End of Year Highlights 2020

Featuring news (in sequence) from India, Papua New Guinea, a new initiative for the continent of Africa and Bolivia.

 
 

March-October
Planning GULL’s response to the Covid 19 pandemic

As it became evident that the Covid 19 pandemic would be far reaching, we began to think about how GULL might response to the predicted impact : Every world region is likely to experience substantial growth downgrades. These downturns are expected to reverse years of progress toward development goals and tip tens of millions of people back into extreme poverty. (Source: World Bank, The global economic outlook during the COVID 19 pandemic: A changed world, 2020).

Following news from India and PNG, this update outlines how GULL aims to continue its support to people like Josephine and her community in Kenya: We started with GULL in 2009 and we are working on a number of on going projects. These include education, health, sanitation and our continuing work to reduce the scale of female genital mutilation. Our GULL projects have enabled us to find and implement solutions to many of the issues that our communities face and because of this, we have grown in confidence and gained the experience needed to make a real difference. As an example of the kind of work we are doing in relation to food security, we have set up greenhouses, we have beehives and we are producing dairy products.

 

(Above right) Kenya, October 2014. Among the group is Josephine Sempele, a GULL student from 2009 2014.

 

 

 

India
Amity University with GULL Gurgaon, Haryana, 3 5 March

Gunjan Sanjeev, Vice President, Amity Group one of India’s leading universities with 11 campus locations hosted Richard Teare’s visit to the Gurgaon campus near Delhi in March. The purpose of the visit was to plan a pilot initiative and talk about GULL’s work. Richard’s talk to 150+ staff and students was entitled: How can universities facilitate self directed lifelong learning for everyone? Towards a 21 st century paradigm for wider inclusion.

Gunjan and Richard also facilitated a Writing for Publication workshop for staff and worked on a journal issue. University Vice Chancellor Pritam Sharma attended both sessions and offered his support for a GULL pilot for the university’s administrative staff. Progress on this will depend on when pandemic restrictions can be lifted.

 

(Above left) Vice Chancellor Pritam Sharma presents Richard with a copy of his book: Path to Excellence

(Above right) Gunjan and Richard facilitated a half day publishing workshop for academic staff on Thursday 5 March.

 

 

 

Papua New Guinea (PNG)
Celebrating 50 years of service (1970 2020)

Samuel Tam Snr, founder of the Personal Viability (PV) system and GULL Regional President, Pacific Islands reflects on 50 years of service: I started helping Papua New Guineans in business back in 1970 with mixed results. Some did well but the majority could not sustain their success, and became poor again. Gradually, I began to form the concept of a viable person. Viable businesses need viable people to make correct decisions to sustain a profitable business. I started to develop games to help people learn how to play the Games of Life, money and business and I started coaching people to think and act for themselves.

50 years’ on, Samuel (better known in PNG as Papa Sam) concludes that action learning is essential in developing a business mindset so that the poor learn how to organize and use resources to attain their small business goals. This approach and the astonishing achievements of Florence Saia and her team were recognized at the 2020 Event.

 

(Above left) PV participants and guests in 2019

(Above right) Samuel Tam presents a copy of his book about the philosophy that underpins PV to Richard Teare at the September 2019 event.

 

 

 

Papua New Guinea
Port Moresby 16 September 2020

The PV with GULL ceremony on Wednesday 16 September marked Papua New Guinea’s 45 th year of independence, the 24 th anniversary of the Personal Viability (PV) system and Samuel Tam Snr’s 50 th year of service to communities in PNG.

One of the inspirational figures in the PV movement since its inception was the Late Reverend Sir Samson Lowa and Samuel Tam Snr (Papa Sam) led a tribute to his work followed by a minute’s silence. 42 Human Development Institute (HDI) with GULL certificates were presented to PV practitioners by Papa Sam who also reported on the first ‘Loving service to the needy’ training course conducted by HDI which aims to rehabilitate Gender based violence (GBV) victims and perpetrators as a partner of Change Foundation Inc., a non profit organization committed to this cause. There were 11 GBV participants on the course along with 9 volunteer workers and 7 trainee PV coaches. The first course of its kind to be conducted outside PNG’s correctional institutions.

 

(Above left) Florence Sala, a PV leader and role model receives her certificate

(Above right) Happy 24 th PV!

 

 

 

Holistic and community led development (HCD)
October

Historically, GULL pathways have been individually customized in support of on going self help initiatives but this adds complexity. GULL’s new HCD standardized design is based on our core approach to self directed personal development (blended with an on going technical strand) leading to low cost digital certification on completion. Personal development occurs as participants learn to think differently about their situation via easy to use reflection tools and begin to discover and develop their individual gifts and talents. The parallel technical strand is provided by a GULL affiliated local agency and for the HCD initiative for Africa facilitated from Kigali, Rwanda, the agency will either be a single church, a group or denomination of churches or a non profit agency. GULL has worked extensively with African church denominations as they are organized, actively responding to the plight of the poor and willing to work with different faith groups in the context of poverty alleviation.

