Wilderness Foundation UK

Last year when I led the Haberdashers’ Overseas Scholarship Programme to South Africa, the group spent four days living with the Zulu people of Ekuthuleni village. This time with the Zulus forms part of our Cultural Immersion programme and is managed by our travel partners African Insight. It has been running succesfully now for several years and many groups use this time to qualify as part of their Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award.

While we were there last August, as a group we volunteered to rise early with the children of the village and walk the mile to the river, where we would collect all the water for the community for the day ahead. There is no running water at Ekuthuleni and so everything has to be collected and boiled before use, on great cast iron cauldrons over the ever-burning fires on the hillside. Well, at least that used to be the case.

The Haberdashers’ group out at Ekutheleni this year have spent two days immersed in a project to build a wash stand for the village. A clean water supply has already been provided to the village and the students have worked hard to erect a wash stand for the use of the village. The results of their labours can be seen below:

Photograph courtesy of African Insight

The wash stand is going to be a real asset to the village and the students are to be commended on the hard work that has made this project a reality. This project builds on our work in previous years to support this rural community (in the past we have helped to renovate the local school) and critically for our students (and leaders) provides us with the opportunity to appreciate a different culture and a simpler way of life.

The next stage of the Haberdashers’ programme will be a wilderness trail in the Umfolozi Game Reserve, followed by a period of volunteering at the Umzi Wethu academy in Port Elizabeth.