Warm Welcome at Saint Louis High School Kirribati

Louise Whelan award winning photo journalist and I were welcomed at St Louis High School bu 810 high school students who sang to us. Their singing was beautiful and they cheered us for visiting.

After a tour of the school grounds, I was invited back to speak to the teachers.

I spoke about my books, especially ‘I Am Jack’ and  ‘Butterflies’ and the power of real story in reaching kids.

Jill Finanne coordinator of the Pacific Calling Partnership spoke after me about climate change and gave them a trial teaching kit with an invitation to comment. 

It was a wonderful experience sharing with the teachers, the fantastic principal and Kiribati.

Voices Sing through the villages and Islands on Kiribati

The voices of the peope of Kiribati have deeply powerful harmonies. Their songs make modern music feel thin. The youth service on Sunday was in their cathedral which is a massive church with open walls so the air and breeze can waft through - it’s hot on the equator.

Their traditional dancing is stylized, fast, beating, theatre with huge casts of strong, beautiful young people. The dancing and singing involves the whole community and is not for tourism. It’s part of their lives.

Kiribati Pacific Calling Delegation – Anzacs to Mangroves

Goal:- mangrove planting to stabilise the sandy shores – the Pacific Calling Delegation tramped across slippery mud, channels of water and planted 4000 mangroves with village kids, Australian volunteers in Kiribati – hot but really satifying!

Moving moment: Patrick  Dobson laying a wreath at the Anzac Memorial on Tarawa – 22 men were slaughtered here including Australians- by the Japanese in World War 11.

Powerful: Makin island community met the Pacific Calling Partnershipm led by Phil Glendenning. We heard stories of rising seas and loss of crops due to climate change and their plea for us to take their stories to the world.

Sharing: High tea in the convent with the OLS sisters who have been in Kiribati since 1954 – they shared stories of young nuns in heavy habits coming to these far away islands and creating church communities.

Louise Whelan Award winning photo journalist & Me- in Kiribati

Louise quietly, creatively, subtley shoots photos capturing the lives of Kiribati. The faces of children, the land changing, seascape, youth ambassadors, Australians working with the people, the President ….. are incoporated in revealing life on islands spread across the Pacific.

I’m noisier and love being part of Louise’s adventures going into new places, new experiences.  I am looking forward to the photos, exhibitions and revelations Louise has uncovered. I plan to write about it – to help Kiribati with their challenges of water, land reclamation and climate change.

We were welcomed with floral crowns made by the young people of Kiribati. The one I am wearing was made by the children of the Special School. It’s very special.   I was excited to discover that the girls of Abbotsleigh School in my city of Sydney, sent books to these kids. They really appeciated the books as they do not have enough. I gave them some of mine too.

3 hours in open sea to discover – Abaiang Island hospitality in Kiribati

Our sturdy boat lost its top on the crash and crunch trip from Tarawa Island to Abaiang – highlights include:-

-my toe sliced and deciding to hang my leg over the side into the water

- Good news – no sharks were attracted to the trail of blood

- The Pacific Calling Partnership delegation all survived the 3 hours trip.

Abaiang has a wonderful Catholic school and old limestone church in the centre. However we focussed on the southern side with white sands, thatched huts, coconut trees and village hospitality.

The village elder told us about the sea flooding the taro plots and threats to housing and food supplies with warming climate and rising seas.

They prepared a feast in their mwaneaba meeting place. They cooked octopus – just caught in the sea – not my favourite dish. Kids played around us, the sea was blue, the palms green … and these villagers want to stay in their village.

Kiribati is low lying and vulnerable.

Children of Kiribati and Climate Change

The children are beautiful, warm, laughing and school is valued. Most live in basic island accommodation with the  mwaneaba – community meeting area – where there’s eating, gathering, praying, sharing,  under a canopy of woven palms.

 The main island of Tarawa is densely populated with the ocean on one side and lagoons on the other. The other islands are sparsely populated, but all islands and peoples face serious issues of:-

safe water supply, sanitation, sea water rising with climate change.

 I’m here with the Pacific Calling Partnership to find out more about these low lying islands and take the message back that these islands with their people are at serious risk.

President Tong of Kiribati, Australian High Commission & the kids of Kiribati

Kiribati has taken me into the heart of the Pacific –

with warm, open Micronesian people, living on sandy palm lined islands in thatched huts, with pots bubbling their meals of – fish, octopus, fish, fish.. and more fish.

Highlights: Meeting President Anote Tong in Parliament to discuss climate change. I was moved to tears as he spoke about his people, the islands and climate change destroying villages and the need to prepare now with education and skills, so that his people will be prepared to leave their island homes when the time comes.

Australian High Commissioner spoke about Ausaid and their commitment to providing education; work to shore up the islands with sea walls ….. check out the Ausaid site.

The warm and wonderful kids of Kiribati at their beauty talent quest in their open air centres filled with song and dance.

The Pacific Calling Partnership is calling for world action to act to save Kiribati – a sea of islands in the Pacific.

AUSAID in Kiribati – helping kids get education

Landing in Kiribati is an experience – kids were playing on the airstrip, a New Zealand Hercules was on the airfield, the airport was tropical lined with palms and bread fruit trees. The faded hand painted signs – International Airport – marked the airport.

Once out of Customs, wonderful kids from the School and Centre for Children with Special Needs greeted us with welcome songs, coconut milk and floral garlands.

Ausaid funds the school with the help of parents. I felt proud of that. The kids are in dire need of books according to their teachers. I gave them new books from some of our great authors, as well as I Am Jack Daisy Sunshine, and some of my books.

Ausaid funds schools throughout the habitable Islands.

Pacific Calling Partnership Heads off to Kiribati

We’re on a mission to the equator, heading for 33 atoll islands in the Pacific.

Stop over Nadi in Fiji – greeted by Fijians singing -beautiful welcome.

Highlights: Meeting the rest of the party in Fiji.

Nicola Daley award winning cinematographer flew in from Alice Springs where she was filming echnidas to join Tom Zubreski producer and director of a documentary on Maria Timmon from Kiribati and the Pacific Calling Partnership.

Jill Finnane social justice advocate and fantastic organiser who gave me shiny green huge gloves for the mangroves we are going to plant in Kiribati – at 6 am before it gets too hot!!!!!

And there’s more ….. but later … we’re 10 in the delegation and the film makers Nicola and Tom. Ready to go to Kiribati now.

Pacific Kiribati Delegation:Patrick Dodson Father of Indigenous Reconciliation,Phil Glendenning Human Rights Advocate,Tom Zubrycki award winning documentary film maker …..

 

It’s a Pacific Calling Delegation including Patrick Dodson father of reconcilation, Phil Glendenning human rights advocate and Director of the Edmund Rice Centre, Tom Zubrycki award winning film maker - www.tomzubrycki.com and Louise Whelan award winning photo journalist. 

The world is so small – apologies for cliche – Tom met my cousin Ruth Balint (also a documentary film maker) for coffee a few days ago.

Our delegation shared dinner last night in preparation to start our 8 day mission on Monday.

My purpose: As a kids and YA author who writes to gives choices to young people, and as an ambassador for Room to Read bringing literacy to kids in the developing world, I’m on a fact finding mission.

I’ll try to report from Kiribati.