Travel + Volunteer Abroad: Grom Nation Siargao Philippines
WHY volunteering during vacation?: Back in December 2017 before I traveled to Colombia I decided that I wanted to integrate volunteer work into my vacation. I thought that instead of solely taking from the communities and countries that I visited, that I could also learn about them on an even deeper level and give back. As a social worker I am constantly think about how all systems impact each other and am very curious to learn directly from the people who are living and experiencing their country fully, such as via their laws, the ways gender roles are viewed, access to resources (or lack thereof) and much more.
THE INSPIRATION: Toward the end of last year I went on a hike with my friend Garry and I was telling him that I was planning to travel and he told me about a magical sounding place that I had never hear about, Siargao in the Philippines. He told me about the beautiful beaches, kind people, awesome surfing, and affordability- needless to say I was sold. Immediately I decided I would go there and started searching organizations online and via instagram in Siargao. I stumbled across Grom Nation Siargao and the more I read about the organization on their website and seeing the pictures on their social media pages I knew it was an organization that I wanted to volunteer with.
MAKING IT HAPPEN: At that point I reached out via facebook and started a conversation with Emily O’Shea one of the Co-Founders and President of Grom Nation Siargao. I knew immediately that the kids that she works with are very dear to her, as she asked me a lot about my intentions in volunteering and wanted to know about my credentials and background check. Our conversations were often spotty and disjointed via internet as the electricity and internet in Siargao is not reliable, but we agreed that we would connect once I landed in Siargao. PS: If there is a place you have been wanting to visit and are interested in volunteering, don’t wait! Contact them now! It’s really this easy! We did connect in Siargao and I offered to help in any way I could. Keep reading to learn more about this awesome grass roots organization. Huge kudos to Emily and Josh Co-Founders for their admirable dedication to this community. People like you make the world a more compassionate, loving and better place!
Before I delve into Grom Nation as an organization let me share some statistics about children and young adults in the Philippines:
- 1 in every 10 Filipinos Aged 6 to 24 Years is an out of school child and youth (OSCY) (1). You might be thinking, Okay so what… the age gap takes into account young adults, but the 15-24 year olds included in the report were not in school, and also not employed or in college or a post-secondary school. Some of the top significant contributing factors for OSCY were marriage and family matters at 42.3% and financial concerns at 20.2%.
- 53 percent of out of school youth belong to families whose income fall at the bottom 30 percent based on their per capita income (1). High rates of poverty in countries often equates to families sending their children to work OR not having funds to send their children to school. (An aside…When I visited Siargao I learned that another big issue was the lack of reliability of teachers showing up to teach).
- Research in 2016 suggested that women/girls marry 2 years years lower (26 years old) than the median age of their male counterparts (28 years old). This age may have increased over time, however it is still not uncommon for teen brides to marry.
- Marriages involving teenage brides (ages 15-19) were 4x more common than teenage grooms. This matters because children/women who marry young are often at higher risk of poverty, abuse, domestic violence, unwanted pregnancy, etc. (3).
- The age of sexual consent in the Philippines is at 12 years old—one the lowest globally (2). Imagine the difficulty in reporting sexual assault, sex trafficking, sexual harassment in a place where consent is given to a child who is vulnerable to be manipulated or coerced so easily.
- Eighty percent of Filipino children have experienced some form of violence at home, in school, in their community and online (2).
With all this said- I still have hope for the future because of organizations like Grom Nation and people like Emily and Josh who are dedicating their time, emotional and physical energy, and putting their hearts and souls into this community. THANK YOU for the example you give to the world, the kiddos, and the families in Siargao. These community based interventions make difference in encouraging kids to stay out of trouble, contribute to their community, and have a place of meaning and belonging.
Grom Nation Siargao
Who are they? Grom Nation Siargao is an Australian registered charity that is based in Siargao, Philippines.
What does Grom Nation do? I will share their blurb from their website, but I would argue they do much more than they give themselves credit for!
“In a nutshell, we offer local kids free surf lessons and surfing activities in exchange for signing up to our long-term mentorship program. Through this program, we encourage them to value education and their own potential by incentivising school enrollment, attendance and grades. Children are required to attend life-skills workshops and life-knowledge/empowerment seminars, that are educating them on the most crucial issues that are not covered in school here. Grom Nation is a safe and consistent support network for the youth here and also runs campaigns driving social change on the Island, in order to promote a safer and stronger community”.
My small contribution….
While there I was fortunate to be around for a busy weekend. On one day Grom Nation and S.E.A Movement (check out SEA Movement here) joined up and we did a beach clean. It was awesome to go around town and the beach and pick up trash with the kids, be outside in community, and bond over our love of the environment. After the beach clean we all had an awesome feast and go to learn more about each other.
After lunch we celebrated headed to Dappa Grand Stand to celebrate International Day of Sports for Development and Peace. Josh, Emily, myself, cousin Sam and another volunteer Izzy, went to Dappa with 50 groms to watch the Frisbee competition and hold a frisbee clinic. It was awesome to see the kids running around, learning about frisbee, and playing together with HUGE smiles on their faces. After lots of play time I had the opportunity to discuss the benefits of sport and exercise on mental health and the limitations of gender stereotypes on girls and boys (thanks again to Josh for translating in Bisaya- some kids spoke some English, others did not). Despite progress that has come over the years in the Philippines, it is still a very conservative country and continues to be evident when discussing issues such as mental health and gender roles. I might add that globally, including in the U.S., we have a lot to work and education to do regarding those two topics.
The next day we made a trip to Burgos for a surf trip in the north of the island. Emily, myself, Sam and Izzy headed out with the Groms from General Luna with a bunch of surf boards and met with other Groms in Burgos. I wish I could say it was controlled chaos, but mostly it’s just chaos when you are so outnumbered by so many kiddos, haha! It was an amazing experience to be in the water cheering on these little humans- they were clearly not strangers to the ocean and fearless in paddling out.
I miss this crew deeply and am looking forward to seeing them in the future. See below for ways to contribute to Grom Nation and take care of the environment/community during your travels to Siargao.
Giving to Grom Nation
Check out Grom Nation Siargao’s “Support Us” page to find out how to
- Make a financial donation
- Donate a surfboard and ship it over to them for $50
- Donate other surf accessories such as surf leashes, rash guards, and tail pads
- Contact Grom Nation via facebook or email to volunteer
Think Environmentally Friendly
- Bring your own water bottle! Please remember to do this. There should be free clean water wherever you will be staying (I stayed at a hotel but also a homestay and had access to water without any concerns).
- Avoid purchasing chips, snacks, bottled drinks to decrease contributing to the waste on an island that has no waste management system.
- Do not accept any plastic bags or bring any to the island.
- Look for businesses owned by locals if possible and support them when possible.
- Pack bar shampoo and conditioner to avoid leaving your otherwise empty bottles behind and the added bonus of not dealing with liquid restrictions when traveling!
I hope you enjoyed learning about Grom Nation and are inspired to give back locally or on your next trip!
PS: Find Wave of Consciousness Blog on instagram @waveofconsiousness ! Feel free to direct message me if you think there is a non-profit you think I should feature.
Xo Peace and love,
Joanna
References
- https://psa.gov.ph/content/one-every-ten-filipinos-aged-6-24-years-out-school-child-and-youth
- https://www.unicef.org/philippines/child-protection
- https://iwhc.org/resources/facts-child-marriage/