The Bill Gates / Rotary Club Campaign Against Polio Comes to Fife
Here’s a chance for your school to join the campaign to rid the world of polio and link in with Curriculum for Excellence in terms of:
- learning and teaching,
- global citizenship
- and health promoting schools!
Rotary Club International has joined forces with the Bill Gates Foundation to eradicate this disease world-wide. Fife Rotary are asking for your help in this exciting project.
All Fife rotary clubs are asking schools to organise an event in Thanks for Life Polio Week (20-28 February 2010) to highlight the campaign and fundraise. Local rotary clubs will provide posters, background information and resources for your school. See attached background information and website.
Summary of Background Information
As each child is immunised in a country where not everyone can read and write, they dip their little finger in a harmless purple dye which shows they’re immune – the “purple pinkie”.
Schools are being asked to organise a “purple pinkie” event during this week focusing on the anti polio drive - eg every child paying £1 to be “immunised” and get a purple pinkie/ wear something purple. Schools will be able to think of lots of ways or making this a fun event for the whole school community, but with an underlying serious and educational purpose.
Polio used to be widespread throughout the world, including the UK. There are only four countries in the world where polio is still a threat to children – Afghanistan, India, Pakistan and Nigeria. Polio can kill or leave a child paralysed for life. Getting rid of it there means not only a better chance of a healthy life for children in these countries, but also less chance of the polio virus re-emerging in other countries now global travel is easy and widespread.
The Bill Gates Foundation has pledged £250m if the Rotary can raise £100m to eliminate polio from these countries. Rotary has asked Fife schools to help reach this target and raise awareness of local communities about the goal – to ensure polio can never again devastate young lives anywhere in the world.
In Fife, Donald Gillespie, Headteacher at Springfield Primary School and Rotarian, is working on a Rich Task Planner to help schools place this campaign firmly in CfE. Donald is happy to share this with colleagues – email donald.gillespie-bx@fife.gov.uk
Further information and how to contact your local Rotary club: www.thanksforlife1010.org/