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ADRA NEWS
Winter 2016
Harvesting Hope
Two hours’ drive from this historic site, Thein Paing is herding his goats in the dusty plains near his village in Myanmar’s infamous ‘Dry
Zone’. It is only eight o’clock in the morning and already the air is dry and hot. Goats and cattle graze among the tufts of hay-coloured grass and near-bare trees scatter the landscape. All natural water sources, it seems, have long since dried up. It’s hard to understand how anyone could make a living out here. Thein is a generous-spirited man. He smiles easily, showing his toothy grin. The father of four boys didn’t finish school because he wanted to help his parents with their successful farming business – a family business that is anything but successful now. Changing weather patterns have had a devastating impact on this community.
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Gazing upon the plains of Old Bagan, Myanmar in the early morning is breathtaking. While intricately designed temples and pagodas dot the landscape, it is the vast canvas of the master craftsman that stirs me. The sky awash with pinks and blues of every shade, the distant mountains a deep purple. Our world is truly beautiful, but with the increasing frequency and severity of natural disasters, I know that it is terribly broken.
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Message from the CEO The other day, my wife was just sitting down to work on a study assignment when the tranquillity of our home was disturbed by an exclamation of frustration. “I can’t find my pen! You know, the one with the stylus tip on the end.” Study, and in my case work, was temporarily abandoned while we turned the house upside down searching for the missing pen. Eventually, it was located tucked under an open magazine on the coffee table in the living room. Balance was restored and our lives could move on.
a deep desire for things to be the way they were before. A desire for restoration. In my work with ADRA I see plenty of things that need to be put right. People suffering because of natural disasters, or conflict, or grinding poverty, or just because they’ve become political pawns trapped by forces beyond their control. It is a constant reminder to me that our world is not as God intended it to be. The author and theologian G K Chesterton wrote, “…that all the men in history who have really done anything with the future have had their eyes fixed upon the past.” He is suggesting that as we seek to make a better future a reality for those we are called to serve, we must remember that our task is one of restoration. Of bringing the world back into the way God intended it to be. As you read this edition of ADRA News I hope that you, like me, will be inspired by the stories of restoration and hope that we have to tell.
When disaster or misfortune strikes, or for that matter even when we face relatively minor mishaps that reshape our lives in some undesirable way like my wife’s missing pen, we have a common human response. It derives from
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ADVENTIST DEVELOPMENT AND RELIEF AGENCY AUSTRALIA
Mark Webster
CEO Adventist Development and Relief Agency Australia
Editor Josh Dye Contributors Mark Webster Janelle Muller Aleksandra Ewing Kate Barrett Braden Blyde
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FROM PAGE 1
“…the weather is different and we can’t grow enough to live.” – Thein “About 10 years ago the weather was really good so we could survive from farming,” Thein says. “But now the weather is different and we can’t grow enough to live. It makes it very hard for us to continue as farmers.” One villager who works with Thein in the field remembers what it was like when he was a young boy walking to school. “I used to cross a small field as I walked from my village and I could see and feel some moisture on the grass and trees,” he says. “But now I cannot feel or see it, even in the winter time.” After a recent bout of poor health, Thein is no longer able to work on the farm. His wife says: “We have little income so life is very hard but my husband is a good man and he is trying hard.” Like many other villagers, they made the difficult decision to borrow a large sum of money to send their 22-year-old son overseas to work as a labourer. They now have a large debt to repay before he can return home. “Thinking about him makes me feel very sad. It is very hard for him there,” Thein says.
farming techniques. The project is improving food security and livelihoods for communities in the Dry Zone while reversing land erosion and desertification brought on by unsustainable land management practices and changes to climate. Thein is now grazing goats using techniques that aim to regenerate and restore the land. While he is well aware of the significant challenges he faces, Thein remains hopeful. “ADRA helped us gain more knowledge and now we feel hopeful that life will get better. It may be too late for my sons to have a better life,” he says, “But I have hopes that other children in the village will benefit from the ADRA project. I hope we can create jobs for them here instead of sending them away.” By living simply, you can help restore God’s creation to its intended beauty. And by giving generously, you can restore hope for people like Thein.
