Being a blogger, I spend a fair bit of time online. While it is not all peaches and cream on the interwebs, I am constantly amazed and impressed at the initiatives that start up from people, aiming to help others around them. Every few months I like to share a few I have come across and would love it if you would check them out and support them if they are something that resonates with you.
Things They Didn’t Tell You about Parenting
A few months back I was asked to contribute a blog post to an e-book on parenting by a very lovely and smart blogger Al Tait. Over the next few months, they gathered heartfelt stories by 32 of Australia’s most eloquent parenting bloggers. The stories shared range from the hilarious, to practical to heart warming.
Al and her team even managed to get one of Australia’s best loved comedians, Wendy Harmer, to write the foreword.
This book has a very special heart too. The e-book is priced at AUD$4.99 and all profits will go directly to Foundation 18, sustainably supporting orphaned and underprivileged children in Indonesia (Bali).
You can even take a peek for free here and read the foreword by Wendy and one of those parenting moments!
So head on over and check out the Things They Didn’t Tell You about Parenting e-book – all the stuff you’ve looked for but couldn’t find in the textbooks.
Every Parents Dream – Eating Safely
Every Parents Dream – Eating Safely is the initiative of a group of four mums based in Bunbury, Western Australia, who throughout their parenting have learnt more about the foods that they eat and how they affect our children.
Working through the minefield of labels, research, experts and advice they know it isn’t easy to shop safely for your family.
Every Parents Dream want to use their learnings to make it easier for other families and want to spread the message about the harmful effects some additives have on our health. But it isn’t just doom and gloom they also want to show how easy it is to make small changes that can make a big difference to your family’s health.
They are in start up mode and have created a fantastic resources page and an events page for parents to make understanding the health issues behind our food and shopping choices easier.
Their facebook page is also a fab resource and you can sign up to their newsletter will provide more information, tips, and details of upcoming events. And also just for signing up to their newsletter they send you a shopping list which contains along the bottom, a comprehensive list of additives to avoid by number.
{Image Every Parents Dream – Eating Safely facebook page
Indigenous Literacy Foundation
The Indigenous Literacy Foundation (ILF) aims to raise literacy levels and improve opportunities for Indigenous Australians living in remote communities.
The ILF is an initiative and charity of The Australian Book Industry and is supported by the Australian Publishers Association, the Australian Booksellers Association and the Australian Society of Authors.
In 2012 the ILF have a goal to raise $600,000 to work towards improving literacy of indigenous children around the country and especially those in remote areas:
The gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous students emerges early. Non-Indigenous students far out-perform Indigenous students in benchmark tests for reading, writing and numeracy in Year 3 and Year 5. By Year 7, the gap has widened, particularly for numeracy. (DEET NT 2006)
Indigenous children living in isolated areas have even lower literacy rates. In the Northern Territory, only one in five children living in very remote Indigenous communities can read at the accepted minimum standard. By Year 7, just 15% achieved this benchmark, 47 percentage points behind their urban Indigenous peers and 74 percent less than non-Indigenous students. (DEET NT 2006) {Source}
There are many ways you can get involved to help them achieve their fundraising goal and you can see the full details on the ILF website here. But here are a couple of upcoming events:
- Spreading Words Cocktail Party and Auction – this is being held in Brisbane 6pm – 9pm, Thursday 7 June 2012. Go here for full details, but the items up for auction are unique and amazing, like:
- Author David Malouf attending your dinner party or bookclub.
- Breakfast with Andy Griffiths for your child & three friends.
- A Ralph Wilson painting ‘Kakadu’.
- Great Book Swap – To celebrate Indigenous Literacy Day on Wednesday 5 September 2012, ILF is encouraging people to hold a books swap. Have friends, family bring in books they are happy to swap for something else (you could even arrange one at a school) and just ask for a small donation for entry to the swap. All the money raised can then be donated to the Indigenous Literacy Foundation. More info here.
- Donate a book pack – You can donate a set of 12 early childhood books, which are selected by the ILF, that provides babies, toddlers and preschool children in remote Indigenous communities access to a valuable reading resource. You find out more here.
You can see other posts on social good here.