• Sharing of Gerlita Maquirang Condino, A Veteran CLCP and SALT Practitioner

It has been a long while since I did any activity with the Pinoy Competence, much more with anybody from the Constellation. That email inviting a facilitator from Asia came in as a surprise as well as invigorating as drops of rain in a parched field on a summer day!

One email, two preparatory meetings, and now we are into the second day of the third team in this 3 Day…

As we focus on SALT and gain insights in ourselves and those with whom we work, we also bring to it a variety of experiences and knowledge that we have accumulated. These additions need to be pondered over specially to see whether there is harmony between SALT and additional learnings, or some contradictions take place. While inadvertent contradictions present a challenge to all SALT champions, the harmony elements too need to be acknowledged, and not…

I was so happy and proud to be assigned to facilitate virtual SALT Training for our dear Beyond Social Service Singapore.  The training was conducted for 9 days and split into 3 days per week starting from 17 May until  2 June 2021. For me, it means a lot particularly the side effect of furnishing my English.  I have no doubt to work with any SALT facilitators all around the world since we can easily be connected since we believe in humanity and SALT.  But what? I've got a lot of learning,…

In Jan-Feb'21- Ramaiah International Centre for Public Health Innovations (RICPHI) evaluation for our project was out and Constellation team was planning a webinar on the project. The HealthRise Transition grant funded by Medtronic Foundation and implemented jointly by MAMTA- Health Institute for Mother and Child, Catholic Health Association of India (CHAI), in which the Constellation, worked toward reducing premature mortality associated with NCDs through SALT and Community…

I am very upset that I am writing this as I have suffered a major loss with passing away of Dr Jana, one of my mentors.

When at UNAIDS, I had exchanged emails with him. I left UNAIDS. First of my assignments happen to be the IDRC project on documentation and advocacy by sex workers with Dr Veronica Magar. This 2 year project was with DMSC and WNU when I  got to collaborate with DMSC team of Paramita, Santanu, Mitra di, Samaita and others. I went on to…

Coming from a country where English language is not the mother tongue of the vast majority of its population, and where even the national language is not commonly understood in rural areas and small town, and especially by women, introducing SALT has been a challenge.  How to convey the meaning by each letter of SALT? This initial hurdle was soon overcome, and relevant words were found for each SALT letter.  However, the local acronym emerging from the translations was not used, as it…

How is one to introduce herself/himself to a marginalized community, after having been introduced to SALT and advised to take the SALT approach. After initial greetings, and thanking the community members for being there, is the person to say: I am going to use the SALT approach with you…  This will help you understand yourself.

 An informal discussion with a group of community based workers led to a discussion on how they introduced themselves on their…

This is not a long clip: here is the full transcript.

Love, care, comfort and respect.

Once you do that for elderly people,

You live for longer and longer and longer.

From the moment that I heard Cossy say these words on a hot, sunny afternoon outside her house, I knew that she was…