Tuesday to Warri
February 2, 2010

I'm safely arrived in Warri, capital of Delta State. This city, once the seat of the Portuguese slave trade, turned to rubber, palm oil and timber export under the Brits. Today, Warri is an industrial seaport, replete with an oil refinery and a large steel mill. Needless to say, the air is not good here.

But the city is prosperous by African standards. Traffic is less congested, tho still quite mad. An utter lack of zoning makes for a colorful mix of land uses, many streets flanked by roadside stands selling an amazing assortment of goods. This afternoon, Ify (my hostess and keeper for the day) helped me buy phone recharge cards from a street vendor to top up the minutes on the cell phone I'm carrying. (Can't be without one here; even the gate to the house requires a phone call to be let in, as there's no land line.)

We had a good work planning meeting this evening. Tho the 10 acre site for the institute is not yet ready for a visit (machinery breakdowns today), we were able to more fully explore the program concepts for the project.

A Warm Wednesday
February 3, 2010

I spent today doing research and gathering information, then beginning to collate it into a chart of possible rooms and their uses for the leadership institute. Joel is a BIG dreamer!

With its three-pronged mission, there will be so much offered at the center:

1. leadership education—meant for developing leaders at every level
2. vocational education—intended to teach people lifelong skills for earning a living
3. conference hosting—offered as a meeting place and hotel for many to come together to do good works.

I also visited the Petroleum Training Institute, a 1970s built campus now undergoing heavy renovation, as well as a nearby five-year old state-of-the-art hotel. It's giving me context for scope and scale, as well as allowing me to look at local construction methods, materials and finishes.

Tomorrow, I meet with a young architect who has worked w/Joel in the past. It will be fun to explore some common territory w/him—and some uncommon paths too. Meanwhile, I must to bed, 'To sleep, perchance to dream...'

Allied Thursday
February 4, 2010

Today was a good day. I spent the morning meeting with a young architect who has worked with Joel before. Victor is sweet, intelligent, enthusiastic and thoughtful. He helped me understand that architectural practice here is set up much like it is in the US. What I most loved about him, however, is that he 'gets' environmental sensitivity and wants to learn more about sustainable design and building practices. Hooray!

Construction methods, of course, are different here—sand (hollow) blocks, reinforced concrete and metal roofs. An engineer named Jerry outlined both methods and cost parameters in this land where U$1=N$150 (Naira).

Late this afternoon, Ify and I also visited the nearby Chevron conference center to see a hall that Joel has used for training sessions. It really helps me understand what he's talking about once I've experienced a place myself.

Meanwhile, the street outside the office remains a noisy maze of speeding cars, careening minibuses, darting motorbikes and brave pedestrians—all mucking about in the sultry weather. This being the dry season, I can't quite imagine what it's like when the rains come. Nonetheless, the Nigerian people remain smiling and affable. They're great teachers...

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