Oxfam: Beautiful Rice

Oxfam has a Beautiful Rice initiative to help rice farmers in Liberia to feed their families.

Rice has changed everything for Susana and her family - that's why she calls it "beautiful". You can watch Susana’s story here. Over the next year, Oxfam will be working with even more people in Liberia like Susana.

Oxfam urgently needs funds to open up their life-changing swamp farming project to 700 of Liberia's poorest families. 

As well as helping them to grow enough rice to beat hunger, your support will help these farmers to grow extra to sell, too. And that means 5,000 local people will be able to buy food at an affordable price. Watch Susana's story to see what a difference you can make.

Donate online to this cause:

£25 can buy enough seeds to help five families boost their rice harvests. New rice seeds provided by Oxfam mean that farmers like Beatrice Quayee can grow more rice. Thanks to the new seeds, she has doubled her family's rice harvest. A gift from you will help other determined, hard-working people to do the same.

£35 can train five farmers to grow enough rice to feed their families. With your help, we will train farmers like Garrison Seoh in new farming techniques, water management and pest control. Your generosity means people like Garrison will be able to feed their families long-term and earn a better income to pay for school fees and other essentials.

£113 could irrigate a swamp farm so rice crops thrive in all conditions. Unpredictable weather makes it difficult to grow rice in Liberia. Before Oxfam helped communities here to set up swamp farms, rice plants used to burn in the sun. Your donation will provide canals and dams to irrigate nearly an acre of land - helping families to control water and protect the crops growing on their farms.

Blessings!

Ronell x

“Rice feeds the body, books feed the mind, beauty feeds the soul” {Imelda Marcos}

ActionAid: Ready for Anything appeal

Today’s post is about ActionAid, a charity that is aiming for a world without poverty, by working with local people to fight hunger, seek justice for women and education for children, and cope with emergencies. You can find out more about what ActionAid does here.

Wherever there is poverty and injustice, in over 40 countries in Africa, Asia and the Americas, ActionAid is working to help people free themselves from poverty. Whether they are building a well, hiring a teacher, or lobbying a government, Action Aid makes sure that every pound they spend goes as far as possible. You can read more about the specific details of where ActionAid works and how it spends the money raised on their site.

Over 300 million people are affected by disasters every year. The poorest and most vulnerable people are the hardest hit. Lives are at risk, communities are wiped out and families lose everything. Now there is also an opportunity for you to double your donation! From TODAY until 3 May, the UK Govt will match donations to ActionAid pound by pound as part of our Ready for Anything appeal. The extra money will go towards our emergency work - helping the world’s poorest people to survive disasters.

Together we can ensure the world’s poorest people are Ready for Anything. Donate now and help us to stop disasters becoming tragedies.

Donate now! Visit www.actionaid.org.uk/rfa or text ‘DOUB13 £10’ to 70070 to give £10. Double the difference you can make at no extra cost to yourself!

Blessings!

Ronell x

“Give generously to the poor, not grudgingly, for the LORD your God will bless you in everything you do.” {Deuteronomy 15:10}

Oxfam: Volunteer, Donate or Visit the Online Gift Shop

50 % of the World Population lives on less than $2.50 a day… that is an alarming statistic. That is just more than £1.50 at the current exchange rate. Can you imagine living on less than £1.50 a day?? No, I can’t either! That is £10.50 per week, £42 per month or £547.50 per year! In addition to this, Statistics Brain also cites that 22,000 children die every day due to poverty…

Today’s post is about Oxfam, a charity that aims to change all of that. When you hear Oxfam, what springs to mind? Charity shops and second-hand clothes? Africa? Think bigger. Much bigger. Last year, Oxfam’s emergency and development work reached a staggering 15 million people in 55 countries! Thanks to their amazing supporters.

With 70 years experience in 94 countries, Oxfam understands what people need to tackle poverty head on - seeds, tools, business training - whatever it takes. Last year, they ran 47 emergency responses in 31 countries, providing vital support in desperate conditions, from clean water top life-saving lessons in public hygiene.

The effects of Oxfam’s support and investment? More kids in school. Better health care for mums and babies. More and better aid. With your help, they can campaign to tackle the root causes of poverty!

Here are some key statistics that help to show the difference that Oxkam is making, include:

·      2 million
people trained in
women's rights

·      780,000
people helped to
grow more food

·      5,700,000
people given access
to clean water

Last year, with help from people just like you, Oxfam transformed the lives of 
15 million people worldwide.

For every £1 you give to Oxfam, 84p goes directly to emergency, development and campaigning work 9p is spent on support costs 7p is invested to generate future revenue.

