Fundraising Picnic for Healthy Communities and Equal Love

Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending a nice relaxed picnic at Queens Park in Brisbane.  The Picnic was organised to help raise funds for Equal Love and Healthy Communities.  We got there a couple of hours after it started but there was still some chilled music, a good atmosphere and some delicious vegan food (by Black Valentine) to be had.

Photo by Jay Haurat, picnic organiser

Equal Love is an Australian wide group that works towards marriage equality in Australia.  They are behind many rallies and put in a lot of time and effort in getting this issue in the public eye.  While the civil unions in QLD were seen as a great step forward for equal rights, unfortunately they have been watered down under the new LNP government.  If you are a QLD resident you can sign this petition to bring back civil unions.

The LNP has not stopped there, also cutting much needed funding to the Queensland Association for Healthy Communities (QAHC).  QAHC "promotes the health and well-being of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Queenslanders" and provides a range of services to do so.  The LNP decided to cut funding to the HIV prevention as part of its current scheme to save money.  If you want to learn more about the issue, click here.

There were a few stalls there including ones by Equal Love, Healthy Communities, Queensland Pride, Woof Wear and Rainbow Families.  We pretty much sat near the one set up by Black Valentine and ate our way through vegan chicken, fish, sausages, chocolate and mushroom kebabs.  It was a rad day and I hope that we were able to help support the community :).

Charity: New Farm Neighbourhood Centre

The charity that I will be raising funds for for the month of May is New Farm Neighbourhood Centre (NFNC).  I found out about them after looking at jobs on Seek that I would maybe like to do once I have graduated.

NFNC is located on Brunswick Street, near New Farm Park.  They have been working within the community for over 25 years, providing a myriad of services including:

• help people who are homeless
• help people access housing
• create events that are accessible to all people to encourage community
• maintaining a community garden
• a craft group for women every Thursday

They use various means to raise funds, such as tennis court and venue hire.  If you are interested in volunteering with them, please contact them as I am sure they would appreciate any help that they can get.  If not, maybe consider them as a place to hold your next meeting or event.

I truly believe that they are doing something wonderful and they cannot do this without the community being involved.

Rio's Rat Rescue

For the month of March, 10% of all sales and all donations from baked goods will be going to Rio's Rat Rescue.  (Let me know what flavour cupcakes you want for the markets on my facebook page!)

'Chess cute rat' by Honey Pie!

Rats are overlooked when it comes to rescues; there are many for cats and dogs (although, still not enough to deal with the amount of animals that are abandonded/neglected).  I am happy that I have finally found a rat rescue as these critters are beautiful!

'Rats are cute too...' by line68

Rio's Rat Rescue is run by a vet nurse in Brisbane.  It is a home run shelter that has only recently started out but is already having an impact.  If you would like to donate some of the items they need (cages, toys, water drippers, etc), please email rio.graham(at)hotmail.com, I'm sure they'd love to hear from you!

'rat' by woinska

 If you've been considering adopting a pet, why not take a rat in?  I myself am hoping to soon adopt two (once I hear back from the rental agency).  For information about looking after your rat, check out The Dapper Rat and for information on what to feed them, check out Veganza.

'Feirefiz, rat curieux' by DianeOzdamar

Best Friends Rescue

The charity for the month of February is Best Friends Rescue.

Best Friends Rescue is a no-kill animal shelter that is entirely run by volunteers.  Currently they save cats and dogs from being put down and help to find them forever homes.  Last year (2011) they helped to rehome 300 dogs.

They rely entirely on donations from the public so this month I am holding a raffle, with all money going to help them.  Check it out, tickets are only $1 each and there are a couple of rad prizes.

Show some support for them on their facebook page, send them a donation or sign up to look after an animal while they help find him/her a forever home.

All photos of animals taken from the list of dogs up for adoption on the BFR page.

Veg*n Charities

As you all know, I donate 10% of my sales to a different charity each month.  I've currently been doing research into ones that are veg friendly i.e. do not encourage the exploitation of animals (as much, hence veg* rather than just vegan).

This is because the long term environmental effects of meat eating are terrible (e.g. climate change refugees, pollution) and I don't think that the exploitation and murder of animals for food is justified.  For example, Oxfam promotes giving people animals to use and exploit.  As such, I have researched and come up with some veg* friendly charities from around the world.

