Thailand’s flood crisis in 2011 gave birth to legacies that were designed to prevent future floods from reaching the 2011 magnitude – flood walls, drainage systems, response teams, coordination centers, warning systems among other projects were created in the wake of the catastrophe by government as well as ordinary people. One project that was created by the people for the people is Kaopunsuk a project spearheaded by Khun Preeda and this team that regardless of future catastrophes sets out to alleviate the plight of flood affected farmers and puts them on a sustainable pathway through organic farming.The initiative is one of many projects funded through the Wipe the Tide campaign. Their farsighted approach provides the tools, consultation, marketing and training to help farmers grow and sell organic rice and flood resistant plants. Given a world in which large corporations gain more and more control over our food whilst operating with GMO (genetically modified organism), chemicals and pesticides the story of Kaopunsuk is all the more important to be shared. As consumers we need to be aware of the origins of our food, how it is produced since it affects our health, the well-being of those at the bottom of production line and the well-being of our planet at large. Through our consumption we are able to strengthen brands whose purpose is to counter our local and global problems and Kaopunsuk is one of these emerging purpose driven brands that do just that.
Kaopunsuk means: Kao (rice) pun (share) suk (happiness) does not only stand for top quality organic rice but promotes a combination of social innovative initiatives that promote self sustainability, urban farming, organic products, a conscious lifestyle and social enterprises. The revenue is going into further social initiatives of which some are supported and/or initiated by bangkokvanguards.
Kaopunsuk invites people to become guerrilla gardeners and grow their own Kaopunsuk rice. All you need are 4 square meters of space with sunlight and a training session with Kh.Preeda’s team in which you receive equipment, tools and training. The yield of 8-10 kg of rice can be used for self-consumption or be donated to the needy (schools, orphanages, communities,etc.).
Through this initiative Kaopunsuk wants to promote doing good in new ways, increase the consumption of healthy rice and draw attention to their cause. We believe that with your help and that of other like-minded people Kaopunsuk will be the beginning of positive change for many of Thailand’s farmers and our society at large. To stay informed or to join further initiatives follow Kaopunsuk or bangkokvanguards. There is a lot in the pipeline and just like during the time of the flood we are positive that the bangkokvanguards community is going to contribute to bring about these positive changes.
To visit the Kaopunsuk’s project in Chai Nat and to be a rice farmers for a weekend keep an eye on Vanguards Explorers. When ever it’s time to plant or harvest rice the experience provider of bankokvanguards will facilitate the Kaopunsuk experience as a local, offbeat, fun and meaningful Thailand experience with our popular ingredients of biking, BBQ parties, camping and/or staying in selected local places.
How many books have been published that talk about how to find happiness? I have no idea but there’re three pillars of happiness that are highly relevant to this blog, which are: Family&friends, traveling and doing good. On January 12 with these three cornerstones in tow we bypassed the bookshelf and went straight for the experience. An experience facilitated in the heart of Thailand’s smallest province.
Phuket? Nope, the smallest province is Samut Songkhram, the birthplace of my mother and home to friends and relatives. This divine place is a great source of happiness and its beauty and tranquility is an inspiration for artists and writers. For me it’s an inspiration to explore my roots, on a bicycle of course and after countless visits, sport and spiritual retreats the time had finally come to add the do-good-factor to the Samut Songkhram experience. An experience that had been put on a tray like a ready-made roll just waiting be crisped up. Children’s Day provided an ideal opportunity for an exclusive weekend escape that you won’t find in any travel agency. Apart from being a social entrepreneur I consider myself an experience designer whose mission is to create value and happiness through Thailand experiences. The awe-factors of your surroundings and activities, the positive impact, inspiration, intellectual stimulation and fun are crucial parts of an experience, varying in their degree depending on the experience. My aim is to maximize certain elements to create a narrative in which everyone finds himself in the center point of his own exciting narrative instead of being sidelined as a spectator, coming for simple sightseeing.
Thus a Children’s Day platoon of 30 friends and volunteers from 13 different countries set off to one of the most beautiful and pristine places outside Bangkok. A place I’ve been visiting since I was a child myself, I think I was some whopping four years old and now 30 years later there was finally this great opportunity to give back to the children of Samut Songkhram.
I don’t know whether there is the term ‘happiness-overflow’ but that would describe what I felt due to some simple but fundamental things. Something that even the most beautiful beaches or the best clubs can’t deliver. Like, seeing familiar faces, your friends engaged with those kids, their parents, the monks, the smiles and laughter, the positive vibe and laidbackness, the nature, the beauty of Thai architecture, the unpretentious beauty of the environs and the people that reconnects you with the basics. All this blended into something of almost surreal beauty which at the pace of our hectic lives often seems remote and yet here we were at this sidearm of the mighty Maeklong river, at this century old canal community a stone-throw away from my grandmother’s house.
Here we were, free of traffic jams and loaded onto a boat with hundreds of gifts and an oversize teddy, going for a refreshingly sunny ride on the only remaining clean river in Central Thailand.
