Christina ‘Intan’ Nitbani, is a 14-year-old student in a small rural village in West Timor, Indonesia. She is the youngest of three children and an only daughter. Intan, like most girls her age, and even much older, are not well informed about their basic biology and health. “Sex and reproduction are taboo topics here”, said […]

Because of its valley location, Rano, which is in South Sulawesi, Indonesia has temperatures that are hotter than other Tanja Toraja villages. This location means families there experience harsher drought most of the year when it doesn’t rain in the area. Harsher still are landslides that come along with the rains. In late 2016, deadly […]

Mustafa (not his real name) was born the oldest of 6 children in a remote village in a Hazara ethnic village in Afghanistan. Because Hazara people are largely Shia Muslims and a minority in Afghanistan, they are under constant threat from those who identify as Taliban and follow Sunni Islam. One day some years ago, […]

The Oe’ayo farmer group started almost by accident when a plot of land donated to a church youth group by Welmince Kase and her husband was left fallow. So, after a year of the youth’s inactivity, Welmince decided on another idea for her land. Knowing that she would have help from CWS, she invited nine […]

A year ago, a horrific series of disasters struck Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. The earthquake, tsunamis and liquefaction killed more than 5,300 people and wiped out communities. CWS have been on the ground in Central Sulawesi for the past year helping to address critical water, sanitation, hygiene and shelter needs. This video gives a glimpse at […]

Mohammad (not his real name) is a 16-year-old asylum seeker from Afghanistan. He has lived a safe, healthy and happy life in a CWS-managed group home in Jakarta for four years, and for almost two years, regardless of his disability, Mohammad has become more active and stronger in body and spirit. Last summer Mohammad was […]

As one CWS approach to sustainable economic development for women in West Timor, Berdaya, which means empowerment in Indonesian, supports women in a few ways, including support to organize and lead their own savings and loans groups. Woman, in turn, support each other as they start and grow small businesses, make profits, save … and […]

Deni Seteria Saufeto is a jack-of-all-trades in her West Timor village. Besides taking care of her children and home, Mama Deni earns money weaving textiles as her mother taught her. For years, she had successfully sold shawls and blankets to family or friends. But, many other women in her village also weave, so competition for […]

Like many people in the world, Diana used to take water for granted. Now, after the complex natural disaster changed her life last year, she understands how valuable and rare safe water can be. Diana lived in a coastal village near Palu in Central Sulawesi. But when an earthquake and resulting tsunami washed her home […]

Adapting to life after a natural disaster is a struggle. For people like Sarini the struggle isn’t just coping with the huge loss of her house and livelihood. It’s also the struggle to meet basic needs day in and day out. Immediately after last September’s earthquake, tsunami and land liquefaction disaster in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia, […]

Reni Sattu and her family live in a rural village about 25 miles from the nearest town. Among other services she has no access to, safe banking is one. And, as she learned when she approached a bank in a bigger city, she could not borrow money from them anyway because her husband’s income barely […]

In October 2016, a landslide destroyed houses and farmland in Lembang Rano, which is a small, mountainous village in southern Tana Toraja, Indonesia. CWS was already working with communities there, and so partnered with the district Disaster Management Agency to strengthen its disaster response. Then, after the community’s recovery from the disaster, CWS staff and […]

After finding her way to Indonesia through a long air, sea and land journey, 45-year-old Khadra (not her real name) reached Jakarta, Indonesia feeling alone and lost. The story of how she travelled to Jakarta is a long and winding one – just like the journey itself. But, to fast forward to her success story, […]

Yuliana La’lai, like many of her neighbors in South Sulawesi, has always relied farming for her family’s income. However, slowly but surely climate change is making the region’s harvests less fruitful. Gradually, Yuliana notes, “unpredictable rainfall leaves us not knowing when to plant rice; our cacao pods and coffee plants are affected too”. These crop […]

Recently, people from Donggala district, which was devastated by an earthquake and tsunami in late September 2018, receive money to support them in the next steps of their recovery from the disaster that upended their lives. The payments to families were made through what is called a cash transfer program, and such programs are increasingly […]

Susana Tefa is a poor farmer in Op village, West Timor. Like countless others in Op and nearby villages, she and her husband are always looking for ways to improve their lives and livelihoods. So, Susana was glad for the opportunity to join CWS-led Timor Zero Hunger project activities, which are open to all who […]

Recently a few young people who live in group homes for unaccompanied refugee children came to CWS staff with an idea. They wanted to practice their newly honed hair cutting skills by offering to cut their neighbors’ hair. Excited about the idea – and a chance for the youngsters to get to know their neighbors […]

June 20th in Jakarta, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) invited their partners to enliven the celebration hall where formal activities were held. CWS was unique in deciding to invite the refugee children and teens in our care to host exhibitions of there are – including drawings and henna painting! CWS team members […]

Although she is not originally from the area, Nirwana Sai is now among tens of thousands of Central Sulawesi (Indonesia) earthquake and tsunami survivors. Somewhat ironically (or so it seems now) Nirwana, her husband and four kids left their home in South Sulawesi to look for a better life. Both parents were working toward that […]

Mubaraka was born in Afghanistan, but she not does remember much about her country because her family moved to a town across the border is west central Pakistan when she was a baby. Not long after they left their homeland, Mubaraka’s mother left the family and eventually her father remarried. Sadly, Mubaraka and her stepmother […]