11
Oct 2024
Celebrating 15 years with Roots of Health
Roots of Health Executive Director Ami Evangelista-Swanepoel (2nd row, center) with the Roots of Health Team during the 15th year anniversary celebration in Puerto Princesa, City. As I reflect on the past 15 years with Roots of Health, I am filled with pride and gratitude for the incredible impact we’ve made in Palawan. What started as a dream has blossomed into something truly transformative. We’ve empowered women and young people,
17
Aug 2024
Press Statement: Let’s Teach Children Consent
Atty. Lorna Kapunan was right to enlighten Senator Robin Padilla on marital consent during the recent Senate hearing on sexual harassment, stressing that both spouses have the right to refuse sex, even within marriage. While this may seem like common sense, many Filipinos share Senator Padilla’s view as shown by our analysis of the 2021 Young Fertility and Sexuality Study (YAFS5) by the University of the Philippines Population Institute. Over
Amina Evangelista-Swanepoel Published on Rappler, July 29, 2024 In his 2024 SONA, President Marcos called public school teachers the foundation of our educational system and national learning recovery. He announced benefit packages and upskilling programs for teachers to improve Filipino learners’ literacy, problem-solving, and critical thinking. The President and newly-appointed Department of Education (DepEd) Secretary Sonny Angara must not forget teachers’ professional development in implementing comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) to
19
Feb 2024
Cultivating Strong Roots Together!
We’re Growing our Roots Together! 2023 was a year of growth for Roots of Health as we moved towards expanding our roots and going further in addressing systemic challenges related to teenage pregnancies and HIV! This was not an easy feat especially in the context of new government leaders, rising inflation and media misinformation. The best way of going about it was to have our stakeholders – government workers, teachers,
Puerto Princesa City; February 14, 2024 – Valentine’s Day took on a new dimension for students at Palawan National School as they delved into PAD-ibig Diaries, a groundbreaking initiative merging menstrual pads with illustrated diary entries to foster open dialogue about sex and relationships. Four hundred female students from grades 7 to 10 were treated to limited edition menstrual pads featuring vibrant diary entries about the female anatomy, puberty, crushes,
BUTUAN CITY, JANUARY 26, 2023 – Teachers from 27 public schools in Agusan del Norte, on Friday, participated in an orientation on adolescent sexuality and reproductive health at the Provincial Training Center in Butuan City. The session, conducted by implementers of the I CHOOSE #MalayaAkongMaging campaign, aimed to equip educators with the knowledge and tools to deliver comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) to students. The I CHOOSE campaign, national gold winner
We’re super grateful and humbled to receive two awards today from the Healthy Pilipinas Awards for Partners 2023! 🏆 Roots of Health bagged the Silver Award in Healthy Governance, Healthy Settings, and Health Literacy, for our work in reducing unplanned pregnancies and HIV cases in Palawan. With our partners USAID and the ReachHealth Project, we also won the Gold Award for the I Choose #MalayaAkongMaging campaign – which provides youth-centered
Early mornings, long boat rides, and hot and humid days – this is the typical scenario when traveling to Agutaya, one of the hardest-to-reach group of islands in Palawan, Philippines. Though the villages are separated by sea, people are never strangers. All happily greet each other as they gather at the local health center to avail of their contraceptive of choice during an outreach mission led by Roots of Health
25
Mar 2022
Roots of Health Launches New Tagalog-Language Online Website and Chatbot for Reproductive Health Solutions
Through ugatngkalusugan.org, women, young people, parents, teachers, and health care workers can access RH information and services in a more accessible language. by Romar Miranda March 25, 2022, Puerto Princesa City, Palawan—Roots of Health (ROH), a non-profit organization based in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan, in partnership with the Embassy of Canada in the Philippines through the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives, recently launched its new Tagalog-language website. This is one
12
Jan 2022
Active Rehabilitation: Civic groups partner with Odette-hit communities in Palawan for recovery
by Romar Miranda One fundamental truth about humanity is the idea that help will come no matter the disaster. A day after Typhoon Odette (international: Rai) ravaged central and northern Palawan, local communities were in shock because of the unprecedented damages to life and property caused by the typhoon, with a total estimate of more than P7.8 billion. With the local governments already stretched thin from managing the COVID-19 pandemic,
