Another New Island

After spending 4 in-between contract months back in Canada, I’ve arrived in Madagascar for a few months to try out a new job. First impression - cold! I was expecting a return to the warm, preferably hot, tropics but although I’m now located only 23 degrees south of the equator, it’s very hilly and just coming into a chilly spring. I’m assured it will get warmer over the next couple of months which is good because I failed to pack any sweaters.

Dr. Wright, with a woman
from the local weaver's group

I’m at Centre ValBio, a research station adjacent to Ranomafana National Park, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site in southeastern Madagascar. The centre was established by Dr. Patricia Wright of Stony Brook University in Long Island, NY in 2003. Dr. Wright first came to this area 30 years ago looking for, and finding, lemurs. Over the years, Dr. Wright and CVB have greatly expanded their activities to include support and advice to local groups of artisans, providing basic health care to remote villages, environmental education in the schools, reforestation initiatives as well as continuing their long term data collection on wildlife, phenology, climate and biodiversity research.  My job will be advising and providing support to the National Director and the senior staff here.

Basket weaver's group at their roadside stand

Madagascar is so different from Indonesia - obviously much poorer for one thing, less fertile agricultural land, less forested land and a much larger proportion of the population has little or no access to basic amenities like electricity and clean water. However, people inhabiting the eastern coast of the island have strong ties to Southeast Asia with many of their antecedents coming from Borneo, so it has a somewhat familiar feel to me.

Typical village house

Weaver bird's nest

Brief Notes:

Two official languages, French and Malagasy, although many of the staff at the centre speak excellent English as well, so it will be a challenge to my motivation to learn Malagasy. Many villagers speak only Malagasy, since they don’t have access or ability to attend school. Many urban dwellers speak English as well as French & Malagasy, and in some cases, although an official language, French is being replaced by English as the second language of choice. Blame the internet, I guess.

Nicolas with a small,
but non-venomous, boa

Only one venomous animal, the tarantula. Madagascar has quite a unique assemblage of flora and fauna, many of which are found nowhere else in the world, like lemurs, due to it’s geographical isolation many thousands of years ago after splitting from the Indian subcontinent and African continent. I haven’t had the chance to go for a forest hike yet (aaghh office work!) so haven’t seen a lemur yet (3 weeks and counting).

Dan & Nicole, teacher trainers with CVB's new
environmental education program, My Rainforest My World

Scenery just south of the capital, Antananarivo

Only about 5% of the island’s original forested area remains, a result of traditional burning to grow crops, harvesting firewood for cooking and exploitation of timber resources by foreign companies. Pine and eucalyptus are planted or self-seeded in drier areas but these are both imports. Efforts to plant land to endemic species appears as one of the priorities in the Malagasy government climate change adaptation and mitigation strategy, and Centre ValBio will be taking part in reforestation initiatives along with a network of other interested NGOs.

View from the Centre

Just outside the National Park

A relatively stable national government, after democratic elections in 2013 replaced military control established in 2009. I had the privilege of attending the new mayor’s inauguration last week and he is very aware of the importance of Ranomafana and the national park to the area’s economy - there are many tourists to the site and coming through on tour buses. “Ranomafana” means “hot water” in Malagasy; there are hot springs in the town, and it became a tourist spot when French colonials inhabited the island.

It's a busy place and time is racing by already. I'll be back in Canada for Christmas, which gives me 3 months to see if I can wrap my head around the new environment and new job in a very complex workplace.

And I'll keep you posted - watch this space.