Role Foundation

We had a very quiet ceremony last Friday 20th April, 2008. The land is positioned on the east south east end of the Bukit. The Bukit is the upturn diamond on the bottom of the Bali Map: a massive hill of limestone, which is raised pre-historic coral reef, with some of the best surf in the world. It can be dusty in the long dry season. In years gone by it was the hunting ground of the Sultans of Bali.
In a little patch of rainforest, the cleansing ceremony for the R.O.L.E. Foundation’s Eco Learning Center began at 7 am.
The first Temple on a building site is usually a temporary temple. Thou it is still a work of time and art, This enables us to start work on the 15,500 sq meters of land, Role has leased to build the Eco Learning Center. The Hindu Priest chanted long and hard, also dishing out plenty of holy water and good luck wishes.
By 9am, the learning center and us were all blessed and cleansed.
So now we can start work on the property. Role is committed to helping eliminate poverty and reviving the health of the environment.
The Eco Learning Center has 29 subjects across its 3 vocational skills programs; giving education and skills to the poor and needy.
Best wishes…………………….Mike O’Leary (Founder)

The Program
For this program R.O.L.E. has a 25 year lease over a property at Sawangan, Nusa Dua, Bali Island. The property is 15,500 square meters in area and is positioned on a hillside overlooking Nusa Dua and the Indian Ocean, approximately 20 minutes from Bali’s International Airport. This location is central to the mangroves and harbour; to the tourism industry of Nusa Dua with its 5 star Hotels; to the seaweed farms; to the local fisheries; and to local agriculture of the Bukit, southern Bali.
On this property, as well as a teaching facility, R.O.L.E. will build 20 Teaching, R&D, Display and Demonstration Stations
The Eco-Learning Center Program has five skills areas which R.O.L.E. is teaching eco-friendly jobs and businesses.

These five areas in turn are broken up into 20 Teaching, R&D, Display and Demonstration Stations. In most cases these stations double up as Research and Development centers. These Stations may grow, divide or change over time. Depending on the success of the Jobs and Businesses developed.

On the 14th April, 2008, R.O.L.E. Foundation has commenced a new term at its teaching faculty, at Nusa Dua. There are three grades in the Vocational Skills Education Program. The primary aim of this program is to locate and train up illiterate and needy women to a skills level where they are employable, able to go on to a higher education to become a professional, or open a business of their own, or a partnership or with a community group.
Following evaluation, the students were broken into three grades, i.e. illiterate, intermediate and vocational skills. The Illiterate and Vocationals skills grades offers a 3 month course, and the intermediate a one-month course. The students will be evaluated at the end of each period and will either repeat the course as many times as necessary to gain the needed skill level to advance or move on to the next course.

There are up to three teachers helping with each class. It is expected the illiterate students will take between six to twelve months to advance to the intermediate class and the intermediate students will take three to six months to advance to the three-month vocational course.
The women seem so happy to have this opportunity.

Abalone Farming has begun at Geger Beach Nusa Dua Bali Island. As part of R.O.L.E. Foundation’s Marine Revival and Ocean Resources Management Program, Abalone Farming was commenced in co-operation with the Geger Beach Seaweed Growers Association. Together we have built a 4 chamber cage, for the Abalone growth cycle and covered it with two types of mesh. So far we have 20 Abalone brood stocks, growing in baskets in the lagoon, which will soon be transferred to the first chamber of the prepared cage.Role Foundation’s Marine Biologist has identified Abalone Farming as an Eco-friendly way to create jobs and develop business for fishermen no longer able to gain a reasonable income from their existing endeavors.
The fishermen are very happy with the progress so far.

ROLE believes that the health of the Marine Environment and the health of Coastal Communities are inextricably linked.

Over fishing, coastal beachfront development, ever increasing waste discharge and upstream pollutants have placed marine resources, including tropical coral reefs and lagoons, and local fisheries in sharp environmental decline. The income derived, the food sourced and the protein and nutrition attained from these recourses by most coastal communities have dried up or become insufficient.