Design. Charity. Life.Website and Blog of Daniel Francavilla

Students learn that democracy, at its heart and soul, is about people’s voices

By Daniel Francavilla
Toronto Star Global Voices

Imagine having no voice. No vote for a political party, no say in where your tax money is spent and no way of stopping daily injustice. Thankfully, Canada is a democratic country and citizens, including youth, have the power to effect positive change in their communities and beyond.

Local Democracy Week, which concluded November 27 in Toronto, addressed such issues as voter apathy and the disconnect between politics and everyday life. Ontario MPPs had the opportunity to invite students from a high school in their riding to take part in events hosted at Queen’s Park and Toronto City Hall, alongside special guests including Toronto Mayor David Miller and Craig Kielburger.

Read the Full Article Published on TheStar.com

Craig Kielburger and Daniel Francavilla at Local Democracy Week 2009 (Photo: Anastasia Tolias)

Be responsible with your t-shirts, ethical options are available

Daniel Francavilla
GLOBAL VOICES

Today, anyone can order custom t-shirts at very affordable prices. But for retailers to offer such low prices, the concern is about who gets cut short.

Although a label stating “Made in China” does not mean that children in sweatshops made the product, it is often difficult to know the truth.

VistaPrint, an online printing company that operates in more than 120 countries, offers custom t-shirt printing at low prices. The brand of t-shirts VistaPrint sells has manufacturing facilities in Honduras and Nicaragua, both developing nations.

Jeff Esposito, VistaPrint public relations manager, says the company chooses ethical suppliers, but said the company isn’t able to provide details on the conditions of the factories.

“We work only with reputable partners who, to the best of our knowledge, operate in an ethical manner. Beyond that, we can’t really comment since we don’t make the actual t-shirts,” said Esposito in a phone interview.

Outsourcing, or shifting responsibility with a “hands-off approach” is a contributing factor in the various unethical manufacturing procedures occurring worldwide.

No Sweat Apparel is an alternative company in the same market. Selling only 100% union-made apparel, this company puts fair-trade and ethics in the forefront, providing the factory location and other details for each product it sells.

One company tagline states, “Fight sweatshops with every thread you buy? No sweat.”

Adam Neiman, the Founder and CEO of No Sweat Apparel, says it’s important to educate people about sweatshops, and show them there is a way to shop responsibly. No Sweat Apparel is based on the ability, as Neiman explained over the phone, “not only to see the ethical choice, but to figure out how to make doing the right thing just as profitable as doing wrong.”

The company’s prices are higher than some other online retailers, but within the current financial crisis, Neiman he says it is especially important to be a conscious shopper.

“If we want to create prosperous economies in North America and Europe, we have to encourage fair trade practices.”

Daniel Francavilla is a university student in Toronto at the Ontario College of Art + Design (OCAD). From Brampton, he founded a non-profit organization, ACCESS: Allowing Children a Chance at Education and Speak Up for Change, a youth blog on poverty and education-related issues.

Published version online at TheStar.com

December 24, 2008
Daniel Francavilla
GLOBAL VOICES

Today, innocent children are dying due to poverty around the world – one every two seconds. Yet, on Black Friday, a Wal-Mart worker in the United States was trampled to death by consumers rushing to retail sales.

The impending financial disaster is creating a perfect storm for non-profit organizations trying to aid those in poverty, as donations decline while the need for help rises.

ShareLife, the Archdiocese of Toronto’s charity, is one group stepping forward with programs responding to the increased social services demand.

“The Catholic organizations in the Archdiocese are very involved in helping the most needy,” says Archbishop Thomas Collins. “I’m particularly aware of their great need of resources to help the poor in need. I encourage people in the Archdiocese to support them more than ever.”

Charities face the same stress as many companies, banks and businesses.

The Vancouver Foundation is the largest of Canada’s 165 community foundations and supports about 600 charities per year.

The organization’s president, Faye Wightman, says that “many of these non-profit (organizations) are the last stop for thousands of people … who get hit by larger economic forces and find themselves teetering on the edge.”

Unfortunately, while need increases, economic uncertainty creates a large barrier.

“These charities are hit with reduced donations, corporate sponsorships that dry up, and often reduced funding from government and even foundations,” says Wightman.

Despite today’s economic uncertainty, there are organizations that continue to fund projects both locally and overseas. Long-term planning and new strategies can help organizations survive.

