Aquaponics ministry assists orphans, trafficked children in Thailand

Aquaponics – a water-based food production system — is opening big doors for ministry by the CMF team in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Missionary Preston Coursey works full-time on the team’s various aquaponics projects. He maintains their own large-scale aquaponics site and is branching out into working with homes for orphans, a Buddhist government-run high school, and most recently with a home for teen girls who are pregnant or have babies as a result of sex trafficking or abusive home situations.

“Child trafficking is rampant in this area of the world and a lot of times children are not kidnapped into the trafficking system, but are sold into the system by aunties in the villages to ‘business’ men or women who claim they can help children get better jobs in the city to provide money for the family,” explained Preston. “Quite a few children’s homes are actually safe houses — places for children to stay who have been rescued from abusive homes or out of trafficking.”

Other children’s homes exist solely to take care of children with HIV or AIDS, and some are truly orphanages, taking care of children who no longer have either parent or were abandoned. Many of these homes are interested in aquaponics and Preston conducted training seminars for a dozen more in the month of April alone.

“Every children’s home is interested in aquaponics for different reasons,” explains Preston. “Some want to be able to grow their own food, some want to have fish to eat. Some are interested in selling vegetables or fish, while others want to have an aquaponics study unit so the kids can learn marketable skills.”

The young women at the home for abused girls will be very involved with their aquaponics project, according to Preston.

“The girls have already attended the training and went shopping for the required supplies for the unit,” he said. “They will actually be building the unit themselves with supervision from me and New, a Thai co-worker. They will touch and experience every part of the system so they can fix something when it breaks. One young woman, who has a special interest in gardening, will serve as the leader of the project.”

The work with the Buddhist high school came about when a Thai professor, Nat, saw a video of aquaponics online and contacted the team. Preston is working with the leadership of the school to develop and build an aquaponics unit to use and teach the students.

“This school is one of the biggest public schools in Chiang Mai,” said Preston. “All government-run public schools are Buddhist, and hold religious events. Through my work there I have been able to share my faith while explaining why we are here in Thailand and why we are doing aquaponics.”