So, how can you help? Volunteer your time, donate items to Oxfam Charity Shops, donate online, or visit their online gift shop.

Be a part of the solution to end poverty!

Blessings!

Ronell x

“The world is very different now. For man holds in his mortal hands the power to abolish all forms of human poverty, and all forms of human life.” {John F. Kennedy}

The Literacy Site: Free Clicks to Promote Literacy for Children in Need!

Today's post also links back to my post from on Thursday about supporting underprivileged girls' futures ( http://365days2changetheworld.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/plan-ukorg-international-day-of-girl.html?m=1 ), this time focusing on helping to promote higher levels of literacy for children in need.
This is another site run by The GreaterGood Network. It is pretty much the same principle as The Hunger Site, The Breast Cancer Site, The Animal Rescue Site and The Child Health Site free clicks, except that it supports charities that provide free books and promote literacy for children in need. The Literacy Site is a charitable site that sells a whole host of items that donate to supporting these charities. It also has a lot of excellent information on different causes that need supporting and how we can help.
In 2011 alone, The Literacy Site funded 389,872 books for children in need directly through the 'free clicks' initiative. You can help with this for free too! This has got to be one of my favourite features of the site (which I use every day that I log onto the internet using my laptop): using the 'daily free clicks' to donate. Basically, you visit http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=6&link=ctg_lit_home_from_chs_home_sitenav
and click on the 'Click Here to Give - it's FREE' button, which generates money for charity, paid for by site sponsors. When you click, these companies and groups actually pay for your click! That's 365 free chances each year to help! The Child Health site gives 100% of sponsor advertising fees to their charitable partners- so all of the money generated by your daily clicks will actually go to helping to provide books for children in need!
I have added a bookmark called 'click' to my bookmark bar at the top of my web browser to help me remember. Other suggestions would be to set The Child Health Site (http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=6&link=ctg_lit_home_from_chs_home_sitenav
) as your home page, or to sign up for a free click reminder email (under the big 'Click Here to Give - it's FREE' button). You control how often you get a reminder! Bonus: if you are a new registrant to the GreaterGood Network (owners and operators of The Literacy Site), they will make an extra donation to the cause when you sign up.
The Literacy Site works in conjunction with many charitable partners. One of these is First Book (http://www.firstbook.org/). They aim to give new books to children in need. They are determined to see that all children, regardless of their economic conditions, can achieve more in school and in life through access to an ongoing supply of new books. With the help of partners (such as The Literacy Site), volunteers and donations, First Book have provided more than 90 million new books to schools and programs serving children in need. Higher levels of literacy can help to break the poverty cycle that so many people are trapped in! You can help!
Thank you click sponsors!
Blessings!
Ronell x
"A wise man is full of strength, and a man of knowledge enhances his might" {Proverbs 24v5}
"Knowledge is power" {Francis Bacon}

The Child Health Site: Free Clicks to Provide Medical Care for Children in Need!

Tying into my post from yesterday about supporting underprivileged girls’ futures (http://365days2changetheworld.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/plan-ukorg-international-day-of-girl.html),  today’s post is about helping to provide free medical care for children in need by visiting The Child Health Site, which is another site run by The GreaterGood Network. It is pretty much the same principle as The Hunger Site, The Breast Cancer Site and The Animal Rescue Site free clicks, except that it supports charities that provide free medical care for children in need.

The Child Health Site is a charitable site that sells a whole host of items that donate to supporting these charities. It also has a lot of excellent information on different causes that need supporting and how we can help.

Over 200,000 children die every week from preventable causes! Many millions suffer from preventable, curable diseases such as blindness and malnutrition. Since its launch in 2002, The Child Health Site has supported and helped hundreds of thousands of children directly through the ‘free clicks’ initiative. You can help with this for free too! This has got to be one of my favourite features of the site (which I use every day that I log onto the internet using my laptop): using the ‘daily free clicks’ to donate. Basically, you visit http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=5&link=ctg_chs_home_from_aut_home_sitenav and click on the ‘Click Here to Give - it's FREE’ button, which generates money for charity, paid for by site sponsors. When you click, these companies and groups actually pay for your click! That's 365 free chances each year to help! The Child Health site gives 100% of sponsor advertising fees to their charitable partners- so all of the money generated by your daily clicks will actually go to helping to provide medical care for children in need!

