Youth in Action (12 & under)
Playgrounds for peers
Passionate about making a difference, Julia recognized that children in India didn't always have the same luxuries and resources as she did while attending school. As a result, she decided to fundraise and build a playground for her peers overseas through the Dalit Freedom Network. In addition to foregoing her birthday and Christmas gifts in exchange for donations, Julia took the initiative to organize a dance-a-thon at her school which raised half of her total funds for the playground. Her dance was a resounding success and as a result has engaged dozens of her peers and mobilized them to make a difference.
Making a difference one penny at a time
Known to many simply as the "Penny Girl," Hannah has rallied to raise awareness about the challenges of healthy eating in her community. To date she has collected and spent close to $4,000 on healthy food options for those in need through her Penny Project initiative and shows no signs of slowing down. Only 10 years old, Hannah has been helping her community for the last four years years by purchasing fruits, vegetables and other healthy options in support of her local mission.
www.pennyproject.ca
Helping the sick and the hungry
Growing up in tight knit community, Emily was shocked to see the adverse effects when one of the cities largest employers left her home town. Issues such as hunger and illness were magnified as a result and Emily sprung to action! By donating 25% of her newspaper route pay, going door-to-door and foregoing birthday gifts in exchange for donations, she has inspired her whole community. To date, Emily has raised over $4,600 for the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and is looking to add to those totals.
Honour a young person who is making Canada a better place to live and is uplifting the lives of other Canadians.
Youth in Action (13 - 17)
Saving the world, one ape and one egg at a time
James's lifelong passion for apes and monkeys led him to establish www.apeaware.org, a website dedicated to saving apes from extinction. After learning about the plight in Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, James founded 1000Classrooms and challenged his peers to help raise funds for poultry collectives so the widows of slain park rangers could sell eggs to makes ends meet. Through his efforts, James has raised enough money to buy 25,000 eggs and has engaged thousands on the issue of ape preservation.
www.apeaware.org
Swings for change
Zac has cerebral palsy, but he doesn't let that fact slow him down one bit. A true inspiration, Zac realized children with disabilities didn't have equal access to playground equipment in his community so he decided to take action. It started with one swing and soon grew to an entire accessible playground designed so that children of all abilities could play together. Zac made a presentation to City Council, met with Municipal staff and raised $30,000 through various events to make his dream a reality. As a result, he got the attention of Governor David Onley and now plans to build more accessible playgrounds around the community.
Tackling poverty in Northern Ontario
With a passion for First Nations issues, Ankita took up the challenge of engaging her entire student body to tackle poverty in the reserves of Northern Ontario. As the elected leader of Students Against Apathy, Ankita was instrumental in raising funds for a reverse osmosis water treatment system that brings fresh water to the community. She also organized a breakfast snack club for the students along with bake sales and pizza lunches with the funds going towards the costs of shipping over 40 pallets of food and clothes to the reserves.
Honour a young person who is making Canada a better place to live and is uplifting the lives of other Canadians.
Social Action
Preventing abuse, one child at a time
As the CEO of g[squared], a strategic marketing agency in Edmonton, and owner of Trafik Interactive, Glori has found time in her busy schedule to make a difference in the lives of others. As a survivor of child sexual abuse, Glori created Little Warriors, an organization dedicated to helping prevent, recognize and react responsibly to child sexual abuse. Glori has donated $3 million dollars in in-kind services from g[squared] and Trafik, met with local politicians and has been on numerous news segments to raise money and awareness for her cause. To date, the media has donated over $8 million dollars to promote the organization, which has already received over 5.5 million hits on its website. Little Warriors has trained over 140 facilitators and 3,000 people across Canada.
Healing and empowerment through fine arts
Nigel is the founder and studio facilitator of Artbeat Studio. At the age of 19, Nigel was diagnosed with schizophrenia and soon realized there was a gap between the existing services and the realities of living with the disorder. Nigel's studio provides individual studio space, resources and peer support for artists living with mental illness, promoting mental health, healing and empowerment through creative endeavors. To further carry his message of mental health advocacy, Nigel works as a public speaker and engages others to get involved.
Hip Hop for change
In 2005 Edith's friend's son was murdered by a stray bullet in street gang warfare. Faced with increasing violence in schools and the growing number of gangs in Winnipeg, Edith started the Crossing Communities Hip Hop Multi Media Youth Project where she trains youth in visual art, dance, film, spoken word and global issues. Along with providing over 1000 hours of arts training, Edith has also developed the website www.lookinginppeakingout.com that engages youth in their communities to create artwork and speak out for social change.
Recognize an individual who has addressed the root causes of social, environmental, economic or political issues and, in doing so, has made Canada a better place.
Educator
Volunteering for the good of all
When she was 24 years old, Lindsay recognized the need for children and youth to have positive role models within their communities. An unpaid volunteer at an elementary school on a First Nations reserve in northern B.C., Lindsay teaches music, art and drama. She also runs music camps and is a full time educational assistant. After school hours Lindsay stays busy organizing homework clubs and leading outreach programs for at youth risk in South Africa and Brazil.
Dining against exclusion and poverty
Teaching in a community identified as being in a lower socio-economic bracket, Melanie has taken action to try and combat issues of exclusion and poverty in her school. Melanie established the "Big Buddy" program where older students read, cook and play with their younger peers. Melanie also arranges family dinners where students prep the entire meals and invite their loved ones to dine. With many families living off shore, Melanie even arranges boat and vehicle transport so everyone can be involved.
Teaching awareness and advocacy
A true inspiration to her students, Amalia has gone above and beyond to engage her students. Using her experience as computer science teacher to advocate for social change, Ms. Liogas has taught students to create PSAs about racism, develop websites about human rights and climate change, and create posters to raise awareness about malaria. She has also taught students how to organize a conference, providing them with extensive help as they hosted a two-day event called Green vs. Greed.
Celebrate a JK to Grade 12 educator who nurtures the power of young people to be effective leaders in their schools, communities and around the world.
Free The Children Youth
Reachout and change the world
As Vice-President for the club Reachout, Aimee helped rally her fellow students to raise $8,800 to build a school in Sierra Leone. With coin drives, multicultural festivals, awareness conferences with local politicians and other small fundraising events like Halloween for Hunger, Aimee has united her school and community towards a common goal. Aimee's unwavering passion for Free The Children has had a ripple effect in her community as they move towards a common goal.
Hope for Haiti
As one of the core members of the Edmonton's Me to We Mobilizers chapter, Corey has shown remarkable dedication and commitment to Free The Children. When he hear about the devastating earthquake in Haiti, Corey rose to the occasion and played a key role in the organization and execution of Hope for Haiti, a Free The Children fundraising event held to support the Haiti relief effort. 900 guests, 800 volunteer hours, 150 silent auction items and $25,000 later, Hope for Haiti was a resounding success with Corey at the helm.
Four birthdays, one big heart
Since the age of nine, Brennan has been a Free The Children champion. Four years later he shows no signs of slowing down. He has held four birthday fundraisers and asked people to donate and support Adopt a Village, attended the Take Action Academy, joined the Me to We Mobilizers and volunteered for some of Free The Children's largest and most prestigious events. Always full of energy, Brennan has shown tremendous support to Free The Children while urging others to get involved as well.
Recognize a young person who has demonstrated a unique passion and dedication to raising funds and awareness for global issues affecting children around the world through Free The Children's youth programming and campaigns.
