The Global Fund for Children UK Trust’s small team are taking on #GivingTuesday for the first time!

Slight in size, we are a mighty team with big ideas – our challenge for this year’scampaign is to get as many people as possible, in 24 hours, to cycle the globe to change children’s lives – from bikes to wheelchairs to spinning classes. We need to raise our profile and income so that we can reach even more of the world’s most vulnerable children.

With the help of corporate partners, friends, family and our wonderful team of volunteers, we are hoping to reach out to thousands of people in the UK, Europe and beyond, via multi-media channels to join us and take part in our challengeto cycle 18,000 miles in just one day.

We want people to have fun, get some exercise and do something for the world’s children. Everyone can take part in this challenge – as long as it is on wheels – from bikes to wheelchairs!  Just take a note of the total miles you cover and let us know – you can donate via CAF on our website and record the miles you cover.

Nicky Wynne, MD of the Global Fund for Children UK Trust said:

“Where you sit determines what you see; it is best for me to sit on the ground. It is good to remember that the world looks different when you are small. From a child’s height, chaos and complexity can tower over you and threaten to make you invisible. We invest in grassroots organisations all over the world that give children hope. Because of our #givingtuesday challenge the work of this particular grassroots partner came to mind”:-

Bikes transform children’s lives in Colombia

The mountainous communities of El Retiro, Colombia, are poor and isolated. This area suffered badly during Colombia’s armed conflict, and today, family violence is on the rise, as is alcohol and drug abuse. The community also struggles with school retention and unemployment. Corporación Correcaminos works to address these issues by promoting community participation, education, and economic opportunities through cycling. Correcaminos run three main programmes:

Recreation and Competition programme – This after-school biking and life skills training programme offers 8 hours of training and recreational rides each week for 120 children, as well as 2 hours of life skills workshops that focus on topics such as family planning, drug prevention, and goal setting.

Bike Repair and Job Training programme – This programme trains participants in bike repair and maintenance and operates a small repair shop that employs 7 youths trained by the organisation. The shop serves both community members and visiting cyclists who come to the mountainous town to train.

Biking to School programme – The Biking to School programme encourages school retention and promotes healthy behaviours by donating bikes that enable children to travel the often long distances to school.

Please join our challenge and help us reach our target. To find out how to take part please visit http://www.globalfundforchildren.org.uk/ or get in touch at uktrust@globalfundforchildren.org