These Children Are Gifts from God

Hello. Today marks the third day of our visit to Mindanao, Philippines. Today, Sunim attended the opening ceremonies for Degebdeb School in an indigenous village in Don Carlos municipality and the Special Education (SPED) school in Kadingilan.

Sunim and the JTS delegation departed Valencia at 7:30 AM, heading to Degebdeb village in Don Carlos municipality where the opening ceremony would be held. Since the departure time was much later than usual today, everyone looked more relaxed.

Once the bus departed, Dharma Teacher Hyanghoon introduced Degebdeb School, where today’s opening ceremony would take place.

“Don Carlos Degebdeb Elementary School is the largest school JTS has built this year. Although it has four regular classrooms, they can be divided to create seven classrooms. Since elections were held throughout Mindanao in May this year, the municipal office couldn’t execute the budget until then. Anticipating this, we signed the agreement in February, but it was eventually postponed until after the elections, and construction could only begin in July. As a result, they had to work overtime very busily until last week to complete the construction. The municipal office has even repaired the access road. However, since it’s difficult for buses to enter, we’ll transfer to trucks and four-wheel-drive vehicles to reach the school.”

During the journey, they stopped at a roadside restaurant for breakfast.

After a quick meal, they boarded the bus again at 8:20 AM. After traveling by bus for 40 minutes, an unpaved road appeared. From here, the bus couldn’t proceed, so they had to transfer to trucks and four-wheel-drive vehicles.

Sunim offered the passenger seat to writer Kim Hong-shin and boarded the back of the truck. Once all fifteen people were seated snugly and boarding was complete, the truck began traveling on the unpaved road. With potholes everywhere, everyone held tightly to the handrails whenever the truck jolted. Wide sugarcane fields stretched on both sides of the narrow road.

At 9:20 AM, they finally arrived at Degebdeb Elementary School. Education officials and teachers were diligently preparing for the event everywhere.

Sunim took a tour around the entire school. Among the four regular classrooms, three were divided into two, creating a total of seven classrooms. Everyone was delighted with the large, spacious new classrooms. They tried to enter the classrooms, but couldn’t approach as the paint hadn’t dried yet. Many people had worked hard until yesterday to prepare for the opening ceremony.

Shortly after the superintendent and mayor arrived, the opening ceremony began at 10:00 AM. First, the JTS delegation and officials from the municipal office and education office all stood in a line for the ribbon-cutting and unveiling ceremonies.

“One, two, three!”

The villagers and children cheered loudly with joy.

They then sang the Philippine national anthem and the Korean national anthem together.

First, the village chief gave welcoming remarks to the JTS delegation, followed by JTS Philippines Representative Noh Jae-guk’s progress report.

For the construction of Degebdeb School, JTS provided building materials while the local government unit (LGU) actively cooperated by providing labor and on-site monitoring. Thanks to these joint efforts, the school building was completed within the scheduled timeframe. Representative Noh expressed special gratitude to the technicians, school principal, Datu, and indigenous education coordinator who participated in the construction.

Next, students performed a celebratory presentation. Degebdeb village has well-preserved the traditional culture of the Manobo tribe. The village name “Degebdeb” means the sound of horse hooves. All students wore traditional Manobo clothing and performed traditional dances.

They expressed farming activities like sowing seeds, cultivating, and harvesting through entertaining dance movements. The residents and JTS delegation applauded enthusiastically.

Next was the presentation of the completion certificate, keys, and clock. Sunim presented the certificate to the mayor, JTS President Park Gina presented the keys to the Bukidnon Province superintendent, and JTS Philippines Representative Noh Jae-guk presented the clock to the principal.

The faces of the applauding villagers were filled with joy.

Next, Sunim gave congratulatory remarks.

“Students, parents, and teachers, it’s wonderful to meet you all. I am truly delighted that Degebdeb Elementary School has been completed so magnificently and that we are holding this opening ceremony today. You must be very happy too, aren’t you?”

“YES!”

“We were able to build this wonderful school thanks to the cooperation of various organizations. JTS provided the materials, the Don Carlos local government provided technicians, and the Department of Education dispatched teachers. These three organizations joined forces to achieve today’s results. In particular, the mayor of Don Carlos actively supported us throughout this process.

