So, I closed my IQuitSugar.com business and gave my $$ to charity and I said I was hereby going to work on good projects. Just reporting back…
The past month I’ve been working with World Bicycle Relief to get their Buffalo Bicycle project off the ground. I’m the Australian ambassador and my duty forthwith is to get you guys to hand over some cash to a project I’ve looked into deeply and feel is a worthwhile forum for giving back. I figure you trust me on this after so long.
We are going to kit out a school in Africa with bikes to get all the kids to school.
You can head straight here to donate.
And for every dollar we raise, I’m going to match it with my own $$.
I became the ambassador to help the global charity (it’s already distributed over 420,000 Buffalo bicycles) kick big goals. Just in time for Christmas (you know, so that you can give help instead of buying stuff no one on this planet needs).
Here’s how it will go
Read the “Why this charity?” bit below and get the vibe. Then think about whether you’d like to give a little. No pressure.
You do want to give? OK, then simply click here to donate. (Thank you!).
Our goal is to raise $30,000 which will equip out an entire school in Sub Saharan Africa (Zimbabwe, Malawi, Zambia) with roughly 100-130 Buffalo Bicycles for severely disadvantaged students, many of whom have to walk for hours to get to school. As I say, I’m going to match what you guys kick in.
I will report back as soon as we hit the goal. And I’ll ensure we’re all kept in the loop once our school gets its bikes. Sound cool?
Why this charity?
It’s a simple concept that produces multiple results that make a real difference. No clutter. Little admin. Much love.
The whole idea enables and gives bright young people a chance. You see, in the communities we target, half of students don’t finish primary school. In many cases it is simply because they physically can’t get to school. Every human should have access to education. It gave me my chance in life. Possibly yours, too?
Access to education has a ripple on effect, especially for girls.
- It can help a girl avoid potential child marriage, and end the cycle of poverty and disease. Girls in these areas face a disproportionate risk of acquiring HIV. Many are married or pregnant before age 18. And most, along with their families, live on less than $2 USD per day.
- Access to a bike also sees a young girl able to better avoid being raped on her way to school. That simple.
- With a Buffalo Bicycle, she can cover four times the distance, and for every 16 kms, three hours of time is saved.
- Students who have access to a bike have increased school attendance by 28%,
- And their academic performance has improved by 59%.
- Each Buffalo Bicycle, specially designed and manufactured by World Bicycle Relief, costs only $AUD195 – including manufacturing, delivery, and assembly.
- The other bit I like: the program provides a maintenance program in the village.
- Oh, and it has accountability. The student keeps the bike so long as it’s used to get to school regularly, and only if the student doesn’t need it to get to school can it be used by family members for other purposes eg. getting produce to the markets on weekends or deliver milk to the Dairy Co-op.
I hope you will help me help. I’ve truly made it simple. Just click here and then you can choose what you want to donate (a wheel? a whole bike?).
Oh, and I’ve already had a stack of requests re the T-shirt above. Yep, I’ve organised to get a bunch made that will raise money for our school. Comment below and Dagmar from World Bicycle Relief will be in touch as soon as we get them in.
Sarah x
