relayNET Human Support Networks

Helping people to help others as a way of helping themselves

Colombia

Strong links are being established between groups in Colombia and Colombians living in London to promote support in areas of education, in non-violent forms of organisation and conflict resolution. These are some Photographs of the Play-Libraries for Non-Violence that are being developed to help children and their families in the areas affected by internal wars to develop a sense of community and co-operation and training in Non violent conflict resolution.

There are also proposals for the development of Consumers and Producers cooperatives to replace large areas now dedicated to cash crops (mainly coffee) and set up production of organic crops in rotation to re-fertilise the land and establish internal consumption of the products.

ZAMBIA: Chikankata village, Mazabuka district, Southern Province
Action Front: HEALTH
Project: Community Gardens and Permaculture Campaign

Hunger and drought are all too common features of life in southern Zambia and provide a constant threat to the health of the local population. As a small step towards a longer-term approach to the problems, “Humanists for Health” are developing a series of “Community Vegetable Gardens” which will be cultivated by local teams and which will be aimed at helping the most vulnerable community members.

The gardens are designed to use “Permaculture” and “Sustainable Development” techniques that will help with water harvesting, plant regeneration, and waste recycling. Apart from practical help in building gardens we will also be developing an education campaign in order to help with the dissemination of the latest sustainable agricultural methods that in general will avoid the use of expensive and environmentally damaging chemicals.

Responsible: Jon Swinden
Email: jon@relaynet.org.uk

Support to schools in Argentina

Due to the ongoing economic crisis Argentina has been going through since Nov 2002, there has been a progressive deterioration in the capacity for families in deprived neighbourhoods to afford education materials for their children. We have begun to provide some books, a scanner and other education tools to a school in Buenos Aires and hope to expand this scheme to other schools in the area. Other projects that are being set in motion include support for rural schools in the Province of Cordoba to develop organic crops that can be both food for the local population and give impulse to the economic development of the area.

Linking children from Kenya and the UK

Teachers from Balham College in North London collected books to take to Schools in Kenya. Also a number of children were filmed asking questions to Kenyan children about their country, their animals and habits in general.

In Kenya the children from Ogango School in Kisumu (a city next to Lake Victoria) saw the films as well as some letters and were filmed responding and asking themselves other questions.

More letters are being sent in such a way that an interchange is being established which could enrich the knowledge of both British and Kenyan schoolchildren.