Education and Adopt-A-Future

August marks the beginning of school for most students in the United States. A lot of kids dread the end of summer, because it means going back to school, getting up early, and having lots of homework. Unfortunately, in many other countries kids don’t have access to an amazing education, endless opportunities, transportation to and from school, and the funding needed to attend school. All of these and more are barriers that students face in their pursuit to become educated and live an easier life than their parents did.

Education is the fourth Sustainable Development Goal set by the United Nations. It also connects to SDG 10, Reduced Inequalities, and many others. Education is what empowers youth and adults across the globe and also helps create more developed countries. One way that the United Nations has been working to create quality educations for those that need it the most is through their Adopt-A-Future campaign that helps refugee children have the opportunity to a quality education.

A lot of different chapters have been working to support Adopt-A-Future throughout the past year. Many of these fundraisers have been small and others have raised upwards of $30,000! No matter how big or small the event or fundraiser is, it makes the difference in the lives of so many refugee children. One of the ways that I created a fundraiser was by baking cookies, Oreo balls, brownies, etc. and selling them on campus. It only took an hour and a half to sell $250 worth of baked goodies! Once many people heard that their contribution was going towards helping refugees have access to an education, many contributed three or four times what the cost of the cookies were!

As you begin buying school supplies, textbooks, and paying your tuition, think about what YOU can do to help someone else have access to an education. It can be as simple as hosting a spaghetti dinner at a local church, reaching out to friends and family for donations, hosting a documentary viewing, having a bake sale on campus, or maybe even doing a 5K in your town to raise money for refugees! There are so many different ways to fundraise, so be creative, share some stories from refugees, and try to raise as much as you can to help support refugees on their difficult quest to get the education that they deserve.

Click here to find out more about fundraising for Adopt-A-Future!