Paper Dreams #24: Rebuilding Dreams

It is easy to get preoccupied and react.

?Typhoon Odette (Rai) forced us to react; reach people that had no power, shelter and clean drinking water. Our focus, much like that of remarkable individuals and organisations from all over the Philippines, was to preserve lives.

?Typhoon Odette was the strongest storm since Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) and ravaged the Philippines, when it struck on Dec 16th, 2021. The destruction was?vast and sustained, impacting 9.9 million people and displacing 144,000 people from their homes. Many people in the most vulnerable communities remain without proper telecommunications or the means to rebuild their homes.

?FundLife started eight years ago in an emergency response situation. We made a conscious decision that poverty is a chronic emergency that needs a long-term solution. We also made a choice to not simply preserve life, but to provide an environment for every child to receive equitable education and opportunity.

Typhoon Odette struck on the back the longest education emergency our world has ever seen. Over 22 million children in the Philippines have been removed from classrooms (and public spaces) for?697 consecutive days?– the longest education and movement shutdown of any country in the world.?

It is easy to lose track of learning and mental health in an emergency or to be distracted by a newer emergency without addressing the previous one.?It is easy to believe the hamster wheel is moving forward.

?Our 2022 starts today; we are bruised, but unmoved, we are grateful, yet defiant; our dreams are farther – but we see our next step, and that is enough to keep moving.

To another year of rebuilding dreams.

*This article was taken from the FundLife newsletter 'Paper Dreams #24: Rebuilding Dreams' - To view the newsletter, click here.

To learn more about FundLife, visit www.fundlife.org