Yayasan Senang Hati - the Happy Hearts Foundation - is lead by Putu and Ayu, two ladies badly affected by polio since childhood. The organisation now has over 150 disabled members who meet together to learn new skills and give each other mutual support. They have chosen to use our small regular grant to pay the electricity and water bills for their day centre and hostel, enabling them to concentrate on developing their programme without worrying about where the money to pay for these essentials is coming from.
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"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."
~ Margaret Mead
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Batu Layar School, on the island of Lombok in Indonesia, will provide a basic education for handicapped children and others who would not otherwise go to school. The school is being built by volunteers from the community which will also provide the teachers. They are using our small grant to buy materials to complete the building and to provide books and other equipment.
Social Welfare Association of Nepal
SWAN works with several remote villages in Baglung district. They have established a health clinic, a hostel for blind children attending school, improved the water supply and set up self-help women's groups in each village. Our regular grant will support their social development work. During the first year they have chosen to support an income generation project (goat rearing) among the women of Bhakunde village.
The NEST Trust developed an innovative program of English teaching for eco-tourist guides in the Miraflor Natural Reserve in Nicaragua, which is now used in several other regions. The trust also supports computer training, scholarships for higher education and other activities to improve rural livelihoods, all aimed at preserving this natural wonderland.
http://www.thenesttrust.org.uk/index.html
Luz Verde (Green Light) is the social projects arm of a not-for-profit cafe and backpackers' hostel in Esteli, Nicaragua. It supports a wide range of activities requested by local communities, including promoting organic agriculture and sustainable tourism. It managed the emergency support during the October 2011 flooding supported by our special appeal. One current project is to establish a library bus visiting remote communities in the Miraflor Natural Reserve.
JONAC is a youth music group in Esteli, Nicaragua. Learning to play traditional tunes gives teenagers something to do and a real sense of acheivement. Performing in public brings recognition and esteem reducing the temptation to join the 'gang culture' which pervades some of the poorer districts.
Teatro Infantil will run youth theatre workshops in the poor barios of Esteli, Nicaragua. Using the approach known as 'Theatre of the Oppressed' young people will explore their history and the problems they face while developing self-confidence and social skills.
