Kids Can

Kids Can... Change the World!

Kids can really make a difference in the world -- in many different ways! With the spread of the World Wide Web, kids have more access to information than ever before. And they have more ways to share information with their friends -- text messaging, email, web cams and online videos. But we know that even though you love joking around and talking about music and movies you also care about the things that really matter in the world.

You want to help children who don't have enough food, who are in danger because of wars and famine. You want to learn how to cope with bullies and to promote fairness. You're worried about the environment, about pollution and global warming. And most of all, you're wondering what you're going to do in the world --what kind of job you should have and how you can help make the world a better place.

Even though you are not the first generation to worry about these things, you may be the first to have at have the tools to change the world readily at hand. What's more, if you live in America, you are part of a huge baby boom that is just now coming into its teenage years. The last time this happened was in the 1960s, when determined young people became part of a grass roots social revolution that drastically changed the way we live.

No matter what you think of the 1960s or the values that the youth culture then supported, the fact remains that they were a powerful force. You now can be that powerful force. Only better informed, and better able to share your ideas -- with friends all around the world. You know that something needs to be done. But maybe you're not sure exactly what, or how. Here's the answer: become informed, and then share what you have learned with others.

Click on one of the underlined titles below to find a whole page of great ideas on how you can make a difference. You'll find helpful links to organizations working on that problem, plus books and activities to get you focused.

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Empower children to create positive change.

Help children create a firm foundation
of wellness from which to act

Saving
The Environment

Lots of great links, plus books on ecosystems and the environment.

Ending World Hunger

Surprising statistics and great links for making a difference.

Taking A Spiritual
Approach To Life

Find out why your spirituality can help you be more effective in the world.

Giving Service
In Your Community

Find out how to get started with volunteering your time for a good cause.

Nurturing A Positive Attitude

Important skills to help you hang in there when things get tough.

Working For
World Peace

Promote peace by helping some top notch organizations, and by being more peaceful in your own life.

Learning...

About Yourself, Your World, & What You Can Do

Taking a Stand Against
Prejudice & Discrimination

Learn what to say when a bully bothers you or your friends. Get helpful tips about handling your own anger. Learn more about the price of prejudice.

Ending Poverty

Trustworthy and reliable organizations who are making a difference --and who need your help.

Learning -- About Yourself, Your World,
and What You Can Do To Help

One of the most important things you can ever do... is learn. Learn about what is going on in the world. Learn about what others are doing to help

Learn and become wise, so that you can be a capable person in the world, ready to do your part ...and ready to teach what you have learned to others.

Meditation exercise

Recommended Books:

Cesar: Si, Se Puede!/ Yes, We Can!
by Carmen T. Bernier-Grand, David Diaz

Born in 1927 in Yuma, Arizona, César Chavez lived the hard-scrabble life of a migrant worker during the depression. He grew to be a charismatic leader and founded the National Farm Workers Association, an organization that fought for basic rights for his fellow farm workers. In powerful poems and dramatic stylized illustrations, Carmen T. Bernier-Grand and David Díaz pay tribute to his life and legacy. (Reading level, ages 9-12.)

Courage,
by Bernard Waber
What is courage? Certainly it takes courage for a firefighter to rescue someone trapped in a burning building, but there are many other kinds of courage too. Everyday kinds that normal, ordinary people exhibit all the time, like "being the first to make up after an argument," or "going to bed without a nightlight." Bernard Waber explores the many varied kinds of courage and celebrates the moments, big and small, that bring out the hero in each of us.

Gandhi,
by Demi

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, known by his followers as Mahatma -- or great soul -- was born in India in 1869 and grew up to become one of the most influential and well-respected political and social leaders the world has ever known.

An adamant idealist and a courageous thinker, Gandhi identified himself with the struggles of the common people. He became the sole voice of the downtrodden and the exploited and believed fervently in the notion that "hatred can only be overcome by love." He vowed to instigate social and political change through nonviolent means and succeeded in changing India's prejudicial caste system and winning India's independence from British rule.

Gandhi's teachings inspired Martin Luther King's nonviolent civil rights movement in the United States and Nelson Mandela's anti-apartheid movement in South Africa. Gandhi's philosophies of nonviolence and peaceful protest continue to inspire people around the world.

In beautiful language and exquisite illustrations inspired by Gandhi's own belief in the simplicity and truth of life, Demi captures the spirit that was Mahatma Gandhi and pays homage to this great man. 40 pages.