The City of Smell

re•lent•less posted by , May 14, 2013

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For more than 50 years, Sitio Duco, Philippines, had few toilets to offer its 49 families. In fact, in 2009, surveys showed that there was merely three toilets in the community–two privately owned and one open to the public. Made of plastic and used truck wheels, the public toilet was in no way appealing.

And for lack of adequate facilities, residents of Sitio Duco would openly defecate in their backyards or in nearby fields. As a result, the village became known to surrounding communities as the “village that stinks.”

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The Most Important Gift on Mother’s Day

re•lent•less posted by , May 11, 2013

Most important Mother's Day Gift

“I am blessed to know so many strong, selfless and resilient mothers in the community of Kuljing,” said Rashmireka, a community leader in Outreach International’s India program.

Rashmireka has now seen 28 widows in two communities access their pensions. Witnessing their financial struggles firsthand, she’s seen mothers who once had no means to feed their children no longer worry.

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Celebrating Malaria Prevention in Africa

re•lent•less posted by , April 25, 2013

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In the last year, roughly 3.3 billion people were considered at risk for malaria—that’s almost half the world’s population. About 90 percent of malaria deaths occur in Africa. And most of those deaths are in children under the age of five years old.

Right now, Outreach International is working with several communities to boost health  and prevent malaria in children as well as adults.

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Reforesting Helps Fight Poverty

re•lent•less posted by , April 22, 2013

A real replacing of trees in Malawi

This year, on the 43rd celebration of Earth Day, a special focus has been placed on climate change. In impoverished communities around the world, families experiencing deforestation are seeing that climate change manifest itself in their home villages. Although deforestation is damaging for all of us, the ones who suffer most are the impoverished people who rely on the forest for food and income.

Outreach villages in Malawi and Bolivia are taking action to reforest their communities, repairing our environment and increasing their resources.

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A Kitchen Changes Everything for a Nicaraguan Feeding Program

re•lent•less posted by , April 16, 2013

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In La Prussia, Nicaragua, the Immaculate School Community has been providing children with lunches for five years. With help from community mothers, 120 children are no longer scraping by each day, suffering through hunger and low-energy levels—they’re eating nutritious rice and vegetables and excelling in school.

As Outreach International observed this process over time, staff members were able to adjust the program as the community needed.  And through the slow-but-steady progression of the project, we realized we needed to take the feeding program one step further.

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Communities in Malawi Take Action to Improve the Environment

re•lent•less posted by , April 5, 2013

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While deforestation no doubt takes an extreme toll on our environment, in poverty-stricken areas where water and crops are scarce, the negative effects are already unfolding, causing extreme harm to the people who depend on the land for survival.

In Malawi, communities are experiencing land degradation due to deforestation. Trees release water vapor into the atmosphere and provide shade to keep soil from drying out. Deforestation means soil erosion and a lack of water in these communities, so Outreach International is taking serious action to improve environmental conditions.

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