Perhaps the economic crisis will spur people to see that our consumer culture has skewed priorities. At the Conference on Social Entrepreneurship at the University of Waterloo this past November, Marc Kielburger offered a simple yet challenging notion: “if we want to change Africa, we have to change North America.”

As affluent people also begin to suffer financially, perhaps their empathy will trigger social change to benefit humanity worldwide.

Daniel Francavilla is currently a university student in Toronto at the Ontario College of Art + Design. From Brampton, Daniel founded a non-profit organization, ACCESS: Allowing Children a Chance at Education, and Speak Up for Change, a youth blog on poverty and education-related issues.

Published on TheStar.com

By Daniel Francavilla
TheStar.com – Global Voices

Is the world experiencing a food shortage? Surprisingly, there is no documented shortage whatsoever. There is, however, a huge imbalance in the distribution of food. In fact, the average American consumes as much food as 32 Kenyans do.

In 2005, Health Canada confirmed that obesity rates in Canada have nearly doubled among adults and nearly tripled among children over the past 25 years. Now, one quarter of Canadians are considered obese. This is obviously not positive. So why is it happening?

Dr. Jill Hamilton, MD, FRCPC, who is a staff physician in the Division of Endocrinology at the Hospital for Sick Children and an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto explains that, “the rising incidence of obesity over the past 25 years is clearly not related to changes in genes, but rather to changes in the environment, such as increased consumption of highly dense caloric foods and decreased physical activity.”

The opposite of obesity, in this case, is malnutrition. Strangely, both of these severe health concerns are popular in the world today. To clarify, the World Health Organization explains that malnutrition is both a medical and a social disorder, often rooted in poverty.

The book Stuffed and Starved by Raj Patel explores the strange situation that we are facing. Right now, there are one billion people who are malnourished and nearly one billion who are overweight. Does anyone else notice an imbalance?

Evidently, people worldwide must rethink their approach to nutrition. It is not simply about calories, but the nutritional quality and quantity of the foods consumed that makes a difference. “This is where major changes need to happen in both developed and developing countries, to try to reverse the problems of both obesity and malnutrition,” adds Dr. Hamilton.

North Americans must become aware of this crucial disproportion that is causing thousands of deaths every week. Governments of abundant countries such as Canada and the United States should take action by increasing their foreign aid. Canadian citizens should lead by example, by consuming less and donating more to worthy causes that will make the world a promising place for all people to live.

To view the article on The Toronto Star website, click here.

By Daniel Francavilla
TheStar.com – Global Voices

Today, in an age where a world of information is accessible with the click of a mouse through sources such as Google News, it appears that many youth are not aware of the events that are occurring around them. From solider deaths in the Middle East to fundraising events in their own community, today’s teenagers are often out of the loop, or are at least missing the details.

Although we are in the unified communications era, the youth does not necessarily choose to stay up-to-date, even with the issues that surround them. Perhaps this is due to unexciting news anchors, lengthy articles in the newspaper, or MP3 players overtaking live radio. So what are teen-minds fueling of off, if it is not the critically important knowledge they should be?

Eushauna Clarke, a grade twelve student from Brampton says that she is more aware of movie and video game releases than important world events. She explains that in general, “students would rather spend hours on social-networking sites like Facebook and chatting on instant messengers like MSN than searching on Google for important world issues”.

The benefits of being aware of world issues are essential. Everything from becoming an informed voter to donating to a needy cause is influenced by one’s consciousness of current affairs.

Unfortunately, many high school courses offered in the GTA do not often include discussions about the “real world”. Several students and teachers suggest the curriculum should include more current events.

Joseph Miceli, a high school religion teacher, agrees. He feels that infusing current events into school curriculum is “a very practical and effective way of making learning more interesting and real”. Although many teachers do an excellent job of making current events relevant in the classroom, Miceli questions whether or not it is consistently used within all subject areas.

“I feel that there is room for discussion on the possibility of somehow ensuring that this occurs,” says Miceli, but also reminds people that teachers are not solely responsible for educating today’s youth. “Parents need to create a healthy learning environment at home and monitor how their children are using their time,” the high school teacher concludes.

Ironically, this issue appears to be a communication problem, in a world of communication technology.

Read this article on TheStar.com.