Mentoring the next generation of tamil youth
Although the war and the economic crisis it created may be over, the long term effects can be seen in the quality of life for Tamil children in Sri Lanka. Especially in remote areas that received less support from reconstruction and rebuilding efforts. These children receive less opportunities and may face a more difficult future. We want to assist the war-impacted children and children from low income families in these remote areas, and help provide them with opportunities to give them a better and more mainstream future. We intend to help rebuild a vibrant future Tamil generation.
Scholarship Examination Assistance 2020
Our pilot project in 2020 during Pandemic. A Student from ‘Sri Korakkar Tamil Maha Vidyalaya’ receiving receiving test preparatory materials
Scholarship Examination Assistance 2021
A teacher explaining the use and ways of using the test prep material to students from the ‘Ahathiyar Vidyalayam’
Scholarship Examination Assistance 2023
Students from ‘Veeramunai RKM Maha Vidyalaya’ with our test prep material and youth volunteers who coordinate our work.
Home Gardening Project I
Our pilot home gardening project in 2023 in coordination with the New Sun Star Youth Club in Kalmunai, Eastern Sri Lanka.
Home Gardening Project I
Students at the Home Gardening project workshop to provide initial training and to hand over seeds, plants and guidance material
Home Gardening Project I
Participating students and counselors of the Home Gardening project in Kalmunai, Eastern Sri Lanka.
OUR PROJECTS
Scholarship Examination Workshop
The Scholarship Exam for grade 5 students in Sri Lanka is crucial as the exam results can help gifted students thrive in strong academic settings by allowing students to attend privileged schools in more developed areas and also receive monetary aid from the government, which helps low-income families with financial hardships. Tamil students in disenfranchised communities, may not receive the same support in preparation for the exam compared to other regions in the country.
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Scholarship Examination Workshop
The Palmyrah Initiative worked to create resources and aid these students to help them succeed on the exam. We donated practice tests, books, and other essential preparatory materials to these students to help them with the exam. We also organized after-school revision workshops with the help of local student-run organizations, “Invent” and “New Sun Star Your Club.”
We began this long-term project in 2020, during the pandemic. For students in first-world countries during this time, they had the resources to quickly recover and continue their education. However, for students in underdeveloped countries, there was less access to these resources, which created a toll on their mental and physical health. This inspired us to begin helping students receive an equal playing field to succeed academically. We have conducted this project for 3 years straight, for the class of 2028, 2029, and 2030.
When working on this project, we realized that a small investment could impact a life. Students who pass this exam receive monetary stipends which can help relieve pressure on these low-income families. These students are able to have a better future by attending strong schools. Our assistance gives these students a chance to thrive and become prominent members of the next generation to help continue the fight to maintain our community.
More details will be added as we step into Phase II of this project
Food for the Future
During the war, an economic crisis began to grow in Sri Lanka, one that hit Tamil families in remote villages especially hard. There were shortages in food, fuel, medicine, and more. The Palmyrah Initiative created a home gardening project for students who live in these remote areas with less access to resources, with the objective of helping them grow vegetables in their backyard.
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Food for the Future
The project entailed a workshop to teach various gardening techniques to the students, including but not limited to: preparing and managing family members for the home garden, soil cultivation, setting up a seeding platform, vermicomposting preparation, natural pest control methods, managing daily household waster water for the garden, managing challenges within the home garden, beautifying the home garden, and carrying out practice exercises within the home garden. Additionally, we created and donated gardening kits for the students to help them build their home garden.
We hope our project will bring about many positive changes in these student’s lives. For one, we hope creating an engaging and fun activity for students can help relieve their stress and mental health, along with family bonding at home. Additionally, since it’s a home garden, the students and their families get to work together to create healthy vegetables for a varied and nutritious diet. Additionally, the project teaches students varied and advanced techniques (such as vermicomposting, creating a seeding platform, and natural pest control methods). This can provide students with an opportunity for self-employment opportunities straight from their home in the future. They gain experience in producing these seeds and potentially selling vegetables to people in their village as well.
Additionally, we conducted a conference for students during this project. Along with self-employment, we hope to foster a sense of entrepreneurship in these students. Therefore, we provided them with guidelines for making business registrations - namely, how to receive government grants which can provide them with opportunities to engage in more training projects such as these.
Ultimately, we hope that this project helps students not just make their own vegetables but also teaches them interesting life skills regarding botany while they have fun.
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