a little update

Reports of the state of food insecurity in this country are not
looking good. Prices are rising here, just as they are around the
globe. If my taxi driver was correct yesterday, the cost of milk, at
more than 2 dollars per liter, is just as expensive here as it is at
home. (This figure was downgraded for me later in the evening, but
regardless, milk has become prohibitively expensive for many people in
Addis, and there are regular shortages of milk, butter, etc.) Add to
these prices the two periods of missed rains in the south which have
led even the government to report a rise in the number of people in
need of emergency humanitarian aid, increasing from 2.2 to 4.6
million. I'm uncomfortable with the notion that I can sit here in
Addis, with access to most everything I could want or need, and not
sense the urgency of the situation. The only regular reminders are
the regular power outages (two or three days a week), which have
become necessary since insufficient rainfall has left the country with
too little water for the hydropower it depends on.

On a more personal level, the last few days have been refreshingly
busy, and filled with friends, both new and old, some from school and
others I haven't seen since last summer. I saw a play on Friday ("The
Real Inspector Hound"), and spent the evening with several of the
British performers and friends. I drove to the top of Entoto
(mountain north of the city) with an Italian friend on Saturday, for a
short hike through a mossy, rutted forest and a picnic that was
thwarted by rain and had us eating sandwiches in the car. It was a
treat anyway – several hours spent in nature, with very few
passers-by. Yesterday I skipped out on work to connect with
professors and colleagues from home, reviewed my knowledge of the
livelihoods framework and pastoralist groups in Darfur, and wished I
could be a legitimate participant in the entire 2-week session. There
were loads of knowledge and experience in the room yesterday that I
would be glad to immerse myself within.

And today I'm back at work, wrapping my head around the objectives,
results and strategies of this project on which I'm reporting. I
walked into a conversation this morning about the possibility of
milling and eating the seeds of the invasive prosopis species, better
known as mesquite in the U.S. I wished I had passed these thoughts
along last week, when I had thought of this myself, remembering the
infamous pancakes Michelle made in Tucson last year (see the photo...I
couldn't help myself). The plant is changing the face of pastoralist
rangelands in the south, as it sops up available groundwater and its
thorns prevent grazing animals from approaching. But maybe a
nutritional benefit could be gleaned from its seeds? The flour that
can be produced is evidently higher in energy, fiber, and fat than the
equivalent quantity of wheat.