The project has improved housing, forced landlords to renovate their buildings, convinced business houses to donate their old offices for city development purposes, attracted doctors and hospitals to the community, opened schools and senior citizen centers, started business-training programs. They have-inculcated a sense of pride in the citizens-and tried to get as many involved in the work as possible. "We've proved that if you really are interested in helping yourself, you can inspire others to help you." Now Fox has seen another way Fifth City can be helpedby getting a major industry located nearby to come into the community and provide both a good economic base and a good infrastructure for community development. She saw this in operation at Pune. In 1979 the Walchandnagar Industries established a social welfare department to improve companyemployee relations and help the surrounding villages through a strategy of planned development. The scope of the rural development project covers: dairy farming, irrigation, afforestation; basic services like drinking water, health education and link roads; generating employment and self-employment through promoting rural industries; local participation in the implementation of development programs. The villagers have been made aware of their rights and the government resources available to them-be it bank loans or veterinary services. Changes are already evident: One hundred gobar (cowdung) gas plants have been set up, the income of the local farmer has doubled, education and health standards have shot up. And all because of an industry that has really nothing to do with rural development. The field trip gave Lillie Fox a chance to see two faces of Indian development-and they both impressed her. She was struck by the rural development work and also by India's determination to make its own products-be it cars, refrigerators, airplanes or computers. And what of the aim of the exposition-Sharing Approaches? Despite a lot of jargon, there was a fruitful exchange of views. The real results will be evident only after some years, when the delegates have tried working new ideas into their own local projects. But everyone agreed that they went away richer in more ways than one. Eugene Ortega summed it up: "The benefits of this conference are not just in terms of learning new approaches to rural development. For me it has been very encouraging and rewarding to know that there are people allover the world who are doing what we are doing, who are facing the same problems and frustrations. It's nice to know that you are not alone. You know, often you start getting the feeling that you are isolated, that no one really cares, that the hard work is not worth it, that there will never be any end to the barriers ... when you move out and see that there are others in the same situation, you don't feel so lonely. You get a more positive feeling-that yes, there are hurdles and frustrations, but there are also rewards. You don't just give up. There are enough examples here to encourage you." 0
The
Great Lakes North America's Great Lakes, along with their connecting waterways, form the largest group of lakes in the world. Sitting like a priceless necklace across more than a quarter of the continent, they form the boundary between eight sizable American states-Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York-and the Canadian province of Ontario. The lakes are a great source of pride for Americans and Canadians as a symbol of international understanding. No fortifications or warships mark the U.S.-C~nadian border where it runs through four of the Great Lakes. The boundary line, part of an 8,890-kilometer U.S.-Canadian border, is, in the words of Winston Churchill, "guarded only by neighborly respect and honorable obligations." . The freshwater lakes-Superior, Michigan, Huron, Ene and Ontario-which have for centuries inspired poets and artists, today are viewed also¡as the possible "OPEC of water." For they have the potential to slake the thirst of water-short western and southern American states. Environmentalists have succeeded largely in putting a stop to the pollution that once threatened the lakes, and water quality has improved. No longer are the lakes a dumping ground for industrial wastes. Instead, they feed industry, directly and indirectly. More than 24 million people in the United States and Canada depend on the Great Lakes for drinking w.a~er. Industries of both countries draw off more than 209,000 mIllion liters a year. Covering a combined area of some 244,780 square kilometers, they drain a land area of approximately 749,520 square kilometers. Because of their position, deep in the No~th American continent, they are a vital artery for commerce, WIth ships ferrying such heartland products as grain, timber, i~on ore and steel to distant places. Major ports on the lakes mclude Chicago, Illinois; Detroit, Michigan; Cleveland, Ohio; and, in Canada Toronto and Ontario. All are major centers of comme:ce. And cities and towns that line the shore owe their existence in part to the abundant supply of fresh water from the lakes. The lakes have also spawned an important recreation industry on both sides of the border. They provide a vast aquatic and forested playground that attracts people fr~m all over the world. The big favorites, of course, are the NIagara Falls which comprise the Horseshoe (Canadian) Falls (47.4 meters high and 780 meters across) and the American Fa.lls (50.1 meters high and 300 meters broad). They are a favonte destination for vacationers and honeymooners-and for Hollywood. Remember Marilyn Monroe in Niagara? And, more recently, there was Superman Christopher Reeves "rescuing" Lois Lane from its churning waters.
Above: Three sets of canals and locks enable vessels to travel from the Atlantic through the Great Lakes to ports. on Lake Superior. The Soo Canals shown here connect Superior with Lake Huron. The bridge in the background joins the United States and Canada. Left: The majestic Niagara Falls funnel waterfrom four lakes toward the fifth, Ontario. Below: At Lorain, Ohio, a lighthouse keeps watch over the shallowest of the lakes, Erie (27 meters deep), which is quickly stirred up by storms. Bottom: Fishing in Lake Erie is a favorite late-afternoon pastime.