2020 will go into history as one of the most challenging years many of us have ever experienced. People are getting sick. Almost everyone had to put whatever plans they had on hold. Borders are closed and whole countries are under mandatory lockdown, some of them for the second time in one year.
Businesses are going bankrupt, people are losing their jobs. What’s happening this year is hard enough as it is if you live in a wealthy country, with a solid social system. But what happens if you live in a third world country like the Philippines, with barely enough income to survive under normal circumstances?
Dauin during the pandemic
I witnessed that firsthand while I was working in the Philippines as a dive instructor. The tourism and dive industry were instantly hit hard by the travel restrictions that were (necessarily) implemented on both a global and domestic scale. Scuba diving and traveling go hand in hand (especially in the Philippines), so without travel there are no scuba divers.
If you live in the Philippines, or ever had the pleasure to visit this beautiful country, you know that most locals who work in the dive industry don’t have much – even under normal circumstances. They often work for minimum wage, which is barely enough to make ends meet.
In Dauin, the beautiful town in Negros Oriental where I live, the majority of people depend on tourism in general, and the dive industry in particular. So you can imagine that the outbreak of the pandemic in March this year had a massive impact on the local community.
Tourists left the country in a hurry. Local and international borders shut down. Resorts and dive shops were forced to close their doors. People were under mandatory lockdown.
This happened in many places in the world, but in the dive industry in the Philippines, no work means no pay. On top of that, most people don’t have any savings, because their salary simply isn’t enough to put anything aside.
Dive community coming together
You may think that all hell would break loose. Desperate people with nothing to lose – who knows what they’re capable of? That’s certainly what many people feared during those days, but in fact quite the opposite happened.
Of course, people were scared and were feeling increasingly desperate. But at the same time something very beautiful happened: the dive community got together as one.
As dive center owners were suffering financially themselves, they were hardly in the position to offer financial aid to their employees. But many local business owners got creative by organizing fundraisers among their guests.
Unfortunately there were still so many locals that received little to no aid, that a friend and I decided to organize our own fundraiser: Project Hinabang*. With nothing but time on our hands, we figured that this was the least we could do.
Hinabang means ‘aid’ or ‘help’ in Bisaya, the local dialect.
The plan was to ask family and friends for donations in order for us to provide food packages to local families. Since we were well aware many people around the world were suffering, our expectations weren’t very high. So it was quite a shock that already after 2 days, hundreds of dollars were coming in!
Not only our own circle of friends, but even complete strangers from all over the world turned out to be extremely generous. Many people were concerned about the fate of the locals here, and if people were not in the position to donate money, many of them shared our story. I have never been more convinced of the power of social media than in those days.
We soon collected enough money to provide many local families with a massive food package. We wanted to make sure our help would really make a difference, so each package consisted of 10 kilos of rice, potatoes, beans, eggs, meat and vegetables that would last a family (depending on their size) one or two weeks.
We received so much more money than we ever expected, that we were able to help more families than originally planned – for multiple months!
No, it wasn’t enough to replace a full time salary, but it gave many families in the area some breathing room to get their personal and financial situation sorted.
Although the initial shock that the pandemic caused has long faded, many people around the globe, and especially in the Philippines, are still in crisis. International borders have been closed since March, and with a second wave of Covid victims currently affecting countries around the globe, it doesn’t look like this will change anytime soon.
Here in Dauin, the dive industry is pretty much dead. Even though diving is allowed again, local tourism isn’t enough to make it viable for businesses to reopen. Unfortunately, the same goes for many places around the Philippines.
If you’re reading this and you feel like it’s too late to step up and do something for your local community, or for the staff of your favorite dive resort, I can reassure you. It’s not.
The borders of the Philippines are still closed. There are still no tourists. There are still many people out there without any income. And they still need your help.
If you’re not in the financial position to donate money yourself, that’s okay. Neither was I! It’s super easy to start a fundraiser on social media. You’d be surprised by the generosity of people.
I hear you thinking “but why would anyone trust me with their money – I’m not a charity!” That’s what I thought too, but it turned out many people were more willing to donate directly to a ‘real’ person, because they trust me and know that their donation goes straight to the people who need it.
Project Hinabang was probably one of the best things I ever did – not because of what I gave, but because of what I received in return. I benefited from it just as much as those who received a food package. It kept my mind busy, and prevented me from feeling useless. I had the opportunity to truly make a difference in people’s lives. And so do you!
If you want to end this miserable year on a positive note, I invite you to think about ways you could make a difference in someone else’s life. Buy food for a family that has lost their income. Start a fundraiser. Donate old clothes. There are so many things you can do!
Yes, this year has been (still is) challenging. But you can take control, and make sure that you can look back on this year with pride. Will you join me?
About the Author: Iris van der Zwan
Iris is freelance dive instructor and marketeer based in Dauin, Philippines. She is the founder of a scuba diving website: Diving in Wonderland.
