Microfinance/Microcredit

This is the industry I want to get in to as soon as I graduate (in the last post I spoke about cad/development, but microfinance makes the most sense to me). Most MFI's (Microfinance Institutions) are based on the successful model of the Grameen Bank (started in Bangladesh). The point of microcredit is to empower the poorest of the poor with a loan (which is repaid in 95% of all loans) to start an income generating business. Microcredit combines banking, entrepreneurship, and the social mission of helping the poor help themselves. I got a lot to learn to learn about the models and the industry, but I am excited. Boy howdy.

Posting Frequency

Just in case you have not picked up, I write a new entry about once every two weeks. It works for me, so stayed tune...

Life Update

Canyoning in the Blue Mountains over Easter break was amazing. First thought: I never thought that I would have reason to rappel down a waterfall... but I did and it was amazing. Second thought:the landscape was amazing and the pictures taken do not do it justice. Third thought: the water was freakin cold (and I was wearing a wetsuit with a set of thermals underneath). Time to expand on thoughts one, two, and three.

For a quick explanation of canyoning just use Wikipedia, but if you are too lazy. My definition:you bushwalk for a few hours to get to a remote location, put on your gear (wetsuit, helmet, harness), then jump into a cold river in the base of a canyon, next walk/run/jump/swim/climb/rappel in order to navigate down the river, eventually find a point to exit the water, then start the long hike back out of the canyon and to your car. On a few occasions it was necessary to rappel down a waterfall and let me tell you that freezing cold water pounding down on your face and entire body generally never fails to make sure that you are awake.

As mentioned earlier, the pictures do not do the landscape justice. During the experience it is also difficult to appreciate the beauty of the natural world. In the canyon you can be focused on safely navigating a white water section, double checking safety precautions, or preoccupied with how cold you are and daydreaming about how good the warmth of a camp fire will feel later that night.

Hypothermia is a real concern in canyoning, and we prepared accordingly. We knew that the water would be cold so we each had a wetsuit and thermals. We ate heaps of food and drank heaps of water in the canyons. But when you have a large group it takes time to rig up the ropes for rappelling and get everyone to safely clear the section. While one person is on the rope, the rest of the group is effectively staying in one place waiting (either at the top or bottom). You feel the cold the most when you are waiting. You try to do movement exercises and maintain blood flow, but it is not an equal substitute for being fully on the move and generating continuous core heat. That being said, everyone got cold at different point of the trip but no one came down with hypothermia.

Easter. I celebrated the Easter Vigil mass in the small country town of Blackheath. I rocked up in my rainpaints, fleece, and teva sandals (the only clothes that were dry at the time). It was strange to not know a single person in the church, but I found comfort in the familiarity of the liturgy. I think the universal aspect of Catholicism is freakin sweet. The structure of the liturgy has been consistent no matter where I travel: San Antonio, Nicaragua (in Spanish), Ghana (in Fante or Sissala), St. Louis (in English...), and a small town in Australia. So yeah, a unique Easter experience.

Life Updates:

So I am now a marketing intern at Crossfit Victoria. In return for my work, I will be able to train at no cost. This will probably be one of the few times in my life where my boss/es are in better shape than I am. I think I like picking unusual internships (last summer in Ghana and this summer in OZ).

I have an idea of what I want to do after graduation... So most readers of this blog will know that I questioned the point of my business education and thought a few times about dropping out of school and immediately doing work that would help people. Sometimes it feels like time spent in college/classrom is a waste and you are not doing anything/enough things of substance. While this can be true, college is a time to develop and mature. In the paraphrased words of Fr. Michael Himes (author of Doing the Truth in Love ), college functions as a time for spiritual and personal development so one can better serve others throughout his/her life. I decided to stay in school and complete my business degree because I saw it as the best preparation for service. I want to use my knowledge of business to help empower those in need.

I want to work in community assisted development/international development in Latin/Central America. Why? Everyone should have food, clean water, shelter, access to decent educaiton, and access to health care. It is important not to a "savior, know it all mentality" when working with disadvantaged people. Most know what they need and most are pretty darn smart. I want to become fluent in Spainish. That may sound selfish (and it is), but it is a life skill that I want.

Rest of life: Need to start working on my final papers for uni. Crossfit is good. Frisbee will pick-up soon. Starting to get into climbing again.

A side note, my top three books in life: Bible, Doing the Truth in Love, Hope in Troubled Times. These books make sense to me. They bring together God and the important stuff in life. So I would highly recommend these, and it will give you a better understanding of my thought process in life.

