Evaluation

I held an information day back in Brisbane for all those who could not attend the Cairns project, to thank and honour the ones who did, and to inform all of my friends and family who were interested in how the project went. I went through my blog as you can see with the photos my blog is projected onto the wall. I explained briefly my plan. Then I went through the implementation process, and evaluation and reflection. The following is a letter I showed this group as part of an evaluation indicator.

Hi Vanessa,

Just sending you some feedback on the Kulcha Konnect Dance Workshops which were held at the Mooroobool Community Centre on the 8th and 10th April.

The Cairns-based members of Kulcha Konnect (Tamara Pearson and Shelly Bingarap) have indicated that they are interested in continuing to host similar events on a regular basis, perhaps monthly.

I have spoken to Saga (the Manager of the Mooroobool Community Centre) about the prospects of this and she has indicated that she is willing to make the Hall available (fee exempt) for such future Community Development Projects.

I have gotten feedback from many Mooroobool Housing residents and they have indicated that their support for such future events.

I have also spoken with Lorraine Armour from Probation and Parole (Queensland Corrective Services) and she has indicated that although they mainly deal with adult offenders, they also have set up joint projects for juvenile offenders with the Cairns Regional Council such as involving young Graffiti Artists doing Murals on designated Council property such as skate ramps.

Lorraine has indicated that her department would be interested in helping promote future dance projects of a similar nature to the Kulcha Konnect Dance Workshops held in Mooroobool.

She also suggested we link up with the Police and Citizens Youth Club (PCYC) in Manunda, because they are also involved with many Community Development Projects particularly involving Youth.

Many Regards,


Reggie Van Der Werff
Kulcha Konnect Team Member

Kids own choreography

A few of the more confident kids who participated during the day workshops made up a routine to show case at night.

One of my most proudest moments. The "Cooler" or "Shyer" kids who didn't wish to participate, started to dance just as we packed up and are ready to leave. But they made their version of the dance much "Cooler"

Night Performances

PCYC local kids perform Capeoira
click on link to see how Capeoira is used to develop youth in community.

Gianne's Performance

Kids Jammin in between performances

Project 2

Night time showcase

Daytime workshops


Lunch time break




Tamara the Cairns Based Facilitator took charge after lunch

Project 1 Night Time Performaces

Multicultural Dance Festival



Various performances,from different cultures. A good turn out of people (200 or more)

Project 1 Daytime Workshops

Over 300 childern came to take part in various activities and meet local sport personalities

Miracles Do Happen

The very next day after months of rain, the sun came out and i was able to distribute my flyers to members of the community and meet with elders.


The fence of the Community Centre where the project was based

First Day of Implementation Disaster Strikes

Disaster strikes as my project could be cancelled. There is heavy rain all over Cairns.

We used the play ground instead because the children felt more safe and less exposed than on the basketball courts

A side Project

One of the side projects I was doing in order to make it worth while for Gianne to come to Cairns with possible visions of her coming agian, was to organise dance classes with the local latin dance school in Cairns. This was held on the Sunday 12th April at Sabor dance.

Progession Diary Week 5

The Flyer is Completed. I still need to create permission slips for media in case they come and want to interview or take footage of children,we need the parents permission. Next week I will be going to Cairns and the project implementation begins. My plan of action when I'm there will be:

Meet Saga and Judy

Meet with a Traditional Elder of Cairns

Meet with Tribal Elders and leaders of Mooroobool.

Meet with other dancers/facilitators/community members

Meet with Gabi

Take a good look at the hall and design dressing rooms & stage settings

Together devise a plan of Action

Mass produce flyers

Team hand out flyers

Suggested Plan

I hold workshop with kids

Thursday 8thApril. 10am-12pm Make & paint a banner, talk about self confidence and goal setting, connect with peoples stories. Take photos, story collecting and collages to hang up on display wall etc.

Thursday -Night Easter Party, invite Gaby and Tamara and maybe Ray and Reg,Promote Saturday event and Gianne coming to Mooroobool and hand out more flyers.

Friday develop photos may need to meet up with kids to keep painting banner, making collages and writing their stories and putting up the display wall.

Fri night-N pick up Brisbane team from airport.

Sat -early morning = pick up Gianne form airport

Sat morning- Set up Mooroobool basket ball courts with stage and sound system and do workshops for kids and youth. When sun goes down do workshop for 7th Day Adventists kids.

Set up stage for night every body dance.

Possible Program for the night.

I say speech

Thank traditional owners of the land

Talk about my project? (If appropriate)

I introduce Gianne she says speech

First we have kids dance

Youth Dance

Hand out certificate of participation photos with Gianne

then each culture invites Gianne to dance

Other possible dances:

Aboriginal Contemporary

Brazilian Samba

Salsa

Hip Hop

Any other forms.

Introduce Gaby to say a few words about her Festival and invite intererested parties to be a part of her Festival.

