We're Back!

Heather, Isabel, Kanoot (as our baby is affectionately known) and I arrived back in Australia last week, one month earlier than originally planned. We left in a bit of a rush because of concerns over Heather's health. She's had a tough run of it in the six months of her pregnancy with various sicknesses and ailments. Fortunately, as far as we know, the baby seems to be doing well. 

Now that we're back, I've just started to reflect on our almost three years in Samoa. I drafted an article (that may or may not be published) for the Engineers Australia magazine. The article is reproduced below and I hope you'll find it an interesting account of life (with a work focus) in Samoa.

A Long Samoan Honeymoon

In March 2008, I ventured to the Pacific Island paradise of Samoa. It was a 12-month placement as a Hydrology Engineer with the Australian Youth Ambassadors for Development (AYAD) program. Little did I know that almost three years later I’d still be there... as a rural water supply technical adviser... married... and with a child on the way.

It started out as a short tropical adventure. I’d been working in Scotland for two years and by the second winter I was in need of some sunshine. With five years engineering consultancy experience under my belt, I felt it was time to utilise those skills in a developing world context. I hadn’t planned on Samoa, but with my ‘bronzed Aussie look’ slowly fading, who was I to second guess such a providential assignment?

1. Volunteering with the Samoan Government

I was to work with the Water Resources Division (WRD) of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, a division that had only been established in 2006. The WRD was set up to lead the Samoan Government’s management of the nation’s water resources, and I was tasked with developing their ability to undertake hydrological monitoring and assessment. My counterpart was responsible for two other office-based staff and up to ten field staff.

I had been prepared to undertake the tasks specified in the work plan, such as providing training on flood risk analysis, establishing a yield assessment program and specifying sustainable water extraction rates. However, it soon became clear that there were other more pressing issues.  

2. More Pressing Issues
Firstly, the existing hydrological monitoring network was very small. The Division operated only three river flow monitoring stations and five rain gauges throughout the whole country, with no water quality monitoring program or groundwater monitoring boreholes. The national hydrometric network had lacked long-term funding support, after the initial injection of funds in the 1970s saw up to twenty flow stations and thirteen rain gauges in operation.

Secondly, the data that was collected was of poor quality. Field measurements were often sloppy, very little information was documented, and large amounts of data was lost due to equipment malfunction or poor filing. Once in the office, data was neither centrally collected, nor registered and checked.

Thirdly, the majority of historical data had been destroyed during the major cyclones that hit Samoa in 1990 and 1991. What remained of the hard copy historical data was left gathering dust in filing cabinets, vulnerable to any future natural disasters.

And finally, there was little awareness amongst staff of the value of hydrological data and the purpose behind their monitoring. The Division didn’t really know their clients, and their clients hardly knew them!

3. Time for Action

So, with the help of regional partners from the South Pacific Applied Geoscience Commission (SOPAC) and the European Union-funded Water Sector Support Program (WaSSP), we began to develop the Division. Field equipment provision and short-term intensive training support from SOPAC kick-started the improvement of data collection. We began weekly training sessions on Fridays to consolidate the learning in previous weeks. We installed a number of new monitoring sites at locations agreed to by key stakeholders and donor partners. We began processing the large amounts of historical flow and rainfall data, even initiating a monthly competition to provide incentives for the most productive and accurate digitisers. Soon, the team had developed patterns of operating that could be documented and collated into an operation manual.

By the end of twelve months, I had written the Division’s first Data Management Manual, specifying the procedures for managing the increasingly large amounts of hydrological data being collected. We had registered, digitised and checked all of the available historical data, adding it to the now well-established national hydrological database. We had conducted several in-house training sessions on the value of hydrological data, the principles of data management, and the basics of GIS mapping. We were also now collaborating with the Electric Power Corporation on the long-term monitoring of potential hydropower sites. Oh yeah... I’d also just proposed to my girlfriend Heather: an AusAID posted officer I’d met six months earlier!

4. Time for Change

For several reasons then, I extended my placement as an Australian volunteer in Samoa. At eighteen months, I was married and honeymooning in Thailand and Laos when I received an email urging me to consider working for the Independent Water Schemes Association (IWSA). The WRD was at that stage operating fourteen river flow monitoring stations, fourteen rain gauges, ten routine water quality monitoring sites and three newly-constructed groundwater monitoring boreholes. Considering the benefits of stepping back from such a hands-on role with the WRD, and the needs of the newly-established and very small IWSA, I agreed to a part-time arrangement: three days with IWSA and two days with WRD.

