Changing kids lives

‘I am Someone’ that loves to wake up in the morning in the knowledge that I am at least making some kind of attempt to change the world a little bit. I love knowing that when I spend money or time that it actually does somebody good. But most of all, I love it when I can combine something that I love doing with something that totally changes the lives of young people that otherwise wouldn’t have much hope. There are two organisations that I support at the moment, one is ‘I am Someone’ and the other is Auscam Freedom Project. The reason I have chosen these organisations is because of their incredible commitment to doing the most good possible. Both have a real commitment to helping some of the most vulnerable children to thrive in challenging environments. Both have a huge commitment to prioritising local needs over western wages and both are highly ethical in the way that they raise money.

I am incredibly lucky in the fact that I can afford to spend time doing art and riding my bike. And there is nothing better than being able to bring your passions together. At the moment I am working towards a huge ride from Bendigo to Uluru to raise money and media exposure for the work that ‘I am Someone’ does. But in the past I have created a range of artworks and these are all for sale here on my website. Income from these artworks goes directly to Auscam Freedom Project.

‘I am Someone’ takes pride in the fact that all of the money donated to them goes directly to the kids. There are no fancy offices, no westerners on the payroll and they are wholly committed to providing an environment where kids can thrive and get an education. They work with the poorest of the poor kids in rural settings. ‘I am Someone currently have projects in Sierra Leone, Uganda, Kenya, Cambodia and Tibet. ‘I am Someone’ creates children’s villages within rural villages and invests in building schools and industry to financially support the children. They rely heavily on an amazing volunteer network and revel in the relationships developed through volunteering

AusCam Freedom Project prides itself on trying to do the most good, they have a preventative approach to engaging with the issue of sex trafficking in Cambodia. Their current statement captures it all “we believe when you educate a girl she can change her world.” AusCam work with schools to support girls whose families are struggling, it works with them to provide the necessary emotional, financial and practical support so that the girl can stay and thrive in school. When you invest a little in education, you end up with huge returns that last for generations. I spent a bit of time with the Auscam team and I know that they have a strong focus on the evaluation of outcomes and work really hard to ensure that the work that they are doing makes a long term difference. This organisation is well worth supporting.