Thank you speech

Week 4

My friend Linda who is coming on board with me has convinced/excited her brother and his girlfriend to be a part of the project as well. I will use them as delagatories on the day. They booked a flight to Cairns form Brisbane. They live in New Zealand and will be visiting family in Brisbane at the time.

A childhood friend/journalist/previous local news reader has given me advice on how to write the press release and how to get the best possible outcome.

I have contacted last years school captain of the neighbouring school to see how most of the children from that community were behaving/acting, and what issues there may have been. She is Murri and a family member.

I am just back from talking to Neil Barringham of A Place to Belong and am now up on my high point of my rollercoaster. I was completely touched as Neil had organised for me to sit in a safe space with Sue-Ellen, Inclusion worker for the Community Arts Programs, and another student and a whiteboard to bounce ideas off my whole project. I felt so honoured as we felt like a team. Three people I hadn't met before working together with me on My project.
Some of the main important points they came up with were as follows:

Martin Buber theory and book of "I and thou" where Martin was building a relationship up with his horse. He came to the conclusion that a relationship is not just making contact with someone (or a horse), it's when you get a response and then you respond back to them. Now understanding why Lynda has made the discussion board a part of our curriculum. So in relation to my project and possibly yours, when I told Neil about how I first approached the Community Centre about my idea of a Dance Show case/ Multi-Cultural Festival, the first and immediate thing Neil wanted to know was…How did they respond? When I told them that they were excited and wanted to make and hand out flyers, find the space music and dancers for this event, Neil became very happy. I then told him that the Community Centre worker is meeting with the tribal elders and leaders to discuss what they would like because I offered many different suggestions that they may like to run with, Neil said…And now we have a community Development project. You offered they responded, you responded, relationships build. This right at the beginning this mandate is crucial to building hope and empowering.

Neil mentioned to put in my risk that this has potential as two professional dancers coming outside of the area into the area to be a production, not a CD project. But because of the regular contact with family leaders and myself having different options available to what they need and want I may be able to alleviate that risk. So negotiation needs to be constant. He also told me to keep my expectations low, move in small steps and be happy with this, Have movement opportunities as in when people are feeling uncomfortable have time outs or coffee or encourage walks to toilet. Having time out also with decision makers in planning stage, having support people available for people when they are feeling vulnerable. They also told me to delegate, and in between our workshops and the show case, to have food and story telling time. Use people's stories and ask them to tell it if they will to other groups. It's in this time that the real "richness develops" where trust and relationships and connections build. Sue-Ellen, Inclusion worker for the Community Arts Programs.

I've just spoken to Saga. As Community Development has it, after all the talking with Neil and Sue-Ellen about negotiation and careful planning around the agenda community members want, Saga has told me The Christmas party had turned into the Easter Party and they were flat out. I asked her how I could help her. She told me to make up a flyer, the community is happy with anything to do with dance and email it to her ASAP. She will hand them out in next meeting. She asked me to run workshops for the kids in the day time Thursday 8 th April as well as the Saturday because that would really help them out to keep the kids and youth busy and to keep momentum and promote the Saturday event. Saga asked me if after the workshops on the Thursday, I then help set up and prepare for the Multicultural Music and Dance Easter party for that night. There I can connect with the children and make banners, photos, stories and promote the KulchaKonnect event. That way just by spending time with the kids and community members I am starting to build rapport and trust. I am bringing with me the team to connect with community members (some of my team are residences anyway). I will be bringing Gaby as she is the organiser of an upcoming Multicultural Festival.

Diary of Progression Week 3

My blog seemed a success so much so that when I showed a friend of mine, Linda (OT from MDA) she had booked her flight to Cairns the very next day! I found that because of the picture a blog could make, it excited people and then in turn re-excited me! Talking to Tamara (friend from Cairns Aboriginal contemporary dancer) and a family member who originally jumped on board, they suggested to phone Police Beat (next to the community centre) and I got lots of help from Judy (resident police officer and member of community and past liaison and advocacy officer for families within the area). Judy filled in the gaps about the history of the Community from the time I left since. She told me of all the family and different cultural shifts. She spoke of turning point incidences that made stake holders take a stand and facilitate action to relieve social problems in the community. She revealed to me that much had been done inc movement of families, transfer and balance of racial families, closing up dark ally ways, increasing the facilities in Park, removing the houses that backed onto the park, having two resident police officers in the community and building a police beat next door to the community. Most of the Domestic Violence, parties and gang fights had toned down a lot and the only real problems in the area were Truancy and Gambling. This then changed my plan dramatically as so much work had been done to this community since I left I almost felt like the community didn't need me because there were support structures there already and I felt stuck. Also I was getting confused about Top down bottom up. I arranged with Judy for me to meet the elders. Also she was having a meeting with the Tribal leaders to ask how they would like to run my project. Lynda's writing on Top Dow Bottom Up has helped my frustration with how I, as a facilitator can be a catalyst and that is OK. But also to take into consideration the journey of the project and community you're working with. It is OK to intervene or join other projects that are already running and reinspire them or try new things or merely just support what structures are already there. This is when I was invited to the communities Belated Xmas Party on the Thursday and suggested that I make it my festival at the same time, at first I said to myself no I can't, in my project it has to be something I made up, my work. I kept trying to make things work to my agenda. That does not work (Re: Complexity theory. I also found myself trying too hard to be specific with the people who would come on board with the project. I said "they have to be "living in the community and marginalised". This limited me from trying expert dancers who once lived there, or were family members of the people living there or even the resident police officer, an Aboriginal and TI Liaison officer from the Social Work Department at the Cairns Base Hospital (family member of community residents and old friend of mine who was also a professional ATSI and HIP Hop dancer), and future employers who are of a particular tribe but not living in that specific community. When I read complexity theory I realised The importance of being inclusive, and that the process was from moving from micro to macro and part of this included building connections. The larger community is the whole of Cairns, and my project could include increasing the good name and reputation of Mooroobool within the Cairns region. Judy and her sister Saga in my mind, unexpectedly became part of my team, without them even knowing.

