Right now, over a billion people around the world are living in extreme poverty. According to UNICEF, more than 30 percent of children in developing countries live on less than $1 US dollar per day. Every 3.6 seconds someone dies of starvation.
The first of the Millennium Development Goals - a set of eight international goals agreed upon by all 193 United Nations states - is to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger by 2015. This year, the Australian government cut aid to the poor by almost $3 billion, despite their committment to these goals.
The 2015 deadline is fast approaching. And one Australian organization run entirely by young people, The Oaktree Foundation, feels that this is a crucial moment for their country to act. Last week they launched The Roadtrip to End Poverty on NationBuilder. It's a new campaign focused on empowering young leaders to take action to alleviate poverty in Australia.
The Roadtrip will select more than 1,000 young Australians who will be trained on how to mobilize individuals and communities to get involved with this issue. In March of 2013, these ambassadors will roadtrip from all corners of the country, calling on government leaders to fulfill their committments before the Millenium Development Goal deadline. Australians between the ages of 16 and 26 can apply to take part.
The visually beautiful Roadtrip website was created by Make Believe, a strategic communications consultancy that helps nonprofits and social enterprises make a big impact on a small budget. "There's a real need for campaigns to punch above their weight," said Make Believe Creative Director Rohan Porteous. "NationBuilder, with its ever-increasing suite of functionality for a minimal cost, just seems like the obvious go-to more and more often."
According to Porteous, The Roadtrip nation will form the basis of an integrated campaign from start to finish. Make Believe used NationBuilder to design the application process which includes an extensive member application form and collection of payment from the accepted candidates. The campaign will then transition to a second phase where the Roadtrip ambassadors will use NationBuilder to collect signatures from people all across the country.
"Personally, I think over 1,000 young people enabling local communities across the country to engage with such an important issue is pretty exciting," said Porteous. "The fact that it's as easy as a chat and getting people to sign a petition on a smart phone really reduces any barriers to entry."
