Emily’s Page

The walk

For five days I will walk Camino Inglés in Spain from the Port of Ferrol on the northern coast of Galicia to Santiago de Compostela. This 120-kilometre walk has been organised by the Secretariat of the International National Trust Organisation (INTO). For those familiar with Uganda, the distance is equivalent to walking from Kampala to Masaka. It is quite a long stretch but the appeal of the green countryside, historical sites along the way and following paths trodden in the 12th Century will all be a welcome respite to my aching muscles! I will be happily sweating it out with friends and colleagues – John De Coninck from CCFU, and Oliver, Catherine, Simon, Bill, Gerie and other friends from across the INTO family (do check out their walking pages). We will make stops at intervals to meet with people who are interested and responsible for heritage conservation, and collectively plant about 2000 trees along the way!

I am really looking forward to this walk! It’s good for my spirit – I like the challenge and time to reflect on conservation and life! It is good for my health – I have been working out and even borrowed a stationary bicycle (thanks Aunt Santa!) for my “off-days”! It is good for mother earth – I love the idea of planting trees! So, the entire 120kms will be good for me – but this is not my only motivation!

Why am I walking 120kms?

I work with the Cross-Cultural Foundation of Uganda which is a member of INTO. Over the past couple of years, CCFU has made several attempts to preserve our national heritage including the built heritage. Currently many beautiful, old historical buildings in Kampala are being demolished at an alarming rate. This is probably because there is so little knowledge about their historical significance. This fundraising walk will contribute to the production of a historical buildings’ map for Kampala city. This will be the first of its kind and will support our efforts to enrich cultural tourism and serve as a valuable learning aid for heritage education.

Why I support INTO

In 2009 CCFU became a member of INTO, and since then we have met and made many friends across the globe, who are not only passionate about heritage, but are doing something about its conservation. In 2011, when the Uganda National Museum was under threat of demolition, INTO did not hesitate to join our campaign for its preservation. Later in 2013, INTO gave us a huge vote of confidence to co-organise the 15th International Conference for National Trusts in Uganda – a first for Africa! So I support INTO because it “walks the heritage conservation talk”.

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I need your support

I would like to raise UKL.800 to finance the identification, documentation and publication of the historical buildings map. Your donation (whatever the amount) will go to a worthy cause and will definitely fuel my motivation as I look forward to each kilometre – I will not let you down!

Donations in support of my walk can be made using the PayPal button below. Thank you.