Impact and Innovations

Impact

GTLI began implementing programs with the Hamar in 2009. Since then:

• 6,000 people have sustainable access to clean water for the first time
• 41% of all GTLI-trained households are regularly using pit latrines, all water points in the participating communities are protected and all Defecation Free Zones are feces-free
• 118 women and men are becoming literate, numerate and learning basic business skills
• women are operating the first income generating activities in the community and, for the first time, having their voices heard.

These numbers continue to grow rapidly because, in the tightly networked Hamar communities, participation encourages more participation. Individuals see that schooling and adoption of sanitation and hygiene behavior leads to income generating opportunities. To create those opportunities for themselves, they join the movement toward change.

Innovation leads to success

GTLI is pioneering several innovative approaches as we work with the Hamar.

1. No per diem. Many NGOs and government agencies make per diem payments to community members in order to gain training participation. Participation does build – but once payments stop, so does the training. Participants came for the money, not the training, and as a result the learning doesn’t “stick.” By contrast, participants attend GTLI trainings because they want to learn and because their peers attend. They continue to come because they believe it is in their best interest. They are internally motivated to attend – and to learn – and, as a result, the learning sticks.

2. Measure behavior change rather than deliverables. Many NGOs and government agencies measure the volume of products and services they deliver: the number of wells they put in, schools they build, training sessions they deliver, etc. By contrast, GTLI measures outcomes: the number of people using latrines, the number keeping their households clean, the number earning money from microenterprise, and so on.

3. Involve community members in hiring. Male and female elders interview candidates for field positions and exert veto power over their hiring. After all, they are the ones who will work most closely with those employees.

4. Integrate programs so they become mutually reinforcing. Rather than keep our programs in water/sanitation/hygiene, education, and income generation discreet, GTLI integrates them in cross-disciplinary programs. Income generating activities are part of our water projects so spare parts can be purchased to maintain the wells. FAL school starts with hand washing to reinforce hygiene behaviors. Participation in a income generating projects requires school attendance because community members need literacy and numeracy to sustainably run their businesses.

5. Build community capacity to sustain and government capacity to support.Many NGOs build the capacity of government stakeholders to train community members. However, stakeholders in remote areas are challenged with servicing widely dispersed populations and often lack the resources needed to do that fully. So, GTLI partners with local stakeholders from the beginning, harmonizing our projects with their mandates; and then we focus our energy to help the community become self-reliant and provide local stakeholders the resources and skills to support the community long-term.

6. Build staff capacity. GTLI proactively builds the capacity of its Ethiopian staff through training and expanded job opportunities. We strive to be one of the best NGOs to work for in Ethiopia, and to equip experienced individuals to contribute to sustainable development both during and after their tenure with us. 

   
   

Sustainable Behavior Change

Creating outcomes that last.

New wells provide clean water and reduce disease – but only if the community keeps the water clean.

Pit latrines provide sanitation – but only if people use them.

One of the greatest challenges is achieving results that last – because lasting results require behavior change. Often, they require giving up long-familiar practices in favor of new ones that are less convenient. (Why use a latrine when open field defecation is so easy?)

The Hamar designed their pit latrines to look like bushes to mimic traditional practice.

GTLI’s core competency is motivating communities to transition from unhealthy behaviors to healthy ones.

We believe that in order to change longstanding behaviors, communities must be internally motivated. Rather than being “trained” (the traditional approach), they must learn to identify their problems and discover their own, culturally congruent solutions.

To encourage this internal motivation, GTLI uses a learning method called Community Based Learning in Action (CBLA).

These proud, pioneering families will only use pit latrines. No more open field defecation.

Community Based Learning in Action

Community Based Learning in Action (CBLA) motivates communities to adopt healthier behavior.  

When people understand why their behavior is making them sick – and why new behaviors are healthier – they’re able to choose healthier behaviors. CBLA helps a community identify its own problems and then devise its own solutions. The result: community members become internally motivated to change. They change not because they are told to, but because they believe it is in their best interest.

The process begins with small peer groups meeting to discuss their problems, their causes, and possible solutions. Unlike traditional approaches, GTLI pays no per diem and offers no handouts. People attend because they want to feel better and because their peers attend.

above: Dobe leading CBLA group of her peers

Initially the meetings are led by GTLI staff. But quickly, natural leaders emerge. The leaders (ergas) receive training and begin facilitating the meetings. The community begins teaching itself and GTLI transitions to a support role.

Meanwhile, elders and other influential leaders model the new behaviors. High-impact activities graphically demonstrate the dangers of the old behavior and, motivated by these demonstrations, other community members join in. Now a collective movement builds toward community-wide change.

Now GTLI transitions again – from actively leading activities to supporting the community as it manages its own behavioral transition.

We have used CBLA to motivate Hamar communities to choose pit latrine use over open field defecation, to keep their wells fenced, and to practice hygiene in order to reduce disease. But there is another aspect of CBLA that is equally important. By helping communities identify and solve their own problems, CBLA enables them to transition from being passive recipients of  circumstance to active catalysts of their own well-being. It is a vital step toward self-sufficiency.

above: GTLI Community Mobilizer Yehwalashet Belete leads a CBLA group

How We Work

GTLI's Theory of Change

“Outer behavior follows the path of the inner mind.”

To change longstanding behaviors and adapt to today’s world, communities must be internally motivated. Rather than being “trained” (the traditional approach), they must learn to identify their problems and discover their own, culturally congruent solutions.

GTLI uses small group problem-solving discussions to help communities examine their problems, identify the causes, and evaluate solutions. The result is motivated behavior change that produces outcomes that last.

The GTLI Model  

GTLI uses a four-part model in working with local communities.

1. Ground time. We live with and learn from the community before doing any programs. Then we develop programs in partnership with elders and community members.

2. Integrated programs. We link programs in water, health, education and livelihood together – because each one reinforces the others.

3. Internal motivation. We use small-group problem-solving discussions to help communities examine their problems, identify causes, and develop culturally appropriate solutions. The result: community ownership of the solutions -- which creates sustainable change.

4. Measuring results, not deliverables. We gauge our effectiveness by measuring the long-term impact of our programs on beneficiaries’ lives – not the volume of products and services we deliver.