Reports on Education and Public Health and Safety In Fiji

Project Report | Jul 14, 2025
Continuing our work on land and in water

By Fiji team | Fiji project team

As we move into the second half of 2025, we're proud to reflect on the progress made over the past few months. Thanks to your continued support, our teams have been working across multiple areas—from health and education to environmental conservation—creating impact for local communities and ecosystems alike.

Here are some of our highlights from so far this year:

Our Health Team cotiues to deliver workshops and infomation to address the health needs of the community, theis is planned in collaboration with the community nurse.

Our Education Team hosts sessions and runs workshops for mothers and children focused on early childhood development. These sessions provide valuable strategies and insights to support children's growth and learning through play and connection.

Our Community Team—alongside interns, volunteers, and local scholars—successfully built the foundation for a new rainwater harvesting system at Nataleira Village Community Hall. This system will increase access to clean drinking water for the entire village, supporting health and resilience.

In collaboration with local partners, we have coninued to establish and work with the community to monitor recycling points across Dawasamu District. These collection sites make it easier for communities to separate waste and transport recyclables to the center in Suva, reducing pollution and promoting sustainable habits.

Our marine volunteers have been actively surveying coral reefs to monitor coral structures, benthic life, invertebrates, and fish populations. These surveys are critical for assessing reef health and identifying any emerging threats, helping to protect these ecosystems for future generations.

During beach clean-ups, our teams record every item of litter collected. This detailed data helps identify pollution trends and sources of marine debris, informing strategies to reduce waste and safeguard ocean health.

Through our intertidal surveys, we study the unique species that inhabit this dynamic zone. Monitoring their presence helps us track changes in biodiversity and better understand the balance of marine ecosystems.

We continue to observe the resident spinner dolphin pod at Moon Reef. By tracking their behaviors and patterns, our research contributes to global marine mammal conservation efforts and provides insights into the overall health of the marine environment.

Education and awareness remain at the heart of everything we do—supporting healthier communities and a more sustainable future. Your generosity allows us to develop resources and programs that benefit children, adults, and the environment alike.

We’re excited about what’s ahead in the rest of 2025 as we build on this momentum and expand our impact. Thank you for being an essential part of this journey. Your support is truly making a difference.

Stay tuned for more updates in our next report!

Permalink

Dec 6, 2024
Range of highlights from Fiji

By Fiji team | Project team

Well here we are, almost the end of another year! There's been a lot happening on our project in the last few months and we'd like to share some of our highlights.

First Aid sessions: The Health Team delivered a workshop to local primary school students on wound care, first aid, and how to handle choking in children & adults developing vital skills and increasing confidence in these individuals.

Pesticide education: Our intern is continuing work on research and education around pesticides with an emphasis on educationg communities on the issues of using pesticides.

Workshops for Mothers: Our Education team conducted their presentation and workshop on Early Childhood Development to the mothers and children village of Natadradave.

Marine Conservation Club: Our Education and Marine volunteers and interns joined forces to teach the Marine Conservation Club at Navunisea District School. We facilitated sessions where students learned about phytoplankton and zooplankton through educational videos, a quiz, and a coloring activity!

Rainwater harvesting: Our Community Team interns, volunteers, and community scholars worked hard building the base of a rain water harvesting system for Nataleira Village Community Hall! This rain water collection system will provide the people of Nataleira with greater access to clean drinking water!

Recycling points: Over time, GVI has worked with local teams to set up 42 recycling points in Dawasamu district, helping villages to sort their trash and take it to the recycling center in Suva.

Reef Surveys :We assess the health of coral reefs by surveying coral structures, benthic life, invertebrates, and fish species. Healthy reefs are vital as they provide habitat for marine life and protect coastal areas from erosion. Monitoring these categories helps us track changes and identify any threats to the reef’s ecosystem.

Beach Litter Surveys: While cleaning the beach, we meticulously record the types of litter we find. This helps us understand pollution patterns, identify the sources of marine debris, and work towards reducing the waste that harms marine life. Every piece of data collected informs strategies to protect our oceans.

Intertidal Surveys: The intertidal zone is teeming with life, and through our surveys, we identify the unique species that thrive in this challenging environment. These creatures are crucial for the balance of marine ecosystems, and our research helps track their populations and the health of this important zone.

Dolphin Surveys: We observe the resident spinner dolphin pod at Moon Reef to better understand their behavior and patterns. Dolphins are indicators of marine health, and by studying them, we contribute to global efforts in marine mammal conservation.

Education and awareness are fundamental to improving health outcomes for individuals, families, and communities. Your generous support empowers us to develop vital resources that enhance health and safety in the community, benefiting both children and adults as well as the environment.

We are looking forward to 2025 when we will continue and expand our work.

We are excited to share more updates in our next report and thank you for your continued commitment to our mission. Your support is truly making a difference.

Permalink

Jul 24, 2024
A broad approach to educational needs

By Fiji team | Fiji project team

Education and understanding are key to improving health outcomes for individuals, families, and communities. We deeply appreciate your support for this project, which allows us to create crucial resources for enhancing health and safety in the community, supporting both child and adult learning.

Your support for our recent fundraising activities is greatly appreciated. The funds raised will significantly impact our project work. Specifically, they will be used to improve storage for educational supplies, purchase new mooring buoys for the marine conservation team, provide books for Navunisea District School (NDS), and implement more recycling and waste management points in other districts.

We have a strong collaboration with a local school, where we run a weekly health club. By working closely with teachers, we ensure impactful learning experiences. Our interactive and dynamic approaches, including songs, rhymes, craft activities, and poster-making, effectively engage students and make learning memorable. We are currently focussing on phonics education. This not only means bringing phonics approaches to the learners but also teaching phonics education strategies to the learning facitlitators.

Identifying relevant health topics is crucial to our mission. Our partnership with the District nurse is invaluable in this regard. Together, we identify prevalent health issues and trends within the district, allowing us to focus on specific areas, such as hygiene practices.

Recently we have begun focussing on education realted to use of pesticides. Particularly in agriculture it is important that people understand the risks associated with use of pesticides and how to manage them safely. We are surveying to find where the needs are as we address this issue, we will update in our next report.

Our efforts extend beyond school classrooms to include workshops for adults. This year, we have conducted over 100 workshops covering pressing health needs and broader health topics. Essential resources such as handouts, brochures, and posters are provided to enhance learning and serve as valuable references.

Your support ensures that our workshops and materials are accessible, engaging, and informative. We strive to make the learning experience as interesting and effective as possible, thereby enhancing health education within the community. Your contributions are instrumental in fostering a health-conscious environment, and we are grateful for your ongoing support. Together, we are making a significant impact on health education and safety awareness.

We look forward to sharing our progress in the next report. Thank you for your continued support.

Permalink