Healthier children leads to increased school attendance and better communities in the long term.
Students in the rural Himalayas come from families making about $2/day.
Many schools in the region lack basic infrastructure, like functioning toilets, running water and electricity. Without access to proper sanitation, children are at high risk of infection. In some schools, children missed an average of 20 days of school per year due to diarrhea and dysentery alone. Half of the children are infected with intestinal parasites, and many (40%) suffer from iron deficiency anemia. Children also struggled with poor nutrition, undiagnosed developmental delay, chronic illness, and behavioral issues.
These health issues make it impossible for children to thrive.
Broadleaf is a demonstrator of what is possible....
Our organization exists to challenge the status quo that is persistent in global development. While there is no lack of good intentions, we reject the notion that good intentions are good enough. Broadleaf's keystone program is called the Community Health and Hygiene Improvement Program or as we call it, CHHIP.
Our goal is to create programs that leverage the tremendous human talent that exists in our partner communities, that use solutions and methods that yield data driven results, and that can be easily replicated, not just in Darjeeling, but across other rural regions in India and throughout the globe.