DAREDEMO HERO is an international volunteer organization working on Cebu Island in the Philippines. Rather than "poor children to be pitied," it supports "children who are doing their best," aiming through education to raise leaders who will take on the root causes of poverty.
Its work consists of three projects. The first is educational support for scholarship students, from the third grade of elementary school through university graduation, including tuition, uniforms, teaching materials, living expenses, a free lunch every day and study support from staff with teaching qualifications. The second is community support, centered on four districts (Inayawan, Carreta Cemetery, Tap-tap and Suba-an), including emergency support, support for self-reliance and the operation of three learning centers. The third is cultural exchange, including hosting volunteers and study tours from Japan and online SDGs learning.
Forms of support include "Dream Supporters," who support education and living conditions in the poorest areas, "foster-parent members," who support scholarship students in achieving their dreams, and corporate membership. In the news on its website you can read reports such as a scholarship student entering medical school and announcements of summer study tours.
Key points
- Supports scholarship students in both education and daily life from the third grade of elementary school through university graduation
- Community support in four districts and the operation of three learning centers
- Opportunities for young people in Japan to learn with the Philippines through study tours and online exchange
Why this organization deserves attention
A distinctive feature is its long-term view: not only providing meals for children, but raising "leaders who change the reality of hunger." Through education, it aims for change not only for the individual but for families and communities.
Ways to support, such as foster-parent members and Dream Supporters, are clearly laid out. On a study tour, you can also see conditions there with your own eyes.
Editor's comment
Supporting a child who has dreams and works hard, through education to the end. I believe that accumulation will someday become the power to change a community. The voices of scholarship students show the hope of the children who have been supported.
On the official website you can read scholarship students' stories and activity news. Why not start by listening to the children's voices?