So yeah, that is my life in nut shell (or blogpost). Let me know how you are doing with things.

Easter Trip

So I am leaving in 8 hours to go up to the Blue Mountains (they are fairly close to Sydney). That being said I am writing this on my next door neighbor's computer and will probably not experience the joy of sleep for at least a few hours. Go on... (copyright@ Gabriel Murphy)

I am on his computer becuase mine is under control of some nasty spyware/ possible virus, so yeah I will deal with that once I get back.

So I have an essay proposal due tomorrow for my macroeconomics class on the topic of my choice. Luckily I have already done the bulk of my initial research. Now I just have to organize everything and clean it up. My topic: What are the negative effects of globalization on developing countries? The short answer: alot.

Condensed version: Prior to the last wave of globalization, developing countries began to shift their resources and focus on the production of a concentrated (1-4 in most cases) number of goods that had high export value (either raw materials or commodities, which are extremely volatile in price). Then other developing countries begin to invest in the same/ similiar goods because they saw that money was to be made. Then globalization enters the picture and the combination of over supply (simple supply and demand dictates that an increase of supply without an increase in demand lowers the price of a good) and opening up markets led the bottom to fall out of these formerly lucrative goods(no longer have any price protection). So these commodities now have dropped heavily in value. The developing countries that invested so much in the production of these economies can no longer sustain themselves (lower price equals lower revenue). So they turn to the World Bank/ IMF for loans.

The prevalent ideology was the Washington Consensus which included the conditions that the country fully open their markets and push towards privatization (very poor overview of Structural Adjustment Policies>SAP). The problem is that pushes the developing country into an even worse position. It exports its goods at a relatively low price and imports its needed goods at a high price. Then the country has to spend what little revenue it has on servicing the debt from the loan. This money is then not able to be spent on health, education, and infrastrucutre. The spiral continues and gets much worse. By almost any measure (appx 7 ways to measure income distribution) the poor are getting poorer and the rich are getting richer. Joseph Stiglitz, a former head of the World Bank decried these unilateral trade practices (starting in 2000).The World Bank has just released an official review of policy and determined that it needs to change course. In contrast, the IMF pushes for more of the same. So that is a brief overview. The big question is what is an effective solution to this problem, researching to see what others have already put forward and seeing if I can add anything useful to that.

So I have to actually right the proposal now and pack for my trip. Timer is at 8 hours, yeah I am a procrastinator.

Stoked for my trip. We will be doing a lot canyoning. Well most people are thinking what is canyoning? A sport where you start at the top of canyon then rappel, swim, run until you reach the bottom. This is my first time, but I am excited for it.

Then I fly back friday afternoon and then friday night I jump into start up camp. Basically, business people and programmers are brought together. In 48 hours, your team brainstorms, designs, and launches an internet busienss then pitches it to investors. So excited for that.

Crossfit has been going well. I found three churches semiclose to where we will be so I will be in one for Easter. Yeah I am going to go work now, cheers.

Happy Easter, please keep me in your prayers.

Birthday Post

Ok this is long past due, I know this…This entry will update you from March 14 to March 31. The gap in early March will be written by my lovely sister Angelique (coming soon???).

I feel fairly settled in Melbourne (I have been here almost two months now). So what have I done with my free time? Well I am glad that you asked, I will try to flush out some of the highlights as well as the reoccurring things I am doing.

From 3/20 to 3/22: I had a blast going sea kayaking/ some light hiking with the Uni’s Mountaineering Club (they do pretty much everything you can think of outdoors). During the trip we were car camping, but we were not able to have fires because Australia is such a dry place. There are only a few parks were you can legally have a fire, even in the front country.

This was my first time in a kayak so I greatly appreciated the good teachers that we had (experienced paddlers in the club). As you are learning to kayak, you will most likely get flipped over a lot, so you want to be able to get out safely. Enter a ‘wet exit”, where you pretty much pull the spray deck and get out the kayak in one piece. Our teachers didn’t want us to focus on “rolling” (staying in the kayak and flipping yourself back out of the water). You do not an inexperienced kayaker trying unsuccessfully to roll and taking in too much water and subsequently drowning…so that is why we stuck to wet exits.

