> Child advocacy group wins international humanitarian award
Child advocacy group wins international humanitarian award
Contact:
Harsh Thakore, 604.291.2235, 604.666.8074, harsh_thakore@hc-sc.gc.ca
Trish Graham, SFU Institute for the Humanities, 778.782.5855, patricia_a_graham@sfu.ca
Carol Thorbes, PAMR, 778.782.3035, cthorbes@sfu.ca
Harsh Thakore, 604.291.2235, 604.666.8074, harsh_thakore@hc-sc.gc.ca
Trish Graham, SFU Institute for the Humanities, 778.782.5855, patricia_a_graham@sfu.ca
Carol Thorbes, PAMR, 778.782.3035, cthorbes@sfu.ca
September 17, 2008
Free The Children, an internationally renowned child advocacy group run by young people, is the recipient of the 2008 Thakore Visiting Scholar award. Simon Fraser University’s Institute of Humanities administers the award on behalf of the Thakore Charitable Foundation and the India Club of Vancouver.
SFU will present the Thakore award to Toronto residents and newspaper columnists Marc and Craig Kielburger during a ceremony at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 2 at Images Theatre at the SFU Burnaby campus. The Kielburgers write a column that appears on the Issues & Ideas page in the Vancouver Sun on Mondays.
Craig, the founder of Free The Children in 1995, became an international child activist after reading an article on the murder of a freed child labourer in Pakistan. Craig’s brother Marc saw an opportunity to apply his business acumen to furthering the reach of Free The Children as the group moved into exploring educational approaches to freeing children from exploitation. Marc is the group’s chief executive director.
The award ceremony coincides with Gandhi Jayanti, an Indian national holiday celebrating the birth and philosophy of the country’s "Father of the Nation," the late Mohandas (Mahatma) Gandhi. Before the Thakore award presentation, members of the Indo-Canadian community will gather at a garlanding ceremony at 6:45 p.m. in the Simon Fraser Peace Square to salute Gandhi and his ideals.
The Thakore award is bestowed on groups and individuals who “while honouring tradition have not let themselves be bound by traditionalism in their seeking of well-being for the human race and the planet.” The Kielburger brothers’ bold initiative to save at-risk children worldwide from the social and economic fall out of war, poverty and crime is an inspiring reflection of Gandhi’s philosophy and principles.
Through Free The Children, the Kielburger brothers have become internationally known for their Adopt a Village model, a holistic approach to development. Their work has empowered more than a million young people to learn about the issues taking place in their local and global communities, inspiring them to become socially conscious global citizens. These citizens have built 500 schools in 45 countries worldwide, providing daily access to education for more than 50,000 students in developing countries.
In the last two years, Free The Children and its staff have received more than 10 international and national awards; most recently, co-founder Marc Kielburger was awarded the Order of Canada. In 2006, the United Nations/World Association of Non-government Organizations awarded Free The Children the World Children’s Prize for the Rights of the Child and the Human Rights Award.
—30— (digital photo available on request)
SFU will present the Thakore award to Toronto residents and newspaper columnists Marc and Craig Kielburger during a ceremony at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 2 at Images Theatre at the SFU Burnaby campus. The Kielburgers write a column that appears on the Issues & Ideas page in the Vancouver Sun on Mondays.
Craig, the founder of Free The Children in 1995, became an international child activist after reading an article on the murder of a freed child labourer in Pakistan. Craig’s brother Marc saw an opportunity to apply his business acumen to furthering the reach of Free The Children as the group moved into exploring educational approaches to freeing children from exploitation. Marc is the group’s chief executive director.
The award ceremony coincides with Gandhi Jayanti, an Indian national holiday celebrating the birth and philosophy of the country’s "Father of the Nation," the late Mohandas (Mahatma) Gandhi. Before the Thakore award presentation, members of the Indo-Canadian community will gather at a garlanding ceremony at 6:45 p.m. in the Simon Fraser Peace Square to salute Gandhi and his ideals.
The Thakore award is bestowed on groups and individuals who “while honouring tradition have not let themselves be bound by traditionalism in their seeking of well-being for the human race and the planet.” The Kielburger brothers’ bold initiative to save at-risk children worldwide from the social and economic fall out of war, poverty and crime is an inspiring reflection of Gandhi’s philosophy and principles.
Through Free The Children, the Kielburger brothers have become internationally known for their Adopt a Village model, a holistic approach to development. Their work has empowered more than a million young people to learn about the issues taking place in their local and global communities, inspiring them to become socially conscious global citizens. These citizens have built 500 schools in 45 countries worldwide, providing daily access to education for more than 50,000 students in developing countries.
In the last two years, Free The Children and its staff have received more than 10 international and national awards; most recently, co-founder Marc Kielburger was awarded the Order of Canada. In 2006, the United Nations/World Association of Non-government Organizations awarded Free The Children the World Children’s Prize for the Rights of the Child and the Human Rights Award.
—30— (digital photo available on request)