At two years in Samoa, I was providing technical advice to village-managed water supply schemes while offering occasional support to the WRD’s hydrological monitoring program. While at the IWSA, I was fortunate enough to oversee the upgrade of five rural water supply schemes and finalise the conceptual designs for another thirteen schemes. Also at that time were the final consultations for Samoa’s Water Services Policy, of which I was able to provide input. I could hardly believe I’d found a job where I could both work on valuable grass-roots projects while also having access to national policy discussion! 

5. Time to Leave
But like most good things, it had to come to an end. Heather’s posting was due to finish in early-2011, around the same time our baby is due. We agreed that late-2010 was a good time for us to come home.

So we’ve only just said goodbye to Samoa. It was a much longer and more rewarding honeymoon than I’d expected. Yes, international development work can be hard and slow. I was very fortunate though to be placed in a well-supported (and well-funded) setting where, after almost three years, I have seen measurable progress. It has been satisfying to see some tangible development of the water sector in Samoa. In the big picture, I played quite a small role. Nevertheless, I hope my contribution has made some sort of positive impact in the long-term. I think that’s one of the main reasons I became an engineer.

Latest News on the Home Front...

Two Weddings and No Funerals

My latest 2.5-week adventure to Australia in June was to celebrate the weddings of two great friends of mine: high school friend Dzung (pronounced ‘Yoong’) and HSC Study Camp friend Tim. Fortunately for me, I could combine the two events in one flight from Samoa (what an environmentally conscious move... :-)

I arrived in Sydney on Friday afternoon, met Dzung and his fiancée Ruth for a combined Bucks/Hens BBQ on Saturday at lunch, and celebrated their wedding the next day. We almost didn’t make it – had Ruth not separated Dzung and I chatting religion and philosophy for hours on Saturday night...

1. Dzung & Ruth: a beautifully personalised masterpiece
Dzung and Ruth have been together for about 4.5 years, and are very well suited to each other. It was a pleasure to see them publicly declaring their individually prepared vows in a beautifully personalised ceremony. Set on a stunning outlook over the cliffs of Stanwell Tops, just south of Sydney, Dzung’s romantic masterpiece came together like the delicately interwoven strands of a great tapestry. Those floods of tears pouring over Dzung’s cheeks at Ruth’s graceful entrance were a sight to behold (for some amazing photos of the day, check out http://www.vlblog.net/wedding-at-tumbling-waters-retreat-stanwell-tops-crystal-palace/). For those pivotal moments etched into our memories for a lifetime, this was one moment to stake a memory flag (especially for Dzung: my big flag was almost 12 months ago but it’s still fresh)!

During the lunch, I was able to share a few of my impressions of Dzung: his fine intellect, his high standards, his irrepressible romantic tendencies, his strength, his near-metrosexuality, and his deep thinking. I likened Dzung’s question-posing abilities to one of the great question-askers: Jesus. A dialogue between the two of them could go something like this…

Dzung: Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?
Jesus: Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone.
D: Upon what basis do you claim that God alone is good?
J: Do you doubt the Biblical record?

D: Why are you so confident in an unscientific source?
J: …Why are you wearing a pink t-shirt?

The Vietnamese banquet later that night was certainly an entertaining cultural experience. The food was the main highlight (there’s no Vietnamese food in Samoa), though our MC/singer/entertainer had to be a close second. I’m not sure what was funnier… his attempts to work the crowd over the top of techno music, his spontaneous bursting into song, or his fluoro happy pants with chain-link sides. There were also a number of other memorable features… An hour’s worth of photos of the ‘happy’ couple with all the wedding guests in front of their personalized wall of rotating chandelier-disco-light. Their own karaoke-style video on loop as we entered… any Celine Dion song could have fitted seamlessly over the top. Dzung and Ruth were very good-hearted about it all and we really enjoyed ourselves.

2. Tim & Heidi-Jane: a musically-infused celebration

Tim has the wonderful inclination to invest heavily in his close friends, and the lead-up to his wedding certainly demonstrated this.