When the waves started crashing, I learned quickly that the most important thing is to use your knees and hips to control the kayak. I was able to catch heaps of big waves and stayed on the water for a large chunk of time. After some hours, I was pretty tired and then the biggest wave of the day hit. At first I paddled with it, and felt in control until it picked the back of my kayak up and front flipped me. I stayed under for a few seconds, caught in the wave. I remained calm, waited until the wave passed, then wet exited from the kayak. So after that adventure, I decided it was a good time to stop for that day. At the end of the first day I felt really comfortable with my balance and ability to control the kayak. The second day, we moved to a different location and the waves were pretty paltry. So needless to say the first day was a lot more fun. The upside to sea kayaking is pretty good, namely catching huge waves and hanging on for dear life. The only real downside to paddling in the ocean is that you get a lot of salt water in your sinuses (the best remedy is a nose plug, which I didn’t have…).

3/26: I went to the opening day of the AFL (Australian Rules Football) season between Richmond and Carlton. Just Google AFL for more information. I scored tickets thanks to my Sport and Education in Australian Society class. Did I mention that I was three rows from the field? Because that was another relevant detail to the story. The game was a blowout: Carlton’s 155 points to Richmond’s 70. To capture the magnitude of the blowout, it would be similar to a 30 point spread in a basketball game. Overall cool experience, now I have to write a paper on it (I know, it is a touch life).

3/29: I attended a formal charity dinner for Jesuit Social Services. The JSS does great work around the world and works to empower disadvantaged people in local communities. The JSS in Australia is active in many different ministries and empowers many people to make positive changes in their lives. The key note speaker had a very interesting insight about society in the United States relative to Australia. He said that the best trait of society in the United States was that it encouraged people to participate. He contrasted this to Australian society, where in his view,people are encouraged to adhere to the established culture. I am not sure that I fully agree with his analysis that the United States encourages people to actively participate, but I whole heartedly agree that active participation by residents should be one of the aims of any society. I do not want to get too philosophical but the focus of participation in society is well founded and should be one of our aims as we work together to build a more just society (around the world).

Recurring Activities: Well you got your dancing, crossfitting, ultimate frisbee, and now soup kitchen (oh yeah and that school thing).

Dance classes have been going pretty well. I am taking a swing (lindy hop) class and a latin dance (salsa, meringue, argentine tange). I like latin more but I think it is because the movements come easier to me (i.e. I don’t have to focus/work as hard). Overall, pretty happy with both and will continue to take them during my time in Melbourne. They are fairly cheap ($6 AUD a class, so $4 USD a class). There is a swing social this weekend which I might attend.

Crossfit, well what can I say except that I am addicted. When you think about it, if you had to choose something to be addicted to, then fitness is not such a bad choice. The crossfit community here is very supportive, full of knowledge, and pushes you to your physical/mental limits. The things that some of these guys and gals can do are freakish. They put at least as much emphasis on their food as their training. Two reoccurring "diets" (I much prefer the terminology of eating strategy, much more long term) around the gym are the Zone and the Paleo. You can Google search both of them, please browse at your own leisure. The Zone focuses on foods and portion sizes, it will help reduce weight. Paleo focuses on select foods to eat and does not focus on portions. I am making food changes to have a Paleo diet, since I not need to focus on weight loss.

Ultimate Frisbee: Good fun, good people, and good exercise. That pretty much sums it up. My disc skills are getting better and I am having fun as I do it. I play Wednesday nights and Friday afternoons. So yeah, it’s good.

Through one of my friends here, I have gotten involved at a soup kitchen that the Missionaries of Charity Sisters run (the order that Mother Theresa founded). I have only been twice, but I seek to make it a part of my life routine. The other day I slowed down production on the dish cleaning line and one of the sisters was not too happy with me. I am looking to remedy my scrubbing speed that in the future.

Today is officially my birthday (the whole time difference thing). One thing that sticks out to me is that people you hardly talk to always contact you on your birthday. My guess is that I will have at least 30 Facebook post from people whom I don’t even keep in touch with (probably half that number will not know that I am in Australia right now…). I am alive the other 364 days of the year and would be willing to talk on any of these. But I am thankful for another year of life (thanks Mom for putting up with my multi-day delivery). I am officially 21 and legal around the world. Is it odd that I don’t want to drink too much tonight so that I can crossfit tomorrow morning? Because that is how I feel…

Thanks for taking the time. Cheers

Please Watch...

My Life Before Uni

So I decided that it was time to make another entry for a few reasons which I will now give to you: 1)I went to my first class yesterday 2) I promised a few people (including the rents) that another entry was soon to come 3) My older sister Angelique arrives at the Melbourne Airport in a few hours and we are bound to be crazy busy for the next week and a half.