The Child Health Site are particularly focusing on two areas of medical care: (1) Distributing Vitamin A, which strengthens young immune systems, improving resistance to disease. Vitamin A supplementation also prevents as many as 400,000 cases of childhood blindness each year! (2) Administering oral re-hydration therapy to children with severe dehydration, often due to diarrhea, which is a serious killer of children under the age of five worldwide (it causes roughly 1 in 5 child deaths and can kill a newborn within hours).

I have added a bookmark called ‘click’ to my bookmark bar at the top of my web browser to help me remember. Other suggestions would be to set The Child Health Site (http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=5&link=ctg_chs_home_from_aut_home_sitenav) as your home page, or to sign up for a free click reminder email (under the big ‘Click Here to Give - it's FREE’ button). You control how often you get a reminder! Bonus: if you are a new registrant to the GreaterGood Network (owners and operators of The Child Health Site), they will make an extra donation to the cause when you sign up. Funding from this site helps an average of over a 1,000 children every day!

Thank you click sponsors!

Blessings!

Ronell x

“It is not my Father’s will that one of these little ones should perish” {Matthew 18v14}

Plan-uk.org: International Day of the Girl

Plan-uk.org: International Day of the Girl

[Special thanks to Alicia, for bringing my attention to this cause and suggesting it as today’s post. Please feel free to make suggestions for posts!]

October 11th this year is the first ever International Day of the Girl – designated by the United Nations following an extensive campaign led by Plan. It’s a day to spread the word that the power of investing in girls is extraordinary. It saves lives. It transforms futures. It unleashes the incredible potential of girls and their communities.

I have collated the information in this post from Plan’s website. Please visit http://www.plan-uk.org/ for full details.

Globally, one in three girls is denied a secondary education by the daily realities of poverty, discrimination and violence. Every day, young girls are forced into marriage, isolated from their friends and subjected to abuse.

For girls living in poverty, every stage of life can be a struggle, as they don’t enjoy the same education, choices and opportunities as boys. No one bears the burden of poverty more than girls. They are…

§         more likely to die young: In many communities, girls lack access to food and medical care because they are valued less than boys. This means that globally, girls are more likely to die before their fifth birthday!

§         more likely to be denied education: One in three girls globally is denied a secondary education by the daily realities of poverty, discrimination and violence. Instead, they are sent to work or made to stay at home to look after siblings and work on household chores.

§         more likely to experience violence: When girls reach puberty, many will face an increased threat of abuse and violence. 150 million girls under 18 have experienced rape or other forms of sexual violence. 140 million women and girls are living with the consequences of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM). Pregnancy and childbirth are the leading causes of death for girls aged 15-19 in the world’s poorest countries.

§         more likely to be forced into marriage: For many girls, reaching puberty can be the first step towards a forced marriage. One in seven girls in the developing world will be married before they are 15, some as young as five years old.

Why is this happening? Poverty, discrimination, lack of education and government decisions all play a role in keeping girls locked in a cycle of poverty. There are solutions! Plan works with girls to give them the opportunity to shape their own lives. Plan UK’s ‘Because I am a Girl’ campaign aims to remove the barriers that prevent girls from getting a quality education.

No girl should be forced or coerced to marry. Every girl should have the opportunity to complete her education and make choices about her future. Girls hold the power to help break the cycle of poverty- investing in girls’ education is one of the most effective ways to help end poverty. With education, skills and the right support, a girl can transform her world and the world around her, and be a huge part of creating lasting change.

Join the plan to help girls to build themselves and their children a better future by completing their education. Together we have the power to prevent girls from being forgotten.

Right now, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is deciding the development priorities for the next generation. If you believe in the power and potential of girls, sign our petition and call on UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to lead action by world leaders to make girls’ education a priority.

To sign the ‘International Day of the Girl’ petition, go to: http://www.plan-uk.org/what-we-do/campaigns/because-i-am-a-girl/day-of-the-girl/sign-the-petition/

To donate, go to: http://www.plan-uk.org/what-we-do/campaigns/because-i-am-a-girl/get-involved/girls-fund/

Thank you for making a difference in the lives of impoverished and oppressed girls worldwide!

Blessings!

Ronell x

“For the protection of wisdom is like the protection of money, and the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom preserves the life of him who has it.”{Ecclesiastes 7v12}

The Hunger Site: Free Clicks for Free Food!

**Remember Sainsbury’s Million Meal Appeal today and tomorrow** (http://365days2changetheworld.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/fareshare-sainsbury-meal-appeal.html)

**Remember The Awake Arise conference today** (http://365days2changetheworld.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/awake-arise-conference-preston-6th.html)

In the past few years I stumbled upon a fantastic site called ‘The Hunger Site’. It is a charitable site that sells a whole host of items that donate to good causes. It also has a lot of excellent information on causes that need supporting and how we can help.

