YES! YUNNAN...YOUTHS EMPOWER & SERVE

About US

What is this ALL about?

“Youths Empower & Serve Yunnan!” (YES Yunnan!) is a social work field trip organized by students for students to Yunnan, China this coming December!
This is the first time the Society of Social Work Students (SSWS) is organizing a Youth Expedition Project (YEP).
Through this project, we not only hope to bring benefits to the local population, but also to seek an opportunity to establish links with the village to promote long-term and sustainable development in the future.
It is hoped that the experience from the expedition will promote and encourage active participation from social work students today in reaching out not only in a local context, but to outreach to countries in the region.
We seek to instill the belief in students that each of them is a potential agent of change, to venture out to the communities around them and be the difference to others.

Goals and Objectives of Project
Goals:

1) Enhance the social functioning of individuals in the community
2) Apply Social Work theories, skills and perspectives in a real-life setting
3) Experience growth as an individual and bonding as a team
Objectives:

1) To provide education for students, according to the needs identified by the schools
2) To improve school facilities thereby creating a more conducive environment
3) Cultural exchange to greater understand the strengths and needs of the community

Our project is educational in nature.
As a team, our main focus would be on community building through working with the schools.
Schools are focal points in the community, providing ample opportunities for improvements on the social functioning of the individual as well as the environment around him.

Cultural exchange is part of our effort to understand the community, which would give us greater knowledge of the people we are working with.
Getting to know their strengths and their needs would help us in our approach to the local community.

Not only can we strive to serve the community to the best of our knowledge and skills from our training as SW students, hopefully, this trip will also be a fulfilling hands-on learning process to increase every participant’s self-awareness as both an individual and a SWker-to-be.

Soooooo......
Let’s strive together to create a positive impact on the people around us!
You, too, can be involved by tagging your comments to give us feedback, or play a part for the community in Yunnan through donations, sponsorships or by supporting our fundraising events! Your support, regardless of it being emotional, moral, or financial, will be deeply appreciated. =)

ABOUT YUNNAN

YUNNAN

Yunnan (Beautiful Clouds in the South) Province is the most southwest region of China bordering the countries of Vietnam, Laos, and Burma. Yunnan Province borders Guizhou Province and Guangxi Zhang Autonomous Region to the east, Chongqing and Sichuan to the north, and Tibet Autonomous Region to the northwest. Yunnan encompasses 394,000 square kilometers (152,084 square miles) and has a population of more than 42 million people.

Within these borders, Yunnan has a diverse topography that ranges from alpine mountain ranges to tropical rainforests and the greatest number of plant species in China (more than 18,000) as well as an incredible array of animals, including the Asian elephant and the protected Yunnan golden monkey. There is even a rainforest in the area known as Xishuangbanna where you will find many rare and endangered species of plants and animals.

China
Yunnan Province
Wenshan Prefecture
Xichou County
Xin Jie Village
WENSHAN

The Autonomous Region of Wenshan for the Zhuang People and the Miao People is located in the southeast of Yunnan Province. It is bordering with Viet Nam and governs 8 counties, with the Wenshan County as its capital city. The Autonomous Region of Wenshan is also called the Southern Gate of East Yunnan. Wenshan has got its name because of its natural physiognomy, the Eastern Wenshan. It is well-known throughout China for Panax notoginseng, a kind of valuable medicinal materials, and is thus called the Hometown to Panax notoginseng.

There are many resources of plants and animals, minerals, and water energy in the Autonomous Region of Wenshan, and the tourist resources here are also very rich. The main grain crops here are paddy, corn, wheat and legume, and the main industrial crops are Panax notoginseng, capsicum, baked tobacco, aniseed, Caoguo, Tung oil tree, and tea. There are, of course, many other special agricultural products in Wenshan.

In the Autonomous Region of Wenshan are many natural sights like rocks, caves, springs, lakes, waterfalls and virgin forests. The unique sights of sub-tropical zone here, together with its long history of human development and colourful folk customs of minorities, give the place a great potential in the tourist resources. The scenic spots which have been developed up to now here include Puzhehei in Qiubei, the Bathing Immortal Lake in the Inkstone Mountain, Bamei Village in Guangnan, the Sanla Waterfall in Babao, the Tuoniang River in Funing, and the White Sand Slope Hotspring in Wenshan. Chinese visitors now can even go across the national boundary to tour in Viet Nam, and the Vietnamees can also go sightseeing in China.

