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For Ethiopia's work to support on-the-ground efforts in areas of sanitation, access to education, and resourcing facilities for basic essential healthcare (such as maternity and vaccination facilities) has been a track record that has always impressed me, not least because of the awareness of the need for sustainable, local engagement and steering. 

As a former trustee and volunteer, it dawned on me that just as I have faced challenging times recently, these challenges would only have been far greater had I needed to contend with contexts of extended drought, food insecurity, conflict, low-resource, or limited critical infrastructure. I count myself incredibly lucky that I have been able to study and work, moreover raise a family while relying on access to clean water, a reliable energy supply, and trained healthcare professionals and systems supplied with a good level of resources. 

Without these it is not certain how my life and that of my family would have turned out, especially for example when the mid-wife asked me to hit the red emergency button in the maternity ward in Bristol some 12 years ago. As I write this, my two sons are settling down to sleep after having their second Covid vaccination shot in the arm from a friendly team at a walk-in centre. With mum sleeping soundly as well, we can all only be grateful that we were in a place that had the facilities and resources to care for mum and baby on that day. 

Providing opportunities for young women and girls to access education safely to levels otherwise not open to them, and providing electricity, water and refrigeration to medical centres and maternity suites in rural areas cannot be over-stated in their value to individuals and communities. They are life-critical. The sustaining nature of helping individuals and communities find innovative or simply everyday ways to meet challenges in these areas is why I want every step of the 82 miles* of this trek to make matters better. 

It will be a walk that takes me through landscape that is close to home yet unfamiliar. It is a route that will encourage me to reflect on the nature of home and borders and how we can connect across boundaries for good. 

*The distance is strictly 80 miles in one direction but I'm adding on an extra 2 for the return stretch from the estuary shore to the pick up point at the end. I am aiming to complete the trek in 6 days and don't have any flexibility with this, so it should just be a relaxed stroll over some hills, surely...!