We are very excited to announce that Glo is actively collaborating with the Daughters Rising organization that works for the future of Karen girls and to prevent them from being dragged into sex trafficking.
Glo contributes by providing these girls with an education through school and university scholarships to give them a future with a decent job.
Why did we love this solidarity project?
Ixone Elosegui, one of Glo's founders, had the opportunity to get to know this project first-hand when she was living in Thailand and was fascinated by the great work of solidarity they do.
"When I was living in Chiangmai (Northern Thailand) I had the opportunity to discover the wonderful project of the Daughters Rising foundation, which fights for the prevention of trafficking of girls through education and empowerment."
Daughters Rising Foundation is located in Northern Thailand, very close to the Golden Triangle, where Thailand, Laos and Myanmar meet. It is an area as strategic as it is conflictive.
The Karen ethnic group has been heavily persecuted in Myanmar. The girls who benefit from these scholarships come from mountain villages or refugee camps where a large part of the Karen population now resides.
I think we don't give due importance to the right to education because for us it is an acquired right for a long time. But when you see that having access to a school scholarship can save these girls from ending up being sold to a brothel, you become more aware of how privileged we are. In addition, many of these girls, after their university education (nurses, teachers, doctors...) return to their villages of origin as women ready to improve their living conditions.
An Elephant Sanctuary and a big school
One of the foundation's projects is a small resort in the jungle of Chiangmai, integrated within an Elephant Sanctuary. A unique space located in the middle of nature where you can enjoy a complete immersion with these wonderful animals. This large sanctuary protects elephants that have been rescued from circuses or from families that used them for heavy work on the border between Thailand and Myanmar.
During the visit to this paradise, a ride with the elephants through the jungle is included. It is not allowed to ride on them and we will always be accompanied by their mahout, the person who knows and manages the elephant. We can accompany them to the river so that they can bathe, shower and refresh themselves in a kind of natural spa where mud is also applied on their big bodies. Afterwards we can feed them bananas, sugar cane and other vegetables. During the route, another interesting activity is carried out, which consists of preparing a natural medicine for when the elephants feel sick to their stomachs. It is prepared by crushing cane sugar, rice, banana leaves and tamarind in a giant molcajete.
All the women working at the resort are Karen girls to whom the foundation provides all the necessary education for their development. They learn English and a profession oriented to the tourism sector. Other teachings include Muay Thai, a self-defense discipline, and they are also helped with micro-credits for those who want to become entrepreneurs.
So the resort is not only a home, but also an ideal place for them to learn, and of course they receive a fair wage for a decent job.
More information:
https://daughtersrising.org/
https://web.facebook.com/DaughtersRising
https://youtu.be/iQkXeXiSOLw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtku6kras-w
