“Think it possible….”
A pithy phrase in the Quaker vocabulary reads: “Think it possible that you might be mistaken”.
A useful thought to have ticking in the back of your mind, particularly when seeking common ground or to resolve a knotty problem. But I prefer to focus on the first three words – THINK IT POSSIBLE……believe that problems can be solved and that things can be changed for the good………focus on how you can make something happen rather than whether it can be changed.
Discussing the building of a communal toilet with landless rural women in Bihar, India.
Former child soldiers in Sierra Leone happy to receive a football from Batemans in Stroud.
Transforming 50 mm artillery shells in Sierra Leone into kitchen knives.
Since the late 1960s, I have had the privilege of working with (mainly) rural communities in Africa, Asia and the Caribbean (and latterly in the UK), seeking ways to change things together for the better.
Some of my overseas work has been in countries in conflict (such as the DRC, Sierra Leone and Liberia). Perhaps not surprisingly, I have learnt a few things on the way and been through some interesting times. Family, friends and colleagues have encouraged me to record some of these. This website is the result. I have put it together with some reluctance because I continue to have a very full life in which my priority is on doing things rather than writing about them - unless such writing helped me achieve a particular goal. But it seems that a rolling stone does gather moss, and so here are some of my reflections.
There are three main areas to explore.
The first is called “Travels of a slow thinker” – with tales of happenings in different parts of the world like coping with military roadblocks in the DRC, the evolution of the telephone or resolving a potential diplomatic incident on a rice barge in Thailand.
The second is called “It doesn’t have to be like this” - which focuses on how I have addressed situations that “shouldn’t be like this”. Amongst others, this will include working with ex-combatants/child soldiers in Liberia, how tree seedlings played a role in rebuilding peace in rural Sierra Leone and helping to build a market for toilets in rural India.
The third is called “Musings” and reflects more generally on what I have experienced and on how I have endeavoured to capture the lessons that I have learnt on the way.
This is still work in progress, and much more will be added over time….