This month was very difficult for all of Tajikistan. It was very cold, with the lowest temperature seen at minus 25 degrees. The last time it was that cold was 20 years ago. Communities were not prepared for this winter. One of our villagers from Sarkishti helped us buy some food for our workers. Half of our workers and villagers are without water, and we have been helping the villagers with coal and wood. 

We spent time training our new Transformational Community Development (TCD) workers. We explained the needs and our strategy, but mostly we talked about the differences between relief and development. We talked about how each of us can help villages while including TCD strategies. Our next step is to build good relationships with the people in the villages. I explained how important a committee is for developing the community.