A School Built Together, Brightening Children’s Tomorrow

We joined forces to build this school so that you children can study in better environments and conditions. However, besides the three organizations mentioned earlier, there is one person who made a special contribution to building this school. Who could it be? That person is the one who donated the land on which this school was built. Please come forward for a moment. Everyone, please welcome them with a big round of applause.”

The tribal chief Datu, who leads the village, walked to the front of the stage.

“It is because of people like this that our children can study in better environments and regional development can be achieved. This person donated not only land for the elementary school but also a large area of land so that a high school can be built in the future.”

Sunim placed a flower garland around Datu’s neck to express gratitude.

“Educating children cannot be done by parents alone. It cannot be done solely by the education office and teachers either. Only when local government, community leaders, and external support like JTS come together, as we have done this time, can a proper educational environment be created. Education doesn’t happen automatically just because a school building has been constructed. Within it, teachers must provide good teachings to students, and students must actively receive and learn from those teachings. The experiences you gain from learning and growing here will remain as precious memories when you become adults and will serve as a solid foundation for your lives. Looking back on my own childhood, I grew up in the countryside and had to walk long distances to school to study. Although it was difficult at the time, that experience has actually helped me maintain good health to this day. Moreover, the memories of learning not just academics but many new things from my teachers at school remain as truly precious memories even now. I ask the teachers: Your care and love provide great strength for children’s growth. I sincerely hope that such good education will take place here at Degebdeb Elementary School. Once again, congratulations on the completion of the school.

“Lastly, I would like to express my gratitude to one more person. That is Mr. Jesse, who worked hard for the construction of this school. After retiring from his service as a civil servant in Damulog Municipality, Jesse joined JTS as a volunteer and took great care to ensure this school was built well.”

Sunim called Jesse to the front of the stage, placed a flower garland around his neck, and expressed his gratitude.

“Not only Jesse, but I also hope that all the civil servants here today will actively participate in such meaningful work after retirement. Once again, I thank everyone.”

Parents, students, and teachers all applauded with joyful expressions, showing their appreciation.

Next, the mayor gave a response.

“I extend my deepest gratitude to everyone at JTS. Your kindness goes far beyond material support. Dear indigenous students, this classroom is a space just for you. You no longer have to walk long distances to school. You are the heart and future of this community. I hope you will discover your potential here, cherish your identity, and pursue your dreams without limits.”

Next, the Bukidnon Provincial Schools Division Superintendent gave a congratulatory speech. The superintendent has been participating in all the completion ceremony schedules with the JTS delegation.

“Today is truly a joyful day. I can feel from their faces how happy the children are to have these beautiful classrooms. I deeply thank JTS for coming here and making the saying ‘education is everyone’s responsibility’ a reality.”

Next, the Datuiza Barangay Captain (Sitio Leader) gave a congratulatory speech.

“This school is a great blessing for our children and families. We will carefully maintain these classrooms and actively support the teachers and school so that more children can continue their education. Thank you sincerely.”

Finally, the principal gave closing remarks.

“Today is not simply a day to receive a building, but a meaningful day to share hope, opportunity, and a brighter future for our children. Dear students, this school is now in your hands. Please cherish and take good care of this space, and preserve it as a place of learning that will benefit the next generation.”

After the completion ceremony, everyone moved to the school’s front yard for a commemorative tree planting. As they planted the tree with shovels, everyone prayed together for the children to grow strong and healthy.

In the celebratory atmosphere, everyone gathered in front of the newly built school for a group photo.

“Thank you, JTS! Degebdeb!”

Next, snacks were distributed to the children. To ensure fair distribution, they were lined up in a row. The children were extremely happy to receive the snacks.

Finally, there was a refreshment time. The villagers had carefully prepared food. Simple dishes made from their own farm produce were served.

While everyone was having refreshments, Sunim went to see the temporary building that had been used as a school. It was a temporary structure that the residents had built by hand with bamboo. There were only a blackboard and a few old desks. The teachers had been teaching the children while enduring inconveniences due to poor electricity conditions.

Some children were eating lunch with their lunch boxes spread out on the desks. Sunim called a child to the front of the blackboard and asked him to read the letters posted on it.

“Please try reading this.”

The child answered Sunim’s question well. After patting the child’s head and praising him, Sunim headed back to the front of the newly built school.

