Books Unbound
FEATURED FUNDRAISER | Coloring Books for Christmas
Description: We've built a collection of coloring books specifically for displaced populations in need of cultural & language preservation, learning resources, and art-based therapy.
Our 4 custom coloring books are created for these communities:
Afghan
Bengali
Rohingya
Ukrainian
Now all we need is someone to color them in! Let's make this Christmas season extra special for the communities we support.
Here's How You Can Help:
$5 supports one child with a coloring book. We have 4 communities that are in need of our books.
Donate $20 to support one child in each community. This provides 4 coloring books across the world - supporting an Afghan, Bengali, Rohingya, and Ukrainian child.
Pick a community and donate $5 to support one child (include in the donation memo which community you're supporting: Afghan, Bengali, Rohingya, or Ukrainian).
Help us bring more color into the world this Christmas season, one coloring book at a time.
OUR GOAL:
We want to provide 100 coloring books to each community with a total of 400 coloring books across the world. Help us reach our goal of $2,000 by Christmas!
*Note* We partner and coordinate with small, local organizations & individuals to make this happen. Your support helps us provide resources for individuals who cannot afford them.
Please click HERE to visit our website.
Why Coloring Books?
Cultural & language preservation: Displaced communities are at risk of losing their identify and culture. We "cartoonize" real people from the communities to provide representation and work with linguists to build materials in their native language, even if their language is not written.
Inclusive: Not everyone has the chance to go to school. Our materials are cartoon-based and culturally sensitive to reach both literate and illiterate learners in a relatable way.
Therapeutic: Coloring is a helpful activity that aids in the trauma-healing process. We also work with educators to create coloring events, competitions, and group activities to encourage peer interaction.
About Books Unbound
We’re a diverse team of minorities around the world, many of whom are refugees themselves. We work with photographers, artists, translators, and educators who are dedicated to providing displaced communities with accessible, contextualized learning opportunities.
Our Approach:
Cartoon-Based | Our materials are cartoon-based and culturally sensitive to reach both literate and illiterate learners in a relatable way.
Relevant Education Needs | We work with local educators to address immediate learning needs, such as: basic vocabulary, health needs, female-sensitive topics, etc.
Language Preservation | We work with local and international linguists to promote mother tongue literacy and preserve minority languages.
Books Unbound partners with local NGOs and individuals established in refugee communities to distribute and implement programs. Learn more about our programs here.
Background:
Books Unbound was informally developed to address the needs of a small group of Rohingya refugees who fled persecution in 2015. Separated from their families, they traveled from Myanmar by boat for two months before landing in southern Thailand. They were arrested while hiding in the jungles and taken to a temporary shelter. Few learning materials were available to them and none were relatable or relevant to them. Sophie worked with the Rohingya and other volunteers to create a Rohingya specific picture-based program. A culturally sensitive illustration fostered more engagement, and Books Unbound was born.
Since then, Sophie has been traversing the globe to connect with Rohingya friends throughout the States and all over Asia to learn their stories and build out education programs.
You can read about her stories HERE.
IMPORTANT: If mailing a donation, please make it payable to "New Horizons Foundation" with memo "Books Unbound"
Books Unbound
c/o New Horizons Foundation
5550 Tech Center Dr STE 303, Colorado Springs, CO 80919
Featured Photographer: Nihab Rahman and Hailey Sadler
Project Manager