From our office desks and computer screens beamed to the banks of the river with our green wigs, having fun with the kids, dancing, painting, racing, catching, singing and playing tug of war, musical chair, and all those games that I don’t have names for but that would absorb us all and burn a whole lot of calories.
Painted faces, little whirlwinds buzzing around almost uncontrollable as if someone had thrown away the remote. Maximum fun factor, dismissing any event schedules till we find a new owner for the big bear. Being chased and filtered out till two contestants are left who will be chasing a bear holding a bear to win the latter, a pursuit of happiness in real time.
Here we were, games and energy abound, but still thinking of what message we’ll leave with the kids … something that will stick with them apart from a sweaty t-shirt, something that reminds them of being good, good to other, good at school, of being the future…
Immersing in these old temple grounds protected from the sun by huge trees and spoiled with the breeze from the river. Trees growing out of ancient Stupas and an old crumbling Thai pavilion held together by some Buddhist spell. The sun’s reflection sparkling on the river and framed by the trunks of coconut trees as if it was the Chaweng Beach of the 80′s. Well, we may lacked the white sand beach but the occasional trader canoeing past as an ambassador of this timeless river reminding me of the essence of this place.
Here we were, doing what would be beyond our imagination in Bangkok – swimming in a canal!! Splashing about or relaxing on the patio as the light turned soft and chillstep tunes gently filled the air.
Sailing down the river on a converted barge, catching up with good friends, cherishing their company, enjoying great food, nice tunes and the overall energy of being surrounded by good and inspiring people.
On a day that encapsulated a universal Children’s Day, we were here, children trapped in adults bodies immersing in a different world, reflecting on a day of giving and absorbing the present with people important to us. A day of which more are in the pipeline, a workshop of travel, companionship and impact that facilitates an outreach program to the child in you.
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Create connections by adding value for yourself and others.
Finally we got around to provide a brief summary on Santa Cause 2012 for our donors and supporters and a brief analysis on how to improve Santa Cause in 2013.
If Santa had a tag-line on his big sack of gifts what would be written on it? Probably that his mission is to deliver happiness to children regardless their social or cultural background. That a jolly Santa’s sleigh does not exclusively take him to international schools and kindergartens, fancy shopping malls and corporate events. His mission may not be written on our Santas’ bags but once a year we’re en route to bring gifts, game activities and spread the smiles among children of less privileged communities in Bangkok. This is the story of Santa Cause.
Santa Cause was born in the wake of Thailand’s biggest flood crisis in 2011. When the flood receded from Bangkok’s suburbs we mobilized volunteers to cheer people up and surprise the children of Bangkok’s flood affected squatter communities with gifts and games. The response among locals, the children and our volunteers was so positive that it called for a sequel and Santa Cause was born.
Now at the end of 2012 we were fortunately spared a natural disaster but needless to say that we have thousands of fellow citizens to whom the word struggle has a different dimension than it has to you or me. Many of them live among the least desirable urban areas and in these communities the elderly and children are the most vulnerable. As Christmas is considered the season of giving we wanted to see how many people want to actually give and how far can giving really go in a city where rich and poor are so close and yet so far apart and the turn out was amazing. We found that there’re many Bangkokians who want to give something back to society but often don’t know what, where, how or with whom to do it, let alone having the time to get things organized. With Santa Cause we would like to create a great opportunity for them to spread positivity, to give back together with friends and make new friends with like-minded people.
To find those communities we’ve researched through different sources including Google Earth satellite imagery. Once we identified potential communities we get in touch with community leaders and survey their communities.
So, what did we actually do?
On the first day we targeted communities in the north of Bangkok and shipped 8 teams via a jolly train ride to their destinations. The second day saw 9 teams embarking on trucks to reach communities to the west of Bangkok as well as Khlong Toey. Overall we rolled out to 25 communities in one weekend.
We don’t put a lid on doing good by saying once Christmas is over, that was it. We want to accentuate this season, underline the meaning especially for those criticizing Christmas for becoming a mere commercial trap where the values of compassion shine as bright as coconuts at night. We seek opportunities to bring good people together, Bangkok is full of good people, wait, did I say good? I meant: AWESOME people!! Otherwise we wouldn’t come and live here happier than any fairy tale princess could ever hope for. And events like Santa Cause shall be a reflection of the awesomeness of Bangkok’s citizens. Citizens who set a much needed example where many people actually do want to spread the spirit of giving and sharing in an increasingly self-and consume oriented city. Citizens who break down the cultural and social boundaries in an act that places humans first, before any cultural, religious, social or even racial identity. A much needed example? Indeed! Listen to the people who resign, who give up hope in face of a daily media barrage of killings, corruption, conflict, competition, social injustice, environmental degradation etc. For some it may sound cheezy but where’s room for love? Where’s room for hope? We need to create this room, we need to create happiness in other people where and when ever we can. We are great in churning out the latest data on our GDP but where is the data on our Gross Happiness Index? This country deserves it and we’re Thais, this is our specialty, our strength, Kwam Suk (happiness) is not a noun, it’s the name of one of our genes! Else who is holding against the negative tide permeating our media and opinions? Who else will resonate a positive message in public if not you? We don’t talk about promises, we talk about actions! We don’t say Santa Cause is the solution, or that by making everyone happy through charity we’ll solve the country’s problems but Santa Cause is a first step in the right direction, a welcome tonic to the problems, the cynism and pessimism we’re facing in our society.
