It is remarkable how people tend to remember any given year by major disasters that took place then, rather than by some positive event, even one which shaped the world of medicine, science, or biophysics. We remember 2005 as the year Hurricane Katrina struck the Atlantic coast of the USA rather the year when the new cancer drug Tarceva was released. Thinking of 2010, the Haiti earthquake more likely comes to mind than the South African discovery of Australopithecus sediba, a new hominid. 2011 was the year of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster—but how many recall that in the same year biophysicists created a laser from a living biological cell?
For most people living and working in Southeast Asia, 2004 was the year when a 9.3-magnitude earthquake shook the sea floor of the Indian Ocean, causing a gigantic wave that caused the death of 230,000 people in fourteen different countries. Thailand was not spared, and confirmed casualties here soared to 5,395, with thousands more missing and injured. But a look at the positive side of 2004 – and of the tsunami itself – shows it was the year many charitable NGOs started operating here. Eight years later and long past the need for disaster relief, some are still here, helping the tsunami-affected communities to grow in new ways.
On Wednesday, December 26, 2012, Thailand will commemorate the 8th anniversary of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. Surprisingly enough, due to affordable flights to Thailand, there are many foreigners and Thais out there, volunteers and NGO representatives, civil servants and concerned citizens, who continue to actively work toward the full recovery of the ecosystems and improvement in the lives of communities affected by the tsunami.
One of them is Peter Montalbano, a California-based American and former U.S. Peace Corps volunteer who, three months after the tsunami swept the Andaman Coast of Thailand, found himself once again in Thailand, in the tiny town of Khuraburi in Phang Nga Province, helping as a database programmer tracking recovery efforts.
“I will never forget the first days, the swarm of volunteers from all over the world who, along with me, had poured into the district to try to clean up the mess, heal wounds, and help people put their lives together. Korean, Swiss, Canadian, secular, Buddhist, Catholic, colors and faiths all over the map, a sonorant buzz of good will envoys,” he recalled.
In the cacophony of NGOs that flew in to give a helping hand, to Peter one stood out above all others. This was a group called “North Andaman Tsunami Relief”, or NATR, for short. “It had built itself up on the spot from nothing into an army of enthusiastic volunteers, and had an impressive array of relief programs in more than ten different locations,” he said. “They helped with food and water distribution, medical aid, school repairs, toys and books, and scholarships for 200 children. NATR also helped the locals build squid traps, bridge replacement, a water tower, and toilets. And they still found time to work with orphans!”
“They also paid special attention to projects that would get the tsunami victims back on their feet, supporting themselves. Volunteers built a furniture workshop, and established community centers where production and marketing skills were taught,” said Peter. “I was inspired at the rare sight of idealists able to make ideals become realities, and the satisfaction it brought to them.”
As disaster relief is mostly a temporary job, within six months Peter Montalbano’s part was done and he returned to his “cushy job in the U.S.” He had done his part, and left the rest to the newly revived communities themselves. Volunteers could declare victory and go home.
But the communities that had been helped still had needs that were hard for them to fill by themselves. Was it enough to restore the area to something like its original imperfect state, or did the need go deeper? Island people who had made their livings on the sea had been relocated to new villages on land, many never to return to their original homes. New people had moved out to the islands, but were already unaccustomed to the old ways of life there. New problems emerged and called out for solutions.
North Andaman Tsunami Relief was still on the ground after nearly all the others had gone home. But as the “relief” part of its name lost its meaning, in 2007 the NATR brand shifted, creating a new social enterprise named “Andaman Discoveries”. The next day the remaining staff and volunteers went back to work in the same offices, with the same ideals and the same donor list, but with a different mission: to help villagers in the nearby tsunami-affected areas sustain themselves in new ways, especially through development of a new network for “responsible tourism.”
Now, nearly six years after taking this new direction, Andaman Discoveries (AD) seems to have proven itself. Continuing many of NATR’s signature programs, such as scholarships, working with orphans, and supporting community centers, AD has expanded its scope and vision. The emphasis is on “social entrepreneurship,” and while activities still include building, restoration, and encouraging new livelihoods in communities; no longer are donors the primary source of income. The idea is for programs to pay for themselves.
Years after the tsunami, Peter Montalbano relocated to Thailand. Towards the end of 2011, he had the opportunity to tag along on one of AD’s volunteer projects. “This one was, typically, in partnership with three other environmentally-minded organizations, and involved a group of young volunteers coming from overseas. They were boated and trekked to a village on a remote island and put in homestays with local host families. Days were a mix of learning about local history, culture and ecology and work on community projects, with an occasional chance to swim and play around in the ocean. Meals were eaten together, sitting Thai-style on the floor, and prepared by locals in the local styles.”
The foreign tourist-volunteers also helped paint the community museum, and added to the displays. They built recycling bins and spent a day cleaning up the enormous amount of man-made trash that the Andaman tides wash up from the ocean. After a few days there, they went to another island, helping prepare a local Buddhist temple for a seasonal ceremony, clearing brush, and filling in potholes the monsoons had dug in the asphalt.
“Such experiences have tremendous value for all the participants,” underlined Peter Montalbano. “First of all, they bring people from opposite ends of the earth together and enable them to experience each other as human beings, demystifying preconceptions and creating international understanding. New friends are made. Language abilities are expanded and improved on both sides. Secondly, the volunteers learn about history, culture, and ecology of the areas they visit. And finally, physical improvements are made in the host community.”
“Responsible tourism” is a popular catchphrase, but perhaps not all groups using it to describe themselves can live up to the concept it embodies. Andaman Discoveries does, though, and in a big way.
Every year, Phang Nga province holds memorial events at Baan Nam Kem Tsunami Memorial Park with Buddhist, Christian and Muslim rites followed by a candlelit ceremony. If you’re in the area, please do stop and observe a moment of silence.
Initially published in “Bangkok Trader” (December 2012, Vol. 7, No. 1)
