started the day off going to Hillsong Ukraine which is the Kiev-based offshoot of Hillsong Church in Sydney, Australia. It was crazy going to a mega church in a post-soviet country, especially after being in Moldova where 98% of the population is Orthodox. I also took my
first subway ever. It was a bit hard with the Cyrillic lettering, but relatively easy. Later we met the guy we would be staying with for the week. He is here in Kiev working for US Aid. He showed us around downtown Kiev. We walked down the famous Khreschatyk Street. The street is blocked off on weekends and holidays for pedestrians to walk around downtown. We walked past the Taras Shevchenko National Opera Theatre and ended up at Independence Square. This is the destination of Kiev's Orange Revolution in 2004. Ukrainians wore orange and flocked to the center part of town to protest against a corrupt government election. After about a month in subzero temperatures, a revote was allowed and the election was deemed fair. This left Ukraine as more politically aware and fighting for a better democracy.
Monday: We stopped by HOPE Ukraine's administrative office. We met a few of the people that worked there and then set up a time to meet with my new boss on Tuesday. One of the gu
ys in the office needed to go downtown so we followed him and his wife there. They showed us around a huge underground shopping mall. Later Mer and I went to the Park Misky Sad. There we saw the Rainbow Arch which is part of the Friendship of Nations Monument with a beautiful view overlooking the Dnipro River. We took a path along the lock bridge where newly married couples will come and put a lock which symbolizes their lasting relationship. We took a walking break and sat outside the beautiful Puppet Theater. People watching was a must at this stop. Also it was my brother's birthday...HAPPY BIRTHDAY, STEVE!
Tuesday: I met with a man that would be my boss for the next 3 months. He gave me small hints into
what I would be doing once I arrived in Zaporizhzhya. We decided that I would pick out my own apartment once I arrived. He also helped me get my bus ticket for the 8 hour trip on Saturday. We worked on some questions for a focus group I'll be orchestrating soon in Zaporizhzhya. After that the day was pretty relaxed until Mer and I got lost trying to find a local coffee shop. Five bus stops later with the help of a really nice elderly Ukrainian women, we finally found the metro to take us downtown. It was a long day, but it ended with a great conversation over coffee. To finish off the night we went to a lookout that looked down on Independence Square beautifully lit up.
Wednesday: I would call this the "Day of Sights". We went to St. Sophia's Cathedral which is the oldest standing church in Kiev which has Byzantine architecture dating back to 1037. W
e then went to the kievo-Pecherska Lavra. 123 mummified monks' bodies sit in caves in the "lower lavra". Visitors are only allowed into one small, dark section. Orthodox believers pilgrimage to Kiev just to kiss the glass cases that surround the bodies of the monks, because the bodies are believed to have healing powers. Head scarves and skirts for females are a must. I think this was probably one of the most powerfully cultural experiences thus far. We then proceeded to walk around the campus of the Lavra before leaving. Taking my first tram ever, we went back to the apartment and got ready for the upcoming "football" game. We met some of our host's friends and went to a soccer game that started at 9pm where Ukraine lost badly to Turkey. Let's just the goalie was having an off-day.
Thursday: Mer and I left the apartment at 9am. We got picked up by the "company car" and road to a town 40 minutes away called Bilacerkov. The local market was host to 2,000 small businesses and 40 of these businesses are HOPE loan clients. We interviewed 5 clients and asked them questions regarding the history of their business, their future goals, how the loan had helped them, and any social involvement within the community. We will soon be choosing a few of these clients to write stories about in order to send the stories back to HOPE in Pennsylvania. Once these get written up, I will post one or two of them on my next blog so you can get a better idea of the type of clients HOPE Ukraine is helping. The rest of night was relaxing. We made supper and dessert at the apartment and enjoyed good company and fun conversations.
Friday: That's today, my last full day in Kiev.
Saturday: I leave at 2:35pm and will haul all my stuff by bus to Zaporizhzhya where I will live for the next 3 months. I'll be staying with a family for a few days until I find an apartment.
Life-State: Monday I will start my new job in a new town. A lot of people have asked me if this makes me nervous/scared. So here's my most current answer... I guess I'm really at peace with the transition. I'm moving because, well, I had to. I'm excited to see a different type of microfinance and to see the community developement side of thing that HOPE Ukraine's Tomorrow Clubs fight for. These clubs help teach kids English while telling them about Jesus. The work/job part of the internship will be really great. There are a few things I am worried about. I'm worried about not being at Northwestern this semester. It will be hard for me to know that all my friends are back at college without me, that most of the SOSers are back, and that I won't be involved in RUSH, RA, or other campus events. But I know I'm here for a reason and once I get settled in things will be fine. So there's my current life-state. Feel free to leave comments or amusing happenings about your life. I miss you all!