Of course there is criticism to this, as there is to about anything. Some people see our approach as “feel good tourism” without regard for the cultural and socio-economic complications. Others see an injection of short term happiness which potentially complicates the work of social workers whilst others see it even as cultural invasion and even as imperialism. Everybody has their opinions and attitudes towards a charitable activity such a Santa Cause and we take those concerns to the heart. The least thing we want to cause are negative repercussions but we clearly see the positive impact it has and the potential it harbors for a more sustained support. We’ve thought of the implications, having friends in the field of community development and being Thai ourselves with relatives living in these communities helps us to minimize any potential negative impact. Our outreach in 24 out of the 25 targeted communities came under consultation and coordination with community leaders ranging from members of the Slum Network to the Community Development Institute.
As far as the Christians vs. Buddhist criticism goes. We’re Buddhists and our teams consist of Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Buddhists and atheists, coming from places as far as Argentina and as close as the communities we were visiting. It is a multi-cultural outreach in which values are shared universally across all religions and cultures. As for cultural intrusion, we’re not talking about communities where people await us armed with spears, bows and arrows! Most of the kids in these communities know how to dance Gamnam Style much better than we do and given their t-shirts they could probably outpace anyone of us in naming comic heroes and cartoon characters. Talking to community leaders none of them believes that having a Santa roaming around poses a threat to the social and cultural fiber of the community or the Thai identity of the children but rather adds to the colorful assortment of known household friends be they Micky Mouse, Disney, Spiderman, Doremon or Pokemon.
Also, we neither walk into these communities as if it was a zoo, treat people as beggars or show up regularly to give away free stuff. We visit these communities with respect and the spirit of visiting friends and in fact the community leaders and the neighbors we talk to are our friends. We’re not embarking into an awkward situation with people unable to deal with these new environs but to go in there to engage the people, whether young and old with respect and kindness but also with easiness and heaps of fun. Our team leaders are briefed to communicate this to the volunteers. We are going to further provide training through the Child Safe Network and other organizations. We will not only provide creativity, energy and fun but also professionalism on the ground.We aim to inspire and motivate our volunteers to become good and responsible citizens and to encourage kids in these communities to be good kids and to do well at school.
There’s still a lot we can do to get the message across and to leave something more than a Christmas gift. We’re looking forward to further exchange ideas with our support community and we have already received great responses. E.g. further changes will be made in regard to gift donations, hence volunteers suggested to limit the types of donations and emphasize on distributing fair-trade and local made products. Given the amazing response of donations (in less than two weeks we were able to raise over 250,000THB in cash and gift donations) and people from all backgrounds donated, students, companies, friends overseas, colleagues and strangers. Imagine the increased impact by diverting the goodwill towards supporting the fair trade industry. It would benefit so many more people and raise awareness on fairtrade products. It’s a brilliant idea and only one of many suggestions we received which will help us to keep on improving Santa Cause. Apart from that there will other changes from team-set-ups hence our Santas will no longer be the team leaders but leadership will fall into the hands of Thai volunteers, if possible a volunteer from the community themselves. We’ll also make sure to even better equip and support our team leaders with a wide range of fun activities and the Child Safe trainings as mentioned above.
The thing about giving is that it is not restricted to give money, goods or ideas but giving time and energy. People also donated their time to help wrapping the massive number of Christmas gifts. As with Wipe the Tide during the flood crisis, Central World played an important role in the support of charitable events by providing the facilities to prepare and host Santa Cause in 2011 and 2012 and we’re looking forward to further collaborate to make Santa Cause even more impactful.
As for the activity itself we will combine the best approaches from two different Santa Cause events. 2011 we relied on surprise and organic and spontaneous interaction while visiting families from house to house. The 2012 version was coordinated with the community leaders and thus more prepared and a rather staged type of activity (kids gathering at a community center for games and gift distribution). Hence, since we want to foster more of the great interaction we had between locals and our volunteers, we’re aiming for a general preparedness of the community (informing and consulting with community leaders) combined with the surprise factor of not informing the people themselves of Santa’s arrival date/time. We’ll have a planned route through the community and kids will have the opportunity to win super gifts through game activities at the end of the walk once we reach the community center.