Population: 3,372,000
Area: 31,456 square kilometers (12,145 square miles)
Nationalities: Han, Zhuang, Miao, Yi
Administrative Division: 8 counties (Wenshan, Yanshan, Xichou, Malipo, Maguan, Qiubei, Guangnan, Funing)
Seat of the city government: No.44, Dongfeng Road, Kaihua Town Wenshan County
Useful Telephone Numbers:
Tourist Complaints: 0876-2151632
Weather Forecast: 121
Zip Code Inquiry: 184
Bank of China Wenshan Branch: No.138, Kaihua Road (Middle), Kaihua Town, Wenshan County
China Post Wenshan Branch: Post Bureau Building, Puyang Road, Kaihua Town Wenshan Town
Location: Lying in the southeast of Yunnan Province, Wenshan Zhuang and Miao Autonomous Prefecture neighbors Baise, the province. It is bounded on the south by Burma. Wenshan County, the government seat of the prefecture is about 310 kilometers (193 miles) from Kunming.

History: Administrative division of this area in history initiated during the Western Han Dynasty (206BC-24AD), when the emperor launched the exploitation of southwestern border area. Kingdoms set up by local ethnic minorities were conquered and replaced by counties and shires newly established by the court.

Physical Features: Wenshan stands in the southeast of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau backed by the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau in the northwest. Mountainous region occupies nearly ninety-five percent of the prefecture's territory. The total area under cultivation only accounts for a proportion of seven percent.

Climatic Features: The prefecture enjoys a plateau monsoon climate at low altitude having distributions of six climatic types, ranging from the north subtropical zone to the middle temperate zone. It has clear dry and humid seasons. May to October is the rainy season gathering over eighty percent of wenshan's rainfall throughout the year. Most of the region has a favorable climate without winter chilliness and summer heat. Average temperatures in January and February are respectively 6.5-13.5 C (43.7-56.3 F) and 17-28.5 C (62.6-83.3 F).

When to Go: May to September is the beast season to visit Wenshan, but umbrella and one or two wraps are necessary in case the weather changes.

Special Local Products: pseudo ginseng (Panax notoginseng), capsicum, bamboo shoot, Zhuang brocade, Zingiber striolatum (a kind of unique vegetable in Xichou County), green tea

Local Highlights: Wenshan is a place inhabited by eleven ethnic minorities. Therefore, celebrating the festivals altogether with local minorities in the most interesting thing. Danu Festival is the grandest festival of the whole for the Yao ethnic minority. In addition, lotus festival, torch festival and many other local traditional celebrations are undoubtedly temptations for visitors.

Scenic Spots: Puzhehei in northwest Qiubei County is a fairyland from which visitor can have a panoramic view of clear lakes and pond full of lotus, emerald mountains and enchanting karst landscape. This charming country is also an ideal place to view the pomp in festivals of the Yao, Miao, Huang and Yi minorities. July to August is the best time to admire the most beautiful country landscape of Puzhehei, because the lotus blossoms are in their florescence.
Other Scenic Spots:

- Bamei Village
- The Babao Scenic Spot in Guangnan
- the Dulong Frontier Bazaar
- the Scenic Spot of the Laojun Mountain
- The Ting Lake
- Puzhehei in Qiubei
- The Bathing Immortal Lake
- The Paintings on the cliffs of the King Rock
- the Scenic Spot of the Laoshan Mountain
- the White Sand Slope Hotspring

Wenshan Food:

- Broiled bean curd
- Salted tendons of beef
- Pickle Loach
- Sanqi Steaming Pot Chicken
LINKS

http://www.eng.yn.gov.cn/yunnanEnglish/144115188075855872/index.html
http://www.chinatravel.com/yunnan/
http://www.chinatravel.com/yunnan/wenshan/overview.htm
http://www.travelchinaguide.com/cityguides/yunnan/
http://www.travelchinaguide.com/cityguides/yunnan/wenshan/
Climate http://www.weather.com/outlook/travel/businesstraveler/wxclimatology/monthly/graph/CHXX0076?from=_bottomnav_business

Wenshan weather forecast: http://www.holiday-weather.com/wenshan_guizhou_cn/index.html"> http://www.weather.com.cn/html/weather/101290601.shtml Layout: baby wingz
Font: dafont
Images: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Brushes: Mad Satsuki
Juvenile Casualty
Patterns: 1Adobe Photoshop

