Youth painting competition raises awareness of children in poverty

Source:Xinhua Published: 2013-8-13 16:18:57

More than 200 children from around the world gathered in Vancouver suburbs Monday to draw global support for children living in poverty through a painting competition.

The annual Youth World Cup Live Painting in Richmond, now in its second year, also serves as a charity event, launching a fundraising campaign called "One Dollar for One Vulnerable Child".

Money raised from this event will go to a UNICEF project called "School-in-a-Box".

A school-in-a-box kit is a large portable aluminium case containing materials for an entire classroom, including a solar/wind-up radio and even an inflatable globe for geography lessons. It can help at least 40 children continue their education in times of emergency and conflict.

Meng Weizhang, chairman of the event's organizing committee, said the money raised last year funded 38 of these kits and helped more than 1,500 children go back to school.

"Those children living in poverty deserve opportunities to paint and study. School-in-a-box gives them hope, and we are hoping to raise enough funds to purchase 40 of these kits this year and help more people," Meng said.

Since February, the organizing committee has received paintings from more than 2,000 children in more than 30 countries, and several hundred of them have been granted qualifications to compete in the final round.

Lennart Osterlind, one of the judges in the preliminary round and fundraising chair of the Federation of Canadian Artists, said the children's works had impressed him a lot.

"It was fantastic to see the kids that are four and five years old, and their works are wonderful, really really wonderful. They have the energy in the picture, they have the creativity," Osterlind said.

The result of the competition will be unveiled at the closing ceremony Thursday.

Posted in: ARTS

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