Santa Cause invites you to participate in doing good, to become a stakeholder for positive change, for a collaborative endeavor that seeks to move resources to those with little access to it. Doing good can be simple and take on many forms, from corporate support (Thank you Alan & Overy, Central World -CPN- and AAC), designing the logo (thanks Bjoern Gottschall of Schwenktheworld and Alessandro and his students), video production (thanks Emre and Sanju) or poster design (thanks Effi and Arvind) and to generous cash donations (Thanks Siti Survo, Florian Christian, Ben Bartz, Philipp Dickert and many others). So many of you supported and we further like to thank all the community leaders, the British Women’s Club, the staff of P&G and Exxon, iTailor, SIFE, Thammasat, Mahidol and Chulalongkorn University and everyone who volunteered, dropped by with bags of gifts, helped wrapping and spreading the word. Through you Santa Cause was able to reach out to 25 communities in two days reaching around 3,000 children. This year we’re also looking for sponsors so that we are able to invest more of our time as to not only expand our outreach but more importantly to make this experience deeper, more lasting and more effective.
For further feedback and/or inquiries please send us an email to: dogood@bangkokvanguards.com or join the bangkokvanguards action group
At the end of 2011 a severe flood crisis devastated much of Thailand and brought misery to millions of people but it also triggered miracles and laid the foundation for a great story of citizen power, an outstanding example of ordinary people responding to a crisis in an age where creativity and technology empowers us to do good at an unprecedented scale. This story is known as Wipe the Tide a massive out-of-the-box fundraising campaign that propelled us from a polluted intersection in downtown Bangkok to Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. We would like to present its flood report with all the expenses and details of the projects for all our volunteers, donors and supporters. We hope our story will strengthen the endeavor of those who are striving to do good and set an example to those who believe that the individual can’t make a difference.. The story is a testimony that there has never been better times to live to one’s full potential in making a difference. When the flood crisis was unfolding and threatening Bangkok a megacity of 15 million people, the mass exodus was in full swing and finding drinking water became harder by the day. At that time there were only three options left: Leave the city, remain idle, or do something about it. That’s when we and our friends went for option three and gathered at one of Bangkok’s busiest intersections, armed with a nothing-to-lose attitude, 2 buckets, 2 squeegee and cameras and our mission scribbled on our t-shirts: Raising money to help Thailand’s flood victims. Our tactic – Wiping windshields in return for donations which would eventually develop into a full-blown disaster response machinery driven by the people for the people. This was the beginning of Wipe the Tide, a 7 day campaign held between October and December 2011 that wiped away all cultural barriers and inspired hundreds of people from the expat and Thai community to join hands to support this “new approach” of flood response. Now after more than a year following Wipe the Tide we have written up this summary and the the video message below (followed by a nice best of slide show) in dedication to our community and supporters. Hope you’ll enjoy
Interview with Michael from half and half productions on Vimeo. The success of Wipe the Tide was due to various factors, the activity itself which turned everyone into a highly effective changemaker played a major role whilst today’s connectivity and self produced media was crucial in kickstarting a one-of-a-kind mobilization of Bangkokians. They raised 2.2 million Baht in only 7 campaign days and less than a combined 30 hours on the streets which had a tremendous positive psychological impact on the participants. The measurable impact and the energy grew stronger throughout the campaign and created not only one of Bangkok’s most dynamic fundraising campaigns but formed and supercharged an awesome community of aspiring changemakers. The video below shows our talk on Wipe the Tide at the Ignite Thailand symposium. People became curious on how we managed to mobilize so many young and diverse people and kept the momentum growing over the course of several weeks? As mentioned above, the answer is, that Wipe the Tide is based on a simple idea that offers a high participation level and thus a sense of ownership. Each participants impact can easily be measured which creates a stronger identity among supporters who will become the evangelists of the movement. If you generate this level of involvement and deliver the purpose and simplicity of the action, the energy and excitement through great videos then the evangelists will do the rest. Good videos are like the tractor beam of the Death Star, if you drag your audience in you have to not only inform them but deliver a concrete action plan for them to follow up on. The idea of wiping windshields for flood donations wasn’t even ours but our friend Michael Stroemer’s. Hence you don’t have to come up with new ideas, good ideas are all around, you just have to take existing ideas to the next level. As bangkokvanguards we are driven by a value system of human compassion and know how to connect to like-minded people this make events like Wipe the Tide possible. We took the idea, we took the lead to facilitate every event and the responsibility to carry its impact forward. Despite the somewhat organic growth of the movement we as the facilitator saw the need to further plan, manage and guide Wipe the Tide to ensure continuous impact. The social fiber of the people who joined Wipe The Tide make the very definition of a vanguard thus we saw it fit to facilitate the events under bangkokvanguards and to consolidate the compassion to further support Thailand in the future. Below are three of our videos that helped us to increase momentum that being said you should remember that it’s not about having the slickest video, it’s about being ‘real’. The vanguards of windshield fundraising, 1.group: 6 people + 3 camera people. Read More. 50 people with buckets and squeegee joined Wipe the Tide after our first video release providing as with enough footage to create a second video which generated over 4,000 views in less than 12 hours prior to the event. The Wipe the Tide platoon then grew to over 150 volunteers occupying more than ten intersections and delivering ammunition for an awesome third video. WIPE THE TIDE – Bangkokvanguards in Action from bangkokvanguards on Vimeo. At the 4th Wipe over 250 volunteers were occupying many of the Central Bangkok’s main intersections and more and more mainstream media covered the story. In the campaigns that followed our Wipe the Tide crowd would invade other parts of Bangkok such as the Westside Thonburi Wipe or the great Chinatown Wipe. READ MORE. Given the momentum and energy of Wipe the Tide we couldn’t help ourselves but to initiate additional campaigns such as the Add One Flood relief campaign, which supported immediate flood relief missions by having customers adding one item to their shopping basket (based on a list of things flood victims needed the most). After paying, customers could then donate the item at our station at the entrance, which quickly filled up our shopping carts which would then be picked up by a partner NGO, be repacked and delivered to flooded communities. Thus Add One was an effective supply chain leading from a supermarket shelf straight flooded communities READ MORE. At its height we had three campaigns running parallel. Hugs for Thailand was the third campaign that called on the hugger in you and to spread untamed love in support of flood victims. You donate and a hippo, tiger or soft panda will squeeze you. READ MORE