Thursday, March 5, 2009

Reflection

For me, the trip has been a crazy wild ride lah. Ups and downs all around. Sometimes I felt disgusted cos I couldn't bathe and I could feel a layer of grime on me, plus my head could produce snow. Sometimes I felt good because I got to hang out and play retarded but memorable games with the kids like the "happy birthday game". Sometimes I felt ecstatic cos I could see pretty stars and even shooting stars. Sometimes I felt scared cos bedbugs and creepy crawlies were everywhere. Sometimes I felt sad cos I was just cold, sick, tired and far from home. And sometimes I felt mad cos programmes keep changing! RAWR!
BUT I won't regret going on this trip because of the great company and wonderful friends I've made. You guys are the ones who kept me sane and became my surrogate family for the three weeks. We did the craziest shit, saw each other's unglam side for days on end, and traded life stories, plus many memories. All these I will keep in my heart. So yup. BIG THANK YOU TO EVERYONE IN THE TEAM! You guys are a truly unique bunch of people who rocked (and will continue rocking) my world. (:

Ho Kah Yoke

Webmaster signed off at 11:47 AM

Thursday, February 12, 2009

The Trip Part 2

...Contd
The bus took us to the hotel and we embraced the water heater and the mattress comforter whole heartedly. The team celebrated Christmas with a bang, multiple bangs actually. It was freezing & we we were cold & tired – but we braved the chill & the weariness to countdown to Christmas together. The night sky was lighted up by an array of dazzling fireworks; it was beautiful! Following that, we scurried back to the warmth of our hotel room for a gift exchange. Even though it was freezing cold and we were feeling tired and weary, we braved the chill and gazed at the night sky lighted up by the array of dazzling fireworks. We went back to the warmth of our hotel room to exchange presents that most of us has brought over from Singapore.

After some time spent at the town the next day, we set off to Gan Tang Pri School. The students kindly helped to carry our luggage up to the 3rd floor , where we were to sleep for the duration at the school.

For the second school, we upped the ante for the number of subjects. We still had Physical Education and English lessons with the addition of Art and Music. We also did some sessions with a preschool class and it was a very humbling experience.

During the weekend, we went for a community visit. We did it too at the first school but for this visit, we had a mission on our hand; to conduct a needs assessment of the community in the village and present our findings to the team.

We ended our stay at Gan Tang Primary School with a sports carnival (I think it’s more of funfair, like we had booths for them to play games – not sports carnival…), unlike the sports day where we had inter-level competition, the sports carnival boast various types of game stations which test the students motor skills. To wrap up the carnival, we had a mass dance (Friendship Dance) and everybody did enjoyed themselves.

When the day came for us to leave, we had a pic taking galore & after bading farewell, the 9 hour journey back to Kunming began. We were all looking forward for some R&R after all the hard work! (:

Is Yes!Yunnan over now?? Well,the journey continues…….

Webmaster signed off at 8:46 AM

Saturday, February 7, 2009

The Trip Part 1

This is it, the highlight of Yes Yunnan! The trip to China itself or to be precise, @ Tang Fang Pri School & Gan Tang Zi Primary School, Xin Jie Village, Xichou County, Wenshan Prefecture, Yunnan Province, China. After countless of meetings and preparations for the trip, the main event was over. The blood, yes, there was blood, the sweat, the tears and the laughter. All the ingredients needed for an amazing experience.

Hello Kunming! Hello cold! The chilly wind greeted us down the steps of the airplane and we scurried towards the awaiting bus ready to transport us to the immigration check point. The tingling sensation of excitement could be felt radiating from all 17 of us.

Now, time to endure the 9 hours of bus ride to the first school! Zzzz. All of us were tired and sad to say we missed out on the splendid view of the mountains and river enroute on our destination. It was already dark as we reached Tang Fang Primary School.

Our first dinner in China was a sumptuous steamboat, the first of the many to come, at a Muslim Eatery. There, we got acquainted with the principal. The night ended with a meeting to prepare for our first day in the school.

We had fun teaching the kids English, introducing a few games for Physical Education and also carrying out some Hygiene practices. We had a great time interacting with the kids, be it during lessons or while at play.

The manual labour was… well…laborious. It was tiring, but with great company *woo! woo! woo! - huiyi's poking the sky*, the tasks were bearable. Shifting sand and rocks, salvaging clay bricks and sweeping debris the sweat trickling down our faces was a welcoming change from the cold.

The various SKW teams ensures that we had good food and not forgetting the huge amount of help from the teachers who lend some help in whipping up some yunnan cuisine.

