Do you want to change the world? Really change the world? We’ve learned, like every one else on this planet in more recent decades of change, that this happens when everyday people join hands and hearts to say, “not on our watch”. When everyday people, rich and poor, old and young, men and women, culturally and racially diverse, identify a problem and say, “we can do better”.

So this is my focus. The thinking I want to change. The one that I’m going to wage war against for the rest of my life. The inequity across our world. Inequity that breeds discontentment, jealousy and despair from the have-nots. And arrogance, hubris and lack of empathy from the have-s.

It’s a concoction of selfish ambition, hedonism and social Darwinism.

It’s the fuel of class divisions, social tension, and in the end, revolution.

But the word revolution need not conjure images of violence and war. It can look so very different. It can look like street marches, soup kitchens, catch up schools, music and arts events. It can be seen in our cities, towns and farming communities, or the Developing World. It requires standing up to law makers and power holders. And standing up for those finding themselves on the margins of economic, social and political power. It takes issue with culture by holding hands across the divide that says, “Poverty of any kind makes you less”. Because it doesn’t. It’s a lie.

And here’s the thing, this kind of revolution is a grassroots revolution. It’s led and sustained by the people on the streets and homes of our cities and suburbs. It’s made up of those who will sacrifice personally getting ahead to collectively foster a new kind of progress.

Foxglove tells everyday people the everyday stories of others. It knows the power of people. It’s gently asking that you join the revolution. The one that says ‘no’ to inequity. ‘No’ to divisions too often based on education, power, money, gender and race. Foxglove wants to introduce you to the brilliance found in all people. It may be dormant. It may be dim. Or it may blaze brightly. But it’s there and everyday people like you and me have the chance to believe it.

May the desire to change the world burn in our hearts. Because it can and it must.
??‍⚕️??‍???‍?❤

PS: If you want a great read, try “A Truly Civil Society” by Eva Cox. It’s so good!

Meet Srey Pich…at 15, she’s a little serious. She’s thoughtful and willingly adds into a conversation on hygiene and sanitation for girls. Her reflections and her story bely her age. They demand your attention. But she laughs easy. A little like the sun peeking out from behind the clouds in an overcast sky. There’s a joy hovering in the background despite her circumstances.

I ask Srey Pich to describe herself in three words. She stops. Looks downwards and inwards. Thinks deeply before responding. Kind. Hard working. Learn quickly.

From what I’ve seen, they sound so right. It appears she’s captured herself brilliantly. She knows who she is. I want to know her more. What is your story?

Srey Pich lives in a village about 25 kilometres from the school. Every morning she rises at 5am to do her chores and prepare for the day ahead. It’s a long day. School starts at 7 and runs to 5pm. There’s a two hour lunch break when most students return home. She cannot consider this option. Her ride is more than an hour each way. Her parents worry about her travelling alone down long, dusty roads but there is little they can do. You see, her father is disabled after a stroke in 2013. Her mother has become his carer. Four of her five siblings have married and moved away. Far away. They have left Srey Pich and one sister behind to care for the family.

But she’s pragmatic.

She sees the up side. None of the family has gone beyond 6th grade. She’s in the 9th standard. She’s in the top two or three students. She wants to be a teacher. Return to this school and help other students much like herself.

I’m invested in her story. Then something strikes me and I stop to ask, “Who provides for the family?”

She responds, “My sister. When my father became sick, my sister left school. She was fifteen. Now she supports us.”

I’m keen to know how she does this. The answer is obvious. Yet it’s still hard to hear.

“She works in a factory. A garment factory. She works long hours but she is strong. Some months she earns $150. Other months she takes extra hours. She will work Saturday and Sunday. Then she makes $200. I am very proud of her.”

And well she might be. She’s the family hero. The quiet provider. Sacrificing her hopes for her sister and parents. It dawns on me that this would be Srey Pich’s story too. It’s the very story Foxglove is striving to address.

We pause for a few moments. Where to next? Srey Pich leads the way,
“I want to follow my dreams. I want to do very well at school. I will work very hard but my sister cannot do anymore. I will have to see what happens in the future.”

And it’s over. Our chat has come to an end. It’s no time or place for false promises. It’s time for me to think of ways that will help and empower her for the future.

And it’s time for her to think of the long ride home.