Hugs For Thailand – 2 from Amornthep Sachamuneewongse on Vimeo. It was obvious then that Christmas would turn out different this time and so we did what we do best calling for a large scale Santa operation that saw Santa Clauses and their support teams of over 150 people visit over 20 flood affected slum communities to deliver gifts and positive energy to over 1,000 children and their families. Thus Santa Cause was born and this is our annual vanguards-style celebration of the season of giving in close corporations with community leaders and NGO’s. READ MORE – TO SUPPORT JOIN HEREGift The Tide from Amornthep Sachamuneewongse on Vimeo. While all our volunteers were out and about fundraising like champions we teamed up with other groups who were specialized in research, recon-missions, logistics and relief missions such as BKK Clean up, Operation November Rain among others. We helped deliver supplies into flooded areas and supported the network with roughly 100,000 THB. However since donations usually decrease once the flood recedes our main objective was to retain the funds for flood rehabilitation projects. The magic of Wipe the Tide and the other campaigns however did not pave the way for a seamless implementation of our funds. READ MORE. Setting up flood rehabilitation projects by ourselves proofed much harder than expected. It brought lots of responsibilities in an area where we lacked experience but we recognized our shortcomings and adopted quickly. READ MORE We consulted with bigger organizations and searched tirelessly for individuals and small organizations who knew what they were doing but lacked funding. After months of research, collaboration, countless journeys and meetings all the donations are now supporting essential long term flood relief projects run by a network of inspiring individuals and groups committing themselves to bring Thailand back on its feet. These projects cover a range of measures from flood prevention and flood warning devices in the mountains to organic farming initiatives in flood affected communities, from income generation in flood affected slums to house repair and flood prevention measures in rural areas. READ MORE
Choosing small scale organization over big and famous organizations took time, grew pressure and required commitment but it would not only help those with less exposure and support but create an effective disaster relief network from the people for the people. It’s been an enriching time and we can say that it’s not only about a flood relief network but about a network of friends working for the betterment of Thailand.
Take Kend from Fatshore Co.Ltd for example an engineer who devoted his knowledge, skills and heart to protect mountain villages (the first victims of the flood) against landslides by installing flood warning systems in combination with Mirror Foundation’s aid of diverse flood prevention measures. READ MORE
Or Khun Preeda who devotes his time and energy to help people with disabilities, sets up social businesses and initiative and takes on a million projects whilst being tied to a wheelchair himself. We funded an organic farming initiative spearheaded by Mr.Preeda and his team who work to not only get flood affected farmers back on their feet (130 families at a time) but help make communities more sustainable through the introduction of sustainable farming READ MORE. here and here READ MORE In Ayutthaya we then helped ‘Gen V’ a young, energetic group who just like us were born during the flood crisis. We provided funding for a number of projects covering local volunteer training, research and funded equipment such as boats, engines, furniture for a flood relief center, freshwater supply systems and water filters among others things. READ MORE To show how much bizeps power there is in the vanguards community we helped to fund and repair flood damaged foster homes run by Khun Jintana and the Holt Sahathai Foundation. power und helped funding Khun Jintana Holt Sathahai Foundation
At the outskirts of Bangkok we teamed up with Friends International who are supporting slum communities and street children. The flood had destroyed an alternative income project (a social business selling accessories made from recycled paper) at the Saphan Siri community. Funding was eventually cut, throwing back the community’s progress and causing severe problems. Wipe the Tide helped to revive the project and we connected exchange BBA students to help out with the marketing plan of the business. READ MORE
Please find more details and an overview of flood project funding and expenses HERE:
In the course of all the projects we had brought together an awesome group of people from around the globe who were eager to do some good and to experience Thailand from a different angle. Even though many of us may be living far away from home, surrounding yourself with people who do not only got the brains but also big hearts and dreams makes your life inspiring and enriching. There’s no better social environment than being with these people. It’s hard to find the right words to express our gratitude for their work to affect and support positive changes in Thailand. It’s theier values and attitudes that create the identity of bangkokvanguards COMMUNITY. The best way to express our gratitude to these people is to take bangkokvanguards to next level to support them more effectively. A door to the next level opened up when an email by the U.S. State Department reached us, inviting us to share our experience of Wipe the Tide at the Bangkok Techcamp. Techcamp is part of Civil Society 2.0 a global U.S. initiative announced by Hilary Clinton which sees civil society as one of three pillars of a free nation besides a representative government and a well-functioning market. Civil society is crucial in lifting and supporting nations to reach for higher standards of progress and prosperity and this is the mission of bangkokvanguards - lifting and supporting Thailand on its way forward in a sustainable way. Techcamps aims to achieve this by “creating a self-sustaining movement to connect social good organizations with technology based tools and volunteers to help raise digital literacy and increase their impact in the 21st century”. Our approach is to design projects, campaigns and journeys connected to the causes of civil society and a holistic Thailand experience. We want to connect tourists, locals and companies to be part of tackling problems in Thai society.
