Let’s start with a couple more Guyana Fun Facts:
-About twice the size of Mississippi with about a third of the population
-75% of the population lives on the coast
-70% of the economy is generated on the coast
-Brazil produces 40% of the world’s sugar
-Bauxite (aluminum ore – I guessed on my first try – my geological education finally paying off) and gold are mined here. According to prevailing plate tectonic theory, it is the same gold deposit as is mined in Canada.
Today began the meetings. There were about ten Americans and about as many Guyanese. For most of the morning the Americans laid out the schedule and goals of the ‘experiment’[1]. The
basic idea is that will use a numerical flood model that I build for them, to help manage a simulated flooding disaster, to help them prepare for the next actual disaster.
The most interesting part of the morning was when the Guyanese presented their flooding problem. Apparently 2005 was their ‘Katrina.’ Their system can handle 2” of rain per day. In 2005 they got 36” in six hours. 34 people died and 275000 people were impacted. Until Katrina, flooding deaths in the US were relatively rare. I remember my first project ever, a tiny flood insurance study through Attica, NY, was precipitated by the 1996 flood of record where someone died trying to rescue cats from a vet basement. It changes things. Locals talk about the event differently. The river takes on a
much more ominous specter. Anyway, flooding has actually been pretty bad each year since. Now I’m a scientist. I know the difference between anecdotal and systematic evidence. But that is pretty compelling anecdotal evidence for climate change.
Just before lunch, I presented our software that I will build their model out of. It was before lunch and we were all tired, but many of the Guyanese sat up and started taking notes. After my 15 minute presentation, the Guyanese representatives made a case to bring me (or my co-workers) back to teach a class. To my surprise, the guy with the money agreed pretty quickly. There are a couple other guys from my office who would like to come (and, are ahead of me in program seniority), so we’ll see, but I may get to float the river yet. Speaking of floating the river, I found this blurb to describe Guyana’s tourist scene:
“Virtually untouched by tourism, Guyana is the only country in South America where English is the first language and cricket the national sport. Dubbed South America’s "Final Frontier", it is one of the least visited corners of the planet.”
MmmHmm. I think that sums it up. Since so few people come here, you need to make plans way in advance. I got a phone call 2 weeks ago…and my wife actually signed me up[2] (I was backpacking with college students). But, at lunch, some of the guys gave me tips on who to go with and said I could e-mail them for advice if I returned.
Speaking of lunch, I think it was my favorite part of the day. Most of the Americans sat inside in the air conditioning and most of the Guyanese sat outside (they found the AC uncomfortable). So I sweat it out (literally) and sat with three local guys. We talked about the project for a while. They were all, obviously, very smart. And then they started fielding my general Guyana questions. Here are some of the things I learned.
1. The population is split primarily between those of south Asian descent (hence the Indian influence) and those of sub-Saharan African descent. The latter were brought as slaves to work the sugar plantations. After slavery was outlawed, the South Asians and a few Chinese came in as Indentured servants (“they essentially just changed the name” said one of my new Guyanese acquaintances). Less than 8% are what they call Amero-Indians – or persons of indigenous descent, including two nomadic tribes.
2. Apparently politics splits down ethnic lines…but it is getting more complex with the rise of mixed-ethnicity marriages and children. The ‘other’ category is now the swing vote. Of my three highly successful lunch companions, two had significant Chinese heritage and one was a quarter or half white.
3. One of the guys worked for three months in DC doing biodiversity mapping for the Smithsonian. (Unsurprisingly, he turned out to be my most valuable technical point of contact).
4. There are an equal number of Guyanese living in the US today as currently live in Guyana.
-About twice the size of Mississippi with about a third of the population
-75% of the population lives on the coast
-70% of the economy is generated on the coast
-Brazil produces 40% of the world’s sugar
-Bauxite (aluminum ore – I guessed on my first try – my geological education finally paying off) and gold are mined here. According to prevailing plate tectonic theory, it is the same gold deposit as is mined in Canada.