I was fortunate enough to share a spa and beers with him while watching NSW be destroyed by Queensland in the second State of Origin. Along with his mates, we spent a full day playing sport, eating and socializing for his Bucks Party, and watched Australia painfully draw with Ghana in the Soccer World Cup. We shared a meal with the rest of the bridal party after the wedding rehearsal – no sporting events involved. And the boys in the bridal party spent the night before the wedding drinking a fine selection of beers, playing pool, relaxing in the spa, toasting marshmallows, watching sport, and smoking cigars by the fire. Hmmmm… it’s amazing that we managed to wake up the next morning at all. Yet Tim awoke excitedly and before I was even out of bed, he was dressed… in my shirt.


The wedding itself was a musically-infused celebration, with both Tim and Heidi-Jane demonstrating their ample talent in song-writing, recording and conducting. It also contained the marks of Tim’s cheeky humour, by projecting the groomsmen’s hypothetical thoughts onto the screen in the final seconds before the processional…

I had the privilege of preaching at the church service from 1 John 4, looking at love: God-style. When there are so many conflicting messages about love in the public arena, I focused on the type of love God demonstrated through Jesus. I think Tim and HJ both possess the type of love that mirrors God’s love, and this should enable them to cultivate a strong relationship for a lifetime. With the amount of enthusiastic support demonstrated by their friends and family, they have the ingredients for a great marriage. They certainly got off to a great start.

Injury-Induced Bonding

Brother Will in Samoa for a week. An opportunity for great fun and adventure with a close friend, right? Well, let’s not get ahead of ourselves... Throw a torn ankle ligament into the mix. Crutches. Now these adventurous plans don’t look so promising.

Yep, my injury meant we couldn’t cycle around the island of Savaii or explore the more remote parts of Samoa. Instead, we consigned ourselves to reading, chatting and watching sport. Not quite the holiday us active young males were expected.

This (negative?) experience brought to light a question I had been concerned about for some time:

Is the quality of my close relationships contingent upon a shared interest (in Will’s case, physical activity)?


Testing Ground
This is an aspect of relationships I’ve noticed most between males (especially involving sport), and one I have been aware of in myself. Being a sporty person, I have invested heavily in others who also enjoy sports. Of course it’s natural that I’d have this shared interest as the basis of the friendship (at least initially), which I’d see as perfectly acceptable. However, for more significant relationships, I’d expect greater depth to grow to the extent that if the shared interest were removed, there would still be closeness and mutual value from that friendship. Will’s week in Samoa proved an interesting testing ground...

Glory, Girl, Money
He arrived in Samoa at 12:30am and was on the cricket field at 2:00pm for the second annual Samoan ANZAC Day Twenty20 Cricket Match between Australians and New Zealanders in Samoa. The noticeably more serious Aussie cricketers, led by our cricket-tragic High Commissioner, were first to bat. Will was opening batsman. I was consigned to the scorers role. I watched my brother dominate proceedings to the admiration of the High Commissioner (who freely made job offers mid-pitch). 19 runs with the bat and 2 vital wickets with the ball, he was almost in line for man-of-the-match, in a fairly one-sided affair... He took the glory that could have been mine!

Fortunately enough, despite my injury, we were able to do some exploring: a couple of waterfalls, a couple of walks, the volcanic Sua Ocean Trench and one of our favourite beaches. Though for half of these adventures, I was left while Will accompanied Heather to the more inaccessible parts... He took the girl that is mine (not really, but it reads better that way)!

Heather, Will and I took the opportunity to reflect and discuss a discussion booklet produced by World Vision New Zealand on ‘Living Simply’. It raised questions about our materialistic culture and its compatibility with Christianity. Even living in Samoa, we’ve not been immune to the drug to excessively consume, upgrade and indulge. It was interesting to note that wherever ‘Consumerism’ has flourished, religion/spirituality (of all types) has been squeezed out. We’ve been prompted to reflect on how our lifestyle and spending choices have wide impacts, to ourselves and others... By introducing this discussion, he took away my right to spend my own money with impunity!

My injury took away the physical element of my relationship with Will. As a result, he got the glory and the girl. He also stripped away any sense of pride towards materialistic success. This could easily have led to conflict had our relationship been based only on shared interest. However, conflict was only evident in our discussions on the ethical dimension of military intervention.