At the Techcamp we also discussed the application of technology to causes such as cultural and environmental preservation. READ MORE.
The potential of the synergies between causes, technology and offline action is tremendous and we’re excited to further collaborate and support Techcamp to achieve our shared goal of advancing civil society. After our great Techcamp experience the ripple effects of Wipe the Tide didn’t end there but reached even further thanks to Katie Dowd and Alec Ross from the State Department for suggesting me to the 50th anniversary of the Achievement Summit in Washington D.C. The Achievement summit is a phenomenal 4 day event in which a young international delegation of changemakers and social innovators who were to meet Peace Nobel Price and Pulitzer Price winners, foreign ministers, heads of states, top scientists, military commanders and the who is who of the most successful and most influential people in an awesome symposium of round table discussions and idea exchanges. We are honored to have been part of this experience and would like to express our gratitude to Catherine and Wayne Reynolds who granted Michael the participation of the summit. Read More
Set in Washington’s sacred and historical places the presentations and speeches of the young delegates and the inspiring messages and exchanges with the established shakers and movers of our planet who shared with us their stories of achievements and failures, their struggles and passions, their hopes and visions reminded us of the capacity that we carry in ourselves, a capacity to not only live to our full potential but to inspire and motivate others to help shift humanity onto the right path. Partying with Colin Powell and Aretha Franklin on the last night or sitting across from the head of the human genome project may had a “slight” touch of surrealness but it reaffirmed our belief that hard work pays off and that with a bit of luck anything is possible for us and for you. The days in D.C. had truly surpassed our wildest expectations and fueled our ambition and determination to develop bangkokvanguards into a contributor to this global endeavor of doing good. With the onset of 2013 we’re taking stock and synchronizing all the things that happened since Wipe the Tide and try to balance it with our university studies, our part-time jobs and our strive to establish ourselves as a social enterprise. We know that these kind of networks, the networks for good are the best networks because they’re driven by something higher. Strengthening these networks, creating new friendships and embarking onto new adventures (with or without a fulltime job) makes life this wonderful adventure. For those looking for an adventure or a vent to let off some positive energy, and to carry forward the values of a positive, global culture we’re more than happy to get connected.
For inquiries contact: dogood@bangkokvanguards.com
Many people have asked me whether one celebrates Christmas in Thailand? Well, the Christians do and even though Buddhists have their own celebrations most of them know Santa. Even my 84 year old grandma who lives in the depth of Maeklong’s coconut groves knows Santa that because buying gifts for one another during this festive season has become a global custom and has fueled the economic impact of Christmas and Santa has become its messenger. Christmas has spread across the globe and has taken hold of Bangkok’s mega-malls which herald the start of the Christmas spirit of mass consumption and season’s sales where hundreds of thousands of middle and upper class Thais are all smiles while posing for pictures to the backdrop of monumental Christmas decorations. The question is to what extent does this reflect the true spirit of Christmas? We all enjoy having our Christmas dinners and little gift exchanges and the well-to-do citizens enjoy posing next to Frosty the Snowman in Bangkok’s upscale locations but do we want Christmas to remain on that level? Or do want to we want to go back to the essence of Christmas which also reflects universal human values of love? We say lets bring Christmas to another level!
Some critics claim it’s about spreading Christianity or changing local culture but they’re wrong! We have people of all religions and colors join the Santa flashmob and Santa just like Micky Mouse has become a global icon. I have yet to hear of somebody to convert to Christianity because (s)he encountered Santa. It’s about a great opportunity to celebrate the spirit of togetherness and to bring society truly together. It’s a call to mobilize Bangkok’s community and to show that Santa is not only for the rich kids at Siam Paragon but that every child in every slum deserves his or her Santa moment including the famous HOHOHO, a full-blown reindeer and elves platoon and awesome gifts!
