Photo credits: Thankyou.co
Tackling poverty is a reoccurring, problematic issue. We know what it is and we’ve seen it before. In fact, uni made me care about it more. So Mon why do you care about the poor? The thing with most people is that once they see people living in unjust conditions, they start to feel sorry for them. All of a sudden they care about fighting poverty because of their emotions towards the poor. Guys, making decisions should never be based on your emotions.
Poverty means “wasted lives” – remember, there’s also a vast majority who’ve missed opportunities to grow and learn but never take it and end up being poor. These people are prone to bullying, crime, illnesses, and starting radical groups…all of which create a path to severely impacting the economy. I believe no one deserves to experience poverty. The source of the problem is actually us, we still treat and view them as if they’re poor by donating goods or forcing them to work at such a low rate. They don’t want to be reminded as poor people. They don’t need donations. They need guidance and self-motivation.
Like myself, there are many people who want to combat poverty and think that it is achievable. Emily, a friend of mine from uni introduced me to the great work of Thankyou. Thankyou is a great example of a group who believe poverty should not exist. You may have seen their water bottles, food and body care products. They’re a social enterprise who is fully devoted to ending poverty.
Turning the attention towards us and forcing ourselves to realize that we are the causes of poverty is the first step to alleviating the problem. What adjustments in our lives we can make to help fight global issues like poverty? The Thankyou project is the perfect solution to help us with this decision making process. Their new book is designed to inspire and to see and do things differently. It talks about the need to implement more and more fresh ideas instead of the traditional “donating” method.
Moreover, it outlines Thankyou’s past, present and future and investing in this book means investing in their grand vision for the future. Their book, Chapter One, is the start of this epic journey to fight global poverty. Anyone can buy a book at any price they wish. By the end of March, the aim is to get $1.2million in crowd funding and 100% of the proceeds go towards what I like to call it as their “chapter two” phase, which will focus on two things: developing a range of Thankyou baby care products to fund maternal and infant health programs (Thankyou Baby) and expanding the Thankyou project to New Zealand (Thankyou New Zealand). Every chapter is a checkpoint towards the big goal and co founder Daniel Flynn is going to write a story every step of the way.
“I know it sounds a little crazy to be growing an organisation from funds generated by the sale of a book, because traditionally books don’t make a whole lot of money. But at Thankyou we don’t usually do things traditionally.”