Sunim expressed his gratitude to Datu, who donated the land for the school, and Edwin, the Indigenous People’s Education Program Supervisor at the Department of Education who made great efforts to facilitate the construction, and then had a brief conversation with them.

Datu talked about the concerns that the villagers currently have.

What Should We Do to Protect Indigenous Land and Identity?

“Large corporations including Del Monte are trying to expand pineapple plantations in this area. Some tribes are already willing to sell their land, but our tribe has absolutely no intention of selling our land.”

Sunim praised him for doing very well and explained the reason.

“You did well. If you sell the land, the tribe will eventually be driven from this land and become laborers. While there are many good things about having a new school, there is also the risk of losing traditional culture and faith because of it. Also, many people will approach you for missionary work from abroad.”

Edwin emphasized that Sunim’s concerns were becoming reality.

“What Sunim is concerned about is actually happening in reality. As large corporations infiltrate and we are influenced by what they teach and show, conflicts are growing. Our tribe wants to protect the land, air, and sky, but we are very concerned that we keep losing them to outsiders. If we cannot protect nature, our identity will also disappear.”

Sunim fully agreed with Edwin’s thoughts and explained that preserving traditional culture is also one of JTS’s important projects.

“I completely agree. First, we must protect the land and nature; second, we must protect our faith; and third, we must protect our culture. Only then will self-esteem arise in our hearts. In fact, having self-esteem in our hearts is more important than building buildings. Since you are the Indigenous People’s Education Program Supervisor, you must work to prevent acts that harm the identity of each tribe. The reason for the global climate crisis is that humans have destroyed nature. We have now entered an era where becoming one with nature is more important than religious distinctions like Christianity or Buddhism. So, not only building schools, but we also need to conduct programs such as traditional dance competitions by school where all indigenous tribes gather, or speech contests where children talk about the importance of traditional culture, with awards given. JTS will also support the budget for this.”

Edwin, the Indigenous People’s Education Program Supervisor, actively agreed with Sunim’s words and responded.

“I will do that. Currently, there are 267 schools designated to provide identity education for indigenous peoples. I think we can definitely proceed with the programs you suggested. However, as Sunim can see if you look around, trees are gradually disappearing. This is because large corporations are doing tremendous logging. We believe that even a single tree has a soul dwelling in it. I would also like to conduct educational programs that can preserve this spirit.”

“If you want to do a tree planting campaign, JTS will provide the trees. If you need a building for the purpose of preserving traditional culture, we will support that too.”

Edwin was very pleased to hear Sunim’s response.

“Thank you so much. I will submit a proposal.”

After taking a commemorative photo together, they left the school.

They rode the truck again along the unpaved road. During the journey, Sunim also told the JTS volunteers about the fact that contradictions can arise between the necessity of school education and its side effects.

“While building new schools has many benefits such as eliminating illiteracy, if westernized education seeps in carelessly, there is also the risk of losing traditional culture and their identity. As children learn, their knowledge increases, but they may also neglect the importance of nature and labor. How to resolve these contradictions is also a major challenge.”

As they conversed, the unpaved road ended and a paved road appeared. Everyone got off the truck and transferred to a bus.

After another 30-minute bus ride, they arrived at Kadingilan Central Elementary School at 12:50 PM.

As they got off the bus, students and teachers warmly welcomed the JTS delegation.

Walking along a path decorated with various Christmas decorations, they passed the main building and saw the newly built Special Education (SPED) school right next to it. The special school was built right next to the main building so that children with disabilities could easily mingle with regular students.

After touring the newly built classrooms, Sunim took a brief rest inside to cool off from the heat. With the daytime temperature rising to 33 degrees Celsius, sweat was pouring from everyone’s bodies even while standing still.

Shortly after the superintendent and mayor arrived, the completion ceremony for the Kadingilan Special Education (SPED) school began at 1:30 PM. The attending dignitaries came forward to cut the ribbon and unveil the plaque.

“One, two, three.”

Kadingilan City finally has a special school for children with disabilities.

Next, students came forward and sang hymns while using sign language, then everyone sang the Philippine national anthem and patriotic songs together.

Next, the mayor gave welcoming remarks to the JTS delegation. The mayor energetically greeted them in Korean saying “Annyeonghaseyo!” and then continued his speech.

“I extend my heartfelt thanks to our Korean friends from JTS. This classroom is not just a building, but a place of learning where children with special needs can feel safe and be respected. Investment in special education is an important promise that all children, regardless of their abilities, can access quality educational environments.

