In my travels through Asia, I am saddened by the poor nourishment of many Asian children. My training as a doctor helps me to pick up signs of malnourishment (eg. under-sized children, late maturity, general lethargy) in almost every Asian country – whether rural or urban.
The average traveler is more likely to be impressed by the nicer clothes that they wear, the newer electronic gadgets in their hands and the slickly packed snacks that they eat and assume that these children are doing well.
An average meal for many Asian children is a plate of rice, topped with a little instant noodles (from a pack that is shared among the whole family). This convenient, tasty meal may satisfy the child’s taste buds and fill his belly but will surely not adequately nourish him. Sad to say, such meals are becoming more common as we “progress”! After all, to many mothers the slickly packaged instant noodles suggests a “scientific” meal for the modern mum!
I do not believe that Asian mothers deliberately want to under-nourish their children. I believe that ignorance contributes significantly to this state of affairs. And I believe that this trend can be reversed – one backyard at a time!
For the past year, Goducate has been experimenting with different aspects of bio-intensive backyard farming and we are convinced that with the right type of organic fertilizers (easily produced by earthworms), the right type of seeds (easily obtained from agricultural organizations) and a little encouragement, Asian mums can produce enough “organic” vegetables to feed their children in their own backyards. With today’s agri-technology, there is no reason why the poor cannot enjoy the freshest, most nutritious meals from their own backyards.
Goducate presently is developing two farms in the Philippines – one in Iloilo (in the central part of the Philippines) and the other in Laguna (in the northern island of Luzon) – to train community workers for Asia.
Goducate hopes to help Asians help themselves – beginning with one backyard at a time!
From the 11th to the 23rd of January, I ate, slept, worked, and chatted with the children at the Goducate Children’s Home in Preyop, Cambodia. A typical day for a child in the home would go along something like this—wake up at crack of dawn to do assigned tasks or chores, have breakfast, attend school (in English) and Khmer classes, then back to doing assigned tasks in various part of… Continue reading
A nursing school that came to know about Goducate’s community work has chosen the Goducate Learning Center in Mabakan, Calaun, to be a center for practical training for their students. Hence 10 nursing students spent January training the locals in basic health awareness and doing health screenings.
Training session
Some 30 people, mostly mothers, attended… Continue reading
A fortnight ago parents of the children attending the Goducate Learning Center in Lalao, Laguna, were brought together to attend a session with their children. The session, called Mama and Me, was intended to emphasize to the parents the importance of good communication with their children and of teaching their children and supervising them while they do their homework and assignments. For the children, the intention was to impress on… Continue reading
I read with interest in the implementation of backyard farming to help Asian families to obtain substantiate and more nutrient meals.
I am interested to volunteer and would like to know how I can help in the farm, though no prior knowledge in farming in Laguna or in Goducate Literacy in Sabah.
Wud appreciate if you cud email me. Thank you.