We know how diverse and awesome Bangkokians are, we have experienced it, Buddhists, Sikhs, Muslims, Christians and Seculars, young, old, working, middle or upper class, we all have wiped thousands of wind shields for flood relief and went into dozens of slum communities to play our part in building bridges, to narrow the gap in our society, even if it’s momentarily but it is a signal and we ain’t stop there. This gap is not exclusively reserved for Thailand but a global problem that we see growing with every passing hour. We may donate and care a lot about issues thousands of kilometers away (which is good to do so) but we all too often tend to forget the challenges at home, the struggle of those often living just a few hundred meters from our house doors.
The Santa flashmob wants to bring the focus back to our communities, our neighborhoods and invite people to play a vital role for positive change. How can it be that at one shopping mall thousands of people are happily taking pictures and enjoying the gifts of economic progress in the name of Christmas whilst right next to it along polluted canals and railway tracks there are thousands of children and their families completely ignored and left behind in their struggle?
How did it all get started? It had been over two years when we wandered the squatter communities located beneath and besides the expressways of inner Bangkok. Bangkok’s 2nd stage expressway system seemed to be the sheltering roof, harboring hundreds if not thousands of shacks along and beneath their endless windings. Elevated expressways, blackened and polluted water arteries formerly known as canals, desolate railway tracks stretching across this urban landscape are the common settling point for those at the bottom end of the societal pyramid. These places are none-existent on the city planner’s map but they’re well-existent on the maps we would create in preparation for the Santa Invasion.
We had spent considerable time exploring those areas prior to the floods and were struck by the friendliness of people despite the harsh conditions. Children are cheerful and lively as they can be, they peeked around corners, from behind their elder peers, ran up and down the alley, approaching with varying degrees of dashingness. Their spirit, their eyes and smiles shined through despite being deprived of some of the elemental outfit such as clean clothes not to speak of toys and school supplies. Simply being there and engaging the kids created this ripple effects of positivity and it was something that had to be amplified. From my own experience as a child that could be perfectly done as a Santa with toys and candy in tow but it would take two years, a flood crisis, an awesome volunteer community, 70,000Baht in donations, and Gareth Finch to make this idea become reality.
On December 24, 2011 after our Wipe the Tide campaign rolled across the city and created one of the most dynamic fundraising communities in the history of Bangkok’s disaster relief and everybody was hungry for more.
It was Gareth Finch’s phonecall and his wish to visit an orphanage as Santa Clause to bring back the positive energy in a time of crisis. bangkokvanguards was entangled in a number of campaigns but the idea was too awesome and the perfect operation for our volunteers to let off some positive steam. Hence we plunged into the research of Bangkok’s flood affected slum communities using Google Earth and our local knowledge and networks.
After that David, his “Schwarzer Blitz” (Black flash) and I would spend hundreds of kilometers doing the survey of the researched areas and writing the details such as contact numbers of locals, access points, route descriptions, for future Santa platoon leaders.
Gareth Finch took over the initial mobilization and promoted the event on his pod-cast site “The Random Dreams Podcast“.
The campaign was named Gift the Tide and Gareth had gift collection points in universities and companies set up and created a great gift marking system with Star gifts and the like. Additionally we invested 70,000THB from the Wipe the Tide funds to buy gifts and Santa costumes combined with the privately donated gifts it made an amount of gifts we were actually unable to wrap. As with our Wipe the Tide campaigns Central World was highly supportive in providing the space for our initiative and thus Bangkok’s first real Christmas flashmob was created with many of the Wipe the Tide members joining in as well as new faces.
On Christmas Eve while we were presenting at the Ignite Thailand symposium Gareth took charge of a over 100 volunteer strong Santa flashmob and was getting ready to invade over 10 slum communities in the west of Bangkok covering areas from Taling Chan all the way out to Phuttamonthon. We prepared maps for the team leaders and operations were in full Santa swing. The following day on Christmas day our teams embarked with trains from Hua Lampong to their drop off points along the rail line starting from Bang Khen to Rangsit.
For many of the team members this was the best Christmas they ever had. We witnessed the impact of going into the slums with thousands of gifts to spread the positive energy and take people by surprise brought not only countless smiles but it send a positive signal to the kids, their families and the communities.
As mention this positive message was not only felt by the kids and their families but it had also a tremendous positive impact on the volunteers hence Santa Invasion is here to stay, to make something really special out of the Bangkok’s Christmas. This year (2012) we’re not limiting our operations to flood affected communities but go beyond with the final goal to cover all slums in Bangkok. I know it sounds crazy but I believe it’s possible, with the community we have in Bangkok anything is possible. Hence, we’ll need your support, we’ll be looking for sufficient funding and volunteer power to achieve this goal. If you’re interested in taking part in this campaign, please connect with us on Facebook, spread the word for us and if you know sponsors or slum communities that you want the Santa platoons to visit then send us an email or message us on Facebook. Lets make this the most awesome Christmas this country has ever seen.
