young designers

Eco-Cubby is a fantastic initiative being implemented in schools across Victoria. Supported by City of Melbourne and Regional Arts Victoria, the program teams Architects and designers up with school children and communities to promote concepts of sustainable design.

I love how insightful children are and this program allows the students to develop a range of skills and address a number of topics from creating awareness of the living environment through to the use of maths and scale. To highlight what can be achieved, this is an Eco-Cubby that has actually been built! It was designed by the children at the University of Melbourne Early Learning Centre and opened last month!

Take a look at the Eco-Cubby blog to see what some other schools have been up to.

much lead

They made it! 3000 pencils! Great effort from the Much Lead team who are planning a suspended installation at the Object Gallery this October. 

Can't wait to see what becomes of this lovely collection of humble pencils...

compton cricket club

I saw a feature this morning on the Compton Cricket Club who will be touring our shores early next year and was intrigued as how it all started.

The Cricket concept began in 1995. Based in LA, the team was created to keep the youth of Compton away from gang activities, address homelessness through the values and ethics of cricket such as how to respect themselves and authority. 

A fundraiser for their tour was held recently in Sydney to assist in funding the tour. Take a look at the Cricket Outta Compton website to find out where you can catch a game and how you can get involved!

a world of difference

A big congratulations goes out to Fran, a friend of b+c's who is one of 8 winners in this years UK Vodafone World Of Difference program. 

Fran has taken on a role as Project Coordinator with Latin America Foundation for the Future (LAFF) in Peru for the next 12 months. LAFF reaches out to young people who have been abandoned and provides support in the form of children's homes, shelters and nurseries. 

Fran will be setting up a skills training programme involving sustainable social business ventures for the most vulnerable. We wish her all the best in her new role and thank her for inspiring us all!  

b+c news

It has been a little while since we have been in touch. What have we been up to you ask? You may recall that we were in discussions with an inspiring group who in only four years managed to rally together to build the infrastructure to support 600 local students. The success of the school is due to the strong ownership that the community feels for the school and their excellent management skills.

We had previously heard of the great work of Got Matar and during our visit to Kenya we had the privilege to meet some of the extraordinary members of the Community Development Group who have been working tirelessly to give local children the best start they deserve.

b+c is teaming up with the school to design a much needed girls dormitory. Currently there is an extremely high drop out rate for girls as they travel long distances each day whilst still being expected to keep up their domestic duties at home. Not only this, the walk from home to school can be an extremely dangerous one. A dormitory will allow the girls to focus on their study providing them with a greater chance of completing their secondary education.

One of the exciting aspects of this project is that the building of the dormitory will run as a training program. This will provide an opportunity for the students and members of the surrounding community to learn basic skills in carpentry, bricklaying and the fundamentals in building design.

We are currently discussing the brief with the Community Development Group and the girls of Got Matar. We are thrilled to be sharing our passion for good design with Got Matar and proud to be continuing the support of Kenyan girls in furthering their education. We look forward to sharing stories of the road ahead with you all.

You can find more information on Got Matar and read all about other exciting initiatives that they have started by visting www.gotmatar.org

AIME high

At the Vanguard last night we not only listened to some great music (headliners Saving Grace ) but in the process raised money for what can only be described as an educational revelation!

Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience (AIME) is one of those not-for-profit organisations that you can't help but be in awe of. The program partners university students with young indigenous students, from years 7-12. This unique, one-on-one education based mentoring program aims to improve year 10 and year 12 completion rates and university admission rates for all participating students.

Beginning in 2005 with just 20 students from Redfern, AIME is now looking to engage more than 1000 students and plan to expand into Victoria and Queensland in 2010. What a fantastic acheivement! Do take the time to check out their website, truly inspiring.

barefoot ball!

It is always encouraging to hear of others doing great work. Operating in Uganda, the United Future Foundation (UFF) focuses on making education and skills training available to youth living in poverty stricken areas.

UFF is hosting the Black Tie and Barefoot Ball (not bare football as I first read it to be... another fundraising idea perhaps?) on May 15th, at The Hilton, Sydney. We take our hat off to anyone who can get a function of this size up and running! So congratulations to both Annabelle and Dave and all the best guys for what is shaping up to be a fun-filled night, not to mention a worthy one!

You can find out more about UFF by visiting their website.