Vegetarian Orphanages

• Baan Unrak Children's Village
• East African Mission Orphanage
• Gokulam - Bhaktivedanta Children’s Home
• Narayana Seva 

Veg*n Food Aid

• A Well-Fed World
• HIPPO (vegan)
• Food For Life
• Vegfam (vegan)

Food Banks, Soup Kitchens & Restaurants

•  Lentil As Anything (pay as you feel)
• Ontario Vegetarian Food Bank
• The People’s Potato (vegan - pay what you can - no one turned away)
• Vital Connection

I have not included animal sanctuaries, animal rights advocates or rescue groups because there are so many in each country that this list would get out of control.

Know of any more?  Leave a comment or shoot me an email at kommonerkraft(at)yahoo.com.au and I will continue to update this page.

Charity: Rainforest Rescue

The charity that I have chosen for the month of January 2012 is Rainforest Rescue.  I chose them due to their diligent work in reforestation and protecting the environment.  Without the environment being protected, there would be nowhere for animals to live nor any clean air for us to breathe.

Rainforest & Moss by Tim√

"Rainforest Rescue is a not-for-profit organisation that has been protecting and restoring rainforests in Australia and internationally since 1998 by providing opportunities for individuals and businesses to Protect Rainforests Forever.  Our projects re-establish rainforests through planting, maintenance and restoration programs, as well as purchasing and protecting high conservation value rainforest and preserving its biodiversity."

Rainforest Pyramind by ahknight

As usual, 10% of all sales will be going to the charity of the month (as well as any extra that you want to give) and 100% of donations for vegan baked goods at markets will also go to the charity of the month.

Raffle to Help the Philippines

Tragedy struck the Philippines in the form of a tropical storm, named 'Sendong' about a week ago.  There were massive floods, with buildings torn down and people swept away.

The death toll has exceeded one thousand with as many as four hundred people missing.  There are fears that the dead bodies will bring disease. There are currently half a million people affected by this disaster who need food, shelter and clean water.

It is because of this horrible disaster that I have put together a mini raffle with five prizes.  Tickets are only $1 each and all money will be going to help the Red Cross in the Philippines.  Please spare $1 to help people through this difficult time.

Read more in these news articles:

• Philstar.com
• BBC

Charity: Bat Conservation & Rescue QLD Inc

The charity that I have chosen for December is Bat Conservation & Rescue QLD Inc (BCRQ).  They are a group of dedicated volunteers who rescue bats, care for them and educate the public about them.

Did you know that flying foxes only have one baby each year?  And that they are important to help spread the seeds of trees around?  I didn't!

These people are doing amazing work looking after these adorable creatures but they cannot do it without the financial support of people like you.  Do you love bats?  Have a love of vampire fiction?  Head to their website and help out or leave a message of support on their facebook page.

If you'd like to support them, buy their calendar, shop on their store, grab a vegan cupcake from me at the markets or enter my raffle, $1 per ticket and ALL MONEY goes to this amazing charity.

Charity: Nothing But Nets

The charity that I chose to fundraise for in November is Nothing But Nets.  They combat malaria in Africa by providing children and families with mosquito nets and educating them about their proper use.  The United Nations Foundation is also involved in this project as part of their trying to achieve their Millenium Development Goals.

"Every 45 seconds, a child in Africa dies from a malaria infection."  This statement cuts me to the core.  No child should be dying from something that is so easily preventable.  If you would like to purchase a net for just $10, click here.  Let me know if you do!

Charity Event - Kisschasy, Movie and Animals Australia

Sunday afternoon and night, I spent my time volunteering for the wonderful organisation Animals Australia.

The event is sponsored by Ben and Jerry's unfortunately so it's not a vegan friendly event by any means (although a representative told us about how they have won awards for their practices).  However, Kisschasy, the headlining band, got to choose the charity that money would be raised for and they chose Animals Australia, which I think is pretty damn awesome of them.

Janelle brought along some rad vegan cupcakes that she invented the recipe for (hopefully she shares it!).

The other bands that played on the night were Hungry Kids of Hungary and Glass Towers.  There was also an awesome movie, Life in a Day that was played, the trailer for which is below.  Unfortunately I left after being there from 4-7 so I didn't get to see it :(.

All in all, the day was pretty chilled.  We sold a few badges, but most people were there for the music, not to talk to us about animals.  Hopefully the event helped to raise some money for Animals Australia so that they can continue to do an awesome job!

