The Body Shop Volunteers

Darshini Dave (TBS Murray Street, Perth Store) loved her Community Project experience at Princess Margaret Hospital working with sick kids.

If you work at The Body Shop you need to find and complete a Community Project.

This means volunteering for a charity in your local community for one or two days a year. There are hundreds of fantastic stories from a wide variety of projects we get involved in from cleaning up local environments to helping people or even animals through tough times. We feel privileged to be active in our communities... to be helping. We recently received a a great email about one of our staff's Community Projects in Western Australia. As Deb (Our awesome Values Coordinator) said: "Never underestimate the difference we can make through Community Projects."

Dear Body Shop,
A few days ago when my wife and I visited our 15 year old daughter in Princess Margaret Hospital we noticed that she had a real glow to her. She had been visited by someone from The Body Shop who applied gentle make up to her face and gave her frail little hands a massage. She has anorexia nervosa and suffers from very low self esteem and severe depression. She was looking beautiful and was really happy.
We do not know which store these very kind people came from, but we would sincerely like to thank you for what you have done for our daughter.

Thanks
Darren - Shelley, Western Australia

This 'thank you' belongs to Celina, Cara and Darshni from The Body Shop - Murray Street store! If you'd like to volunteer in this area contact your local children's hospital or eating disorder charity.

Websites for information that can help, if you or a friend are experiencing low self esteem as a result of body image issues...



The Butterfly Foundation
Eating Disorders Foundation (of Victoria)
Reach Out
Anorexia Nervosa (Wikipedia)


Adam Valvasori - Values Manager

Congratz The Big Issue - 300 Editions Old!

From left to right: Tim Dempster (The Big Issue's Business Manager), Adam (You know who I am), Steven Persson (The Big Issue's General Manager) and Deb Baxter (The Body Shop's Values Coordinator)

From July 07 to January 08 The Body Shop sold 21,375 Bags For Life. Deb and I took a trip into the big city to have a coffee with some of the nice people at The Big Issue and give them an equally nice cheque for 100% of the profits. This came to exactly $17,610.86

Not bad huh!

We've been selling them since 2003, so the total amount we've been able to donate thus far is $56,858.94. Woo-hoo! Our funding is spent on training up and supporting the vendors to sell the magazine which in turn helps them help themselves.

Not many people know this, but The Big Issue is kinda related to The Body Shop. Here's how:

• It was started in England by Anita Roddick's husband Gordon Roddick and John Bird in 1991.
  
• Graeme Wise (The Body Shop Australia's owner) helped The Big Issue get off the ground here in Australia.
  
• Polly Caldow our Chief Executive was The Big Issue's General Manager from 1997 to 2000.
  
• The Ex-Editor of The Big Issue Martin Hughes now writes books for Affirm Press (also owned by Graeme). "Affirm Press is a new Melbourne-based publishing company committed to publishing books that have a positive impact on the community, that influence by delight rather than being earnest or right-on." They recently published the Slow Guides to Melbourne & Sydney. (Hi Martin!)
• We have had The Body Shop staff on The Big Issue Board.
• Maybe most significantly, The Body Shop stores sell the magazine as well as distribute them to the vendors right around Australia. Our staff and the vendors have a special bond and like looking out for one another.
  
• Deb just reminded me that many of our Melbourne city store staff also volunteer at The Big Issue HQ to help with the administration of the magazine.
  

Congratulations to The Big Issue who is celebrating their 300th Edition this week. If you see a vendor on the street have a chat with them, congratulate them and (most importantly) buy a magazine! We heart The Big Issue and are proud to be doing our bit, giving the homeless and long-term unemployed a hand up, not a hand out.

^{Adam Valvasori - Values Manager}

Inspiration Scheme

Anne McFarlane (Sales, RSC), Laura Zammit (At Home), Amber Taylor (Collins Street VIC), Kelly Savill (Westlakes SA) and Kaye Findlay (At Home) participated in the Inspiration Scheme in Vanuatu in August 2007.

The Inspiration Scheme is a truly exceptional experience. It is not an ordinary workshop; but rather a life changing experience. To know that in one week of your life you can make such a difference to others is quite humbling.

During the week we spent in Vanuatu it did not take long for our TBS staff to realise that the workshop was not about training, but rather about sharing our skills and knowledge. Relishing in the opportunity to help open the minds of the participants and draw out the answers that they each had within. We were there to guide, grow, develop and stretch the participants’ ideas, reassure them, challenge their perceptions and most of all inspire
them to be the best that they can be. Every second, every minute and every interaction was an opportunity for the participants and TBS staff to SHINE!

