We all took the bus to Las Piñas at 7:15 in the morning. Las Piñas is a quiet bay-side place with thriving bird life in the south of the city. We started off our service trip with a walk to a common area where we left our things and were debriefed on what we were to do. We each got a pair of gloves, a mask and a trash bag, and set out to spend the first hour picking up old, usable footwear from the beach, which the locals could re-use. We then spent the last ten minutes clearing one patch of the beach of all non-biodegradable waste: plastic bags, glass bottles and styrofoam packaging. After a short break where we washed up, we went for a walk around the place with a guide, and learnt more about how the ecosystem and biodiversity of the island. We had all our questions answered and learnt about how the island and its bird and plant life are affected by various factors like the nearby city, the rains and the weather. We then set out to plant some nila trees (yamstick mangroves) by the lake before we left for school again.This service trip was very involving and had us actively working. -Vandhana Kannan | |
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Founded by Dharma master Cheng Yen, a Taiwan nun, in 1996, the Tzu Chi Foundation of Manila, Philippines is fundamentally driven by its four major missions: Charity, Medicine, Education, and Humanity. With a motto of ‘a day of no toil is a day of no food,’ Tzu Chi aims to construct a community of integrity, kindness, and morality. Among their missions, one of Tzu Chi’s main focuses lies in environmental and biodiversity protection. With their Da Ai Technology Company, experts in manufacturing and recycling turn garbage, mainly PET bottles, into creating blankets, shirts, and bags for the needy. By turning debris into basic necessities as valuable as gold, Tzu Chi not only bolsters in maintaining a sustainable environment but also in ‘purifies hearts’ of the distraught. The innovation Tzu Chi provides us with is indubitably an invaluable method in preserving our ecosystem. Further, through its own broadcasting networks, newspapers, website and magazines, the foundation plays a prominent role in advocating and advertising sustainability. Striving for mutual, beneficial coexistence with our earth, Tzu Chi’s projects range from recycling magazines for arts and crafts materials to using plastic bottles for constructing tangible, buoyant boats; these variegated methods Tzu Chi undertakes are definitely promising steps towards a sustainable future.
-Julie Min On Saturday the 6th of September, a group of GINila delegates visited a school run by the Philippine Christian Foundation. The significance of this building is emphasised by its location; it is built in the shadow of Smokey Mountain, a former rubbish tip that once housed 20,000 struggling families. Today, PCF is a safe haven for children born into the shanty town that sprawls across the docklands, a place where they are provided an education as well as food and security for their family. Despite this care, these children’s lives are threatened every year by the typhoon season that descends on Manila. Only a few weeks ago, PCF faced a major issue when 100 students found themselves displaced after their makeshift houses were destroyed by a natural disaster.
Natural disasters jeopardise PCF’s goal to educate impoverished children. Families who lose their shelter and are forced to relocate are less likely to continue funding their children’s education - instead, they would encourage them to contribute to the household income. Hence, PCF places a huge emphasis on natural disaster mitigation. In the aftermath of the last destructive typhoon, the school housed many students and their families in the building itself, as well as helping with the rebuilding of their houses. During the visit, GINila delegates learnt that PCF’s plans for the future include building a dormitory annex, which would act as a more permanent shelter for students and families impacted by natural disasters. -Kavya D. |
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