Salem International
Encyclopedia
Salem is an international humanitarian
and environmental
organisation actively working for peace throughout the world. Originally founded in 1957 by Gottfried Müller and a circle of friends in Stuttgart
, Germany
, to provide shelter for the homeless, Salem can now be found in many different countries, on 5 continents.
Salem is a non-governmental organisation (NGO) whose belief is based on the Bible
and human rights
.
captivity.
He started by giving away all of his money to two disabled Jewish women. Soon with the help of some friends he established a home for homeless people and ex-convicts in Stadtsteinach
(?) and quickly more of these Salem homes were built in several German cities.
After several years of this social work it turned out, however, that the help for these people had mostly started off too late and that many could not permanently be rehabilitated to home life having been uprooted many times.
He found the solution during conversations with the people he has cared for. Many of them reported that they had grown up in orphanages.
He gathered together educationalists and co-workers to realize with him a new kind of education closer to 'families' and created the Salem children's and youth welfare organization.
In all Salem institutions children from disadvantaged family backgrounds were accommodated to give them a lasting home. Successively, the Salem children's and youth villages in Stadtsteinach/Northern Bavaria
, Höchheim
/Northern Bavaria and Kovahl/Northern Germany were built.
The model character of these villages was the reason for building further Salem institutions in the USA, Israel
, Uganda
, Russia
and Ecuador
.
, holistic medicine
, animal and environmental protection, organic agriculture
, re-afforestation projects and the Salem institute for the investigation of alternatives to animal experiments
.
Meanwhile Salem has grown into an international welfare organization offering a home for many discriminated children and juveniles.
, being supported by Salem, provides medical treatment freely or at a very low cost to approximately 42,000 people of the area.
and Jesus
’ Sermon on the Mount
from the Bible. The Christian faith is in the same way part of education as knowledge from pedagogics, psychology and sociology as well. Salem provides professional and academic apprenticeships, as well as continuing education, in different areas. For example, the apprenticeship workshop in Uganda and the school for children with behavioural disorder in New England
, USA.
.
Salem provides biofeedback
training in the form of individual sessions and children's summer camps. It also offers practice-oriented seminars about Neurofeedback
/ EEG-biofeedback with internationally renowned experts and clinicians.
http://www.eeg-neurofeedback.de (Web site only in German)
and Agroforestry
stand in the foreground. There are gardens which grow many herbs, fields to grow crops and vegetarian whole-grain diet based kitchens in these villages.
Humanitarianism
In its most general form, humanitarianism is an ethic of kindness, benevolence and sympathy extended universally and impartially to all human beings. Humanitarianism has been an evolving concept historically but universality is a common element in its evolution...
and environmental
Environmentalism
Environmentalism is a broad philosophy, ideology and social movement regarding concerns for environmental conservation and improvement of the health of the environment, particularly as the measure for this health seeks to incorporate the concerns of non-human elements...
organisation actively working for peace throughout the world. Originally founded in 1957 by Gottfried Müller and a circle of friends in Stuttgart
Stuttgart
Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, to provide shelter for the homeless, Salem can now be found in many different countries, on 5 continents.
Salem is a non-governmental organisation (NGO) whose belief is based on the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
and human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
.
Beginnings
Gottfried Müller founded the Brotherhood Salem in 1957 in Stuttgart, Germany and devoted his life to people, hence fulfilling a promise he made to himself in a death cell during World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
captivity.
He started by giving away all of his money to two disabled Jewish women. Soon with the help of some friends he established a home for homeless people and ex-convicts in Stadtsteinach
Stadtsteinach
Stadtsteinach is a town in the district of Kulmbach, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated in the Frankenwald, 8 km northeast of Kulmbach.It is known for its proximity to mountains, fields and nature reserves.-City arrangement:...
(?) and quickly more of these Salem homes were built in several German cities.
After several years of this social work it turned out, however, that the help for these people had mostly started off too late and that many could not permanently be rehabilitated to home life having been uprooted many times.
He found the solution during conversations with the people he has cared for. Many of them reported that they had grown up in orphanages.
Salem children's and youth villages
He went to the core of the issue, the cause of uprooting - the children being from disadvantaged family backgrounds. Gottfried Müller said,"We must find a way to create a better future for the 'home' children, to educate them to be members or even representatives of a valuable community."
He gathered together educationalists and co-workers to realize with him a new kind of education closer to 'families' and created the Salem children's and youth welfare organization.
In all Salem institutions children from disadvantaged family backgrounds were accommodated to give them a lasting home. Successively, the Salem children's and youth villages in Stadtsteinach/Northern Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
, Höchheim
Höchheim
Höchheim is a municipality in the district of Rhön-Grabfeld in Bavaria in Germany. Höchheim consists of the following villages: Gollmuthhausen, Höchheim, Irmelshausen, Rothausen....
/Northern Bavaria and Kovahl/Northern Germany were built.
