June was jam packed as usual! I spent a considerable amount of time preparing for my trip to the UK including finalising my conference presentation (on women’s experiences of bulimia) and doing a final read-through of all the chapters for the book on eating disorders that I am co-editing. Alongside this preparation for overseas, Louise (EDEN’s administrator) and I completed two large funding applications. The ASB Community Trust and Lotteries Community are important and longstanding supporters of EDEN’s work with eating difficulties.
EDEN’s plans for the tshirt campaign to celebrate Love Your Body Day (Oct 17th) have also reached a frenetic pace and plenty of decisions needed to be made in June. This is a steep learning curve for me – project managing an event like this – but it’s exciting and we are very hopeful that this inaugural LYBD campaign will form a wonderful platform for both awareness and fund raising for years to come. Watch this space for confirmation of three fabulous tshirt designs and information on how to purchase them. Wearing an EDEN tshirt with pride will be a wonderful way to celebrate diversity, promote body satisfaction and express your solidarity with other women who love their bodies no matter its size or shape. To keep up to date, check out EDEN’s website www.eden.org.nz where we will soon have information about LYBD and how you can get involved.
In June I also had the considerable task of preparing EDEN’s final feedback on the Ministry of Health’s second draft of the Framework for Eating Disorder Services in New Zealand. This was a huge task. It involved considering how community services such as EDEN might fit within the amended framework (since the meeting in Wellington) – especially in terms of the early intervention and prevention initiatives we offer. As I have mentioned previously, EDEN has an important role in this consultation process as we represent service users and the community and we take this advocacy role very seriously. Clearly, early intervention for young people with disordered eating problems and health promotion in schools should be included in a farsighted and comprehensive framework funded using public money. We have our fingers crossed!
Finally, Deb (EDEN’s youth worker) and I completed the changes required to BodySense – the body image and media literacy resource that EDEN is using in schools and is training other health professionals and teachers to use with young people. The resource was initially developed as part of the Dove Self Esteem Fund and in partnership with this fund, EDEN is hoping to reach 2000 young people with this resource in 2007. Our aims were boosted in June with Deb and I hosting an evening for the Body Image Leaders. At this evening workshop, alongside providing an opportunity for the students to catch up with Body Image Leaders in othe schools, Deb introduced them to BodySense so that they can integrate this resource into their education work as peer leaders in their respective schools. We all had great fun during the evening, as you can see from the photos.
June brought another busy month my way, as preparations for the annual He Mana to ia Tamaiti/ Every Child Counts conference intensified. The conference will take place in Wellington in September, with an audience of about 100 people from the community and government sectors. The theme for the conference is: “Are we there yet/ Placing children at the centre of policy and planning.” We will have six speakers, and also a cross-party panel of MPs, looking at how central and local government can ensure children’s needs are met at the policy and service delivery levels.
In early June I participated in meetings about how best government and non-governmental organisations can ensure parents receive information about the change to Section 59 of the Crimes Act, which outlaws the use of force for the purposes of correcting a child.
I also attended a forum in Auckland, about child-friendly cities. The event was very interesting and caused me to think about ways in which urban planners and developers ought to factor children into what they are doing.
In mid-June Every Child Counts had a Project Team and Steering Group meeting, where I reported on my activities for the first half of the year. I also got approval to proceed with two important new initiatives: establishing a Speaker’s Bureau of people who can speak about the issues impacting on child well-being; and consulting with Members of Parliament about a new cross-party caucus on children’s issues. Both of these initiatives are proceeding well, with planning advancing quickly!
In support of the work to establish the Speaker’s Bureau, I attended an excellent speech writing workshop at Write Group.
And so, June was spent focussing on preparations for conference, and getting new initiatives up and running that.
Another new month already and working in the performing arts with Dziah never dies. That catch phrase is coming to pass – there is always something new to look forward to and no room for boredom. I’m experiencing opportunities in Auckland, NZ and overseas.
I had the privilege of going to dance in the Gold Coast with the ‘Make a Wish Foundation’ team; a bunch of Lovely people with a heart for kids suffering with sickness. It was a real eye opener and reminded me of the things I take for granted, particularly my health. Meeting the kids was an awesome experience and I really enjoyed chilling out with them and having fun. They loved the dancing and some joined in – others watched silently in awe. Air NZ helped with airfares and the Make a Wish Foundation put a lot of time and money into it. It was a good networking time and I met people who want to support the future of Dziah.
Our after school Dance Programmes are developing well and we’re focused on the 20 we have at the moment. We are trying to teach not only dance skills, but life skills; including turning up on time, coming every week, listening and interacting. Progression is going well and we are receiving lots of positive feedback.
I had an awesome opportunity to speak at a business conference in Christchurch, at an event called Thrive Mainland. There were many inspirational speakers and people with successful businesses and I learnt a lot in one day. I talked about having the Dziah to Dream and that we can achieve what we set out to do if we put our minds to it. I’m trying to inspire our youth and give something back to our community. Thanks Vodafone Foundation – I’m living the dream.