Time to elaborate on these aforementioned points. Classes officially started this week at the University of Melbourne (I have not had to sit in a desk since the beginning of December). I have a pretty sweet schedule with only four classes. The even sweeter part is how many hours I have to spend in a classroom: 6 per week. Are your eyes playing tricks on you? No, you read the last line correctly. Then the obvious question is what are you taking? 1)Macroeconomics (All Online) 2)Sociology of Religion (Lecture Online and a one hour tutorial) 3)Operations Management (2 hours of lecture and one hour tutorial) 4)Australian Sports (2 hours of lecture+field trips). That is how I only spend 6 hours a week in a classroom and not skip any class (I really can't believe it either...)

My sister Angelique has made a very wise choice, she has decided to spend her spring break with me in Australia. She is going to have some really good stories when she returns to her day job as a second grade teacher at St. Gregory's. I can see it in my mind's eye now...

Young eager student: "Ms. Deffenbaugh, what was your favorite part about being in Australia?"

Ms. Deffenbaugh: "Well, I would most definitely have to say just being around the coolest person I know, my brother for a week and a half straight"

Young eager student: "How cool is he?"

Ms. Deffenbaugh:" Just imagine Will Smith in Fresh Prince, and then double that level of cool."

Young eager student: "What is the Fresh Prince?"

Ms. Deffenbaugh: "Oh, the generations gaps."

Alright, time to fill you in on some of the shenanigans I have been up to in Melbourne. The city has a huge produce/meat market called the Queen Victoria Market within a 15 minute walk from my apartments. The market operates during the day and most everything closes down by 3pm. This is the case except for select Wednesday nights when the market transforms into the Queen Victoria Night Market. There are heaps (a lot) of vendors selling food, merchants selling all sorts of things, and musicians performing on stage. I went down with some of my friends to the last night market of the season and stayed down there for about 2 and a half hours. At the time we left, it was ridiculously packed and really hard to get around (we picked a good time to leave).

Since we are on the topic of the Queen Vic Market, I would just like to take the opportunity to say you can get some wicked good deals on produce there. I scored a a large quantity of lettuce, carrots, mushrooms (the non-hallucinogenic ones), cucumber,peppers, green beans, bananas, and apples for 12 Australian dollars. With the conversion rate that is about 7.89 US dollars (give or take depending on the day). Jackpot.

Another note worth event was the Brunswick Street Festival this Sunday. I went down there with some amigos and had a real good time (how good? realllll good). Just imagine an entire street has been shut down, then add a large quantity of people, numerous musicians, food vendors, merchants, and a dash of craziness. I took the posted pictures at this festival. We saw two guys that day wearing that "gifted" shirt. Really who wears that out in public?

Question: So what else have you been doing with your time?

Well, since you asked. I signed up for the ultimate frisbee club, the dance club, and the mountaineering club. The ultimate team played a pick-up game last week and it was nice to meet that group of people. It was really windy that day and I am scared to count the number of turn overs that we had.

I went to my first dance class this week, beginner Street Latin (which includes Salsa, Mambo, and Meringue). The first week of class was free so it was packed in the dance studio. During the entire hour we learned two routines and that was too complicated for people, so we scaled it back to one (over and over and over again). So I emailed the president to see if that was just going to be the pace of the class. Answer yes, but I was told I could just jump into the intermediate class and go from there.

The people from the mountaineering club are some pretty nice folks. The first meeting was on Tuesday night and trips are already underway. I will not be able to make the one on the weekend of the 14th/15th but will go on the next weekend (kayaking and bushwalking>>hiking). It will be nice to be outdoors again.

I found a church at Newman College, and it is really close (a 5 min walk). Newman is one of the college's on campus(beefed up residential halls) and has Catholic masses throughout the week and weekend. The priests are Jesuits and I sat down with one and had a good chat last week. There is a Magis group for Uni gys and gals(kind of like faith sharing) starting up this weekend and continuing through the semester so I plan on doing that.

What else? Crossfit. I won't belabor you with details, but it has been a great two weeks of working out at Crossfit Victoria. The trainers are very knowledgeable and know how to push you to your limit. The other athletes going to class are very welcoming and I have ejnoyed getting to know some of them. I even rolled out of bed and made it to the 6am class this morning (bc my sister is going to be in town today). Now that I mention my sister, I better get heading over to the airport so that I am there in time to meet her.

Cheers, please keep me in your thoughts and prayers.