About Us
OVERVIEW – What is Fountain for youth?
With a vision of ‘Embracing Humanity by Nurturing Children’, Ian Thorpe’s Fountain for youth will focus on advocacy for the needs of children living in great disadvantage. We will build alliances with the corporate sector, organisations and general community to raise awareness and funds to bring positive changes to the lives of these children by improving health and education. We recognise that education is a crucial pathway to better health.
Ian Thorpe believes that all children should be given the opportunity to live a healthy and fulfilling life. He understands his position and his ability to bring important issues to the forefront. Fountain for youth was established to focus on areas where he knows he can make an impact and he is passionate about projects that will improve health and education of children, having a positive impact on their lives.
Our Focus:
There is a health emergency amongst our own people and an urgency to improve the health and education of Indigenous children in this country and through Fountain for youth Ian has taken up a long term commitment to achieve this, giving Indigenous children the same opportunities afforded to all children in Australia.
Our focus began with the Jawoyn children in four remote regions east of Katherine in the Northern Territory, in 2003.
Fountain for youth now works in 20 remote Indigenous communities.
We have found the facts behind remote Indigenous communities’ living conditions and state of health to be appalling – a human crisis in our own backyard that we desperately need to address:
-
A cluster of chronic illnesses and diseases are decimating our remote Aboriginal communities
-
Aboriginal babies die at three times the rate of the rest of our children
-
Aboriginal adults have a life expectancy 20 years less than the rest of Australians, this is the lowest life expectancy of any indigenous population of a new world country
-
Illiteracy rates as high as 93% can be found in many remote Aboriginal communities
-
For every extra year of education our nation can provide the young mother she may add up to four years to the life expectancy of her child.
How We Are Helping – Working in Partnership
Ian Thorpe’s Fountain for youth in partnership with; the Sunrise Health Service Aboriginal Corporation, the Katherine Region Group School and Maningrida CEC, NT Department of Education, Djilpin Arts Aboriginal Corporation, the Broome Region Remote Schools, WA Department of Education and Lockhart River Council QLD, is committed to working hand in hand with the community members in these remote regions, to help develop their own programs. The local people know with the right resources they can save their babies and ensure that their children have a healthy and happy life. These are our children and this is our country.
Aboriginal people are absolutely committed to rebuilding their own communities and they need our assistance. We have listened to what their needs are and our funding will provide and support the ‘Literacy Empowerment Project’ and the Community Health & Education Progams.
Our partners will work alongside the elders, family members, health workers and teachers of each community to implement these projects to improve; maternal and child health, literacy rates and education outcomes for not only the children but for their families too and youth education and cultural training programs. These programs will assist in building stronger, healthier communities and the prevention of many diseases that are prevalent in Aboriginal communities today. These same diseases were eradicated years ago in non-Indigenous Australia. Education holds the key – ‘the crucial pathway to better health’.
Together We Can Help Our Children
The Federal Education Minister for Education; Dr Brendan Nelson (Liberal) announced a grant of $1million 2005 – 2007 to support Fountain for youth’s Literacy Empowerment Project.
In August 2008 the Federal Minister for Education, Ms Julia Gillard (ALP) approved a new grant of $1 million (2008 – 2010), allowing Fountain for youth to continue working with the partners in carrying out and expanding this important project.
Ian Thorpe’s Fountain for youth has made a long term commitment to these Literacy and health programs and it is our responsibility to ensure that we sustain the projects. Already we have strong partnerships with Bestest for Kids, Credit Suisse and the Kessler Group, the Norm O’Neill Foundation, David Morawetz Social Justice Fund and the support of many Australians, all who believe like Ian Thorpe that together we can give Aboriginal children the same opportunity for good health as other Australians.
Aboriginal people have asked for a partnership with Ian Thorpe’s Fountain for youth so that we can walk together side by side and build a brighter future for all our children to stand ‘strong and smart’.
Ian Thorpe asks that you walk with us on this most important journey.
At the discretion of the Directors and subject to available funds, Fountain for youth may consider new projects that meet the criteria, on an annual basis.
