DREAM...and
CHANGE the World
ORGANIZERS
Dynamic Teen Company
A 10,000 member-strong youth group, "Dynamic Teen Company" aims at diverting students' attention away from street gangs (a significant issue in the Philippines), and towards community activism and personal development.
They pioneered the idea of the "pushcart classroom", wherein pushcarts were stocked with school materials such as books, pens, tables, and chairs, and then used on Saturdays to recreate school settings in unconventional locations such as the cemetery or trash dump.
With Mr. Efren Peñaflorida Jr. leading these highly dedicated volunteers, DTC espouses that "change should come from within...[that] the smallest and simplest of things we do to make things better...is a start of greater things."
New Life Ministries
Founded in 1954, New Life Ministries is a Japan-based organization geared towards the printing and distribution of Christian literature to the different parts of the world. The organization currently employs 55 staff members from eight nations. NLM pursues its goal by working through it's technologically-advanced printing equipment housed in their facilities located in the outskirts of Tokyo.
In 2014, in response to the call to help people in Tacloban after Typhoon Haiyan, NLM has successfully undertaken the Hope for Living Philippines Project, a 10-week equipping and feeding program targeting 2-15 years old in 30 locations in Tacloban.
Social Enterprise English Language School
SEELS is a social enterprise that provides innovative and compelling English language teaching services operated by Filipino migrants as certified teachers. It plans to scale up and replicate its micro-franchising model to foster an inclusive, community-based ground for both Filipino migrants and lower-income families in Japan. SEELS was awarded grants from Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) for promoting the creation of social business after the Great East Japan Earthquake. It was also awarded grants from World in Asia (WiA) in 2013 in recognition of its outstanding contribution to the disaster-hit Tohoku region, Japan.
Association of Filipino Students in Japan
Founded in 1954, AFSJ is an organization of Filipino students and graduates in Japan, promoting academic excellence and community service through different academic, cultural, and social activities, supporting the Philippine Embassy and other sectors of the Filipino community in Japan. It is a part of the Philippine Assistance Group (PAG) and a founding member of the ASEAN Youth Network in Japan (AYNJ). Most of its members are recipients of different government and private scholarships, and are considered experts in their respective fields, valued as an academic pool of future leaders and pioneers.