Let’s Help Language Communities Realize Their Dreams

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Thank you to those to those who donated in the past.

For the past several months, SIL LEAD has been listening to the creative ideas and dreams of community-based organizations in marginalized and economically disadvantaged areas of the world. These organizations are taking the initiative to pursue their dreams of building a better future for their children by maintaining a connection to their past through their cultures and their languages. We believe that dreams can come true in any language and have selected five proposals to fund from around the world.

We need your help this #GivingTuesday to fully support these initiatives.

Please consider donating through either our secure donation portal (and select Community-Based Language Projects in the drop-down menu) or via our Facebook page. All donations made to SIL LEAD via Facebook between November 26 and December 31, 2018 will be preferenced for this CBLD Grants Program.

Are you ready to be inspired by these amazing community-led initiatives?

Heritage language playschool in the southern Philippines:

Community association leaders in the southern Philippines want their kids to begin learning in the language that they speak and understand. A heritage language playschool will prepare their young ones for school through songs, stories, and pre-reading games. The kids will start learning in the language they speak at home and then little by little learn Filipino, the primary language they will use in school. As one leader wrote, this playschool “will be a symbol of hope for us parents and for our young children’s educational goals.”

Reading clubs in remote indigenous communities in the Peruvian Amazon:

Local community leaders speaking twelve Peruvian indigenous languages will encourage reading among newly literate youth and adults in the Amazon and will help local authors and storytellers create culturally relevant books, using our award-winning, user-friendly Bloom software.

Extracurricular learning opportunities in local languages in Myanmar:

A collective of community-based organizations in Myanmar will train teachers and local writers from three minority communities to create reading and learning materials to use in programs before and after school.  Kids will learn better in a language they understand and speak, encouraging them to stay in school. This project will increase the local production of reading and learning materials in both digital and print formats to help them achieve their dreams.  

Dictionaries for ten languages in Rajasthan, India:

Using simple-to-use tools and software, representatives from ten language communities in India will produce bilingual dictionaries and websites.  These dictionaries will be fundamental resources for anyone writing original materials or translating materials from the national or state language.  

Online comics for youth in Pakistan to promote local language and culture:

Recognizing the rapidly expanding use of smartphones, one youth-focused community organization in Pakistan will promote their local language and cultural heritage through online animated comics and other creative literature.  They hope to deepen the connections across generations through local stories, folklore, and history shared by elders, thereby promoting multilingual literacy and appreciation for their language and culture among their youth.

These five community organizations are mobilizing volunteers, raising funds, and collecting in-kind donations to make their dreams come true.  SIL LEAD will provide up to $7,500 to each organization to support their efforts and complement their local fundraising. Help us double those funds with your gift.

Contribute to SIL LEAD on #GivingTuesday to help these dreams come true.