2019 School Sanitation Project

Foxglove has just built a new toilet and hand washing facility in a secondary school in rural Cambodia. There’s a lot of excitement as a small army gathers inside the toilet block. The two mirrors get a lot of attention. We trial the automated hand washing sink. Administrators, community members, parents, teachers and students. Everyone’s happy. Brilliant.

Then it’s time to move to a more private space to talk girl hygiene. Four 9th grade students. Three female teachers. Two teenage interpreters. Two foreigners.

And here’s the prevailing question, “How can we best plan to minimise the sanitation challenges for teenage girls?”

The girls giggle and smile at each other. They’re 14-16 years old. They’ve never been invited into this discussion before. The students are looking at the teachers. The teachers are looking at the westerners. We’re looking at the students. They attend the school, use the toilets, and manage their personal hygiene. What do they think are the best solutions?

There’s a short period of awkward silence. The conversation starts with the light patter of thank you and promises to keep the toilets clean. It’s encouraging. Then they tell us they’re grateful for the size of the cubicles. They can be used as change rooms. It’s been a pressing need.

Really? I wasn’t expecting that.

I start to talk about sanitary bins. Have a show and tell with our sample bin and bin liner. There’s nodding and then the questions and solutions start to come. From every side. Let’s put bins inside each girls toilet cubicle. Let’s have only girls clean the girl toilets. Let’s add this task to the cleaning schedule. What if girls have hygiene training each year as a reminder? Can we have a separate entry from the boys to toilet cubicles and hand washing? It’s embarrassing walking to the toilets with a sanitary pad in hand.

I guess it’s obvious yet I wasn’t expecting that.

Now the girls are contributing wider ideas. It would be good to add steel grates and gate to the entrances and half walls. Otherwise the villagers may accidentally break the hand washing system or misuse the toilet block.

They’re thinking ahead. Keeping the amenities in use and clean. I wasn’t expecting that.

We talk and talk. More than an hour passes. So many insights. So many suggestions. And I’m reminded that it’s
all about getting the ‘right’ people in the room to ask the ‘right’ questions.

But who would have thought the ‘right’ people were a group of teenage girls in the Developing World?

Meet Celeste

I’m sitting with a Self Help Group (SHG) of twenty women in remote Rwanda, high up on the Congo border. The group has been together for two years. They’re open and intimate in their conversations with one another. I’m folded in. I’m asking questions about the benefits of the SHG as part of my research. And they talk earnestly about friendship, self-confidence and social acceptance, as much as money, access to healthcare and good nutrition.

Then I ask for a woman’s story. Each woman is keen to share. Their hands shoot up enthusiastically. Celeste sits quietly. She doesn’t raise her hand. She’s smiling and laughing. Enjoying every minute but she leaves the talking to the others. I ask her, “Can we hear from you?” She’s hesitant. Celeste is a senior member of the group. An older citizen of the community. She looks a little frail. I’m wondering how her ‘business’ operates. She nods.

“I’m an old lady. I’m 68. Life has been difficult. I’m alone. So I came to the group hoping to join someone’s business and make enough money for shelter, a small home or room, and a meal or two every day. But each woman wanted to start a small family business. What could I do? After the business training, I felt more confident about myself. I felt more hopeful about the possibilities. But I knew I did not have the strength to work in the fields or look after animals. So I dreamed a very small idea. I took a loan from my SHG for 1000RwF (AUD$1.50). I walked to a local farm on the edge of our village and bought four avocados. I took them to the market and laid them on my scarf for sale. Almost immediately, I sold them for 1500RwF. I was amazed. I had found a business. I could look after myself. That was the day I believed.”

She looks about proudly. It was a transfixing story. No one spoke for a moment. Sometimes, the smallest stories. The little steps. Say the most. This is Celeste’s business. Everyday business. Buying avocados in the morning and selling by lunchtime. Then home to rest. But she has friendship. She has an income. She has a home, food, clean water and health insurance. She’s rich beyond measure. Every need is met. And even more importantly, ‘she makes her way’.

❤
Kelley

The role of children’s homes in the developing world is a complicated issue. And one that needs to be separated from ‘orphanage tourism’. The simplistic discussion of the terms ‘orphanage’ or ‘children’s home’, then paired with ‘tourism’ does no justice to the care of children in the Developing World. These terms do not automatically belong together. The majority of children’s homes do not accept ‘visitors’ or groups. They are carefully scrutinised by governments, local officials and an increasing number of child protection agencies. These are the appropriate, on-the-ground mechanisms for protecting the rights of vulnerable children and limiting the impact of cultural superiority.  

