Fostering International Co-operation In Our Communities

All of the objectives of Dawn Chorus are pertinent to fostering co-operation and understanding and sharing knowledge and resources between communities; here are a few examples.

Following the campaign to help raise awareness, by our partner Juno Enterprise, of the plight domestic animals left outdoors in freezing conditions in N. America & Canada during the winter; East Midland volunteers said that they: “felt empowered and useful” by being able to distribute advice aimed at helping American citizens to cope, react to and challenge the terrible situations which many animals faced.

Dawn Chorus has links with communities in the UK with interest in Ethiopia, such as EWKET and a number of organisations which offer information in Ethiopia.

Above & below, sorting chilies Addis Ababa.

In Pakistan Dawn Sind concentrates on women and children’s issues including democratic involvement, access to water, early child marriage, rape and “green schools”. They work with communities using innovative involvement methods such as puppet theater. Sajida Parveen, CEO at Dawn Development Organisation, Johi, Sindh, Pakistan, sent us this message: “Greeting from DAWN Sindh: our friendship with Dawn Chorus Educational Initiative, regards the women and children education, rights and protection program and humanitarian exertion, for the betterment of inaccessible areas of Pakistan. Dawn Chorus is a UK-based organization, working on various social issues, we warmly welcome Dawn Chorus and Juno Enterprise. This is another great triumph for the DAWN Sindh team.”  Below: photograph of the puppet show, below, by the Association for Water Applied Education & Renewable Energy- AWARE Sind Pakistan and children s role-play project with the DAWN Sindh team.

We have built a link with Arnold Ntiege of Sheffield & Doncaster Sine fm. Arnold has publicised our work on the local South Yorkshire radio station. Arnold is interested in the Family Outreach Group in Bunakama, kumba, Cameroon. This NGO Community Interest Group is empowering local women by building abilities & offering advocacy. Income from cassava, maize & yam farming funds work to help women increase independence & sustainability, encouraging enterprise & local trading, home economics & management & cooking. Health (including sexual health), contraception & childcare training are offered. A “Njangi” credit system resembling a friendly society is in operation ans three primary schools are supported within vulnerable and disadvantaged communities. Below: women in Kumba proudly display produce & process maize.

Patrick Harry has sent us an update from Nyasa, forest garden project in Malawi:

“at the moment I am busy planting fruit trees, vegetables and Moringa trees at the project site. Ground work is still underway. I am directly working with women agribusiness groups in Lilongwe rural south. One of the groups is Chikondano Permaculture Nyasa women’s agribusiness group which I helped to found early this year.” Below: Patrick standing on a hill-top and behind and below  him is Mchitanjira village, within this village to the eastern side is located Nyasa forest garden.

Patrick said: people here in Malawi through Permaculture Nyasa, forest garden project, have heard about the work in England of Dawn Chorus Educational Initiative and Juno Enterprise and that you promote learning, food growing, forestry and enterprise, we are interested in and welcome your work. “Fuel-wood selling is big business and leads to deforestation in Lilongwe rural east, as evidenced by bare hills in the picture above.”

Patrick said: “Wood is used for brick burning, a big business in Lilongwe rural South. Civic education is the only solution.”

Above: teaching vital food growing skills to the next generation. Below: Patrick teaching Tibo food forest gardening skills at Mchitanjira village, Traditional Authority Tsabango, Lilongwe. Patrick CEO at the Nyasa project, said: “we want to help women into active learning about organic food growing for a plant-based diet and health, to boost food security, biodiversity and genetic diversity” .