In the late 1980s, when the crack cocaine epidemic was ravaging America’s cities, Hallam Hurt, a neonatologist in Philadelphia, worried about the damage being done to children born to addicted mothers. She and her colleagues, studying children from low-income families, compared four-year-olds who’d been exposed to the drug with those who hadn’t. They couldn’t find any significant differences. Instead, what they discovered was that in both groups the children’s IQs were much lower than average.
“These little children were coming in cute as buttons, and yet their IQs were, like, 82 and 83,” Hurt says. “Average IQ is 100. It was shocking.”
The revelation prompted the researchers to turn their focus from what differentiated the two groups toward what they had in common: being raised in poverty.
The researchers found that children who received more attention and nurturing at home tended to have higher IQs. Children who were more cognitively stimulated performed better on language tasks, and those nurtured more warmly did better on memory tasks. The results demonstrated just how critically important an emotionally supportive environment is at a very young age.
With an average income of less than $200 (USD) a year, the Democratic Republic of Congo is one of the poorest countries in the world. Corruption is rife and the government provides less than a minimum of public services. Transportation presents a terrible problem for any endeavor, with few roads maintained sufficiently for any but the most rugged vehicles. Public education is nonexistent and healthcare is unavailable for those without money.
For many years Susila Dharma Projects in the DRC in education and healthcare have been struggling with this very difficult situation, trying to find ways to create schools and healthcare centers that can meet the needs of the people in an affordable way without going bankrupt. There have been failures, but the overall progress thas been astonishing. Continue reading →
Borneo Football International Academy provides a healthy environment and quality assistance to children and youth in football training, health promotion and nutrition, school support and basic English education.
Borneo, or Kalimantan, as it is called in Indonesia, is a land in a state of conflict and transition. The native peoples are various Dayak subcultures, but 30% of the population is of Chinese descent and, in the last 20 years, the Indonesian government has undertaken an intense transmigration program, finacing the relocation of poor, landless families from Java, Madura, and Bali. Transmigrants make up 21% of the population in Central Kalimantan. Feelings of resentment between cultural groups can run very high and violence has, more than once, erupted as imigrants, gold mining, and lumber interestests encroach on native lands, with thousands of people killed.
Borneo Football International Academy (BFIA) is the vehicle of Borneo Football International Foundation’s integrated programme for assisting children and youth’s healthy development through football.
It has long been known that to address racial and cultural hatred, predjudice and conflict, you must work with young people. The young are still developing their understanding of the world and are most open to change. Also when young people can bring new ideas home to their families, often leading to a change in outlook among the older generation, too.
Borneo Football International Academy (BFIA) is the vehicle of Borneo Football International Foundation’s integrated programme for assisting children and youth’s healthy development through football. It provides a healthy environment and quality assistance to children and youth in football training, health promotion and nutrition, school support and basic English education. At the same time, the Academy promotes multicultural tolerance and integration
BFIA has currently reached the landmark of 100 students aged 7 to 18 from various backgrounds and religions. Amongst them there are Dayaks, Javanese, Balinese, Christians, Mulisms, Hindus and Buddhists.
Opening Ceremony / Yayasan Usaha Mulia – Dayak Dance Group — with Imanuel Yeremia, Yusvita Intarini, Fitri Moni Lestari, MuUtd, Rustiani Tambunan and Yeyen Andreyani Eka Rajaki.
Being the only academy of its kind in the region, BFIA has already drawn the attention of surrounding communities and local governement institutions who have, in turn, supported the launching of the first Borneo Football Cup 2015, a grand event held at the Palangkaraya Stadium during the month of August.
BFIA has currently reached the landmark of 100 students aged 7 to 18 from various backgrounds and religions. Amongst them there are Dayaks, Javanese, Balinese, Christians, Mulisms, Hindus and Buddhists.
The Football Academy is funded and managed by Borneo Football International Foundation, a non-profit organization registered with the government of Central Kalimantan.
Contact: Muhammad Bachrun Bustillo, Chairman. Rungan Sari, Jl. Cilik Riwut Km 36, Palangkaraya 73225, Central Kalimantan, Indonesia
A Child’s Garden of Peace is a collaborative effort founded and directed by Dr. Illène Pevec to create gardens where children can play in peace and learn to grow food for themselves and their families. ACGP acts always in collaboration with other educational entities and foundations. This is the story of how it began and how it operates.
