So I mentioned I’m living in the spice islands in previous posts, and I’ve now been fully immersed in the world ‘o nutmeg.   Ambon region’s main spices are nutmeg, mace, and cloves so yesterday I went on a work field trip to the main company on the island the buys, processes, and exports spices.  I was of course excited to learn about the spice that was so integral into the early development of the region, and my coworkers are so nice they invited Yasser to come along with us.

Nutmeg storage containers

The main importer of nutmeg is Denmark and the company is now also setting up some partnerships with Australia and a coffee shop in the USA.  I realized I knew very little about nutmeg, basically pumpkin pie and that’s it, so I had a lot to learn.  The farmers bring their harvests to this facility and then depending on the quality level they are paid between $8.00-$9.50 per kilogram.  The mace is the red lacy substance that covers a nutmeg nut.  It is more valuable and more delicate and is exported as a spice but is also used in perfumes.  The shells are also exported, although no one knew what people use them for, I thought maybe to create an exfoliating scrub but the workers didn’t seem convinced.  Maybe because I tried to explain exfoliation by rubbing whole shells over my skin and saying ‘now pretty’…might have been lost in translation.  My other thought was to use the shells while grilling or smoking food to impart a different flavor into meats.  But it’s a mystery.

Nutmeg closeup.

Dried Mace.

The mace (pronounced ma-che, not like the mace you spray into attackers eyes) is separated sifted to separate small pieces and larger, more valuable, pieces.  The Mace is then examined by a team of local women to separate out foreign objects, dirty unusable mace, and clean sellable mace.   The factory employees 77 community members, mostly women.  These women work Monday-Thursday 7:30am-4:00pm, Friday 8-11:00 and Saturday 8:00-noon with an hour lunch break and a 15 minute snack break.  The oldest woman working there is 70 years old and they were a lot of fun to talk to.  Especially for Yasser, as the ladies told him he was quite a handsome man so he spent the rest of the time walking around like the Brad Pitt of the nutmeg plant.  To be clear, he was wearing a face mask and hairnet so they didn’t even get to see his full handsomeness….ha.

Yasser’s fan club. Women sorting the mace.

Yep…this is one handsome dude!

The nutmeg seeds and mace are packed and labeled for export from here.  Who knew there were so many things to do with nutmeg – here there is nutmeg juice, nutmeg soup, nutmeg jam, nutmeg soap, nutmeg everything!

We then visited a nutmeg farm and the local farmer showed my his plants as we walked

Farmer explaining how to open the nutmeg plant properly.

through his plantation tasting fruit from the trees.  It takes about 9 months for a harvest and during the harvest season farmers sleep in little shacks in the middle of their trees to protect them from theft.  It is evident that it takes a lot of work to pick and shell all this nutmeg as only handpicking and traditional methods are used, there are not machines to do any of this work, very impressive.

The opened nutmeg plant. Beautiful.

Nutmeg!! The red part is the mace.

I found an article with these health benefits of nutmeg so let’s all start a nutmeg craze…although I’ve also found out too much nutmeg can cause hallucinations so maybe a nutmeg in moderation craze.

1. Brain Tonic

During ancient times, Roman and Greek civilizations used nutmeg as a type of brain tonic. This is because nutmeg can effectively stimulate your brain. As a result, it can help eliminate fatigue and stress. If you are suffering from anxiety or depression, nutmeg may also be a good remedy. Nutmeg can also improve your concentration so you can become more efficient and focused at work or at school.

2. Pain Relief

Nutmeg is also an effective sedative. In fact, nutmeg is a staple in ancient Chinese medicine. The Chinese used the spice to treat inflammation and abdominal pain. Use nutmeg if you are suffering from aching joints, muscle pain, arthritis, sores and other ailments. To relieve the pain, apply nutmeg oil to the affected areas.

3. Indigestion Relief

If you suffer from digestion-related problems like diarrhea, constipation, bloating, flatulence and so on, nutmeg can effectively offer you relief. Nutmeg oil relieves stomachaches by removing the excess gas from your intestines. Nutmeg can also boost your appetite.

4. Bad Breath Treatment

Because of its antibacterial properties, nutmeg can also effectively treat halitosis or bad breath. As you probably know, bad breath is usually caused by a build-up of bacteria in your mouth. Nutmeg can rid your mouth of these bacteria. This is the reason why nutmeg is a common ingredient in many brands of toothpastes. Nutmeg can also be used to treat gum problems and toothaches.

5. Liver and Kidney Detox

Detoxification is an important factor of good health. Diet, pollution, stress, tobacco, medication and other external substances can lead to the build-up of toxins in your organs. The liver and kidney are two of the organs where this toxic build-up usually develops. As a tonic, nutmeg can clean your liver and kidney and remove these toxins. If you are suffering from a liver disease then nutmeg can also be beneficial. Nutmeg is also effective in preventing and dissolving kidney stones. When your liver and kidney are successfully detoxified, they can perform their function better.