Dear children, I hope this place becomes a space where you are accepted as you are, respected, and can freely develop your potential. As mayor, I once again promise to further strengthen inclusive education.”

Next, JTS Philippines Representative Noh Jae-guk gave a progress report on the school construction.

For the construction of this Kadingilan SPED special school, JTS provided construction materials while the Local Government Unit (LGU) provided manpower and continuously supervised the construction site, actively supporting the project. Construction of this school began with a groundbreaking ceremony in February 2025, and thanks to everyone’s cooperation, the building was completed on schedule. Representative Noh expressed gratitude to the mayor and civil servants who worked hard to complete the building, as well as to the technicians who contributed to the project.

Next, students came forward to perform a celebratory show.

Next, Sunim presented the completion certificate to the mayor.

Next, JTS President Park Gina presented the keys to the superintendent, and Philippines JTS President Noh Jae-guk presented clocks to the principal so that clocks could be hung in each classroom.

Then Sunim came forward to deliver congratulatory remarks, receiving loud applause.

“Today, I am delighted to celebrate with all of you the completion of the Special Education (SPED) classroom at Kadingilan Central Elementary School. Parents and students, are you happy?”

“YES!”

Even the children who couldn’t speak expressed their joy through gestures.

“Seeing your joy, I believe all those who worked hard to build this classroom will feel greatly rewarded. This classroom was built through the combined efforts of Philippines JTS, the Kadingilan local government, and the Department of Education. We collaborated to build this classroom so that you children can receive better education in a more convenient and safe environment.

**These Children Are Gifts from God
**

Parents, every parent hopes their child will be born physically and mentally healthy. How painful it must have been when you learned that your child had some physical or mental disability. However, according to your faith, these children are not here because of any wrongdoing, but are gifts that God has given you. But it is difficult for parents to care for these children with their strength alone. That’s why all members of our society must care for these children together. For these children to study, they need a little more effort, more teaching, and more support compared to other children. The process may be a bit difficult, but with education, as you just saw, children can sing, dance, and express themselves well.

Recently in Korea, a person with visual impairment studied hard and became a member of the National Assembly, and has been giving lectures that inspire hope in young people. I hope our children can grow up like that too. To achieve this, parents need to go beyond simply loving their children and provide appropriate education suited to each child’s unique characteristics. The education authorities must also train and assign teachers who can teach according to the children’s specific disabilities. Additionally, we need a lot of educational equipment and materials. Let us all work together to create an environment where these children can receive education just like any other children. Currently in Bukidnon Province, each local government is establishing one special school. This is thanks to the active interest and support of our current Superintendent. The goal is to provide equal educational opportunities to every child. I would like to ask for another big round of applause for the Superintendent who has shown special interest in the education of children with disabilities.”

Everyone gave a big round of applause to the Superintendent.

“And Mr. Rolen, the partnership project officer of the Department of Education, worked really hard to persuade JTS to build even one more school. I would like to take this opportunity to thank Mr. Rolen for his active help and support over the past few years. As a token of appreciation, I would like to present Mr. Rolen with a book.”

Sunim called Mr. Rolen to the front of the stage, presented him with an English book, and took a photo together.

“I would also like to thank Mr. Edwin for his efforts in indigenous education.”

Sunim also called Mr. Edwin to the front of the stage and presented him with an English book.

“I think you should be proud that the Bukidnon Department of Education has such dedicated education officials working for the children.

Children, many people are expressing their love for you like this. I hope you grow up well with this care and love. And providing special education for children is a very difficult task. Please give a round of applause for the teachers as well.”

Everyone gave a big round of applause to the teachers.

“I hope that today’s event will not just stop at building a structure, but that it will serve as an opportunity for us to join forces and continue to pay attention and make efforts for the education of children with disabilities. Finally, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Mayor for allocating the construction budget for this special school despite the very limited local budget. I hope you will continue to show interest in the future.”

All the parents and teachers cheered loudly and clapped their hands with joy.

After listening to Sunim’s congratulatory speech, many local officials gave their responses. First, the Mayor expressed his gratitude.

