The Great Aussie Rickshaw Ride in Canberra

by Kamrul Ahsan Khan | August 20, 2010 10:48 pm

Spanning ten weeks and five states and territories, the Great Aussie Rickshaw Ride will launch some 400 Aussie rickshaw wallahs on a 2000-kilometer quest to raise awareness about global poverty.

The message is simple: alleviating global poverty is achievable through people powered change. It happens when people like you, people who care, decide to take action.

Central to the Great Aussie Rickshaw Ride is the humble rickshaw – our people-powered vehicle for change. Want to know more about the important role of rickshaws in impoverished countries like Bangladesh? Click here[1]

A record-breaking ride

Talk about doing the hard yards – the Great Aussie Rickshaw Ride covers 2 million hard yards of pedaling rickshaws down the east coast of Australia from Queensland to Tasmania

The ride will visit towns and cities, speaking in halls, universities, parks, schools, churches, (or anywhere that will take us really) about poverty alleviation and how Australians can help.

“How”, you may be asking, “is poverty alleviation related to riding a rickshaw?” Read more[2]

Everyone is welcome to join the adventure – come and try out your rickshaw riding prowess – or just get involved. Read more[3]

An inspired moment

The idea began with a man named Jeff whose passions include cycling and helping the poor of Bangladesh, one of the poorest countries in the world. In an inspired moment, Jeff combined the two to make the Great Aussie Rickshaw Ride. Jeff believed that a mammoth rickshaw marathon, could help Australians become aware of global poverty.

Symbiosis International, an Australian organisation that works to alleviate poverty in Bangladesh, agreed with Jeff and applied for a grant through AusAID‘s Community Call to Action program.

The UN created the Millennium Development Goals[4] (MDGs) to address the cause of global poverty. AusAID has adopted these goals and is contributing to people-powered change by supporting organizations such as Symbiosis. The life-changing work of Symbiosis offers Australians the opportunity to not only learn about empowerment, but to take part in a range of activities that empower the poor.

Completion is not guaranteed. The aim is that Australians riding by choice may become more aware of the realities of poverty – and positive actions that can be taken.

Bigger than Ben Hur

It’s bigger and more exciting than Ben Hur, and probably requires as many participants. Happily there is not a leather skirt in sight. Instead, the Great Aussie Rickshaw Ride is looking for volunteer:

• Participants – ever ridden a bicycle? tricycle? Team up with a mate and you’re in! Pairs of riders will work together as wallahs/passengers to cover 10km stretches. Positions are limited, so sign up quick!
• Organisers – here at the Great Aussie Rickshaw Ride we believe in improvisation and organic processes – that is, we need you. Contact us if you’re interested in helping organise a local event in your community.
• Support Team – know how to fix bikes, arrange things and deal with day-to-day issues for a group of people AND have a couple of weeks to spare between July-September? Limited positions are available on support teams, so let us know if you’d like to come along for the ride.
• Business Partners – know a business that could help us out with things like food, accommodation or transport? We’d love to talk to you about partnering with us for the benefit of both parties.

See calendar details[5] and the get involved[6] pages for more information

More at http://www.aussierickshaw.org[7]

Source URL: https://priyoaustralia.com.au/readers-link/2010/the-great-aussie-rickshaw-ride-in-canberra/

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