We are delighted to share a blog written by student Meerah, from Al Dhafra Private Schools – Abu Dhabi, who is part of team Caring Crusaders delivering a Global Goals project for the 2020-21 GSL Global Goals Competition.
Their project is among over 957 social action projects currently running as part of the GSL movement and we are excited to be supporting them to design and lead positive social change in their community.
We came across many surprises throughout this journey but it was definitely an amazing experience.
Project Summary
According to nephrologist paediatricians, around 3 in 20 children below the age of 6 suffer from Chronic Kidney Disease. We feel like this percentage is high, yet CKD isn’t spoken about enough. Also, our hearts go out to the children that have to go through this at such a young age and sit for hours on end getting their kidneys cleansed and have to endure the pain that comes along with this disease. Throughout our research, the statistics that we have come across were shocking. What we learned made us deeply empathize with these children and a part of us really wanted to help them. And although we understand that it’s impossible to take away their pain, we thought that the least we could do is boost their morale.
This inspired us to take action and try to impact the lives of those children affected by CKD and make them feel less lonely on their journey. Therefore, after much thought and discussion, our group initiated to carefully prepare interactive boxes to send out to the children affected by this disease to show them that they are not alone and that there are people out there who care about their health and wellbeing. Moreover, as a part of our contribution, we decided to start several social media accounts in which we raise awareness about CKD and inform as many people as we can about the obstacles these children have to overcome on a daily basis and inspire others to help us make a change.
The Journey
Through the GSL Global Goals Competition, we nourished our interpersonal skills and acquired numerous crucial abilities that can help us navigate our futures on the long run. One of the biggest lessons we’ve learned is the importance of collaboration. We collectively realized that the reason our project is successful is due to teamwork. Each member of our group contributed to the project by adding a different element to it which resulted in our final idea being authentic and distinctive. Moreover, we learned that making a change doesn’t require you to be a certain age. As a group of 13-14 year olds, we were fascinated by how we have the ability to make a difference in these poor children’s lives, even if it isn’t a huge one. We are fortunate enough to have resources such as social media that allow us to have the power to make these changes in other people’s lives. We realized that the possibilities are endless if we put our minds to something and care enough about it.
The Next Chapter
We would definitely encourage others to take part in competitions such as the GSL Global Goals Competition in order to make a difference in the world and acquire new life skills. Getting involved in a similar project, especially in our age, is a great opportunity to use your time and efforts efficiently to help others and make a change. In addition, this competition teaches you that winning isn’t really the main goal, making a difference and learning new skills is what really matters.
Social Media Channels
- Twitter @CKDCrusaders
