Livelihood Training – Goducate … Go And Educate!

2021-05-212021-06-07

Goducate volunteers in Laguna, Philippines, set up Green Thumb Garden

A group of five female Goducate volunteers in Laguna, Philippines, has set up Green Thumb Garden in the premises of Camp Goducate, Laguna. The group decided on this business because of their shared passion for gardening.

They hope the project will give them a self-sustaining income to help their families and also contribute to the voluntary work they are doing. For instance, Annaliza, one of the women, said that the income helps pay for the medicines her son needs for his heart condition. And Febie said that she has been able to use some of the earnings to buy what her kids ask for. The others are glad to be able to build up a fund for emergencies.

Green Thumb Garden will showcase different kinds of ornamental plants, herbs and spices, edible plants, as well as gardening supplies and materials.
The Covid-19 pandemic has caused a spike in people’s interest in urban gardening. The demands from plantitos and plantitas (males and females, respectively, who enjoy taking care of plants) have increased rapidly and resulted in the setting up of new garden businesses.

The Green thumb Gardeners have already thought up marketing strategies such as online as well as live selling, vlog (video blog) features, and advertising on tarpaulin sheets.

The long-term goals of the Green Thumb Gardeners include having their own premises and their own truck.

*Our guest writer is Melissa Espanola, the daughter of Annaliza, one of the green thumb gardeners.

2017-04-212017-05-22

AIESEC brings gifts and Jollibee mascot to Goducate musicians in Laguna

On April 17, 2017, 30 youths from the Goducate music program in Laguna, Philippines, not only received a set of school supplies but also watched a dance by the Jollibee mascot. Jollibee is a Filipino multinational chain of fast-food restaurants. For some of the youths, this meeting with the full-sized mascot was very memorable because it was their first encounter with it.

The occasion was a Gift-Giving Event conducted by AIESEC members at the University of the Philippines. They had chosen the Goducate music program as their beneficiary for this event. At this event the 30 youths demonstrated their violin-playing and recorder-playing skills. In turn the 25 AIESEC members distributed gift packs containing a notebook, pencils, crayons, paper, and a sharpener.

AIESEC is a platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potential. It is an independent, international, non-profit, non-political organization run by students and recent graduates of institutes of higher education. Founded in 1948 in 7 countries, it is now present in 126 countries and territories. AIESEC was originally an acronym for Association Internationale des Étudiants en Sciences Économiques et Commerciales, but has now become the name of the organization.

Goducate is very grateful to the AIESEC members of the University of the Philippines UP. We share their vision and mission of helping the community.

Musicians with Jollibee mascot, AIESEC members, and Goducate staff

2017-03-172017-03-29

Barangay leaders in Panay, Philippines, attend Goducate’s leadership forum

Goducate’s goal is to Go & Educate so that we can help Asians help themselves.

One of the best ways of helping communities is by training their leaders.

To do this, Goducate started a forum called Asia Forum for Leaders” (AFL). The program is for training leaders from different spheres of influence —political, community, police, educational, religious, etc.

At the soft launch of the program in September last year (see blog Oct 7), there was a one-day forum for 14 community (barangay) leaders, followed by a 3-day forum for 90 church leaders at the Goducate Training Center in Iloilo, Philippines.

Earlier this month, on March 2, we had another forum at the Goducate Training Center for barangay leaders, attended this time by over 200 barangay officials from the Province of Panay, Philippines. The theme was “Leadership in the 21st Century.”

The topics covered included changes in the 21st Century, responses expected by constituents, changes in leadership styles, etc. I conducted the training, together with Leo Decinal, our community trainer in Laguna Province.

The barangay captains participated enthusiastically, and there are now plans for follow-up workshop in the next few months.