My action project is based on the global issue of poverty.
Poverty is one of the leading causes of many global issues, such as hunger, illness, thirst, bad health and hygiene, lack of housing, lower life expectancy, violence, abuse, discrimination and overall vulnerability. Poverty is also “hereditary”, which means that there are long lines of illness, diseases, no education, labor and more. There are are also very many issues that are branched out from poverty, such as alcohol/substance abuse, crippling/disabling accidents, poor living conditions and water and food poisoning/diseases due to unsafe foods. Poverty also causes discriminatory division between people, meaning an un-united, separated world.
My goal with my action project is to be able to make the vulnerable lives living in poverty a little bit easier, even if only for a short amount of time. Another goal is also to be able to give others the opportunity to contribute and be inspired to take action and defeat poverty and discriminatory separation themselves. We are all people, and should learn to help to lift each other up in times of struggle.
Ask the Expert: Can we end poverty? (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.unitedway.ca/blog/ask-the-expert-can-we-end-poverty/.
I found an expert on poverty on Canada’s United Way website. His name is Daniyal Zuberi, the RBC Chair and Associate Professor of Social Policy at the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work and School of Public Policy & Governance at the University of Toronto. Before this, he was the William Lyon Mackenzie King Research Fellow at Harvard University and was also a faculty member in the Department of Sociology at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver between 2011 to 2012. Daniyal has studied urban poverty, inequality, health, education, employment and social welfare, social policy, immigration, work & labour and reducing hospital-acquired infections. Daniyal has published scholarly monographs, journal articles and book chapters that have looked into the impact of “public policy on vulnerable and disadvantaged populations in Canada and the United States”. He recommends that we reduce hardships and improve social welfare, as well as “continue to promote proactive policies and programs to prevent poverty and support struggling individuals and families”, and focus on resolving the issues based on raising the minimum wage, and put attention towards the issue of the growing mental health crisis and providing people and youth the training and support they need to find good jobs.
For my project, I will be creating care packages that include basic hygiene products, such as baby wipes/sanitizer, toothbrush, toothpaste, dental floss, deodorant, q-tips, tissues, feminine care products, chapstick, etc. As well as basic first aid materials (band-aids,…), bottled water and lasting foods like cereal bars, beef jerky, trail mix, etc. Finally, I will be putting in warm clothing items like gloves and socks, which are very important especially with this upcoming cold weather. I will put all these materials together in a care-package and travel to areas where the packages are needed and give them to people living in poverty in hopes that it will make their lives a bit easier, even if only for a short period of time.
Firstly I will plan a budget for the amount of money that I want to put into the project and base the materials off of that. I will plan to buy the materials (listed above) and in the case that I am over budget, I will cut out the materials that are not as important as the other ones (prioritize the items). I will also give people the opportunity to help with the project, by donating any materials that could go towards the project.
Secondly, I will put the packages together. I will buy the materials and gather donated items to be put together. I will organize each of the materials and separate the objects to create the packages, being sure to separate each evenly (hopefully I will be able to create at least 10 packages, if not more, depending on my budget).
Lastly, I will travel to areas where there are people living in poverty and I will hand out the packages. I would travel with others so that everything could be transported easily and safely.
5 valid sources that might be useful to address the question:
Facebook.com/jomygosh. (2019, October 2). 150 Awesome Care Package Ideas and Items – Jo My Gosh. Retrieved from https://jomygosh.com/2014/06/150-items-care-package-list/.
Charityc. (2019, March 4). What to Put in Care Packages for the Homeless. Retrieved from https://foodlets.com/2017/12/15/what-to-put-in-care-packages-for-the-homeless/.
Pack A Care Kit. (2017, June 14). Retrieved from https://www.portlandrescuemission.org/get-involved/learn/pack-a-care-kit/.
Site, T. V. (2019, September 5). Make Sure To READ THIS Before Making Care Packages For The Homeless! Retrieved from https://blog.theveteranssite.greatergood.com/homeless-care-package-tips/.
French, M., Linsley, S., Deb, Wright, R., Lusi, Jean, S., … Megan. (2015, November 18). Want to Know What the Homeless REALLY Want in Care Packages? The Real Deal From a Mama Who Has Been There. Retrieved from http://morewithlessmom.com/2015/11/18/real-deal-care-packages-for-homeless/.
These are websites that include essential items for a care package that I could use in my own packages. They also include tips when actually handing them out and how to do it in the most effective way.
This project has implications on individuals living in poverty and vulnerability, because hopefully it will make their lives a little easier for the period of time that the materials will be useful to them. It will also have implications on my community, because I would hope that the project would spark motivation to get involved and help others in need, because every bit counts. If more people get involved, poverty can be defeated, and eventually will break down the barrier of discriminatory separation and create a more united people.
