Imagine a world where everyone had a house to live in, a place to work and access to a high standard of education. This is what I think an equal world would look like. Unfortunately, this is the ideal, and not the reality for many people in our world. More than 385 million people live on less than $1 a day. It is the responsibility of those people who have a house to live in, a place to work and access to a high standard of education to help this ideal become a reality. In order to demonstrate this point I will explore Olga’s story.
Olga, a lady from a little town in Ukraine called Kiev, was born into poverty. She finished school in year 8 and was unable to send her kids to school and was living on food from their small backyard garden. Her husband was unable to work becuase there were no jobs available. Olga lives in a shack about the size of a 2 car garage and in the freezing winter the family was struggling to survive.
All of us in this room are privileged to live in a house where it is warm and comfortable, and we have luxuries like TV, ( air conditioning, electric lighting, computers and other electrical appliances?) To someone like Olga, these luxuries that we take for granted, would be a Godsend. In 1996,500 million people were found to be homeless worldwide. We are the exception to the rule – Olga’s story is not uncommon – most people never glimpse the luxuries that we have come to expect. We have a responsibility to do something about this.
Another aspect of wellbeing is financial security. My dream is to finish high school and travel overseas to strive for a tennis scholarship in a college in the US. I would be able to combine my passion for tennis with University education. During the summer break I would be able to travel playing tennis all around America.
Olga, a lady from a little town in Ukraine called Kiev, was born into poverty. She finished school in year 8 and was unable to send her kids to school and was living on food from their small backyard garden. Her husband was unable to work becuase there were no jobs available. Olga lives in a shack about the size of a 2 car garage and in the freezing winter the family was struggling to survive.
All of us in this room are privileged to live in a house where it is warm and comfortable, and we have luxuries like TV, ( air conditioning, electric lighting, computers and other electrical appliances?) To someone like Olga, these luxuries that we take for granted, would be a Godsend. In 1996,500 million people were found to be homeless worldwide. We are the exception to the rule – Olga’s story is not uncommon – most people never glimpse the luxuries that we have come to expect. We have a responsibility to do something about this.
Another aspect of wellbeing is financial security. My dream is to finish high school and travel overseas to strive for a tennis scholarship in a college in the US. I would be able to combine my passion for tennis with University education. During the summer break I would be able to travel playing tennis all around America.
After my schooling I would either be able to play professionally or I would be able to get a job using the degree I got from one of the top Universities in the world. People like Olga have very little opportunity in life to strive for their dreams, let alone dream in the first place. Could you imagine finishing school in year 8 then getting a job and supporting your family?
Education is a basic human right. In 2006, 40 to 50 percent of people in eastern Europe dropped out of school before finishing. The main reasons for leaving were living in poverty and leaving to get a job to support their family. Olga's education started in Kindergarten and she never got the best out of her schooling, Olga was always worrying about money and food all through her school and had to take many days off to take care of her family. At Knox we are privileged to have a nice school to go to and the opportunity to participate in sport and other after school activities - we do not have to worry about where our next meal is coming from, we just open the fridge.I strongly believe that people like us who enjoy a wonderful quality of life are responsible to help these less fortunate
Through education that people who are under privileged can improve their situation and that fortunate people can be encouraged to take responsibility. Once everyone has easy access to education, they will have a better chance of securing a brighter future. Education will not only benefit kids today, but will also benefit future generations.
It doesn't take much. My mum actually sponsored Olga and because of this She was able to bring her family to Australia to enjoy a better life than back in the Ukraine. Olga and her husband were able to work and buy a house and send their kids to school.
Equality is only a reality for part of the globe today. For others it's still an unreachable ideal. We, as the fortunate few, should be encouraged to do something positive about this. Olga's story is one example of a small act of kindness that made a huge difference in someone's life. Think of Haiti when the 7.0 magnitude earthquake hit and people were dying every day. Then the world heard the call and over 15 billion dollars were raised to help these people in need. Acts big or small, that can make the world a better, more egalitarian, place.