Once again bangkokvanguards are on mission with Khun Preeda and his team to do their part to prepare and recover flood affected communities in Chai Nat. A Substantial part of the donation we have raised during Wipe the Tide will be put to good use and we want to share the achievements with our community who helped to raise the money thus on the weekend of 14/15July we’re heading to Chai Nat to help farmers plant flood resistant plants namely 800 bamboo trees which are cultivated with organic methods. This is part of our micro loan based funding to facilitate the necessary trainings, tools and resources to help farmer grow bamboo in order to secure income during the flood and expand the organic farming network.
This project was acknowledge by her royal highness Maha Chakri Sirinthorn and we want to introduce visitors to Thailand and locals alike to experience the beauty and lifestyles of a less known region of Thailand and work hand in hand with Khun Preeda and the locals for a better future.
The event will be held during two days whereas the first day will mainly include a trip to the northern highlights of Chainat and the neighboring province U-Thai Thani followed by setting up our tents (no resort this time) at the agricultural learning center. There we will send a team to the market to buy food and drinks to get the German style Schwenk BBQ ready and our talented guitar players should get their guitars ready and the singers make sure they got a soul voice like Whitney Houston coz if we camp and schwenk we go all in!
bangkokvanguards are Schwenk ambassadors to Thailand what that is check it out. After having become professional tree and rice planters last time we’re now moving to the next level of becoming expert bamboo planters right after our breakfast on the second day.
We’ll be heading back to Bangkok late afternoon and probably arrive there around 6-7p.m. The expenses that have to be covered by the participants are: van trip from Bangkok to Chai Nat and back (160Baht one way trip) and we have to chip in for food and drinks for the BBQ party. The trip within Chainat, tents, lunch on the first day and breakfast on the second are covered. The maximum number of participants we can take on this great excursion is 40 thus if you’re planning to bring some friends pass them this blog entry and reserve in advance since we go according to the first come first book principle. Looking forward to see an awesome bamboo platoon heading to our friends in Chai Nat.
What goes on in your mind if you suddenly see a hyperactive, orange tiger and a big, fat, pink hippo battling it out (within their movement range) with breakdancers on a street corner in Bangkok? Right, you think you’re on an LSD trip but actually you’ve just bumped into our Hugs for Thailand fundraising campaign.
Hugs for Thailand was our second strike after Wipe the Tide following the unprecedented energy of Wipe the Tide that has swept across Bangkok city through November.
Inspired by the Free Hugs campaign we needed to fill the time between the Wipes to satisfy our hunger for fundraising and companionship, something easy to organize to show that we can come up with more ways of doing fundraising, thus we stuffed Sanju, Noor and a bunch of others into animal costumes to bring about the hug relief.
We first started off without any costumes relying solely on a massive charm attack which worked well despite concerns that the rather reserved Asians would refrain from hugging you. But the only ones who rolled out the barbed wire were a few stern-faced foreigners raising their fingers with a determined NO! They may had spent few too many Baht on those famed TukTuk shopping roundtrips and took it as another scam attack!? Anyways, let’s forget about those party poopers and keep in mind that Thais are considered the Danes of Asia, kind, joyful, open minded and seasoned with a great dash of Sanook (fun) hence showing up with the right team, the right message and spreading your arms for a genuine hug sanookwill be ensured and contributions are being made.
Thus we didn’t bother stopping, we hugged on, changing our boring daily wardrobe to something wild, something straight out of the jungle book, thus we had to unleash tigers, hippos, the cuddly, crazy wildlife into the streets to spread love and fun and what love and fun we spread especially with those kids.
The 30+ degrees (even in the evening) turned those costumes into a steam saunas but our panda platoon hugged on regardless, joined breakdance sessions, crashed a party of football fans, every meter of the walk was made for some odd and fun scenes and burst with positive energy and interaction between strangers ending up in nearly 100,000THB raised.
The usual barriers between us and them were torn down by this energy and the realization that we should stand in for one another in difficult times. Whether we hug one another, speak words of encouragement, walk the streets with signs and donation boxes, wipe windshields or convince people in supermarkets to add an item to their shopping basket, for as long as we are able to connect those who turn ideas into action and those who give when an opportunity arises, then there is hope.
One project that was created by the people for the people is Kaopunsuk a project spearheaded by Khun Preeda and this team that regardless of future catastrophes sets out to alleviate the plight of flood affected farmers and puts them on a sustainable pathway through organic farming. The initiative is one of many projects funded through the Wipe the Tide campaign. 
Their farsighted approach provides the tools, consultation, marketing and training to help farmers grow and sell organic rice and flood resistant plants. Given a world in which large corporations gain more and more control over our food whilst operating with GMO (genetically modified organism), chemicals and pesticides the story of Kaopunsuk is all the more important to be shared. As consumers we need to be aware of the origins of our food, how it is produced since it affects our health, the well-being of those at the bottom of production line and the well-being of our planet at large. Through our consumption we are able to strengthen brands whose purpose is to counter our local and global problems and Kaopunsuk is one of these emerging purpose driven brands that do just that. 
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