Animals Australia

I donate 10% of my sales through Kommoner to charity and have mini bake sales at the Suitcase Rummage (although I usually end up giving the last of the vegan cupcakes away for free).  When I have the time and money, I run auctions and fundraising events too.  I believe that making a difference starts with yourself.  In a year, I have raised over $2,500 for various charities :).

Last month, I asked people which charity they preferred and the winner was Animals Australia.  So far I have raised $20.75.

This is how pigs are 'factory farmed' in Australia.

Animals Australia is most well known for their campaigns against live export, sow stalls and factory farming.  They are a relatively new organisation however they are having a big impact in helping to raise awareness about non-human animal rights issues and environmental issues.

Where do your eggs come from?

I first found out about them when I was searching for places to discuss vegetarianism, back in 2009.  I met a lot of awesome people on the Unleashed forums, who I now interact with through facebook.

I have helped out at Animals Australia stalls at Green Earth Day and Soundwave and have had a lot of fun (asides from the one guy at Soundwave who wanted to discuss the 'purpose' of non-human animals with me).

I am glad to be helping out such an awesome organisation this month!  Do you do anything like this?  Let me know!  I love hearing inspiring stories and knowing that I'm not alone.  I'm also trying to decide on which charity to donate to permanently so if you have any tips on how to make a decision, let me know haha.

Brisbane Valley Cat Rescue

The charity I chose to donate to for the month of May is Brisbane Valley Cat Rescue.

They are a no kill, not for profit centre run by volunteers who take in stray, surrendered and abandoned cats and look after them until they can find them permanent homes.

Unfortunately, this is expensive.  Cats require lots of food, kitty litter, toys, medicine and vet bills, not to mention attention and care.

This month, thanks to the help of some generous buyers who donated extra, a vegan bake sale at the Suitcase Rummage and the 10% I donated from sales, we were able to put together $106.75 worth of donations.

If you'd like to help out and donate more, or take a cat in to love forever, please check out their website.  Otherwise, leave a message of support on their Facebook page.

I will be donating to them every second month as I truly believe that they are making a difference.

*These photos were taken from their Facebook page*

Peninsula Animal Aid

I recently ran an auction to raise money for Peninsula Animal Aid.  Together, with the might of the internet, we managed to raise....

$118.00!

Thank you  to everyone who was involved, this would not have been possible without you sharing the auction.

Peninsula Animal Aid is a non-profit organisation that is run by unpaid volunteers with a passion for helping animals.  They rescue dogs and cats in Redcliffe, north of Brisbane.  The animals are strays, from council pounds, some are surrendered or abandoned and yet others are saved from horrible living conditions.  P.A.A. aims to find them 'forever homes' where they can have a loving family and be happy and safe.  These people are doing an amazing thing and I am proud of everyone for helping me to help them.

Do you have room in your home and heart for a pet that needs love?  Check out their website here, there are heaps of different ways that you can help.

*All photos are taken from the P.A.A. website and are of animals requiring homes.  Some of them are by Wet Nose Fotos, found here.

Animal Refuge Kansai

I saw a tweet by oh, danger! (@ohdangershop on twitter) about postcards for sale to raise money for animals in Japan.  So of course I bought some, and you can too, by clicking here.

Image of the postcards from the sale page.

After buying four sets of these adorable postcards, I proceeded to do some more research into the organisation the money was going to.

ARK, or Animal Refuge Kansai, is a Japanese based animal refuge.  They try to find homes for unwanted and homeless animals.  At the moment, with all the disasters happening in Japan, they are experiencing an influx of homeless animals.  So I, too, have decided to help!

I will be running an auction on my Facebook page and I am opening it up to anyone who wants to contribute.  Photographers, crafters, illustrators, ANYONE.  This is going to rely a lot on people such as yourselves spreading the word.  I'm doing as much as I can but I do need your help!

The auction album can be found here.

I've currently got four of my own soft toys up for auction worth $100.  It'd be great if I can get people bidding that high and it would be great to get other people contributing, so off you go, spread the word! ;)

February Donation - UPROAR

This month, I decided to donate 10% of my sales to UPROAR.

Picture from their website

UPROAR stands for United Protection and Rescue Organisation for Animal Rights.  They use the money raised to promote awareness about animal rights issues.  They also perform rescues and investigations.  I'm glad to say that I have helped them out a little bit this month.

Check out their Facebook page here.

This month a total of $39.80 was raised to help them out :).