On TV news each night, we see images of people demonstrating and campaigning for fairer systems, for justice and equality. There is a global appetite for a fairer world. Who needs us to fight for social justice and how we can make a difference?

Young children living on the streets or in dire poverty in overcrowded slums within sight of shiny 21st century skyscrapers cannot demonstrate. They cannot refuse to pay taxes or start online social media campaigns. They cannot set-up camps outside Government buildings to highlight the injustice of their lives. They need us to raise our voices and do something to help them.

The Hope Foundation runs programmes to build the capacities of individuals and local organisations in Kolkata, India, to be strong advocates for the rights of individuals and communities. HOPE is helping people to gain access to their rights and to be treated equally.

HOPE is educating children to enable them to build sustainable futures for themselves, especially girl children, so they are empowered to grow-up to a life free of poverty, risk and abuse. HOPE is working each day for justice for street and slum children and their families.

On 2012 World Day of Social Justice, Ban Ki-moon, Secretary General of the United Nations said: “Let us work together to balance the global economy and build a new social contract for the 21st century. Let us chart a development path that leads to greater social justice and the future we want.”

Photo: David Lavery

This is where you register (you and or your team) for the HOPE Munster 4 Peaks 24-Hour Challenge 2012.

As places are limited, registration is on a first come, first served, basis until all places have been filled.

Please complete the form below and pay a non-refundable deposit of €25 per person. If your team members’ details are currently unknown, please leave the ‘team details’ box blank.

We will send you out a HOPE sponsorship card upon receipt of your online registration. This will enable you to get sponsorship from friends,
family, colleagues etc.

You can also set up a page for online sponsorship at: www.MyCharity.ie.

This is also an easy way to record how much you have raised. If you need help with this, please call Rosaleen on 086 806 9900.

Register Now

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45-mile Adventure Race in 3 stages around South Limerick

Follow in the historic footsteps of the Normans, embark on a 45 mile journey with three stages beginning in the medieval town of Kilmallock, take in the beautiful Ballyhoura mountain trail and kayak around the mystical Lough Gur before completing your journey through one of the last remaining medieval gates in Kilmallock where a feast and host of festivities awaits you.

There is cycling in all three stages of the event. From Kilmallock to the Ballyhoura mountain trails Ardpatrick before you take on the Ballyhouras by foot. From the trails to Patrickswell Lough Gur where you will run to the Lake to Kayak and run back to your bike. The final cycle is from Patrickswell Lough Gur to Kilmallock before your final run to the finish line. 35 miles of this event is covered on the bike.

HHAR is partnering with The Hope Foundation. If you take a sponsorship card for HOPE as part of this race, HHAR are offering you a 5% discount on the entry fee. Regular price for Single Entries: €75.00; Team Entries: To enter as team you will need three people. Each person does a stage each. Regular Price for team entries: €120

Register online at: http://www.hhar.ie/

Today (8th March) is International Women’s Day. It is a day to celebrate the achievements of women all over the world. It is also a day to ask, why are so many women and girls trapped in extreme poverty and living at risk of abuse or trafficking? Why is the female literacy rate in India just 46.4%?  How will these women’s rights be recognised? Will they ever realise their human potential?

The Hope Foundation is committed to promoting gender equality throughout Kolkata and has been at the forefront of several initiatives which aim to empower women from below-poverty line families and deprived sectors of society. HOPE strives to provide women with a voice, to break their silence of injustices and discrimination.

Women like 21 year old Purnima are defying the odds through their own determination and a little help from HOPE. See her story below. Every woman like Purnima is  changing things for the better.

The HOPE Vocational Training Institute in Kolkata was set up to help distressed and marginalized women. HOPE’s holistic approach means we can also help the children of women attending the Institute, which offers the whole family a chance to break free of the cycle of poverty.

We work with women to help them build sustainable futures and support girls in attending mainstream school.
Our integrated vocational training programme was set up in 2004 to give women a chance to gain skills that enable them earn a livelihood. The unit works with women in poverty; with call girls and with HIV infected mothers, aged 16 to 25 years. This age group is especially targeted as it is a key time of self-discovery and self-development for women. The main trades/skills taught at the Institute are: Knitting, Tailoring, Fabric, Tie and Dye, Embroidery, Bakery, Catering, Computers, Beautician Skills and Photography. The Hope Foundation is especially committed to actively advocating for the rights of women and girls in Calcutta and surrounding rural communities.

As UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says for 2012 International Women’s Day: “There is a long way to go before women and girls can be said to enjoy the fundamental rights, freedom and dignity that are their birthright and that will guarantee their well-being. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the world’s rural areas. Rural women and girls — to whom this year’s International Women’s Day is devoted — make up one quarter of the global population, yet routinely figure at the bottom of every economic, social and political indicator, from income and education to health to participation in decision-making.”

Share this news with women and men committed to ending poverty and achieving equality for women. Happy International Women’s Day 2012!

Photo: David Lavery – Woman & Child in Kolkata

Purnima’s story

Purnima Shah is 21 years old and lives with her parents and four younger siblings in a small rented room in Khidderpore- the heavily populated port area of south-west Kolkata. Purmima’s father is a taxi driver and her mother is a homemaker. Purnima and her two sisters were forced to quit school due to her family’s impoverished circumstances; however her two brothers remained in school. Purnima felt a responsibility to care for the family, but found it difficult to find employment as she had no education.

After admission in HOPE’s Vocational Training Programme, Purnima learnt how to tailor and stitch. Although she was too poor to buy a sewing machine she was determined to continue tailoring after her training. Purnima saved up for a second-hand sewing machine and began her venture to be a tailor. Purnia established her own small local business and earns 800 rupees a month. Purnima is now able to care for her support her family and ensure her sisters go to school, she has also opened her own bank account.