In terms of my project, by this time I was relieved that other people were not only interested but extremely excited and helpful and inspirational themselves. I realised I just had to find the right people. Watching how my project excited so many people started having an affect on me and I started to get excited.

Diary week 2

By the end of 2nd week I realised what Lynda wanted us to do for the semester. She told us to grab our passion. The topic had to be something we are so passionate about that we absolutely bore people with it. I knew then exactly what to do but did not know how to make it into a successful project. I went to see Lynda privatley and told her I had already been working on building connections within a particular group from my home town of Cairns, and dropped ideas about a dance event since most of the people in this group were dancers. So it was already a warm market because I knew they were keen. Lynda and I spoke about the relevant places NGO’s or support networks in Brisbane to go and check out. She mentioned “A Place to belong”. Lynda also introduced me to Narita, a Torres Strait Islander PHD student in the Social Work field. I discussed my ideas and we bounced ideas there in her office that night till 10pm. I missed the last bus at uni and had to cab it home. But it was worth it. I had cultural context of a smart, intelligent and culturally appropriate person. Very, very useful stuff. She also reiterated and validated that my ideas were culturally appropriate and that it’s ok to take theories from “white people” not to discredit what I already new just because they were "white ideas”. But to combine things in an appropriate way. By the Friday night I was meeting a friend of mine Gianne who happened to be on last years So You Think You Can Dance TV Show. Spoke to Gianne about my ideas on the Friday and how I would be up in Cairns with my family for 10 days during Easter and wanted to implement this project then. She wanted to be a part of it. she told me she was available 10th April.. I straight away booked a plane ticket. At this stage I did not know how or where this event would take place, but I knew who would join me and when that had to be. So by Saturday I Started my blog. I investigated other places that we could perform and got in touch with other festivals happening around that time. That’s when I met Gaby. Gaby is keen to see what dances are available so she can involve people in her big project in July. I also spoke to Community Centre worker; Saga and got commitment from her to help with finding if not the comm. Centre then the park or the Tanks Art Centre. I also sent my blog to other Alcohol and Drug relief centres in Cains but haven’t heard back from them yet. I decided to make it into a culture connecting exercise instead of Alcohol abuse. I read the reading on Complexity Theory and butterfly effect. I found very much to relate to this. One of the ways is how the original people who were going to help me had their own issues and agenda’s and trying to deep communication lines with them with no internet, phone or address proved to be a problem. Time was of the essence as Gianne and I were already booked. And every day there seemed to be a new story of what they can and cant’ do. It has been a constant change of agenda for me. I like how Lynda states in the discussion board…Hold on to our agenda’s lightly. So true. I also have to mention that her content in this lecture gave me Goosebumps. The way she described community, connections, potential etc in a scientific, but spiritual, yet practical way. I loved how it all connected and I was feeling lighter and lighter when she was talking. It felt like little light bulbs went off in my head. But not new ones but ones that were already alight, by themselves but now a wire was connecting them all in parallel and they were shining so brightly together now.

Here's what I aspire to doing one day.

Diary of my Progression through the course: week 1

Our guest speaker Sandra was Inspirational and her talk made me realise how accessible Community work is. Just by her living on purpose she was able to live her passion, and look where it led her. It reiterated the butterfly effect. It starts with querying questioning; small acts and you just don't know where it leads. I must remember her story and keep it in mind every time something goes wrong. I read week one readings. Was a bit confused about structure and geometry, sociality and sociability. Dyads to triads. Understanding Community Dev in Developed Countries was pretty straight forward. Analysing and Prioritising issues was very helpful although in my case I only really have a week to plan organise, build rapport, have a cultural dance festival, as I will only be in Cairns for 4 days before the date of the first workshops begin.

Looking back though I realise in week 1, I still had no idea that our whole semesters' work was proposing, planning and doing this one project.