“On behalf of the Kadingilan local government, I would like to once again express our deep gratitude to JTS. We have sometimes felt envious watching other local governments cooperate with JTS. However, now that JTS has finally come to Kadingilan, we have begun this meaningful project together for children with special educational needs here. We are very grateful for this and consider it a great blessing. The Kadingilan local government sincerely wishes to continue our long-term cooperative relationship with JTS. Once again, thank you very much.”

Next, the Bukidnon Provincial Superintendent expressed her gratitude.

“Until now, teachers had to teach children in very poor conditions. When children become happier and teachers feel more fulfilled, parents will also feel the greatest relief and joy. Now parents don’t have to worry, ‘Will our children be safe?’

Now that we have an excellent educational environment, I hope our teachers no longer need to seek jobs overseas. I hope you will fully demonstrate your capabilities here for the children. Once again, I thank JTS and the local government a hundred times.”

Next, the Barangay Captain expressed his joy.

“Thank you sincerely for gifting us this precious project. I am also a parent raising two children, and one of them attends Kadingilan Special School. Thanks to the help of the JTS family, my child and many other students can now have their school life in a better environment. When I see the parents being happy, I also feel great joy. Thank you sincerely.”

Finally, the parent association representative expressed gratitude, and the completion ceremony concluded.

“To the sponsors from Korea, thank you sincerely for believing in every child’s potential and for your generosity. This space will become a home where special education children are encouraged and grow. Your kindness will remain deeply in the children’s lives beyond this classroom. Its echo will continue in every class and every moment of the children’s growth. Let’s continue to join hands and create a brighter and more inclusive future.”

Everyone went to the school’s front yard together for a commemorative tree planting.

And they distributed snacks to the children.

Then they took a commemorative photo in front of the school. The children energetically called out their school name.

“Thank you, JTS! Kadingilan!”

After the photo session, the children approached the JTS volunteers and shyly handed them handwritten thank-you letters.

And they shared the food that the teachers and parents had carefully prepared.

After eating, they said goodbye to the teachers and students and boarded the bus. When the JTS delegation waved through the bus windows, the students shouted “Bye bye!”

The bus departed from Kadingilan at 2:50 PM and arrived at the Valencia accommodation at 4:00 PM after traveling for 1 hour and 10 minutes.

After resting in their respective rooms, they gathered at the restaurant on the first floor of the accommodation at 6:00 PM after sunset for dinner together. During the meal, they shared their impressions from participating in today’s completion ceremony.

From 8:00 PM, Sunim had a meeting with the JTS Philippines volunteers. When the volunteers requested a Dharma talk from Sunim with three prostrations, Sunim encouraged the hardworking volunteers.

“You all worked very hard building 15 schools this year. In the old days, you completed in one year what would have taken three years, so your workload must have increased accordingly. Let’s talk about things you want to discuss or personal concerns you have while working.”

They then spent two hours discussing difficulties and questions encountered while working. They freely asked Sunim what they wanted to ask and also shared their suggestions. One of them asked for advice on how to let go of victim mentality and handle any task lightly, saying they often feel reluctant to suffer losses and feel wronged.

How Can I Stop My Victim Mentality?

“I have a victim mentality. Looking back on my days living in the community in Mungyeong, when I saw someone receiving consideration during kitchen duty and doing less work than me, feelings of jealousy arose. Also, when there was work we agreed to do together like cleaning or communal labor, I felt uncomfortable when some people skipped it. As the youngest, I should take initiative in various things, but I struggle with how to handle my dislike of feeling like I’m losing out. Even when I think I’m suffering just a little loss, my mind shrinks and my body seems to stop. I want to be proactive, but my karmic patterns are easily triggered. So I feel it’s hard and unfair, and sometimes it’s painful. How can I stop this victim mentality? When I see people taking initiative, I feel envious and sometimes blame myself thinking, ‘Why can’t I do that!’ How can I stop the victim mentality and live with a comfortable mind while handling any task lightly?”