Last year, Thein and his wife joined ADRA’s Dry Zone Project to learn sustainable agriculture and
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Disaster Updates
ADRA provided food and hygiene kits to more than 11,000 people in Fiji.
Cyclone Winston Thanks to your support, ADRA helped...
NETWORK RESPONSE
Assisting with...
WASH 259 1,578 789 3,945
11,000+ PEOPLE
Water survival bags 10L Water containers WASH Kits Soap bars
Food
501 Supplementary food packs 10+ Tonnes of food distributed 3,568 Weet-Bix packets distributed
3,189
IN HOUSEHOLDS
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ACROSS
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ISLANDS IN FIJI
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Thank you for helping thousands in Fiji!
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Fiji Cyclone Winston struck Fiji in February as a massive category five storm that left a huge trail of destruction across multiple islands. ADRA immediately responded by providing food and hygiene kits to more than 10,000 people in Viti Levu and Vanua Levu. Each food pack included 18 kilograms of rice, lentils, tinned tuna, sugar and biscuits. The pre-positioned hygiene kits included water containers, a first-aid kit, sanitary pads, soap and water purification tablets.
Nepal
After Nepal was rocked by its worst earthquake in April last year, ADRA provided food, shelter, health and education assistance to more than 185,000 people across nine of the most affected districts. ADRA has a three-year recovery and reconstruction plan focusing on livelihood, health and education.
PNG The El Ni単o drought that has ravaged the Pacific hit PNG particularly severely. ADRA is predominantly responding through the Church Partnership Program (CPP), which is funded by the Australian government to build the capacity of local partners across the seven main churches in PNG. As well as working closely with the National Disaster Centre to coordinate the relief effort, ADRA has also employed an emergency coordinator specifically to lead the response. ADRA Australia has directly contributed almost $50,000 to assist with the El Nino drought. As of early April, initial food distributions to 500 households had already taken place in Chimbu and Eastern Highlands provinces with further distributions planned. Some of the items included rice, soap, tinned fish and cooking oil.
Vanuatu In the one year since Cyclone Pam struck Vanuatu, six ADRA Connections teams have visited Vanuatu to help rebuild destroyed schools. These new classrooms are cyclone-proof and rated to withstand a category five storm.
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Development Education
Doing good, better The impulse to help is a hallmark of humanity - both evolutionists and creationists agree that selfless acts are something which make each one of us uniquely human. Even more so, as a community of faith it’s exciting to realise that within every compassionate action lies an insight into the loving character of our creator God. A young child sharing their toy; a teenager stopping to help an elderly lady cross the road; a mother opening her purse to support charity; a church shipping a container of goods to the islands. We should encourage, celebrate and support these kinds of God-revealing activities, shouldn’t we?
Maybe we could pack a container and send it over?” The container may be full of good quality used goods. New things too: books, blankets, beds and other things not beginning with ‘b’, that are gathered to help those in need. However, history has taught us many lessons about why sending unsolicited goods may not be so wise. Here’s just a few reasons why you’ll never see or hear a reputable aid organisation putting out a call for containers or other shipments of goods:
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The time and cost associated with sending and receiving ‘unsolicited goods’ often outweighs their value.
These are just a sample of the costs involved: a. The cost of a container and logistics getting it to the shipping yard, let alone the actual shipping charge
At the risk of many things I’m going to suggest, the answer is ‘well, not always’.
b. Labour involved to pack and unpack the goods at each port
For a moment let’s focus on the last item on the list - the voluminous unsolicited goods which are often packed and sent to communities in need – particularly after a natural disaster has occurred. It may be in the backyard we call the Pacific, or some far flung corner of the globe – it may even be within our own borders. Wherever a disaster strikes most of us feel the need to respond, and it’s often the things close at hand that come first to mind. We look around our homes and talk about it at church in conversations that often follow like this: “We have so much and they have so little.
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c. Hours of time to compile shipping lists and other required documents d. Wharfage and handling costs, and tax or import duties.
