Bugner said most of her work in Zambia involved teaching business, leadership and money-saving skills, mainly to the village's women. "The overall goal was to protect the natural resources and forest," she said. "The idea was to help with better farming practices and other income so they don't have to use the forest." Bugner said she taught them about conservation farming and set up a tree nursery so they could grow their own trees rather than cut and burn the forest. The nursery also would allow the villagers to sell tree seedlings and eventually fruit from orchards for additional income. "They use the forest for firewood. They make charcoal to cook. They use the grass and timber for houses, the fruits and roots for food. They use the bark as rope," she said, adding they also gather forest vegetation to use for medicinal purposes. "The biggest problem was burning the trees for charcoal. It's sad to see the forest (disappearing)." After a year in Zambia, Bugner said she felt like she had a "better handle on what would work" and would have felt bad if she had left before her two-year commitment was done, even though she felt isolated at times. She kept in touch with her family and friends back in the States by writing letters and making tapes to send to them. When she went into Chipata each month, she would try to call or e-mail her parents. Bugner said she saw small changes during her time in Zambia, but "nothing big I did that will continue." She was replaced by another Peace Corps volunteer, who will carry on what she started.
Keyna Bugner arrived at the village of Mtambe in Zambia in August 2005 and moved her belongings into a mud-covered, wood-frame house with a thatch roof
Emporia native helps Zambians learn conservation
As a worker for the Peace Corps, an Emporia native helps Zambians learn how to conserve the forest
By Jan Biles
The Capital-Journal
Published Sunday, September 30, 2007
Caption: Peace Corps volunteer Keyna Bugner, left, makes nsima, a traditional food similar to polenta with Amai Daka in Kitwe, Zambia.
EMPORIA — A couple of months ago, Keyna Bugner was kneeling on the floor of her Zambia home, using a long-handled ladle to stir nsima in a metal pot heated with charcoal.
"It's a traditional food," Bugner said of the polenta-like dish. "They eat it with every meal along with a meat or vegetable dish."
The ladle, known as a mtiko in Zambia, now resides in her parents' Emporia home among the carved dishes, scarves and other souvenirs of her two-year Peace Corps stint in the African country.
Bugner, a 30-year-old Emporia native, said she has been interested in traveling and different cultures since she was a child. In second grade, she joined the Girl Scouts, which she credits for teaching her camping skills and sparking her interest in the environment. As one of her Girl Scout projects, she started a recycling center in Emporia.
She went on to earn a degree in wildlife biology at Colorado State University and worked for a few years with the U.S. Forestry Department and environmental organizations on the West Coast.
In 2004, she applied to be a Peace Corps volunteer, and almost a year later she received notice she had been approved and would be heading to Zambia, a country about the size of Texas in south-central Africa.
"I didn't have a house so it was easy to pack up my things and go," she said. "I took two suitcases and a backpack. They didn't tell me specifically where I would go, but I knew I would work in forestry."
In May 2005, she flew to Philadelphia, where she joined a group of Peace Corps volunteers going to Zambia. Fourteen members of the group were tagged to work with forestry programs; 30 were HIV/AIDS workers.
Bugner said the group flew into Lusaka, the capital of Zambia, where they stayed with host families for two months while they learned about Zambia, its language, customs and the HIV/AIDS crisis.
Nearly 1 million Zambians are HIV positive or have AIDS, according to the Peace Corps Web site. An estimated 100,000 Zambians died in 2004, and more than 750,000 Zambian children have been orphaned by HIV/AIDS.
Adjusting to a new life
Bugner said she arrived at the village of Mtambe in August 2005 and moved her belongings into a mud-covered, wood-frame house with a thatch roof. The house had no electricity or indoor plumbing and was heated with firewood.
"The Peace Corps emphasizes the first three months as 'settling in,' so I spent time with the women and learned their daily chores," she said.
She also learned about the different social roles and customs for men and women. For example, her clothing had to extend below her knees. Shorts weren't allowed.
Families there typically are comprised of two parents and five to eight children, she said. Because they're hard-working farmers, the house is empty most of the day.
"The main crop is maize or peanuts," she said. "They grow cotton and tobacco as cash crops. There's a dry season and a wet season. So everything revolves around (farming)."
Some families have gardens, but most buy fresh produce at markets.
The children attend a village school, which is free, from first to seventh grade. If a student wants to continue his education at a high school, he must walk about an hour and pay fees.
The men in the village play soccer on village teams and villagers come together about once a month for traditional dancing and singing.
Bugner said she had a bicycle so she was able to visit neighboring villages. About once a month, she visited the volunteer office in Chipata and every quarter all the volunteers would gather in that provincial city for a meeting.
"It was nice to have running water, TV, electricity and a stove (when I went into town)," she said.
Making a difference?
Bugner said most of her work in Zambia involved teaching business, leadership and money-saving skills, mainly to the village's women.
"The overall goal was to protect the natural resources and forest," she said. "The idea was to help with better farming practices and other income so they don't have to use the forest."
Bugner said she taught them about conservation farming and set up a tree nursery so they could grow their own trees rather than cut and burn the forest. The nursery also would allow the villagers to sell tree seedlings and eventually fruit from orchards for additional income.
"They use the forest for firewood. They make charcoal to cook. They use the grass and timber for houses, the fruits and roots for food. They use the bark as rope," she said, adding they also gather forest vegetation to use for medicinal purposes.
"The biggest problem was burning the trees for charcoal. It's sad to see the forest (disappearing)."
After a year in Zambia, Bugner said she felt like she had a "better handle on what would work" and would have felt bad if she had left before her two-year commitment was done, even though she felt isolated at times.
She kept in touch with her family and friends back in the States by writing letters and making tapes to send to them. When she went into Chipata each month, she would try to call or e-mail her parents.
Bugner said she saw small changes during her time in Zambia, but "nothing big I did that will continue." She was replaced by another Peace Corps volunteer, who will carry on what she started.
Returning home
Bugner said she came home from Zambia with more than she had taken — literally. She shipped two boxes of souvenirs — a wooden keepsake pot, a small drum, carved and painted wooden bowls, a tablecloth, a cloth handbag, native clothing — to her parents' home.
In addition to the souvenirs, she brought home an appreciation for a country and culture different than her own.
"I have a better understanding of Zambia. I'd never heard of the country before I went there," she said. "I have a better understanding of how people are the same even if the cultures are different. I have a better tolerance for different cultures."
Bugner said her commitment to the Peace Corps ended in late July, but she didn't leave Africa then. Instead, her mother joined her and they traveled throughout Tanzania and Uganda for about a month before returning to Kansas.
Bugner doesn't know what direction she'll take with her life.
She is thinking about earning a master's degree in forestry. But for right now, she's happy spending time with her parents in their Emporia home.
"I may try the Peace Corps again," she said. "I will definitely travel again."
Jan Biles can be reached at (785) 295-1292 or jan.biles@cjonline.com.
