Everil Quist, agribusiness consultant, speaker and author from Stevens Point, recently returned from a volunteer assignment in Tanzania, Africa. As an Overseas Cooperative Development Specialist, he trained members of a farm cooperative in a village tucked away near Meru Mountain on how to work together as a group. His assignment was part of a project with Citizens Network for Foreign Affairs (CNFA), a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering people and enterprises in the developing world.
After an illustrious career based in Illinois and Wisconsin agribusiness, Quist now takes his skills to foreign countries where farmers and small businesses can benefit from his experience. He has lectured in various countries throughout post-soviet Eastern Europe, Asia and Africa. Tanzania completes his 21st assignment on foreign soil.
Quist explains he’s always had a passion for traveling, saying, “As people retire in the U.S., they begin to travel more. I don’t typically like to travel as a tourist, because I don’t learn much about a country and its people that way. It’s not until after I’ve spent a few days out amongst the people, and witnessed their customs, do I truly feel I can say I know their country.”
Because Swahili is the spoken language of Tanzania, Quist learned a smattering prior to his trip but relied on a translator for the majority of communication.
In fact, Quist was so successful in building a strong personal relationship with them, they felt comfortable asking him questions outside the scope of his assignment. For instance, some had heard about ice-skating and were astonished that people could “walk on water”. Having lived in a warm climate their entire lives, most of the villagers could not envision snow, either. To satisfy their curiosity, Quist contacted CNFA’s Washington office for photos of snow in the U.S., which he shared with the villagers.
He also shared in some of their traditions. Every session began with a prayer or two, and ended with the participants serving Quist and his translator a cup of warm milk and two boiled eggs as a way of showing their respect and gratitude.
Quist’s volunteer assignments have allowed him to uncover interesting facts about other cultures and societies. In Africa, he noticed that most rural villagers have little involvement with national politics. Additionally, he noticed that their pace of life is much slower than that of the U.S. “In rural African societies, you don’t ‘hurry,’ you don’t get impatient and you can’t get upset about minor things.” Quist was also impressed by the physical strength of their women, who transport heavy loads of produce from the farms to the markets on their heads.
Quist’s desire to share his observations led him to recently launch a Web site that features his personal reflections from his trips. To learn more about his teachings in foreign lands, visit www.QuistSpeaks.com.
Everil Quist traveled to Tanzania under the U.S. Agency for International Development
The USAID-funded Farmer-to-Farmer Program, provides voluntary technical assistance to farmers, farm groups, and agribusinesses in developing and transitional countries to promote sustainable improvements in food processing, production, and marketing.
Founded in 1985, CNFA is dedicated to strengthening agricultural markets and empowering entrepreneurs in the developing world. CNFA is now recruiting for many similar volunteer assignments. Visit www.cnfa.org/farmertofarmer for a list of available opportunities and to find out about becoming a Farmer-to-Farmer volunteer.
