"Equality is a contentious idea, and huge disparities exist."

"Fairness is an idea that people argue about, and huge differences exist."

In class today in Global Issues, we looked at what different families in different countries eat every week. Although we couldn't say all families in the countries were like the diets we saw, but we could say that they would be a typical family. There was such a huge difference in diets between European countries, Asian countries, American countries, and in African Countries. But where there was the most difference/contrast was Germany and a refugee camp somewhere in Africa. Although, they looked pretty happy, a family of 6 used around 4RM for an entire week. This surprised me a lot because that's how much one of our smoothies cost. I could not imagine how a family could survive with 4RM for the whole week. While in Germany, they had a lot of luxury food and they spent over $500 on food per week. I believe that that is not fair and that someday, we will be able to somewhat even it out. Because right now, there is such a huge difference between the poor and the wealthy.

Again, I learned that how much I had, and that I was actually having too much. I think our school has been doing pretty well raising money for the needy such as refugees around Malaysia and Japan after a disaster. We don't need everything we have. And the sports equipment donations that is going on right now, we all have something to donate, I am pretty sure. It could be a jump rope (which won't seem like much to us) and that will make a child's time at school much more enjoyable. Not many of us would be able to imagine ourselves in their shoes. And that is why we need to be aware of what is going on around the world. :)

THE Heaven Shop (Deborah Ellis)

The Heaven Shop by Deborah Ellis takes place in Malawi (Africa). It features the life of a 13-year-old girl named Binti who is the star of a radio show. Her family is loving. Her father is a coffin maker and sends his children to good schools. Binti has an older sister and brother. Binti's world flips when Binti's dad dies. So far, I am enjoying the book and am looking forward to finishing it. Again, I feel fortunate that I have everything I have. As in the book, there are many people in the world that don't have even half the things I have, and I still complain. This book also teaches you an example of real life issues in places like Africa. I always knew their lives weren't great, but knowing specifically how their lives are like is completely different.

There are several themes in the story; such as death, diseases, and poverty. These come to me because these are things I haven't experienced much in my life. This book handles a lot of example of these such as people dying of HIV/AIDS. Such diseases aren't common in Kuala Lumpur, where we live. Like Binti's parents, a lot of people in their neighborhood has HIV/AIDS. In the hospital, there are lots of people dying everyday. And most people can only offord to be in public hospitals that barely have any facilities for the sick. Also, when they have diseases that can be cured, they don't have the money to buy the medicine. The Heaven Shop teaches me that so many people in this world are still under the label of poverty.

Firt of all, I learned that Malawi is in Africa. When I first read the book and saw Malawi, I thought it was some place in Malaysia. But later on, I learned that it was a place somewhere in Africa. I also learned about the consequences of HIV/AIDS. I was also pretty surprised about the number of people who had AIDS in Malawi. But most of all, I have been learning that the world isn't like the environment I am living in.

WHAT is Global Issues and WHY Should I Care???

WHAT ARE GLOBALL ISSUES?????

Global issues is a problem that is influencing the world everywhere. Whether it is as small as one child suffering on the streets, or as big as a whole nation devastated, they are all as important. Every single person in ISKL can make a difference to these problems since we are part of the top 1% of the world. These issues are getting more and more serious and if all of us put our very best in to it, we can put a stop to the vast increase of global issues. During the very first class of global issues, we experienced how much of a difference one person's touch could be. We all had to crouch down and when someone came around and tapped your shoulder, you were free to stand up. This was a representation of how someone's tap can make such a huge change. Then later when you were tapped again, you could open your eyes and tap another person's shoulder. This represented that when you had enough, you could help others as well. While some people were free there were still people with their eyes closed or people still crouching down. This shows the difference between people still struggling in poverty. If all of us could do that, the numbers of that group will decrease.

We are reading a book call "The Heaven Shop" during class in global issues. The book so far handles a variety of global issues that is actually happening around the world. It mainly feature on HIV/AIDS and poverty. While reading this book so far, I have felt fortunate for all the things I had that a lot of other kids around the world didn't. I realized that we needed to be global action-takers not just bystanders.

WHY SHOULD I CARE????

Global issues aren't just the problems or the ones suffering. It is a part of our lives too. Eventually, these problems will be everyone's problems. Also, we can make a difference to these problems. Thats why we should care. Every coin that we put in the charity boxes in shopping mall can feed a person who is less fortunate than us for a meal or a day even. We should learn to appreciate what we have and share it as we are all part of the same community. I am sponsoring a child in Cambodia just be giving 100RM every month for their education, food, and shelter. For us, that might not seem like much, but for them it is something they can live off. Every time she send a letter back saying how much better she is now, I always feel that I am doing something that changed someone's life. "There's enough on this planet for everyone's needs, but not for everyone's greed" -Mahatma Gandhi