200-250 children
1 center
10 acres of garbage

      Every day, hundreds of people seek a mere pittance among the garbage of Manila’s main garbage dump.
       A virtual gigantic mountain comprised of tons upon tons of smouldering refuse, it has well earned its name, “Smokey Mountain”. A constant flow of trucks comes to dump waste of every variety there: commercial refuse from businesses, household refuse and even medical refuse from hospitals.

       At this place, which has been forgotten by all and that doesn’t even officially exist, hundreds of families have come to settle, live and work.

       The first victims of this situation are the children. Mixed among the adults, these child scavengers know only the spectacle of the dump site. They work, eat, sleep and bathe in the middle of this massive garbage dump. Some of them have likely never known another life outside of this dumpsite where men and women fight over a morsel of plastic or metal to recycle.

       Answering to the call of the families living in neighbouring shantytowns, a project was launched at the end of 2003 in order to respond to the children’s most dire needs. The installation of a first, then a second center, was launched in order to bring to these children a basic level of care, food and schooling according to their own, often very weak, individual levels.

       These two centers, built directly on the dump site, receive nearly 180 children on a daily basis. The youngest of the children are not even 3 years old. Every day, each child spends one half-day completing educational activities according to their level. They also profit from a complete and balanced meal. Finally, an individual medical check-up is provide; the care and the necessary medical follow-up are charged to the foundation.