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Driving Social Transformation: The GK's Way

The face of poverty is seen all over the world. It is a serious global problem. The only way to combat this problem is if people all over the globe would heed the call to take action and lend a helping hand in bringing dignity back to the poor. This will not only solve the problem, but will pave the way for social transformation. In the Philippines, the movement has started because of Gawad Kalinga.

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Through the help of Gawad Kalinga (which means “to give care” in English), a socio-religious organization that aims to bring dignity back to the poor and build a slum-free nation, poverty-stricken citizens in the Philippines and other parts of the world now have homes to call their own and are living more decent lives. Poor Filipino families are now given hope to rise up from the difficulties of their living condition.

By building homes for the homeless, giving food to the hungry, and equipping poor people with skills to leverage their lives, the socio-religious organization is slowly materializing its goal of building a slum-free nation. GK programs go beyond constructing houses. More importantly, Gawad Kalinga helps people build better lives. The GK movement is known to build communities for the poor, but the goal of the movement goes beyond site building and feeding programs. More importantly, Gawad Kalinga helps people hone their spirituality and outlook in life.

Massive volunteerism is what keeps the GK movement alive. Many have heeded the cry to help the movement achieve its humanitarian goals. Gawad Kalinga’s call for massive volunteerism has created a ripple effect that transforms the lives of volunteers and beneficiaries alike. Many have become living witnesses of how simple acts of kindness become the fuel of the movement towards social transformation. With ordinary people doing extraordinary feats of generosity and altruism towards achieving the GK vision, more and more lives would be transformed.

My Hopes for the Gawad Kalinga Philippines Vision

Will Gawad Kalinga Philippines succeed? I sincerely hope so.

There are environmental concerns, and there are social injustices such as poverty. Most people think that poverty is not the problem of society. Most people think that poverty is something that cannot be conquered because it will always be present. In the first world, you can still see slums and ghettos. But these places are not as bad as the slums in the third world. The Slums in Europe and the United states would look like paradise compared to dirty slums of the third world where small shanties made of thin mismatched boards and wood are built under bridges of extremely polluted rivers and canals. That is the reality of third world poverty. It’s not trailer parks or projects. It’s much worse.



This is why the Gawad Kalinga Foundation is such a big thing. It offers a way for this kind of poverty to be fought. If so, then perhaps this will slowly but surely usher in the company into the first world. During the Gawad Kalinga Global summit, the new vision of GK was announced. The GK1MB Youth Summit is aimed to pull one million volunteers to help build sturdy housing and sustainable communities for the future.



The Gawad Kalinga Foundation is going to change the world. If it succeeds, the project will be recreated in other Asian countries that have such a massive population living below the poverty line.

I hope things will go well for the future of Gawad Kalinga Philippines. I truly hope that this continues onto the future. I hope the communities are able to sustain themselves and produce new, hardworking and just men and women who will continue to strive for the future of their families.