Perhaps even as you read this, you can picture Jesus placing his hands on the children and saying, “Let the little children come to me. Don’t stop them, because the kingdom of heaven belongs to people who are like these children.” Christ recognizes children as essential in kingdom work.
In this same spirit, World Renew recognizes children as important agents of positive change as we work in communities around the world. When young people learn about healthy behavior changes and put them into practice, their lives change… and through a ripple effect, the lives of others can change, as they become role models for others.
A hygiene and sanitation project World Renew started in remote communities of Laos is just one example of children making a difference in community development. Inadequate access to Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) was causing several problems. Most villagers did not know much about the causes and transmissions of disease. The lack of toilets led people to practice open defecation, which increased the risk and spread of disease in the community.
World Renew partners established a Village Education Development Committee to help educate community members about healthy hygiene behaviors and sanitation practices. Staff knew that raising the awareness of children would be critical to this program’s success. Health and education teams went to two schools to do a school-led health and hygiene activity with both the teachers and their students. Together, students and teachers learned about methods of protecting their health and preventing the spread of diseases, which included practices to help keep the school environment cleaner.
After the health activities had been underway for a while in the schools, the team returned for follow-up visits and asked the teachers about the impact of the activity in terms of students’ understanding and behavior. The results were very encouraging.
When children are healthy, they are better able to live out the potential God has given them, and they create a positive cycle that can carry on for future generations.
“The students and teachers, on their own initiative, had made a special station for hand-washing using local materials,” said Ms. Sonexay, a program staff member. “The teachers of both schools said that the students are now drinking boiled water, washing their hands before eating and have better health than before so they don’t miss school as much.”
World Renew partners will continue to monitor the hand-washing stations and support the children in the health and hygiene work, so that their examples can encourage others to change their behaviors. There are also plans to work together with district education officials to scale up the hygiene activities to all 16 schools in target villages. When children are healthy, they are better able to live out the potential God has given them, and they create a positive cycle that can carry on for future generations.
