Colombian Squires fundraiser at St. Anne's Parish

Local members of the Colombian Squires raised $300 for ACCESS, selling chocolate bars on Sunday October 26th, 2008 at St. Anne's Parish in Brampton.

Along with raising money and distributing flyers, they also collected 200 pounds of school supplies, which they will deliver to Dr. Simone's Canadian Food for Children for shipping to the developing world, on behalf of ACCESS.

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>> Click for Photo of Supplies

Launching "Speak Up for Change" Blog Program

In addition to raising money for students in developing nations, ACCESS aims to engage and educate youth in North America about relevant world issues and the current global development situation. Speak Up for Change is a new initiative of ACCESS: Allowing Children a Chance at Education with School Supplies, Inc.

About Speak Up for Change

Launched in the fall of 2008, Speak Up for Change is a program that gives both youth and organizations a chance to write about poverty and education-related issues. It provides students with writing experience and online exposure, as well as community service hours and prizes, and provides organizations with exposure.

Topics include social justice, youth activism, global development, poverty, education, political action, and more.

Contributors respond to current events, related quotes, and social justice issues. The forum is moderated by members of the ACCESS Speak Up for Change Team, who both assign and edit the articles. Topics will be posted by the team on a regular basis, inviting responses by youth. Schools are encouraged to become involved in the program, as a the topics and writing assignments easily fit as a component of their curriculum. Guest contributors are welcome and include educators, politicians, local celebrities, members of the non-profit community, and social activists.

It's estimated that globally 1.5 million new blog entries will have appeared in the past week. Through Speak Up for Change, let's ensure that we contribute as many positive, youth-written, change-driven posts as we can.

Calling You to Action

ACCESS is seeking schools, students, and individuals who are interested in participating in the program. This includes blog entries from non-profit organizations, relating to our topics above. Both regular contributors and one-time participants are welcome.

Submissions will be published on the Speak Up for Change website, after being approved by our editors and categorized according to topic and theme. Please consider writing a new blog entry, or sending us existing written content for the blog. Accompanying video and photos are most welcome.

Funding the Program

As a non-profit organization, ACCESS is still accepting sponsors for the Speak Up for Change program. The program is currently supported in part by local organizations.

Prizes to reward participation in the program as well as for promotional campaigns are ideal. Additional funds would be used to promote the program through advertisements online, send information packages to schools, and provide printed resources to participating students.

Visit the new website at www.speakupforchange.ca

To get involved today, send an email to editor@accesscharity.ca.

International Day for the Eradication of Poverty

Stand Up and Take Action Against Poverty October 17th to 19th

October 17th is the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty when people worldwide show their solidarity with the poor and commitment to ending poverty. Join millions around the world as they STAND UP and TAKE ACTION Against Poverty and for the Millennium Development Goals. This worldwide call to action is led by the Global Call to Action Against Poverty and the United Nations Millennium Campaign.

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are eight goals to be achieved by 2015 that were drawn from the Millennium Declaration adopted by 191 member countries of the United Nations in 2000. The MDGs respond to the world's main development challenges and in a brief outline promise to:

1. eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
2. achieve universal primary education
3. promote gender equality and empower women
4. reduce child mortality
5. improve maternal health
6. combat HIV/AIDs, malaria and other diseases
7. ensure environmental sustainability
8. develop a global partnership for development

At the halfway point to 2015 some progress has been made on the MDGs but urgent action is needed if nations are to deliver on the promise in the Millennium Declaration: "We will spare no effort to free our fellow men, women and children from the abject and dehumanizing conditions of extreme poverty, to which more than a billion of them are currently subjected."

Last year a record breaking 43.7 million people around the world stood up and called for action against poverty and inequality. Help break the Guinness World Record this year and send an even louder message to our governments for more and better aid, debt cancellation, trade justice and other action to end poverty.

You can stand up anywhere: at work, at church, in the streets, at the family dinner table, or in the classroom. You can also send letters to the government or any number of other creative ways to contribute towards ending poverty and inequality. You may also use this opportunity to tell others about ACCESS and how they can help eradicate extreme poverty and more, through education.