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Celebrating Diversity and Inclusion for Kids! – June 17, 2023
Outrageous Rent Increases Impact Americans
This winter I was suddenly the only member of my immediate family not facing the very real possibility of homelessness. I’m disabled, so Medicare and my Disability checks pay for a room at an assisted living group home. My disability checks don’t pay enough for me to afford rent on a home by myself.
Read MoreDeveloping HA: Ghana’s Principles of Service
At the end of 2014, I wrote the article below for American Atheist magazine. It was the fifth piece in a series about Pathfinders Project, the year-long global service and research trip intended as the first step toward the Humanist Action: Ghana. I submitted the first four articles to the magazine from the field as…
Read MoreMid Ohio Atheists Inc.
Mid Ohio Atheists Incorporated is a 501c3 nonprofit organization of like-minded people in the Mansfield area. We are committed to supporting atheists by providing opportunities for socializing and friendship, promoting secular viewpoints, encouraging a positive atheist culture, defending the separation of church and state, supporting the civil rights of atheists, and affiliating with other organizations…
Read MoreCommunity Change Inc. works to eliminate racism from its starting point
“…our nation is moving toward two societies, one black, one white – separate and unequal.” Kerner Commission, 19681 The findings of the Kerner Commission Report on Civil Disorders and the Founding of Community Change Inc. (CCI) led to new understandings of white society’s role in the unequal distribution of wealth, success, and equality for black…
Read MoreCommunity Change, Inc.
Community Change, Inc approaches, racism, racial relations, and racial responsibility, from the perspective that racial inequalities are a white problem. This approach, borne out of the civil rights movement, galvanized Community Change Inc’s founder Horace Seldon to spend his career tackling these issues in Boston. His unforgiving, relentless commitment to educate, act and speak has…
Read MoreBBN teams show incredible initiative as summer approaches
Foundation Beyond Belief’s Beyond Belief Network is a network of secular humanist groups volunteering in their communities and raising money for FBB’s featured charities and programs. Any group with a public secular humanist or atheist identity is welcome to join, regardless of experience or group size. FreeOK raised $18,008.45 for the St. Baldrick's Foundation for Childhood…
Read MoreIn Minca, the “new colonialism” creates hardship for indigenous Colombians
“Is ‘voluntourism’ the new colonialism?” is an article that made its way around the internet recently. Although absurdly titled and poorly written, the article does make one important point about international volunteering: participants are people of privilege. Despite entering into situations they cannot possibly understand fully, volunteers often perceive themselves as the primary problem solvers.…
Read MorePathfinders Diary: In Minca, the classroom isn’t restricted by walls
By Liz Moody
The Pathfinders are hard at work in Minca, Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, Colombia. They have been working at a school in Montecristo, about a fifty-minute hike from Minca. The school has about twenty students ranging in age from 5 to 14, in one classroom, and, prior to the arrival of the Pathfinders, with one teacher. Education is an important component of the Pathfinders’ work in Colombia, and they are lending a hand both inside and outside the classroom.
As space is limited in the tiny schoolroom, the Pathfinders took the older students outside for, fittingly, a lesson about respecting nature.
Hands-on experience not only makes lessons memorable, but helps students better grasp the material. The Pathfinders are helping to build a composter for the school’s use.
Ben was digging so enthusiastically, he broke a shovel!
Students will then be able to use their compost in the new seedbed, putting into practice what they have learned in class.
The raised seedbed is made out of bamboo.
Of course, it is always important to get the word out. A mural is an eye-catching way to alert people to what Misión Gaia is up to.
Stay tuned for more Pathfinders adventures in Colombia. To support their work promoting sustainable development in Minca, check out https://donate.pathfindersproject.com/.
Read MorePathfinders Diary: Sustainable development in Minca, Colombia
By Liz Moody
The next stop on the Pathfinders’ itinerary is Minca, Colombia. This small town, which is trying to grow a tourism industry following years of armed conflict, is nestled in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, the highest coastal mountain range in the world. These mountains are home to a complex network of ecosystems, and the Pathfinders will be working with Misión Gaia to promote sustainable development here.
Misión Gaia develops educational, cultural, and environmental programs in rural communities in the area, with an eye on supporting a sustainable environment and preserving natural resources. This includes everything from offering courses in conservation tourism for local youths to running spay/neuter programs for domesticated animals to control their impact on the ecosystem. Misión Gaia recognizes that educating people and supporting environmentally conscious tourism fulfills the symbiotic goals of improving quality of life for local communities and fostering respect for nature. It is ultimately about empowering people to better care for themselves and their environment: helping people acquire the tools to “build capacity to improve management of natural and cultural heritage.”
Specific projects the Pathfinders will be working on include:
- conducting a feasibility study for the design and implementation of a local farmers’ market
- educating residents and local businesses about the management of organic waste
- preparing seedbeds, compost areas, and instruct local farmers in the use of organic fertilizers and biological pest control supplies
- constructing pit latrines and dry composting latrines
- strengthening educational programs
You can learn more about the Pathfinders’ current project and support their work with Misión Gaia here.
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