Elizabeth Adams writes from the Gobabeb Training and Research Centre, Namibia, where she has been working as a TAAF awardee since January 2008:

While I originally came to Gobabeb Training and Research Centre to create and implement a week-long course on sustainable agriculture, my responsibilities have broadened. As an intern I have 'Station Duties' which include leading informative nature walks for the visiting students and researchers through the surrounding gravel plains, riverbed, and sand dunes. As part of the long-term research project, BIOdiversity Monitoring Transect Analysis in Africa (BIOTA), I also monitor insect diversity in these three ecosystems. This task includes driving a quad-bike to the 75 pitfall traps in the surrounding area, recording the number and diversity of the insects and releasing them.

I also found my experience in web-design has and will continue to benefit the Centre. During my first month I installed and implemented Gobapedia, a Wikipedia-style software that aims to integrate the extensive knowledge Gobabeb has gathered on arid ecology and related fields into a comprehensive knowledge base. As an informative tool for the whole Gobabeb community, I trained staff and interns in using and creating pages in Gobapedia.

I had planned to compile all the background information for the Sustainable Agriculture Module within the first month. However, being 140 km away from town with sporadic Internet connection, gathering information has proven difficult and time-consuming. I travelled to Windhoek to attend the various committee meetings, spoke with Directors at the Ministry of Education and Agriculture, and visited secondary schools. Locally, I have been in contact with Topnaar farmers and Agriculture Extension Officers. I had hoped to work in conjunction with the local government or an NGO. However, while the Millennium Development Goals have increased development efforts, I have yet to find an NGO that has any agricultural programs in this hyper-arid region.

I have now completed writing the background information, set up demonstration sites in the local garden, and tested some theory and activities on reducing evaporation and soil erosion. For my remaining months, I will be updating the Gobabeb Website, maintaining the experimental garden, and holding workshops with the local community.