As a starting point, I recommend that parents and teachers have their kids read two books about young people who are producing positive change in the world. The first book is titled Me to We by Craig and Marc Kielburger who founded Free the Children when Craig was just twelve years old. The second, Young Enough to Change the World was written by my wife, Brie Goolbis and me, and tells the stories of fifteen young people ages seven to seventeen whose leadership is changing our world.
YOUNG ENOUGH TO CHANGE THE WORLD:STORIES OF KIDS AND TEENS WHO TURNED THEIR DREAMS INTO ACTION
CHAPTER SUMMARIES
THE YOUNSTERS
P.J.’s Pantry – Peighton Jones
A seven-year-old girl with a big heart sees a mother and a daughter her own age
deciding which food items on the checkout counter they can do without, returning them
to the shopping cart because they don’t have enough money. P.J. decides to make it
her job to help others who can’t afford groceries.
Mini’s Mission – Timmy Tyrell
A seven-year-old go-cart racing enthusiast has more on his mind than winning races.
After discovering that his friend has cancer, Timmy decides to use his love of racing to
help families suffering from financial distress due to their child’s illness.
THE ADOLESCENTS
Lil MDG’s – Dylan Mahalingam
When he visits India and sees the reality of what his mother means when she tells him,
“We could feed a poor family for a week with the amount of food you leave on your
plate,” a young man starts a non-profit foundation that will eventually have worldwide
impact on hunger and other social inequities.
Free Movement: A Gift from the Heart – Kunho Kim
Paralyzed in an untimely skiing accident, a young man turns his anger and frustration
into helping others who are also handicapped. His efforts increase awareness of the
challenges disabled people face and raise funds for wheelchairs for those in Vietnam
who can’t afford them.
Travelin’ Tunes – Samantha Fernandez
Her love of music allows Samantha to turn her passion into a healing art. She travels to
hospitals in both Miami and Latin America to bring music and joy to children who suffer
from anxiety and pain while hospitalized.
The Eggschange Project – Jin Jin Xu
The love of her favorite breakfast food leads a seventeen-year-old girl to develop an
impressive microfinance project that helps supports struggling farmers in rural China,
while also bringing organic eggs to Beijing.
Hannah Has Heart – Hannah Moreas
While most youngsters are outside playing, watching movies, and enjoying friends
during the summer, Hannah spends time finding ways to raise money for a Vietnamese
child to have open-heart surgery. Then she goes even further.
Our Village, Our Family – Kelly Perry
After a cancer scare requires her mother to have surgery, Kelly realizes that not all
people have access to high-quality medical care and sets out to address that problem
by making mammograms accessible to disadvantaged Thai women.
Recycling Poverty – Cecilia Martinez-Miranda
Compassion for people who scavenge for a living at a huge dumpsite in the Philippines
leads a child of privilege to help establish an organization that raises awareness and
funds for education, creating opportunity for those less fortunate.
Helping Angels With Broken Wings Fly – Daniel Huang
What starts out as a project to earn CAS (Creativity, Action and Service) hours for an IB
Diploma turns into an eye-opening experience that leads a young man to create a
foundation devoted to enhancing the quality of life for handicapped people living in
Beijing, China.
Social Responsibility Foundation – Robert Li
As an only child of successful Chinese parents, Robert finds himself wondering how he
can use the money he receives for birthdays, holidays and other Chinese celebrations
to make a difference in the world.
“Come Follow Me”: An Invitation to Relieve Poverty – Priscilla Acuna
While volunteering for a local NGO in Indonesia, a high school student learns that she
not only has the ability to help people in poverty, but also has the desire and leadership
skills to organize and empower other young people to engage in similar extraordinary
work.
THE MENTORS AND THEIR STUDENTS
Children’s Wishes for Japan – Jennifer Calvillo and Elementary School Students
When an earthquake and tsunami devastate several villages in Japan, a teacher and
her cadre of children decide to use the arts to restore happiness to other students
whose schools have been washed away. Using Web networking, they find donors,
sponsors and volunteers to write letters, design bags, and purchase art and music
supplies to make the lives of Japanese children in those destroyed villages a bit
happier.
A Step Forward for Peace – Betsy Sawyer and Students
Middle school students and their teacher embark on a project that will entice thousands
of people, young and old, including the Dalai Lama, Jimmy Carter, Nelson Mandela and
Maya Angelou to get involved with what may prove to be the most impressive book in
the world on the subject of how to attain world peace.
Hunger-2-Help – The Burrito Boyz
When taken by parents to distribute burritos to the destitute one Sunday morning, a
group of middle school soccer players gain a new perspective on life and are inspired to
establish a foundation that feeds homeless people in San Diego