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Building, not decimating, the local economy is crucial to restoring livelihoods after a disaster.
Shipping free goods can force down the price of locally produced items and compete with local retailers – which means less income for families at a time when they actually need more. On the
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other hand, cash donations can be used to stimulate the local economy by allowing items to be bought locally.
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Unsolicited goods are often not appropriate. Sending heavy winter clothing to Pacific Islands (this actually happens) will not really benefit those in need, and toys are secondary in need to clean water, food, shelter, and the rebuilding of livelihoods.
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Non-life savings items can clog up docks and airports and prevent lifesaving supplies from reaching disaster-affected areas. Our desire to help may in fact be stopping help from actually arriving. We mean no harm, but as we know, good intentions are not enough.
Talk to anyone involved in logistics or aid or project management, and they’ll tell you the same. Funnily enough it’s these very things that humanitarian agencies specialise in and why organisations like ADRA ask for financial support during times of the disaster. Why? A cash donation to helps aid agencies buy whatever is needed quickly to meet the changing and complex demands of affected communities. If you have unused items around the house, try selling them to raise money to give to a registered charity who has launched an appeal and who can provide the transparency needed to ensure the donations reach those who need it most.
The take home message is this: sending things overseas, particularly after a disaster, can often do more harm than good. While the impulse to give is a testament to God working in us, it’s important to act wisely.
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Please don’t stop helping. Don’t get me wrong, not sending goods overseas doesn’t mean you can’t help or that your help isn’t wanted. Instead let’s work together to do good, better.
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Choc Full of Beans
There are few things tastier and more addictive than chocolate. Over in the Solomon Islands, an exciting new cocoa project is making waves. Growing cocoa beans is not a new industry in the Solomons. But this project aims to take it to a new level, helping lift people out of poverty in the process. Historically, despite many years of investments into improving Solomon Islands cocoa, its reputation remains poor and it subsequently attracts discounted pricing on the global market. Small-scale cocoa growers are currently presented with only one real option: produce for the bulk, low-value market and accept discounted prices. This market reality gears grower decision-making towards the lowest cost of production, with few drivers for quality improvement. In a self-perpetuating cycle, low quality production results in poor prices from a disinterested international market. It is exceedingly difficult for individual growers to access these markets alone, and consequently their individual quality improvements do not yield a dividend.
by the Australian government through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). The aim of this project, then, is to connect local growers to international markets for premium and ethical beans, a niche market that could unlock huge potential for growth in the local economy. The beans are grown locally, which can take up to four years, before being harvested. They are then sundried and fermented, a process lasting up to two weeks, ready for sale to chocolate manufacturers. The quality of the beans is very high, which is unique for the local market, and have the upside of being ethically sourced – a plus for many buyers who are looking to purchase responsibly. Already, orders are coming in from overseas buyers for the beans.
ADRA is conducting a pilot project in the Solomon Islands to try and change this, funded
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Campers at North NSW camp were recently treated to a taste of this delightful chocolate. Keep an eye out for opportunities to purchase some soon.
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Photo: shutterstock.com
Community Centres Restore Hope
“Brendan* first visited Redwood in 2014 to collect food from the ‘Chewsday Bite’ program while living locally. But he became homeless soon after and started using illicit substances again. He was homeless for almost a year and in that time became addicted to ‘ice’, was charged with theft and attempted suicide twice. One evening when Brendan made his way back to Warburton to escape the city, he was contemplating suicide. He later told me that as he walked across the bridge he thought to himself, “If I see a sign that there is help out there, I won’t do this.” At that moment he saw the lights of the Redwood Community Centre and heard voices inside. He went in and was greeted by the Friday Soup Crew.
Late last year, Brendan was accepted into a rehabilitation program interstate and moved to renew his relationship with his mum, sister and nephews. Since then we have heard that he is doing well with his treatment and although heartbroken by the news his mum has a terminal illness, he is relieved that he can be there to help her and spend time with her.” This is the remarkable story shared by Redwood Community Centre manager Kate Barrett. Redwood provides emergency and ongoing assistance to vulnerable and isolated people in the community in Warburton, Victoria. 35 volunteers give more than 200 hours per week to provide youth and family support through food parcels, referrals to local services and a drop-in centre.