~Bob
Pictures: http://bobbielydick.shutterfly.com/
Saturday: A team of Americans went to buy souvenirs at Andriyivsky Uzviz. We looked a
round for a bit, but then Meredith and I decided our money would be better spent on coffee. After a quick stop at St. Andrew's Church, we proceeded to a place called Кофе Хауз (Coffee House in Cyrillic). Afterwards it started raining so we retreated to a cheap Ukrainian cafeteria and caught a quick glance at Kiev's Golden Gate. Later that day we got to see the World War 2 monument accompanied by the Motherland Monument. The Motherland Monument is on top of the Museum of the Great Patriotic War. Motherland stands 204 feet tall and is said to weigh 530 tons. She still holds a large shield with the Coat of Arms of the Soviet Union – a blast from the past to say the least.Sunday: Meredith and I started the day off going to Hillsong Ukraine which is the Kiev-based offshoot of Hillsong Church in Sydney, Australia. It was crazy going to a mega church in a post-soviet country, especially after being in Moldova where 98% of the population is Orthodox. I also took my
first subway ever. It was a bit hard with the Cyrillic lettering, but relatively easy. Later we met the guy we would be staying with for the week. He is here in Kiev working for US Aid. He showed us around downtown Kiev. We walked down the famous Khreschatyk Street. The street is blocked off on weekends and holidays for pedestrians to walk around downtown. We walked past the Taras Shevchenko National Opera Theatre and ended up at Independence Square. This is the destination of Kiev's Orange Revolution in 2004. Ukrainians wore orange and flocked to the center part of town to protest against a corrupt government election. After about a month in subzero temperatures, a revote was allowed and the election was deemed fair. This left Ukraine as more politically aware and fighting for a better democracy.Monday: We stopped by HOPE Ukraine's administrative office. We met a few of the people that worked there and then set up a time to meet with my new boss on Tuesday. One of the gu
ys in the office needed to go downtown so we followed him and his wife there. They showed us around a huge underground shopping mall. Later Mer and I went to the Park Misky Sad. There we saw the Rainbow Arch which is part of the Friendship of Nations Monument with a beautiful view overlooking the Dnipro River. We took a path along the lock bridge where newly married couples will come and put a lock which symbolizes their lasting relationship. We took a walking break and sat outside the beautiful Puppet Theater. People watching was a must at this stop. Also it was my brother's birthday...HAPPY BIRTHDAY, STEVE!Tuesday: I met with a man that would be my boss for the next 3 months. He gave me small hints into
what I would be doing once I arrived in Zaporizhzhya. We decided that I would pick out my own apartment once I arrived. He also helped me get my bus ticket for the 8 hour trip on Saturday. We worked on some questions for a focus group I'll be orchestrating soon in Zaporizhzhya. After that the day was pretty relaxed until Mer and I got lost trying to find a local coffee shop. Five bus stops later with the help of a really nice elderly Ukrainian women, we finally found the metro to take us downtown. It was a long day, but it ended with a great conversation over coffee. To finish off the night we went to a lookout that looked down on Independence Square beautifully lit up.Wednesday: I would call this the "Day of Sights". We went to St. Sophia's Cathedral which is the oldest standing church in Kiev which has Byzantine architecture dating back to 1037. W
e then went to the kievo-Pecherska Lavra. 123 mummified monks' bodies sit in caves in the "lower lavra". Visitors are only allowed into one small, dark section. Orthodox believers pilgrimage to Kiev just to kiss the glass cases that surround the bodies of the monks, because the bodies are believed to have healing powers. Head scarves and skirts for females are a must. I think this was probably one of the most powerfully cultural experiences thus far. We then proceeded to walk around the campus of the Lavra before leaving. Taking my first tram ever, we went back to the apartment and got ready for the upcoming "football" game. We met some of our host's friends and went to a soccer game that started at 9pm where Ukraine lost badly to Turkey. Let's just the goalie was having an off-day.Thursday: Mer and I left the apartment at 9am. We got picked up by the "company car" and road to a town 40 minutes away called Bilacerkov. The local market was host to 2,000 small businesses and 40 of these businesses are HOPE loan clients. We interviewed 5 clients and asked them questions regarding the history of their business, their future goals, how the loan had helped them, and any social involvement within the community. We will soon be choosing a few of these clients to write stories about in order to send the stories back to HOPE in Pennsylvania. Once these get written up, I will post one or two of them on my next blog so you can get a better idea of the type of clients HOPE Ukraine is helping. The rest of night was relaxing. We made supper and dessert at the apartment and enjoyed good company and fun conversations.
Friday: That's today, my last full day in Kiev.
Saturday: I leave at 2:35pm and will haul all my stuff by bus to Zaporizhzhya where I will live for the next 3 months. I'll be staying with a family for a few days until I find an apartment.
Life-State: Monday I will start my new job in a new town. A lot of people have asked me if this makes me nervous/scared. So here's my most current answer... I guess I'm really at peace with the transition. I'm moving because, well, I had to. I'm excited to see a different type of microfinance and to see the community developement side of thing that HOPE Ukraine's Tomorrow Clubs fight for. These clubs help teach kids English while telling them about Jesus. The work/job part of the internship will be really great. There are a few things I am worried about. I'm worried about not being at Northwestern this semester. It will be hard for me to know that all my friends are back at college without me, that most of the SOSers are back, and that I won't be involved in RUSH, RA, or other campus events. But I know I'm here for a reason and once I get settled in things will be fine. So there's my current life-state. Feel free to leave comments or amusing happenings about your life. I miss you all!
~Bob
Pictures: http://bobbielydick.shutterfly.com/
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