You may be wondering what does SKW stands for. Throughout the trip, various mini groups or cliques were formed. This is inevitable in group dynamics. There were the SKWs, SSS, TSS and a few others. Well, I'm digressing here… Back to the main storyline.

We bade farewell to Tang Fang Primary School by organising a Sports Day for the school children. Sportsmanship was the theme of the event. Everyone was a winner in their own right. Sporadic photo taking marked the end of our time spent at the school. The feelings of happiness and sadness intertwined as we boarded the bus, waving and shouting some last goodbyes..

End of Part 1 of the YES! YUNNAN journey...

To be continued...

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Tuesday, November 11, 2008

PLEASE SUPPORT our 2nd Fundraising event!

_______________________________________

Event: Yes! Yunnan 2^nd Fundraising Booth

Date: 11, 12, 13 November 2008 (Tues – Thurs)

Time: 11am – 6pm

Venue: 1 bench at Arts Walkway and 1 bench at Science Forum (Science bench only on Tuesday)

We'll be selling Donuts (from Donut Factory), Hot Chocolate drinks as well as well-wishes (write well-wishes for the kids)

DONATIONS are most welcome of course!

A simple act makes a big difference! So hope to see you there! =)

Webmaster signed off at 6:16 AM

Monday, November 10, 2008

Fundraising Event for Sports Carnival

Brandishing the major that we love!

Our booth, nicely set up to make $$$...

Our first customer of the day!!!

Girl Power, all ready to move off for mobile selling!

Saleha and Nadia trying out the newly concocted SPRITE FLOAT!

Xian Jie, the Mr Fit and Iceman doing his rounds of collecting ice!

Dun buy from the vending machine, come to our booth!!!

Ribena Makers!!!

And taking a breather before the next round of mobile selling.....

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Donuts For Sale!!

Our next fundraising event will be at AS6 Walkway from 11th Nov- 13th Nov. We'll be selling donuts and collecting funds for the trip as well. Do support us!!

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Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Itinerary (16th Dec - 3rd Jan)

Where we are going?

•兴街 (Xing Jie) Village, 西畴 (Xi Chou) County, 文山(Wen Shan) Prefecture, 云南 (Yun Nan) Province, 昆明 (Kun Ming) Provincial Capital, 中国 (Zhong Guo) Country

Date of our project

• 16th Dec 08- 3rd January 08

Airline

–China Eastern Air
–4hours
–Cost savings

Schools that we are going

•塘房小学 Tang Fang Xiao Xue
•干塘小学 Gan Tang Xiao Xue
•兴街中学 Xing Jie Xiao Xue
•Community visits

School 1塘房小学

•Kindergarten to primary 6
•Work
–Resurfacing of basketball court
–Conducting lessons on English, hygiene, manners, life skills
–X-mas celebration!
–Sports carnival

School 2 干塘小学

•Kindergarten to primary 6
•Work
–Lessons on art, music and sports
–Farming
–Sports carnival / exhibition

School 3 兴街中学

•Secondary and pre-university
•Interaction with secondary school students

Tentative Schedule Of Our Trip

15th Dec--Depart Singapore
16th Dec--Reached Kunming
17th Dec--Familiarisation
18th Dec--Work
19th Dec--Work
20th Dec--Home stay/Community Profiling/House Visitation
21st Dec--Home stay/Community Profiling/House Visitation
22nd Dec--Work
23rd Dec--Work
24th Dec-- Xmas celebration Sports Day- ½ day. Stay in town at night.
25th Dec-- ½ day at Sec sch. ½ 2nd Pri sch. Settle down.
26th Dec--Work
27th Dec-- May have R/R OR work
28th Dec-- May have R/R OR work
29th Dec--Work
30th Dec--Work
31st Dec--Work. Farewell at 2nd School
1st Jan--R/R Travel back to Kunming
2nd Jan--R/R
3rd Jan--Home Sweet Home

Upcoming events

•Sale of lollipop for fundraising

•Fundraising during Sports Carnival on October 25th, 9a.m- 3p.m at SRC, MPSH 4
We'll be selling food and drinks for the participants and the spectators of the event, so do look out for our booth!

Event: Yes! Yunnan 2nd Fundraising Booth

Date: 11, 12, 13 November 2008 (Tues – Thurs)

Time: 11am – 6pm

Venue: 1 bench at Arts Walkway and 1 bench at Science Forum (Science bench only on Tuesday)

Webmaster signed off at 10:37 PM