Does Not Compute, Therefore Does Not Apply?

The other day I was tasked with delivering "Basic Water Safety" instruction to a group of 11-14 year old girls prior to engaging in boating activities during a field trip. The easiest and best one I could think of was the 8 rules established in the Red Cross, Longfellow's Whale Tales. Knowing I was going to be doing this a few weeks ago, I embarked on a search for the posters that come with the program available in the states, so I contacted the Belize Red Cross asking if anyone in Belize had a copy of the program. It dawned on me as I read the reply that indeed this is an "American Red Cross" program. They were not familiar with it.

I finally found enough info & images on line to create a PowerPoint covering the 8 Rules of Longfellow Whale Tales.

• Be Cool, Follow the Rules
• Swim With a Buddy in a Supervised Area
• Reach, Throw, But Don't Go
• Think, So You Don't Sink
• Look Before You Leap
• Don't Just Pack It, Wear Your Life Jacket
• Learn About Boating Before You Go Floating

I wished I could find all the PowerPoints I researched and created for Citizens Against Needless Death In Youth, a non profit I worked for in Mississippi where I delivered a whole host of child safety education in schools to Pre K-6th grade and a modified version for adults at hospitals & civic centers. I thought I could just modify them to be more culturally relevant as I had done for some of my children's skits. Take a common subject, look for the culturally relevant components and Viola! Why recreate the wheel?

Low and behold, I DID find all my old PowerPoints  (actually Papi found them for me - thanks Papi) on a hard drive we brought with us. Cool, I thought, I will get started on re working these for future need! As I went through the list my ambitions started sinking. It was becoming apparent that almost NOTHING was relevant here in Belize.  These kids might get to go on a boat so boating safety will work, Fire Safety will apply, Water Safety, yes, but these kids don't use skateboards, ATV's, or have pools. Matter of fact there is only one pool that you can pay to swim in, in all of Corozal!! This is simplicity at its best, the risk of child injury is at a much more basic level. OK so lets research the top injury risk and work toward that, but where do I get that information, there is no reliable database of information (that I have found yet)

Everyone (just about), rides a bike, there are pedestrians and a fair number ride in cars. This is a start;
Bike Safety - The rules of they road give a wide berth to bicyclist. I have only heard one accident occurring on the main highway, but as I think of the things we taught in bike safety, these folks would probably look at me with an expression of :DUH, who wouldn't know that?" And although bike helmets are available and some use them, they are way to expensive for the average child to hope to own. And if a million fell from the sky, would they wear them? Has this society had experience with brain injury from bike accidents to the point they would embrace this safety device?
Pedestrian Safety - There are no traffic lights, there aren't even lines on the roads for the most part and a lot of the roads are dirt. They do have pedestrian walkways and during the school year they have people to be sure kids across safely. There would be value in talking about wearing light colored clothes when walking at night, look both ways before crossing, but again, because this is part of their normal way of life, I would get the "DUH look".
Car Passenger Safety -  oh yeah, there's a lot that could be learned there but culturally it would be irrelevant to them. On weekends whole families pack up food & people and go to parks & beaches around town. People ride in the backs of pick ups, vans without AC leave the door open so there is more breeze. I cringe when I see toddlers protruding from the rear window in the pickup cab going down the road. They do have a seat belt law but it only seems to apply if you are traveling on a main highway. Child safety seats, yeah those are far & few.

I think I need to think on this some more. Didn;t I say in a previous post, "Don't come here and try to inflict your culture on people"? When is it appropriate to share what years of experience & tragedy has taught you? The answer, "When they ask, ......................"? What do you think?

Looking at this from the opposite direction, it makes you wonder,;
Do we need so much safety education in the states because we didn't think things through in the first place?
Does having so much at our disposal complicate our existence?
Maybe simple is better?