6. Skin Care

If skin care is one of your priorities then you might want to incorporate nutmeg into your regimen. Nutmeg can actually help you achieve smoother and healthier skin by helping you treat several skin problems. A scrub made from nutmeg powder and orange lentil powder can help you remove blackheads, a type of acne characterized by pores clogged with excess oil and dead skin cells. If you suffer from acne marks, nutmeg can also help make your scars less noticeable. What you need to do is mix some nutmeg powder with some honey to make a paste, which you will then apply to the acne marks.

7. Sleep Aid

If you have difficulty sleeping at night, drink a cup of milk with some nutmeg powder. This will help you achieve relaxation and will induce sleep.

http://www.fitday.com/fitness-articles/nutrition/healthy-eating/7-health-benefits-nutmeg-provides.html#b

Happiness at the nutmeg farm!!

I am now in my second week of work with Mercy Corps and we are feeling more settled and finding our way around.  I thought I’d share a bit about our new city, Ambon, and about the work I will be doing with Mercy Corps.

AMBON

Ambon is a small island in the Molucca straight.  It is the most remote place I have ever lived, you can drive across the island in an hour and there is not much to do other than enjoy the beautiful beaches and explore the jungle covered hills inland…..and eat a lot of fish!  We were able to explore a nearby beach last weekend and had a lovely day of snorkeling and lounging in the hammock.  We were the only foreigners, as usual, so I attracted lots of attention from curious kids and some local teachers that wanted to practice their English.

Me reading a book in my hammock near the beach….kids that climbed the tree to perch like spider-monkeys and watch the bule (bule = gringa or white person. It’s actual meaning in albino but it used primarily to describe light skinned foreigners these days.) Later a few other kids arrived and all climbed the tree and performed an Indonesian rap for me…a lovely serenade!

View from our weekend beach excursion.

A History of Conflict

The entire Maluku region was trapped in a horrific conflict between Christian and Muslim communities from 1999-2002.  This conflict was said to have killed 5000 people and displaced around half a million.  (I will be working on projects assisting the communities that were displaced from these conflicts).  The fighting began in Ambon after a minor dispute between a Christian and Muslim individual, and it quickly spread like wildfire throughout the province.  Now the area is peaceful but the scars from the conflict remain and Mercy Corps is one of the few NGOs that are in the area to provide direct support.

A History of Abundance

It has been very interesting learning about the history of this little remote area of the world.  Most people have never heard of it and will most likely never visit it, but once upon a time it was the most sought after area of the world.  Yes, this little dot in the middle of a vast ocean was known as the ‘Spice Islands’ and was the destination explorers searched for and countries made lucrative deals to obtain this land.  One such deal, was that the Dutch traded Manhattan to the British for one of the little islands in this area to gain control over the lucrative nutmeg production (nutmeg was apparently more lucrative than gold in this time).  At that time Manhattan wasn’t nearly as ‘happening’ as my new home….although things have changed and nutmeg while still plentiful is not in such high demand anymore and these little islands have once again been forgotten by the masses.  This is a project I will be working on, how to find new value and opportunity for the spice farmers of this region.

MERCY CORPS

Well Mercy Corps was the obvious next stop for me – after completing both Peace Corps and AmeriCorps I needed to find a new Corps to immerse myself into and I wasn’t quite ready for the Marine Corps!  So here I am in rural Indonesia working for Mercy Corps.  Mercy Corps is a large development organization based in Portland, Oregon with offices in more than 80 countries worldwide.  Mercy Corps-Ambon is a small office of about 10 staff working on various development projects.  The main office is in Jakarta with other regional offices in the island of Sumatra.  I will particularly be working on economic development initiatives and will be producing many program design and management tools to complete my graduate work at the Monterey Institute of International Studies.

One project I will be working on is ‘Spice Up the Deal’, which attempts to revitalize the local agriculture sector, mainly spice farmers.  I am going to be developing an exit strategy to assist with the project culmination in November 2013.  In August Ambon will be hosting an International Spice Conference that will invite all spice related entities (importers, exporters, spice lovers etc.) to the city to discuss all things spice related and create an open dialogue about the industry with a special focus on sustainability and environmental responsibility.  I will be creating a business focused training series to assist local farmers to plan and manage their ventures more effectively.

Also, I will be working with a project focused on IDPs (internally displaced people) as a result of the recent conflict.  I am working with the women of these communities to plan a participatory needs assessment and identify current programmatic gaps and possibilities for Mercy Corps continued work with these groups.

There is also a project that is finishing that has targeted the cocoa sector in a nearby island.  The project had seen success but there have been multiple challenges as Mercy Corps tries to remove itself from the project and turn it over to the community members to continue.  I will therefore be creating a stakeholders engagement strategy to harness the leadership and interest of those already working in the project to carry on with less outside support and to reach out to community stakeholders for additional assistance if needed.   I will also be developing a scale up and sustainability plan for this project to assist the project become internally maintained and create a plan for similar projects to be undertaken in other communities.  I personally would like them to stop exporting the cocoa and start producing amazing chocolate here on the island…but that’s just a selfish recommendation as there isn’t much chocolate on the island and I Love Chocolate…especially since I need it to fuel me through my final capstone project for graduate school!!

