At the time of the year where shopping and consumption is at its peak, it is good to remind ourselves how fortunate we are to have a roof to sleep under and food we can eat. This is probably one of the most important post I have ever wrote so far, but it is important to share and support people or living creatures in need, and below is the lists of charities you can engage with. Some help humans, other animals, all help make the world a more decent place.
You will see that there are three things extremely close to my heart: animal welfare, women’s health and homelessness.
Animal welfare
I have always been an animal lover, from a very young age I was adopting ladybugs and woodlouse hoping to give them a better home. I was that child that had gold fish, a guinea pig and was horse riding. Today, I have a cat but if it was up to me I would also have a dog, a donkey and many more animals!
Cats Protection is the UK’s leading feline welfare charity, they work to make sure that every cat is treated with kindness. This is also where we got our furry friend! Buffer was found next to a bin and brought to Cats Protection. We adopted him as a tiny, skinny kitten and he has since grown into a strong and very curious cat.
Cats Protection help cats through rehoming by finding good families for them. They also encourage neutering in order to reduce the number of street cats. Finally, they focus on educating wider audience about cats, their needs and care.
You can donate, volunteer, or even adopt!
We discovered Lanta Animal Welfare when visiting Ko Lanta, back in 2014. During our stay on the island, a little and badly hurt kitten decided to find shelter on our hotel room’s balcony. We searched around the area to see how we could help her and Lanta Animal Welfare happened to be a ten minutes’ walk away. The kitten was rescued and neutered after we called them.
The charity was founded by Junie Kovacs in 2005. Her mission was to end the suffering of the hundreds of homeless, abused and injured animals on Koh Lanta. They have sterilised and treated over 15,000 animals. You can donate or, if you happen to visit Thailand, you can offer to be a ‘flight volunteer’.
Homelessness
As a child, I used to cry when seeing homeless people. The thought of someone living alone in the street and completely ignored by passers-by was breaking my heart. Thirty years later, not much has change except that now I can buy them a sandwich or a warming cup of coffee, or at least show them that not everybody ignores them.
How often have you seen a homeless person out in the cold and you have no money to give them or food to share with them?
Next Meal is a simple web application which will help you find places where homeless people in London can find food and support. It uses GPS on your phone so you can find the nearest open soup kitchen or shelter, and point the person on the street in the right direction. Check the website whenever you come across someone on the street, so they can hopefully get a bed for the night and some free hot food this winter.
Women’s health
The past 5 years, I have had my fair share of women’s health issues. An apple size ovarian tumour removed in 2012, series of breast cysts since 2015, thankfully so far everything has always been benign. I am amazed though by how little there is out there to educate young women. I am in my early thirties and I have seen doctors for those type of issues since I was 26. Awareness shouldn’t only focus on women over 50.
CoppaFeel! was founded in 2009 by Kristin Hallenga who was diagnosed with secondary breast cancer at the age of 23. CoppaFeel is the first breast cancer charity in the UK to solely create awareness amongst young people.
Their main objective is to create habits that will help young people better know their body and therefore identify faster anything that doesn’t feel right. The charity encourages young women (and men!) to check their breasts, educate young people on the signs and symptoms of breast cancer, and empower them to seek advice from a doctor if symptoms persist.
You can volunteer, donate or book a ‘Boobette’ who can come visit and educate young people.
Here you go guys! Time to make a difference!
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