Over December, we’ve been highlighting some of the organizations
and people that give their time and skills to make our city a better
place. Here’s a round-up of all the causes we’ve profiled, so if your
New Year’s resolution is to give something back, you’ll find plenty of
ideas for getting involved below.
To read the full interviews, click on the headlines below.
Children love animals, whether it’s a family pet or the cuddly pandas
at the zoo. For some children with disabilities, that love can help
them to grow and develop in areas where they have difficulties. It’s
called equine therapy, and it’s available in Beijing thanks to a
dedicated group of volunteers. We talked to Amy Tripson about Horses
Offering People Enrichment: HOPE.
There are few things better to stimulate a child’s curiosity,
creativity, and love of learning than a good book. For most of us, our
kids grow up in homes full of bright, engaging reading material. But for
many children in rural China, even their schools don’t have a library,
or a place to sit and read independently. And that’s where The Library
Project comes in. We talked to founder Tom Stader about their mission to
turn unused classrooms into beautiful new reading rooms.
In this series, we have mostly focused on those helping the people of
this city, and particularly children in need. But our furry friends
need our help too, and particularly the doggoes. So we talked to our
friend and former beijingkids staffer Auna Harris about the kind souls behind The Lost Puppies of Beijing.
In our busy urban lives, staying fit and active is important. Thanks
to a team of enthusiastic volunteers, there are now opportunities to do
this while helping a good cause too. We talked to Pablo Arriba about
Fitness 4 Hope (F4H), the volunteering organization which he founded.
China has transformed beyond imagining over a couple of generations,
modernizing and developing at a rate previously unseen in history. But
in a few areas, old-fashioned ideas persist, and rarely with such sad
consequences as in attitudes to disabled children. However, there are
many, locals and foreigners, working hard to change attitudes and
transform lives. We spoke to Allie Haaz, English-language spokesperson
for Bethel China, to find out more about one such organization.
Christmas is always a time to think about children: our own and those
in need. Few children are more in need than China’s so-called “migrant
children,” who have come with their parents in search of a better life
in the city, but have no right to education or other support here. And
few have done more to help these innocents than the Migrant Children
Foundation (MCF). We talked to Helen Boyle about the Foundation’s work.
New Zealander Rebecca Archer has been in Beijing since 2013, but it
was an idea she brought from home which has taken off and is now set to
expand across the world. We asked her to tell us more about the Clothing
Auction Network.