“Victim mentality is actually not easy to overcome. Among the karma we have, victim mentality is one of the most significant factors. Because the victim mentality experienced in childhood invisibly operates throughout life, it becomes the basis for all discrimination between right and wrong. To overcome this to some extent, you need to live without looking at others. If you were to work at a company, you shouldn’t care about what others do or how they do it. If you’re supposed to clean, clean during the given time; if you’re supposed to work, work; you just need to do what’s given to you and what’s been decided. From your perspective, it may clearly seem like that person isn’t doing their assigned work during the given time, but in fact, others might think you’re also not doing your assigned work and not keeping to the schedule. This is because victim mentality is like a mirror reflecting yourself. So you shouldn’t look at others. Just do your assigned work as scheduled, and don’t care whether others work or not. There’s no need to think at the company, ‘Why do they pay that person?’ That’s for the company president to handle, not your concern. Whether that person comes late or not, whether they work or not, it’s for the company president to judge. The president keeps them because they’re still beneficial to the company. You need to view it from the perspective that personnel decisions are the president’s authority, not your business. If you live in a community, you should apply the rules only to yourself, regardless of what others do. Don’t apply them to others, don’t compare with others, and have the perspective of only doing your own work. If others don’t complete their work, that’s their business. If you haven’t completed your work, have a repentant mind and move forward looking only at yourself.”

“Thank you. I understand well.”

Questions about educational training programs also followed.

What Should Be the Focus of Education?

“I was pleased when Sunim mentioned plans to further activate educational programs. So I thought it would be good to pursue conducting SPED (Special Education) teacher training in connection with psychiatrists from the United States. I would like to ask what Sunim thinks about educational training programs.”

“I think practical education is more important than the size or facilities of buildings. Education can be done under trees or in huts. The problem is the lack of educational opportunities; as long as there are teachers and learning opportunities are provided, the location is not a big issue. When I was young, we mostly learned through mobile classes because there were no classrooms. However, given the times we live in now, we can’t solve problems just by saying ‘It’s okay to study under trees,’ so building school buildings has become necessary. Originally, the core goal of JTS’s work was not school construction, but providing educational opportunities to children who had no access to education. However, when we tried to provide educational opportunities, we ended up building schools because of the administrative principle that ‘teachers can only be dispatched if there are classrooms.’ We didn’t come here to build schools, so if they had said they would dispatch teachers even if we just set up tents, we wouldn’t have built schools like this. In the early days, even when we prepared classrooms, it was difficult because teachers weren’t properly dispatched. Eventually, building schools became an important project to create an environment where children could receive education. Building schools wasn’t simply about constructing classrooms, but about providing educational opportunities to children in those areas. When I first surveyed this region, many children weren’t attending school at all, or only about 20% were staying at relatives’ houses in larger villages to attend school. Some older children walked 8-10km to school. However, it was realistically impossible for a seven-year-old child to travel that distance. So schools were needed nearby, and accordingly, the school building project continued. These days, it seems like we’re school builders. (laughter)

JTS built a center in Mindanao with a different purpose in mind. The building was originally constructed to serve as an agricultural technology center. Field research revealed that increasing farmers’ income was just as important as educating children. Since operating an agricultural technology center required a demonstration farm, land had to be purchased. For example, to ensure that chili pepper cultivation could lead to actual income, the agricultural technology center was built to allow farmers to conduct trial cultivation for six months and, if successful, receive farm loans to support their farming. JTS originally had only an office in the city, but to establish the agricultural technology center, land was purchased here and a three-story building was constructed. Additional land was then acquired below the building to operate the demonstration farm. However, operating this agricultural technology center proved difficult with JTS’s capacity alone. What JTS can manage is building about three schools per year. To properly operate an agricultural technology center, agricultural experts need to be stationed there to train farmers, and these experts need to be paid salaries, but JTS cannot conduct projects through a salary-based system. So while the agricultural technology center building was constructed, there is currently no viable alternative for its operation. It would be possible if retired agricultural experts from Korea came here to participate as volunteers, but until such people arrive, operation remains difficult. Mr. Trel, who had been a long-time volunteer partner with JTS, suggested, “How about using this building as a training facility for local NGOs?” However, using it as a training facility would require operational staff for meal preparation, bedroom arrangements, and other tasks, and JTS lacks the personnel for such work. Therefore, this too is difficult to implement. The same situation exists at the Jungto Social and Cultural Center in Seoul. While the underground auditorium sits empty and various NGOs request to use the space, it cannot be rented out due to lack of personnel to manage the audiovisual equipment. The video team is so busy with internal work that they occasionally need to hire external staff on a daily basis, making support difficult. Due to these staffing issues, operations are not proceeding as originally planned. Despite these circumstances, discussions began gradually the year before last about “not just focusing on building construction, but getting closer to local children and conducting educational activities.” As a result, activities such as supporting children’s field trips, training teachers at indigenous schools, and supporting children with disabilities have been carried out. These educational and support activities need to be further expanded in the future. However, since school construction remains a major immediate issue, it is difficult to increase the burden with other activities until this prerequisite is resolved. While schools clearly provide educational opportunities for children, in the process, children may lose their faith and traditional culture, even abandoning their native languages. Indigenous communities are being destroyed as they become influenced by foreign ideologies and capitalism. There is a dilemma where not attending school would preserve traditions, but attending school leads to losing them. Therefore, we are training indigenous school teachers and considering ways to continue education while preserving their traditional faith and culture. Their faith is not particularly unusual. While the term “shamanism” might sound negative, it actually represents a perspective where nature and humans are connected as one. In contrast, foreign ideologies tend to separate people from nature. From this perspective, preserving traditional clothing, dance, songs, faith, and not selling land is very important. However, large corporations are now entering and monopolizing the land. Due to disagreements among tribes, conflicts have arisen, and three years ago, the tribal chief’s son was reportedly assassinated as a result. The perpetrator has not yet been caught, and the village people have suffered great pain from this incident.