The model character of these villages was the reason for building further Salem institutions in the USA, Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, Uganda
Uganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
.
Health and the protection of nature and environment
What followed was the engagement of medical welfare work, vegetarian nutritionVegetarian nutrition
Vegetarian nutrition is the set of health-related challenges and advantages of vegetarian diets.Well-planned vegetarian and vegan diets are nutritionally adequate and are appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, including during pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, and adolescence...
, holistic medicine
Holistic health
Holistic health is a concept in medical practice upholding that all aspects of people's needs, psychological, physical and social should be taken into account and seen as a whole. As defined above, the holistic view on treatment is widely accepted in medicine...
, animal and environmental protection, organic agriculture
Organic farming
Organic farming is the form of agriculture that relies on techniques such as crop rotation, green manure, compost and biological pest control to maintain soil productivity and control pests on a farm...
, re-afforestation projects and the Salem institute for the investigation of alternatives to animal experiments
Animal testing
Animal testing, also known as animal experimentation, animal research, and in vivo testing, is the use of non-human animals in experiments. Worldwide it is estimated that the number of vertebrate animals—from zebrafish to non-human primates—ranges from the tens of millions to more than 100 million...
.
Meanwhile Salem has grown into an international welfare organization offering a home for many discriminated children and juveniles.
Salem children's and youth villages
The children in these villages and homes live together in extended families, about 6 to 8 children with adults. Each family is led by a couple of parents or an experienced mother with an educational professional training. Some villages offer residential homes for elderly people, too.Public health services
In many projects the social commitment goes beyond the children's village. For example, in the Salem village in Uganda, there is a fully equipped hospital with a laboratory and an operating theatre. It provides medical care to an area of around 45,000 inhabitants. Furthermore, there is a training facility of health advisors and traditional midwives. The clinic in TogoTogo
Togo, officially the Togolese Republic , is a country in West Africa bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, on which the capital Lomé is located. Togo covers an area of approximately with a population of approximately...
, being supported by Salem, provides medical treatment freely or at a very low cost to approximately 42,000 people of the area.
Education
The foundations of the education are the Ten CommandmentsTen Commandments
The Ten Commandments, also known as the Decalogue , are a set of biblical principles relating to ethics and worship, which play a fundamental role in Judaism and most forms of Christianity. They include instructions to worship only God and to keep the Sabbath, and prohibitions against idolatry,...
and Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
’ Sermon on the Mount
Sermon on the Mount
The Sermon on the Mount is a collection of sayings and teachings of Jesus, which emphasizes his moral teaching found in the Gospel of Matthew...
from the Bible. The Christian faith is in the same way part of education as knowledge from pedagogics, psychology and sociology as well. Salem provides professional and academic apprenticeships, as well as continuing education, in different areas. For example, the apprenticeship workshop in Uganda and the school for children with behavioural disorder in New England
New England
New England is a region in the northeastern corner of the United States consisting of the six states of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut...
, USA.
Nature
A healthy interaction with nature is the basis of Salem's work. The activities range from animal protection and environmental education in Germany to reafforestation programmes in AfricaAfrica
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
.
Neurofeedback
As an alternative Training Centre for ADD/ADHDAttention-deficit hyperactivity disorder
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is a developmental disorder. It is primarily characterized by "the co-existence of attentional problems and hyperactivity, with each behavior occurring infrequently alone" and symptoms starting before seven years of age.ADHD is the most commonly studied and...
Salem provides biofeedback
Biofeedback
Biofeedback is the process of becoming aware of various physiological functions using instruments that provide information on the activity of those same systems, with a goal of being able to manipulate them at will...
training in the form of individual sessions and children's summer camps. It also offers practice-oriented seminars about Neurofeedback
Neurofeedback
Neurofeedback , also called neurotherapy, neurobiofeedback or EEG biofeedback is a type of biofeedback that uses realtime displays of electroencephalography or functional magnetic resonance imaging to illustrate brain activity, often with a goal of controlling central nervous system activity...
/ EEG-biofeedback with internationally renowned experts and clinicians.
http://www.eeg-neurofeedback.de (Web site only in German)
Organic Farming
Organic agriculture and gardens belong to most of the children's villages. In Germany these are farmed in accordance with the national guidelines for organic agriculture. In tropical countries other methods such as PermaculturePermaculture
Permaculture is an approach to designing human settlements and agricultural systems that is modeled on the relationships found in nature. It is based on the ecology of how things interrelate rather than on the strictly biological concerns that form the foundation of modern agriculture...
and Agroforestry
Agroforestry
Agroforestry is an integrated approach of using the interactive benefits from combining trees and shrubs with crops and/or livestock.It combines agricultural and forestry technologies to create more diverse, productive, profitable, healthy and sustainable land-use systems.-Definitions:According to...
stand in the foreground. There are gardens which grow many herbs, fields to grow crops and vegetarian whole-grain diet based kitchens in these villages.