Although it was very hard to leave, we left feeling tremendously proud and privileged at the opportunity we were given and the new friends we had made! I had the honour of presenting the certificates and speaking on behalf of TBS at the closing ceremony, below is a part of the lasting message, for some of you this will look similar:

“When we leave remember to have supreme confidence in yourself and your abilities. Know you can do anything that you put your mind to. Develop unrelenting determination and commitment to follow through on whatever you desire to do. The certificates presented to you today aren’t about completing this workshop - They are symbolic of your commitment to yourself, your community, your future and the future of Vanuatu! It speaks volumes about the immensely talented and inspirational person that you are!”

This message brought tears to the eyes of many of the participants and us included. I wanted to share this, as it is reflective of the intensity of the friendships this workshop creates. To be immersed in a new culture and to work with local representatives who passionately care about the welfare and future of their people is truly enriching in every aspect.

Without the commitment and vision of The Body Shop, United Nations, and the Commonwealth Youth Program, this workshop would not be possible.

It is however the commitment of the people who make it the true success. Amber, Kelly, Laura & Kaye would have made you proud and were outstanding ambassadors for The Body Shop. We left knowing that every day they & WE have a choice:

• To be the best that we can be and to help others to do the same.
• To want to learn and push the boundaries and be the young entrepreneurs of tomorrow – in Bislama “Tumaro’s Ledas” (Tomorrow’s Leaders)
  

I want to thank personally Graeme, Polly & Isabel for allowing me the opportunity to be a facilitator in the program as it is truly most rewarding. My commitment is to continue to be an ambassador for the Inspiration Scheme encouraging others to apply next year as I want each of you to share the journey and be a part of this incredible experience.

Anne McFarlane - National Deputy Retail Manager

Our 2008 East Timor Playscheme Volunteers

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"No man stands as tall as when he bends down to help a child." James Baldwin

Five volunteers are standing tall right now - they've been selected from a heap of The Body Shop staff applications to head to the remote, southern village of Viqueque in East Timor (Zoom in on the green marker in the above map).

They will be helping to run a fantastic scheme by Children On The Edge that starts in early March. Children in the community will be able to come to a safe space, to learn, play and just be normal kids - an opportunity we take for granted here in Australia.

A normal childhood is one of the first things stolen by poverty. When all hands are forced to be on deck in order to find enough food to feed the family; human rights to education and for children not to have to work - simply aren't a priority.

Children on the Edge's vision is a world without suffering, where all children are able to grow-up in a loving and stable environment; a world in which all children regardless of their race, nationality or parentage have equal access to their rights and the opportunities that will allow them to fulfill their potential wherever they may be in the world. Here are our volunteers that share that vision - I'm sure we'll hear more from in the coming months:

Kerry Robinson - Team Leader, Retail Support Centre
Amber Taylor - Collins Street, Melbourne Store
Mandy Glassey - Epping Store
Katie Phillips - The Glen Store
Lauren Mair - The Body Shop Children's Centre.

Here are some alarming stats about East Timor - the poorest country in Asia and remember just an hour's flight from Darwin:

• Only 27.3 % of East Timorese live in urban areas (2005) and roads which have been destroyed in war or fallen into disrepair mean it’s extremely difficult for the majority of everyone to access essential services.
• Average life expectancy = 56 years of age (2004) (Australia = 80.5)
• Infant Mortality = 52 for every 1,000 births (Australia = 5 per 1,000 births) (2005)
• Child Mortality (Deaths before the age of 5): 61 children die for every 1,000. (Australia = 6) (2005)
• Births Attended by skilled personnel = 18% (1996-2004) (Australia = 100%)
• Human Development Index = 142nd (Australia = 3rd)
• Percentage of children under weight for age (under age 5) = 46% (Australia = not available) (1996-2005)
• Percentage of undernourished population = 9% (Australia = under 2.5%) (2002-2004 average)
• Population with access to improved water = 58% (Australia = 100%) (2004)
• Population with access to improved sanitation = 36% (Australia = 100%) (2004)
• Literacy average = 58.6% (Australia = 99%) (2003).
• Only 41.6 % of the population under 15 years of age is enrolled in education (2004)
• Physicians = 10 per 100,000 people (Australia = 247 per 100,000 people) (1990-2004)
• GNI per capita = US$600 -that’s only about US$2.3 a day! (Australia = US$3,3120) (2005)

Good Luck Viqueque '08 Team! And thanks to everyone who applied for a volunteer position or helped raise money for the centre throughout the year by selling or buying our uber cool Community Trade Tri-Massagers!