So today as well, I suggested to Mr. Edwin, the indigenous education officer, that he research various programs for students such as tree-planting campaigns to protect the land and nature, establishing cultural centers to preserve traditional culture, traditional dance competitions between schools, and speech contests where students present the philosophy that “nature and humans are one.” JTS is willing to support these activities if they are conducted in a training format. While zoo visits and ocean experiences are important for children, the key challenge we need to address now is helping them learn about the world through school education while also taking pride in their faith and traditions. I also raised concerns regarding school education. There is a practice of conducting Christian prayers and mentioning God at the opening ceremonies of indigenous schools. When pastors or priests are not attending the event, is it really necessary to play such recordings? While this has become a cultural practice because most teachers are Christians, this custom needs to be adjusted. What JTS aims to do here is to help children broaden their horizons through learning while protecting nature, preserving the land, and maintaining traditional culture and faith. The Philippine government is also pursuing policies to protect indigenous lands. However, we must not approach this in a way that creates conflict with the tribes. If we appear to be taking sides with a particular group, it could actually become a source of dispute. Therefore, what JTS aims for is to help preserve indigenous traditions and values within the scope of school education. We need to further strengthen this substantive support going forward. This is a task that must be continuously considered not only after buildings are completed but also during the construction process. Education for children with disabilities also requires more professional training for teachers. While Manila has relatively better-established disability education systems, this region is just beginning after having virtually no disability education. Therefore, training and professional education for teachers who guide students with disabilities are essential. Although the training center was originally planned as an agricultural technology center, it would be desirable to use it as a teacher training center to strengthen IP (Indigenous People) education, Indigenous Education, and disability teacher education. We are discussing ways to operate these programs jointly with universities in Cagayan de Oro. Remote lectures with overseas institutions such as those in the United States using the internet are also possible. However, if we try to bridge too large an educational gap all at once, it may create problems that are difficult to digest in the field, so a step-by-step approach is necessary.

Recently, when I visited New York, I learned about a support program for students with disabilities. In this program, college students visit the homes of students with disabilities to help them develop basic independence skills before entering school. However, the program coordinator found it difficult to manage alone and requested JTS’s cooperation. Currently, they are considering implementing this program in collaboration with Battambang University in Cambodia. While the specific area of expertise in special education of the relevant professor has not yet been determined, they have received feedback that online education could be provided using the internet. This type of educational program appears to be feasible for future implementation. Ultimately, these projects need to be developed step by step, setting goals and building them one by one. The work isn’t decreasing but rather increasing. It’s not just the buildings that are growing.” (laughter)

“Thank you. I understand well.”

After discussing various topics, it was already well past 10 p.m. The JTS volunteers were able to fully resolve the questions they had in their minds through their conversation with Sunim.

Tomorrow marks the fifth day of the visit to Mindanao, Philippines, and the final day of opening ceremonies. In the morning, there will be a opening ceremony for the special school at the plantation in Manolo Fortich, and in the afternoon, a opening ceremony for the Korosing special school in Libona. After moving to the Mindanao JTS Center, there will be a live Friday Dharma Q&A broadcast in the evening.