JDMcDsblog

Attended a presentation about “Wild Hearts in Action” today, This is the trading arm of the WildHearts Foundation, an office supplies company created to give organisations the ability to give money to charity without having to ‘donate’ a penny. There was about 100 people at the Supper Club in Glasgow to hear entrepreneur Mick Jackson tell us about a pivotal moment in his life when he decided to turn back from attempting to climb K2 to save the life of his sherpa, carrying him for four days to safety, in gruelling conditions. He told us that the experience taught him the true nature of humanity and he promised that if he was spared he would make a difference when he returned. He outlined his vision to build a company that would devote its profits to helping the most vulnerable, not by giving handouts but by encouraging small scale loans that can make a real difference. He described the role of microfinance as a way of sustaining communities through tiny, but effective loans. His talk was heartfelt and passionate and I came away fascinated by what he, and the other speakers had to say. It got me thinking a lot about how we can develop a policy of social responsibility at our school. How do we enthuse youngsters and get them to engage with challenging issues, both on our doorstep and much further afield. Many pupils have a strong sense of justice and we need to tap into that. For example, every year we raise a large amount for a major charity (this year Cystic Fibrosis Triust), we have pupils involved in the Mark Scott Leadership for Life Award and a group taking part in World Challenge. Many do community service through Duke of Edinburgh, and we may well consider Raleigh International as another idea in the near future. I want to explore how we can take forward our initial link with St Rollox Church, in Springburn, to help with the asyslum seekers project there. We have aleady donated a large amount of clothing for young people, but it would to make the connection more “interactive”. I think there are lots of ideas to follow up and I hope to explore some of these over the coming posts.