Adam Valvasori - Values Manager

2007 Values @ The Body Shop Summary!

I'm sure I've missed bits... but these are some of The Body Shop Australia's achievements for 2007. I'm so stoked we can make such a meaningful difference to social and environmental issues at the local, national and international level!

• $21,658 raised for Staying Alive Foundation and 5,000 brochures distributed through our MTV HIV and AIDS 'Spray For Change' campaign.
• Sold 10,000 shower timers at cost and signed up 6,500 customers for climate change packs as part of our 'Spoil Yourself not the Planet' campaign with ACF
  
• $11,443 raised for UNIFEM through White Ribbon Day sales.
• $80,460 raised for Children on the Edge in East Timor through the sale of tri-massagers.
• Over $90,000 raised for Amnesty International through Christmas card sales.
• Volunteered over 4,500 hours to hundreds of grass-roots charities around Australia through our Community Projects program. That's the equivalent of 1.5 full-time staff members working free for a year!
  

Stop Violence in the Home campaign:

• Launched The Body Shop Australia’s survey of community attitudes, understandings and responses to abuse in relationships 2006 Report.
• Called for Small Grant Applications to distribute $100,000 raised from Daisy Soap sales. A panel of industry experts, TBS Staff and a young DV survivor selected and, disbursed funds to 13 grass-roots organisations working in the domestic violence prevention and care sector.
• Distributed 50,000 “Let’s Air It Out” booklet with stories from DV survivors.
• Collected 4,500 t-shirts with messages written about DV by staff and customers. Were exhibited in-store during the campaign. (plan to present them to the incoming Family and Community Services Minister in 2008).

In addition at our National Retail Support Centre here in sunny Mulgrave, Victoria we:

• Sponsored 15 orangutans from Borneo for four years.
• Sent five big boxes full of Christmas presents to Berry Street.

To all staff and customers involved in helping to make these achievements happen - a massive thank you. Happy New Year everyone, I can't wait to see what we can accomplish next year !!!

Adam Valvasori - Values Manager

Bali Climate Change Conference

Image: Associated Press

The United Nations Climate Change Conference 2007 will start in Bali today. I wonder how Indonesia, the third-largest greenhouse gas emitter (thanks to logging Borneo to make way for palm-oil plantations), gets to host this thing. Anyway, it’s on and it’s a crucial opportunity for Australia to finally join the global community in the leadership and action needed to avoid dangerous climate change.

Why’s climate change such an important issue again?

If global average temperatures go above two degrees here in Australia our agriculture and tourism sectors will be badly hit. We'll face more severe bushfires, droughts, and water shortages. There'll be more disease risk and heat stress, costly damage to infrastructure and low lying housing, and even put the Great Barrier Reef at high risk.

For more nightmares read the WWF’s Dangerous Aspirations: Beyond 3 Degrees Warming report.

What is this Bali Conference all about?

1. This year’s scientific report from the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has made clear beyond doubt that climate change is a reality and can seriously harm the future development of our economies, societies and eco-systems worldwide.
   
   
2. Immediate action is needed to be able to prevent the most severe impacts.
   
   
3. Since climate change is a global issue, tackling climate change and its impacts can only be successfully coordinated at the international level. The UN Framework on Climate Change presents the appropriate forum to do this. It has been expanded by the Kyoto Protocol which includes emission reduction commitments for developed countries over the period 2008–2012.
   
   
4. A new international climate change deal must be put in place in time to ensure that necessary action is undertaken immediately after 2012 when the current phase of the Kyoto Protocol ends. Therefore, comprehensive negotiations on a new climate deal need to begin without further delay. At the Bali Conference, Parties are expected to agree to the launch of this process.
   

What can the Bali conference deliver? (and what not)

The main goal of the Bali Conference is to deliver this necessary breakthrough and get negotiations going on a new international climate change agreement. The Bali Conference will not deliver a fully negotiated and agreed climate deal but is aimed to set the necessary wheels in motion. If you’re into the machinations of international climate change bureaucracy you can watch the webcast of the plenary sessions and press conferences.

We voted in a new greener* Government what can we do now?

