Focused Meander

So I stepped into Madang's Visitors & Cultural Bureau last week, located opposite the Laiwaden Oval, home of the Tusbab Stallions of the National Soccer League fame', the oval that is..... The bureau though, it was as if I had stepped back into time- yet another iconic center laying close to forgotten. I had been here some 20years ago during the glory days of Madang's tourism rise and except for the obvious wear and tear, little else had changed. Spotting a new freshly colored paint job on the fence, it was a far contrast to the inside. Staff here say the provincial government has alluded to some refurbishing work assistance and they're all fingers crossed at this stage. But you can't compare the feeling of history and housing something special when you walk through it's old doors. The dimly lit room had enough light in it for visitors to get a sense of it's treasures- stone axe artifacts, grass skirts, wind pipes, garamut, traditional wood carving, memo...

 By Martha Wame My love for turtles began when I was in the 5th grade. I smuggled home a turtle book from the school library. The creature on the front page with it's wide mesmerizing eyes drew me in. I could not put the book down that night and after I reached the end, I could never forget the pictures of the endangered Hawksbill, Kemp Ridley and the Leatherback turtles. It began my interest to see them in the wild.  Growing up, I only spotted Green turtles who can grow up to 15meters. According to the https://www.worldwildlife.org/species/green-turtle "The green turtle is one of the largest sea turtles and the only herbivore among the different species. Also an endangered turtle species, green turtles are threatened by over-harvesting of their eggs, hunting of their adults, being caught in fishing gear and loss of nesting beach sites." A year ago, my dream to see the rest of them came to pass. A hawksbill turtle in the wild for the first time- while doing voluntary w...

 That's such a bold statement yet it rings true all over Papua New Guinea. We love out rice yet it's not considered a priority cash crop- we'd rather eat imported rice. And import we do- over 400,000 tons each year according to the Department of Agriculture. That's around the K600million mark which is about 85percent of demand according to the department. PNG's Rice Policy 2015-2030 to cultivate domestic rice to feed this demand remains a mammoth task that while not new, still has to be properly realized in PNG. Coupled with issues on the import quota system, it may not be quick fix but a working progress. And the people of Aronis in Madang's Sumkar LLG are attempting to change this cycle.  I stumbled upon a family there, huddled together around the fire. The hot amber slowly cooling down but despite being in this remote community, a huge pot of rice sits atop a well used fly wire, used to hold up the pot above the fire, balanced ontop four large stones. No vege...

If you've been to Madang, chances are you might have walked right past the CWA Guest House in town without noticing it. It's nestled under a huge rain tree, right at the waters edge but not too many people know about it- unless you're hard pressed and need a clean, safe and affordable place to lay down for the night. That's how I found the place. It was 2012 and I had taken my little family (the hubby and my four year old at the time), on a spontaneous annual recreational leave. You see, East Sepik was my leave destination (my mother's home province) but once we got there, staying in one place took it's toll and I decided on buying three boat tickets to Madang. A week in Wewak and we were off via Lutheran Shipping to Madang. We had arrived tired and needed a place to rest when a friend suggested CWA Madang. We had no choice- there was a huge meeting in Madang at the time and most other accommodation venues were booked out. It was the best decision- clean, safe a...

 Bear with us, this is actually an Assignment paper, using the above analysis method to create a Communication Campaign Plan. This example is of saving the Leatherback Sea Turtles, said to be the largest of all turtle species and in danger of extinction. Here is the link to our analysis strategy for this Campaign Plan, stored on Google Drive, feel free to check it out. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1yDWOmn_HI9T6qfN99iOmt0EFA_L33n-c/view?usp=sharing  Aren't they majestic?    Picture credit: https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.seaturtlestatus.org%2Fleatherback-turtle&psig=AOvVaw3fAdU2oVGOWl0WtnpeNW-h&ust=1600608143117000&source=images&cd=vfe&ved=0CAIQjRxqFwoTCJiXtKGo9esCFQAAAAAdAAAAABAd

 This blog is a trial. It will be much about nothing, And nothing about much. But it will be good. You will need to check in every so often, Just in case you miss out something. And we will meander, from subject to subject. Anything really, but focused meandering. Feel free to comment,  We'd sure appreciate it. Let us know you're there. Aloha!!!