 Still, the question remains. ‘How can we best care for our world’s most vulnerable children?” 

Children’s Homes 

For the most part, the idea of children’s homes in the modern context has been a Western solution. The Developing World has implemented the model both at our suggestion and based on our funds. Now that the model is in place, it will require a long-term commitment to shift to alternative solutions such as group or foster homes, and extended family placements. Many countries are taking big strides in this arena. Cambodia has introduced vigorous criteria and processes for approval as a registered organisation caring for vulnerable children. It has increased requirements around registration of homes and minimum expectations of the care of children and cultural integration. India continues to work at all levels of government and the community to protect children not living with family. These steps include registration and inspection of children’s homes, preparation of individual child care plans for all children in care, reintegration schemes for children leaving care and training of children home staff. Rwanda has closed all institutional care and relied upon community networks to support children and youth, both into independent foster homes and child-headed household programs. 

The Children 

On the one hand, it is true, children’s homes in the Developing World have a small number of ‘orphans’ when the term is applied as understood in the West. However, in many of these countries, an ‘orphan’ is defined as having one living parent. On some occasions, local project leaders are more interested in funds than child welfare. But overwhelmingly, homes are led by authentic people caring for children with one parent living in abject poverty and without access to health, education or good nutrition. The hopelessness, neglect and inequity in living conditions of those living in poverty, have made it necessary for a surviving parent to find ways that provide opportunity and support for family members.

Reuben’s Story

Just consider Reuben. He is 11 years of age and lives in Tamil Nadu, India. Both parents were born blind and unable to earn a consistent income. When Reuben was 8, his mother died. According to these circumstances, he’d never go to school. Enjoy more than one meal a day. Or have a future outside of day labouring. But today, because of his enrolment in a fully-funded boarding school, he’s the third-ranked student in his class, loves science and technology, and dreams of a job in the Indian police force. Every month his father visits. Every holiday period, he returns home and cares for him. It’s not perfect. It’s not the best option. But his father feels it is the very best he can do. 

The Care and Support Options 

When you have almost non-existent government or community services for basic needs, and a huge disparity between the poor and the global community (now more obvious than ever), there exists a place for different models of support. Today, there are group homes, boarding schools, foster care, extended family support programs and child headed households. Perhaps children’s homes are never the best option.  But often they’ve been the only option when poverty or addiction or disability have robbed families and children of an alternative.  

An Alternative Response 

I, like many of you, am considering how I can protect the effective care of children in the Developing World. I have arrived at a short list which we can all practice: 

1. Educate others about the definition and risks of ‘orphanage tourism‘. Play an active role in communicating the complexity and risks of poorly considered plans to visit children’s homes in the Developing World. This may be necessary in conversations with friends, family or local communities (e.g. schools).
   
2. Don’t participate in activities or programs that visit children’s homes on a short or medium term basis. Negative and even destructive outcomes can eventuate when well-intentioned people visit child-based organisations without a full understanding of their potential contribution or harm, and a wider understanding of the organisation and its care strategies (e.g. child protection).
   
3. Support child-based projects that keep children connected to culture, family and community. Look for projects that partner with home care or group home settings, extended family placement and community engagement. Or have a reintegration plan for reuniting children with families.
4. Ensure there is independent monitoring and accountability when looking to support an overseas project. Without this, local leaders do not continue to learn new competencies and expand their own capacity. And too often, the absence of accountability produces opportunities for deception that impact on the intended beneficiaries and in the long run, harm the people leading the organisation.
5. Give to non-government organisations (NGOs) that are approved for international development. The Government endorses approved organisations meeting compliance standards in financial management, promotion and fundraising, as well as child protection.  

Each of these steps emphasise the necessity for having an active and engaged conversation rather than drawing battle lines that separate caregivers, donors and development organisations. We need to find solutions that prioritise children, uphold culture and community values, and have an eye to the future. Relying on overseas funds and support is an uncertain path for children and governments alike. But it is a role that we need to thoughtfully exit. Not turn our backs on in protest. 

 It seems we each need to beware the simple solution in a complex reality. 

 Kelley  

 PS: Foxglove Project does not financially support a children’s home in the Developing World.