Stay together - stay focused! Coincidentally I had a great meeting with the ACF today and they had some ideas for The Body Shop staff, customers and you out there, whoever you are, reading this blog who want to get active with like-minded people passionate about climate change:

• Find a climate action group in your local community or start your own! This grass-roots Climate Movement is run by the Conservation Councils in each state and territory. (I’ve even stumbled upon a Your Water Your Say Action Group if your environmental passion is watery).
  
  
• There’s also the awesome Australian Youth Climate Coalition, which even has a delegation in Bali right now -read their blog.
  
  
• If you care about climate change don’t forget to take a few minutes to put yourself on the Who On Earth Cares map. Try zooming into your street to see if any of your neighbours care too.

Adam Valvasori - Values Manager


*we hope

Community Project: Debutante Ball

On Oct 3rd, the Victorian Office of the Child Safety Commissioner, in partnership with youth outreach agencies, organised the inaugural Debutante Ball for young people in Out of Home Care. That is children who can not live with their own families. The young people involved were either wards of the State or in foster care arrangements and have often missed out on many of the 'rites of passage' events that many of us take for granted.

The Body Shop's People Team were fortunate to be invited to help the girls in their preparation on the night, doing their makeup, fixing hair, calming nerves and generally getting them ready for this event, for which they had been preparing all year. They were presented to Victorian Premier John Brumby and his wife Rosemary.

By all accounts the night went off beautifully and it was a pleasure for our team to help out.


Louisa Wallace - People & Values Manager

Who said Hula-Hooping isn't fun?

Probably no-one, but I can honestly say that I have witnessed the fun to be had (and skill required) whilst hula hooping, first hand. And this was my favourite part of volunteering at Children on the Edge in Aceh, Indonesia. Watching the beautiful girls running around the centre, wearing their compulsory Muslim Jilbab, hula-hooping. They would hula-hoop the afternoon away, whilst casually walking around, chatting to each other and even racing each other, all whilst hula hooping. They looked so natural and barely even moved; the hoop just effortlessly whirled around their waists. These girls were about 8 or 9 years old with tiny frames, and these hula hoops were heavy. Its no wonder they are so good, the threat of a dropping the heavy hoops on your toes is reason enough to improve your skills.

These kids, put simply, are amazing. Surviving the 2004 tsunami means they have lived through seeing some horrible things and probably lost family and friends. Yet, seeing these kids in action, whether it be hula-hooping, playing on the swings, chasing a soccer ball or making a paper plate mask, you would never pick this. Rebuilding an area that was pretty much wiped out has been a long and troublesome process for the thousands left homeless and initiatives like the Child and Community Centre are taking another step in this process. Instead of just putting bricks and mortar into place, they are rebuilding the heart and soul of the community through play.

Experiencing this and contributing to this healing process was an incredible experience. Teaching the kids new activities and hearing stories of how much they have bloomed since the centre opened made me realise why I was there. Would I go back? Definitely. Would I recommend you to volunteer on or get involved in fundraising for the next playscheme? Hell Y.E.S!



Liz Yeo - Marketing Chic

Aceh Indonesia - Children on the Edge

Pipecleaner glasses were a big hit with the Kindergarten kids!

Photo: Kerry Robinson

Children on the Edge are an amazing organisation (founded by The Body Shop founder Anita Roddick) that I am proud to have lent my time to for over four years now!

Usually participating in the East Timor Playscheme’s, it was really exciting for me to take part in my 6th Playscheme in Aceh, Indonesia!! The center is incredible! The teachers and are very organized and really focused on the needs of the kids. It was beautiful to witness the effect the centre has on so many people in a community severely affected by the Tsunami, and to see that even though it’s all about the kids it is also so much more!

This latest "Playscheme" involved volunteers from four different countries who came loaded with arts and crafts supplies to get involved in activities with both the kids and the teachers.

Watch this space for more stories on Children on the Edge in Aceh and East Timor!

Kerry Robinson - Playscheme Leader - Children on the Edge

Cleaning up Jells Park

It was a beautiful sunny day and the staff from The Body Shop were off to clean up Jells Park. We were armed with rubber gloves, tongs and our big white bags.

The morning shift set to task tidying up the car park where all manner of unsavory events appeared to occur. The afternoon shift were fortunate enough to have the tidier side of the park to clean, mainly focused on remnants of picnics passed.

At the end of the day we were dirty, but very pleased with the fantastic amount of rubbish collected. Certainly a job well done.