One of my favourite features (which I use every day that I log onto the internet using my laptop) is ‘daily free clicks’. Basically, you visit http://www.thehungersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=1 and click on the ‘Click Here to Give - it's FREE’ button, which generates money for charity, paid for by site sponsors. When you click, these companies and groups actually pay for your click! That's 365 free chances each year to help!Hungersite gives 100% of sponsor advertising fees to their charitable partners. The Hunger Site has given over 846,104,458 cups of food since June 1999 (figure updated monthly).

I have added a bookmark called ‘click’ to my bookmark bar at the top of my web browser to help me remember. Other suggestions would be to set www.hungersite.com as your home page, or to sign up for a free click reminder email (under the big ‘Click Here to Give - it's FREE’ button). You control how often you get a reminder! Bonus: if you are a new registrant to the GreaterGood Network (owners and operators of The Hunger Site), they will make an extra donation to the cause when you sign up.

Over the next few days, I will be promoting the different ‘Click Here to Give - it's FREE’ buttons for the hunger site to increase the chances of people finding this amazing site! For those of you reading regularly, I apologise for the repetition!

Thank you click sponsors!

Blessings!

Ronell x

“Whoever gives to the poor will not want, but he who hides his eyes will get many a curse.” {Proverbs 28v27}

Free Rice: Play online for rice to feed the poor!

This has got to be one of the most distracting (yet conflicting) sites ever! You get distracted because you are so into answering the quizzes.. then you feel bad because you are not working.. and then you remember you are actually feeding the hungry by donating rice! So conflicting (just ask @m_ager!). Go to http://freerice.com/#/english-vocabulary/1387
to have a go!
How it works is, you basically go to the site and start answering questions. Each question you get right, you earn 10 grains of rice to donate to the World Food Programme to help end hunger! (don't worry, rice does not get taken away from starving kids if you get a question wrong!). Now that does not seem like a lot of rice, but it soon starts adding up as you get more and more addicted to the quizzes!
The home page takes you to the 'English Vocabulary' quizzes, but there are more subjects to choose from! If you go to: http://freerice.com/category
you can choose from the following categories:
HUMANITIES
-Famous Paintings
-Literature
-World Hunger
MATH
-Multiplication Table
-Basic Math (Pre-Algebra)
LANGUAGE LEARNING
-German
-Spanish
-French
-Italian
SCIENCES
-Human Anatomy
ENGLISH
-English Vocabulary
-English Grammar
CHEMISTRY
-Chemical Symbols (Full List)
-Chemical Symbols (Basic)
GEOGRAPHY
-World Landmarks
-Identify Countries on the Map
-World Capitals
-Flags of the world
(there is also a section for American SAT questions: http://freerice.com/#/sat/1521289)
This is an amazing site for teachers to use as a time filler in class too (I know the upper primary and the secondary sections of my school use this site).
Enjoy the fulfilling and meaningful distraction!
Blessings!
Ronell x
"If you pour yourself out for the hungry and satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday." {Isaiah 58v10}

FareShare & Sainsbury's 'Million Meal Appeal' (6th-7th October)

Did you know that an estimated 5.8 million people in the UK live in deep poverty and struggle to buy basic foods? Sainsbury's is helping to make a difference by donating some of their surplus food to FareShare, a national charity that aims to tackle food poverty and waste.
This month, Sainsbury's has teamed up with FareShare to organise the 'Million Meal Appeal' for Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th October. With the help of the public, they are aiming to donate over 1 million meals to disadvantaged people in our local communities. This will be the UK's largest charity food collection! Sainsbury's will help FareShare to distribute the food to those who need it the most, including homeless charities, children's clubs and women refugees.

Be a part of this initiative to help reduce the effects of poverty and hunger in the UK! Go down to your local participating Sainsbury's store over the weekend of 6th-7th October and donate food to support the collection.
Getting involved is simple:
(1) Just pick one (or more!) item from the Million Meal shopping list (see below) and donate it at the collection box after checkout.
Million Meal shopping list:
- tinned food
- tea
- instant coffee
- pasta sauce
- dried pasta
- rice
(2) shop online between 3rd-9th October and donate £1 at the checkout.
Sainsbury's have pledged to match the donations made by the public, so get donating! In 2011, over 1.2 million meals were donated in just one day! Let's see if we can smash that figure this year!
To find out more about this event, click here.
To find out more about the FareShare charity, click here
Blessings!
Ronell x
"Blessed are those who are generous, because they feed the poor." {Proverbs 22v9}