Lastly, I will be working with the office staff to share the development tools I have learned in my studies, such as results framework, intervention plans, solution trees.  And I will also conduct a strategic partnership plan to assist the office assess its core competencies and identify areas in which partnership would be beneficial.

Now that I write all of this down I realize the massive amount of work I have ahead of me, but it is sure to be interesting and my professional growth will be outstanding!

….I better get to work….later!

The view from my hammock.

Public Transportation.

I am now in my second week of work with Mercy Corps and we are feeling more settled and finding our way around. I thought I’d share a bit about our new city, Ambon, and about the work I will be doing with Mercy Corps.

AMBON

Ambon is a small island in the Molucca straight. It is the most remote place I have ever lived, you can drive across the island in an hour and there is not much to do other than enjoy the beautiful beaches and explore the jungle covered hills inland…..and eat a lot of fish! We were able to explore a nearby beach last weekend and had a lovely day of snorkeling and lounging in the hammock. We were the only foreigners, as usual, so I attracted lots of attention from curious kids and some local teachers that wanted to practice their English.

A History of Conflict
The entire Maluku region was trapped in a horrific conflict between Christian and Muslim communities from 1999-2002. This conflict was said to have killed 5000 people and displaced around half a million. (I will be working on projects assisting the communities that were displaced from these conflicts). The fighting began in Ambon after a minor dispute between a Christian and Muslim individual, and it quickly spread like wildfire throughout the province. Now the area is peaceful but the scars from the conflict remain and Mercy Corps is one of the few NGOs that are in the area to provide direct support.

A History of Abundance
It has been very interesting learning about the history of this little remote area of the world. Most people have never heard of it and will most likely never visit it, but once upon a time it was the most sought after area of the world. Yes, this little dot in the middle of a vast ocean was known as the ‘Spice Islands’ and was the destination explorers searched for and countries made lucrative deals to obtain this land. One such deal, was that the Dutch traded Manhattan to the British for one of the little islands in this area to gain control over the lucrative nutmeg production (nutmeg was apparently more lucrative than gold in this time). At that time Manhattan wasn’t nearly as ‘happening’ as my new home….although things have changed and nutmeg while still plentiful is not in such high demand anymore and these little islands have once again been forgotten by the masses. This is a project I will be working on, how to find new value and opportunity for the spice farmers of this region.

MERCY CORPS

Well Mercy Corps was the obvious next stop for me – after completing both Peace Corps and AmeriCorps I needed to find a new Corps to immerse myself into and I wasn’t quite ready for the Marine Corps! So here I am in rural Indonesia working for Mercy Corps. Mercy Corps is a large development organization based in Portland, Oregon with offices in more than 80 countries worldwide. Mercy Corps-Ambon is a small office of about 10 staff working on various development projects. The main office is in Jakarta with other regional offices in the island of Sumatra. I will particularly be working on economic development initiatives and will be producing many program design and management tools to complete my graduate work at the Monterey Institute of International Studies.

One project I will be working on is ‘Spice Up the Deal’, which attempts to revitalize the local agriculture sector, mainly spice farmers. I am going to be developing an exit strategy to assist with the project culmination in November 2013. In August Ambon will be hosting an International Spice Conference that will invite all spice related entities (importers, exporters, spice lovers etc.) to the city to discuss all things spice related and create an open dialogue about the industry with a special focus on sustainability and environmental responsibility. I will be creating a business focused training series to assist local farmers to plan and manage their ventures more effectively.

Also, I will be working with a project focused on IDPs (internally displaced people) as a result of the recent conflict. I am working with the women of these communities to plan a participatory needs assessment and identify current programmatic gaps and possibilities for Mercy Corps continued work with these groups.

There is also a project that is finishing that has targeted the cocoa sector in a nearby island. The project had seen success but there have been multiple challenges as Mercy Corps tries to remove itself from the project and turn it over to the community members to continue. I will therefore be creating a stakeholders engagement strategy to harness the leadership and interest of those already working in the project to carry on with less outside support and to reach out to community stakeholders for additional assistance if needed. I will also be developing a scale up and sustainability plan for this project to assist the project become internally maintained and create a plan for similar projects to be undertaken in other communities. I personally would like them to stop exporting the cocoa and start producing amazing chocolate here on the island…but that’s just a selfish recommendation as there isn’t much chocolate on the island and I Love Chocolate…especially since I need it to fuel me through my final capstone project for graduate school!!

Lastly, I will be working with the office staff to share the development tools I have learned in my studies, such as results framework, intervention plans, solution trees. And I will also conduct a strategic partnership plan to assist the office assess its core competencies and identify areas in which partnership would be beneficial.

Now that I write all of this down I realize the massive amount of work I have ahead of me, but it is sure to be interesting and my professional growth will be outstanding!

….I better get to work….later!