From that point he became part of the Redwood family. He stopped using ‘ice’, found accommodation and even volunteered at the centre. He attended regular counselling sessions and got back in touch with his estranged family.
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Your support can continue to provide support to people like Brendan. Give today at adra.org.au/restore *Name changed to protect privacy.
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Volunteers
In February, a group of youth from Epping SDA church went to Cambodia on an ADRA Connections trip.
ADRA Connections During the 10-day trip they worked at four different villages and helped construct playgrounds, shelters, latrines and water tanks, while also helping run kids’ clubs and assisting with nutrition demonstrations. Here are some comments from the participants: “My eyes have been opened to the fact that God has truly blessed me and that I should be sharing these blessings to those in need. I will definitely be helping out more to the less fortunate in the future. I am very grateful to have been given this opportunity.” — Ayen “This trip was such an eye opening experience. The people we met in the villages were all so kind and welcoming. I want to continue to make an impact in other people’s lives who also may need some help.” – Shannon “It was a highlight to be able to see people bond with just a smile. It’s an experience I will never forget and can’t wait to go back and visit.” – Steph
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“Everyone deserves to have access to clean water, enough food, knowledge about sanitation, nutrition and hygiene. I was extremely honoured to even just play a minuscule part in helping meet the needs of others.” – Cyrus “We all have the ability to help those around us who are in need, we only need to take the time and effort to do so, both of which are precious ‘commodities’ in our busy world.” – Josh Ly “It’s always astounding what you can accomplish when you place God’s will at the forefront of your life. Fantastic experience with lifelong friends.” – Matt “I have been reminded that we need to thank God for even the most basic things in life and look to others to give what God has given us.” – Michael If you want to get involved, you can join a trip to Vietnam in December. For details email connections@adra.org.au
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Adventist Churches Grant Wishes at Christmas Thanks to 69 Adventist churches, as well as support from schools, families and individuals, more than $98,000 was raised for people in need through ADRA’s 2015 Christmas Trees— that’s an increase of $14,000 from an additional 11 churches. Well done!
The granted gifts include more than 278 water filters and wells for families in Cambodia, 218 chickens for families in the Pacific and Africa, 184 school lunches for Syrian children in remedial classes, 118 seed loans for families in Asia, 109 prescription glasses for women in PNG learning to read, 64 life vests for children in Indonesia taking a boat to school, 63 emergency food packs for Australians in crisis, 59 dozen ducks for families in Indonesia and many other life-changing gifts. These gifts provide support for the projects through which these gifts are granted, enabling ADRA to help people in Australia and overseas. What an amazing effort! Thank you for making Christmas dreams come true.
Welcome and Farewell We have had some changes at ADRA Australia over the past little while, most notably with a restructure bringing the national and international program teams together. We have welcomed new faces to the team including Murray Millar, Simon Lewis, Ellen Hau Pati, Renae Knowles, Anna Tennyson, Cyravil Cadungog, Steve Pollack and Zoe Weslake, with Jessica Bryant and Aleksandra Ewing moving into new and expanded roles in the marketing team. We have also said goodbye to some others in the past few months, so we say farewell and thanks
to Chris Jensen, Kristen Salazar, Sarina Taituave, Rita Karraz and Peter Mushenko who have left full-time roles, while Lesley-ann Roberts has transitioned to a part-time role.
Share Your Story We love our volunteers and want to profile your stories. Do you have one to share? Email news@adra.org.au ADVENTIST DEVELOPMENT AND RELIEF AGENCY AUSTRALIA
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Photo: Michelle Abel
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He elp el lp ma lp mak make ake k amazing ke a am ama maz azi zin ing ng th th things thi hin ing ngs gs ha hap hap appen! app ppe pen en!!
G Give generously to res store hope for families like Th hein’s.
Give today at a adra.org.au/restore or o call 1800 242 372