Firm Foundation
On the contrary, this experience only served to deepen my relationship with Will... We had ample time to share the big issues of life with each other... He could spend quality time with my two special ladies in our natural habitat... And this confirmed that our relationship was built not on our shared interest in physical activity, but on a much firmer foundation. I hope all my significant relationships are built on a similarly firm foundation, sore ankle or not.

Grandma's Nod of Approval

It’s a family tradition that my mother’s mother, Marie (or Marnie to me), spends her birthday on an island paradise. However, Samoa is not usually on the itinerary. This year though, for her 84th birthday, Marnie did it. For five days, she accompanied my mum, Jill, for an adventure on a new island paradise.

As assistant chaperone to Isabel on the flight over, Marnie gushed with positivity and optimism for this novel experience. And why not? She got to celebrate her birthday, 22nd January 2010, twice!

Despite the late night and beyond the creature-comforts of Aggie Greys Hotel, she joined us for an evening on Salamumu Beach at Samoana ‘Resort’. The relatively basic accommodation and rock hard pawpaw at breakfast did not dim her excitement, and while she decided not to brave the hammocks for fear of involuntary entrapment, she was thoroughly enthusiastic about this slightly more authentic Samoan experience.

We cut our beachside getaway short to head back to Apia so I could play in an Australia day cricket match against a Samoan team. Despite being billed as one of Samoa’s best batsmen, I fell short of all expectations by getting out first ball! Since we’d agreed to give grace to those out first ball, I was given a second chance. I promptly got out second ball as well!! To a guy in his 60s…Yet, Marnie was still complimentary.

Church on Sunday was followed by a driving tour of the tsunami-affected areas, in the rain. Jill and Marnie planned to piece together bits of our family history, prompted again undoubtedly by their visit to the Robert Louis Stephenson museum the following day. His writings and influence are certainly an inspiration.

The wild, windy and wet weather kept me busy at work, but I finished the evening sick in bed. Four days travelling with my 84-year-old grandmother and I was the one flat on my back...! Maybe she’s still got a few things to teach me… Oh, to have a similar exuberance at her age… Fortunately, my Samoan life (and my wife) received her nod of approval.

Next year though, it’ll be back to Marnie’s original island paradise, Lord Howe Island. Come 22nd January 2011, I can only imagine the compliments that are to gush forth…

Relaxed Christmas Break in Australia

Rather than go into the intimate details of our 3-week trip to Sydney and Canberra, here’s a highlights package…

Date Night 1: a surprise meal at the Park Hyatt in the Rocks, complete with stroll over the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Christmas Day: started with surfing, progressed to family present-opening (Isabel did particularly well!), church and a relatively small family gathering at our place. While it was low-key, unlike some of the Christmas lights we’d seen the night before, it was still special.

Hang-gliding: not really an adrenalin-charged extreme adventure, but enjoyable nonetheless. Heather, Will and I casually walked off the cliffs at Stanwell Park (south of Sydney), accompanied by a guide and a hang-glider. Perfect summer conditions made the whole day out with the family, including picnic lunch on Austinmer Beach, a definite highlight.

‘Wicked’ Musical: spontaneously purchased matinee (1pm) tickets for the extreme back corner of the Capitol Theatre in Sydney was inspired. One of the best musicals Heather, Isabel and I have seen, with its clever take on the ‘Wizard of Oz’ story exploring the nature of good and evil.

New Years Eve: an afternoon picnic on the grassy slopes near Fairlight Beach, with 9pm fireworks off Manly Cove, followed by midnight fireworks on the roof of the family home.

Food, food, food: unsurprisingly, food was a highlight, both in Sydney with my family and also in Canberra with Heather’s family. Mmmm… cheese… Heather and Isabel made an amazing gingerbread house. We even had food thrown at us, tepanyaki-style…

Bella Fella time: quality Mike-Isabel bonding time was had at Cockington Green. We were wide-eyed at the intricate miniature scenes and later gorged ourselves on food and lollies (don’t worry, a salad was also on the menu!).

Date Night 2: two lots of flowers (one purchased, one home-made by Isabel) greeted Heather at the door. I was there too. Beautiful food and company once again…

Chillaxing: between family-bonding time, shopping and eating, there was plenty of chilling and relaxation time. Interesting reading and mesmerising TV (Russell on ‘Survivor’ and yet another great escape in the Sydney cricket test)!