The African Church and Community Mobilization (CCM) process with GULL has recognized community led development in 17 African countries.

 

(Above left) 60 CCM participants from three churches in Nairobi, Kenya receiving their CCM with GULL awards on 3 March, 2019

 

 

 

HCD pathway design
From Kigali, Rwanda beginning in October

The HCD pathway design stipulates that the church or non profit agency must facilitate both personal and technical development and provide: training and support for self help project planning over a period of at least 4 months (Step 1) and for the implementation and evaluation of a project over a period of 6 months or more (Step Those who complete Steps 1 and 2 will be eligible to advance to Step 3 (a further 10 months’ minimum duration) and earn GULL’s Bachelor of Professional Studies (HCD) by equipping others to sustain the self help initiative. To successful complete this third step, participants must recruit and facilitate a new Certificate group (Step 1) and guide them through to completion at Diploma level (Step These design features align with the goals of indigenous self help initiatives: reduce dependency and embed self help as the core process for mobilizing the wider community so that community members have a structure, system and process that recognizes the outcomes of community led development.

260 community members received GULL awards at a community event in Gitaramuka, facilitated by World Vision Burundi on 17 November 2016.

 

(Above left) Some of the World Vision Burundi staff and community volunteers with their GULL certificates.

 

 

 

Rwanda
GULL network development

GULL began in Rwanda with Tearfund and World Vision Rwanda in 2013 and since then, an array of community projects have been developed and implemented. Some of these have had a significant impact. For example, Amiable explored ways of working more effectively with communities: This strand of my work took two years and more than 1,000 people gave us feedback on their strategic priorities and objectives so that we could re focus.

Edward said: So far, 2,900 jobs have been created as an outcome of my village savings and loans scheme association project many of them have purchased cows that provide them with a valuable source of income (milk and meat) yet, they were initially considered to be too poor to own their own livestock others have built their own houses.

 

(Above left) Aimable Nsengiyumva and family members.

(Above right) Edward Musoni and family members pictured with George Moses Kwehangana, GULL National President, Rwanda and Richard Teare 2 July, 2018.

 

 

 

Intend and Grow with GULL
From Kigali, Rwanda, October 2020

George Moses Kwehangana has been instrumental in sustaining GULL’s work in Rwanda since 2013. At that time, George was working for World Vision Rwanda (WVB) and using his legal training in positions ranging from legal advisor to legal, staffing and organizational development officer and Advocacy and gender mainstreaming manager. WVB’s national director asked him to coordinate the WVB with GULL pathways, which he also undertook and he became a champion of the process of self directed lifelong action learning. Now George has founded ‘Intend and Grow’ www.integrow.org as a vehicle for community and workplace development in Rwanda and beyond and he will guide churches and other agencies in using GULL’s new HCD pathway with low cost digital certification.

George writes: GULL helps to meet the learning needs of the less privileged, providing them with a chance to be active in alleviating poverty and contributing to sustainable change and impact within their communities. My ambition is to facilitate action learning processes in communities and work places and to contribute to developing GULL local networks in Rwanda and beyond.

 

(Above left) Dr George Moses Kwehangana, Lead Pastor of Trinity Chapel, an interdenominational community of churches based in Kigali, Rwanda, Founder of the agency ‘Intend and Grow’ and GULL’s National President, Rwanda, an honorary role.

 

 

 

El Alfarero
Bolivia, Monday 7 December

El Alfarero, Bolivia affiliated with GULL in 2014 and it’s post graduate training for graduates (El Aprendiz) prepares students for Christian youth ministry in Latin America. The professional Master pathway integrates service and ministry in a practical yet strategic way to facilitate community transformation. El Aprendiz is based on individual mentoring to enable holistic change and comprises 30 modules in 6 areas of study that combine theory and practice.

On 7 December, six students graduated from the Apprentice Programme (two could not attend the event). It is a powerful occasion as the four graduating students each shared personal testimony about aspects of their journey and the personal change that has taken place.

 

(Above left - centre back row) Debbie and Graham Frith, founders of El Alfarero with two colleagues and El Aprendiz students (front row) proudly display their El Alfarero and GULL certificate folders.

 

 

GULL is a non-profit public benefit corporation registered in California, USA. GULL’s mandate to confer professional awards is based on a statement of recognition offered in perpetuity and signed by the Head of State and the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea on 10 April 2007. GULL is also endorsed by other Governments, Leaders and Institutions.

 
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