Today began the meetings. There were about ten Americans and about as many Guyanese. For most of the morning the Americans laid out the schedule and goals of the ‘experiment’[1]. The
basic idea is that will use a numerical flood model that I build for them, to help manage a simulated flooding disaster, to help them prepare for the next actual disaster.The most interesting part of the morning was when the Guyanese presented their flooding problem. Apparently 2005 was their ‘Katrina.’ Their system can handle 2” of rain per day. In 2005 they got 36” in six hours. 34 people died and 275000 people were impacted. Until Katrina, flooding deaths in the US were relatively rare. I remember my first project ever, a tiny flood insurance study through Attica, NY, was precipitated by the 1996 flood of record where someone died trying to rescue cats from a vet basement. It changes things. Locals talk about the event differently. The river takes on a
much more ominous specter. Anyway, flooding has actually been pretty bad each year since. Now I’m a scientist. I know the difference between anecdotal and systematic evidence. But that is pretty compelling anecdotal evidence for climate change.Just before lunch, I presented our software that I will build their model out of. It was before lunch and we were all tired, but many of the Guyanese sat up and started taking notes. After my 15 minute presentation, the Guyanese representatives made a case to bring me (or my co-workers) back to teach a class. To my surprise, the guy with the money agreed pretty quickly. There are a couple other guys from my office who would like to come (and, are ahead of me in program seniority), so we’ll see, but I may get to float the river yet. Speaking of floating the river, I found this blurb to describe Guyana’s tourist scene:
“Virtually untouched by tourism, Guyana is the only country in South America where English is the first language and cricket the national sport. Dubbed South America’s "Final Frontier", it is one of the least visited corners of the planet.”
MmmHmm. I think that sums it up. Since so few people come here, you need to make plans way in advance. I got a phone call 2 weeks ago…and my wife actually signed me up[2] (I was backpacking with college students). But, at lunch, some of the guys gave me tips on who to go with and said I could e-mail them for advice if I returned.
Speaking of lunch, I think it was my favorite part of the day. Most of the Americans sat inside in the air conditioning and most of the Guyanese sat outside (they found the AC uncomfortable). So I sweat it out (literally) and sat with three local guys. We talked about the project for a while. They were all, obviously, very smart. And then they started fielding my general Guyana questions. Here are some of the things I learned.
1. The population is split primarily between those of south Asian descent (hence the Indian influence) and those of sub-Saharan African descent. The latter were brought as slaves to work the sugar plantations. After slavery was outlawed, the South Asians and a few Chinese came in as Indentured servants (“they essentially just changed the name” said one of my new Guyanese acquaintances). Less than 8% are what they call Amero-Indians – or persons of indigenous descent, including two nomadic tribes.
2. Apparently politics splits down ethnic lines…but it is getting more complex with the rise of mixed-ethnicity marriages and children. The ‘other’ category is now the swing vote. Of my three highly successful lunch companions, two had significant Chinese heritage and one was a quarter or half white.
3. One of the guys worked for three months in DC doing biodiversity mapping for the Smithsonian. (Unsurprisingly, he turned out to be my most valuable technical point of contact).
4. There are an equal number of Guyanese living in the US today as currently live in Guyana.
After lunch we went to the local office. After a tour I sat down with the two technical guys and hammered out the issue of scant data. They wanted me to build two models: a hard one and a really hard one. In the end I managed to get everyone to agree to just the hard one.[3] The data is sparse, but it should be sufficient for a rough model.
After that we went to the University, which was really attractive and then back to the hotel. Here are some pictures I took from the van:
Floodwall art.
One of the really attractive things about Georgetown is that the drainage ditches are home to flowering lillies.
The University. I like visiting Universities wherever I go. They feel familiar and different. I guess kind of like the beer.
The cemetaries were composed of above ground crypts like in New Orleans...and for precisely the same reason. Did I mention that Georgetown is below sea level. If you are below sea level, and you don't want to see your loved ones again in this world, it is a good idea not to bury them. I liked this one because there was a random horse grazing.
This was my favorite sign of the day. It was on the campus. I am pretty sure I am missing a bit of data to bridge the cultural gap. Still, if you were ever in high school band, it is pretty funny.
_______
[1] What I didn’t know was that ‘experiment’ has a totally different technical, military definition than ‘exercise.’
[2] How cool is that. We have an 8 week old and my wife, not only knows I would want to go, but gives the go ahead to start the paperwork that had to be started that day.
[3] It is not a matter of it being hard. I love hard work. But I am fully booked through the end of the year. Doing work like this actually just cuts into the time I have to do my other responsibilities
thanks for doing this. I would not have named this country in Pictionary. Way to get in a climate change jab.
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