Indigenous Literacy Project

Imagine not being able to read a newspaper, a road sign or directions on a bottle of medication.

Sadly, this is a reality faced by many Indigenous Australians living in remote communities today.

The ILP aimes to raise literacy levels and improve the lives and opportunities of Indigenous Australians living in remote and isolated regions.

Working closely with the Australian Booksellers Association and the Australian Publishers Association, The Fred Hollows Foundation purchases and supplies books and other culturally appropriate learning materials to remote communities where The Foundation works.

With assistance from The Foundation, communities select and order reading material from catalogues provided by The Australian Booksellers Association. They also identify other literacy needs.

This material is supplied to schools, libraries, early learning centres such as crèches, Women's Centres and other identified institutions, to enhance their pool of  literacy resources.

Indigenous Literacy Day is the focal fundraising and awareness raising event of the ILP, being held on Wednesday 2 September 2009.

Businesses especially from the Book Industry, schools, community groups and individuals are invited to participate. There are lots of ways to be a part of Indigenous Literacy Day 2009:

• Participating publishers will donate 5% or more of their takings from titles invoiced on 2 September
• Participating booksellers will donate 5% or more of their takings from 2 September 
• Bookshops and schools will initiate different awareness raising and fundraising activities in their local communities
• Businesses are invited to pause at work and read to support Indigenous literacy and make a gold coin donation.  
• Indigenous Literacy Day events will be held across Australia
• Individuals can attend an event in their local area; buy a book at a participating bookshop on 2 September, or organise their own fundraising activities

For more information on how to get involved, please contact the ILP Manager by email or phone: (02) 9388 0087.

There is an enormous gap between the English literacy rates of Indigenous and non-Indigenous people in Australia. The gap is even wider for Indigenous people living in remote and isolated communities.

Benchmark testing in schools has found that by Year 7, less than one in five children living in very remote Indigenous communities in the Northern Territory can read at the accepted minimum standard.

Low literacy levels are a common and critical barrier to Indigenous people participating in education, employment and community life – opportunities that most Australians take for granted.

Last year the ILP raised an astonishing $300, 000 thanks to the generous support of publishers and booksellers and growing community support from schools, businesses and individuals.

The ILP has expanded considerably in the last 12 months and in 2009 will provide books and literacy resources in the Northern Territory, Queensland, New South Wales, South Australia and Western Australia.

The Prime Minister's wife, Therese Rein became the Project's Patron in 2008.

2004

The fundraising initiative behind the ILP was founded in 2004 with the Riverbend Readers' Challenge (RRC), developed and and managed by Queensland bookshop, Riverbend Books. In its first year, the RRC was taken up by 112 schools and readers of all ages. RRC raised almost $25,000 for the purchase of books for the Literacy for Life Program. Over 38,000 books were read by young Australians for the Challenge.

2005

In 2005 the RRC continued to grow. 160 schools completed the Challenge raising $36,890. Schools registered from Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Western Australia and Tasmania. Individuals registered from all parts of Australia. The 2005 RRC introduced an adult booklist so that parents, teachers and older teenagers were also able to participate. 

This provided funding for communities in the Jawoyn Region in the Northern Territory:  

• 5 Storage cabinets for Women's Centres and Crèches in Jawoyn region ($2,587);
• Shelving for Wugularr Library ($5,500);
• Books purchased for Jawoyn Region communities ($28,802).

2006

Launched in 2006 as The Australian Readers Challenge (ARC), the project successfully raised $78,000. Almost 14,000 people across Australia read to support Indigenous literacy.  The national collective effort of 350 schools, 64 public libraries and 48 bookshops raised funds which were used to purchase publications and learning materials for the communities were The Foundation works.

2007

The ILP raised over $250,000 in 2007 thanks to the support all of the schools, authors, bookshops, publishers, volunteers and other organisations who participated. A special mention must be given to the ILP Committee who generously gave up their time to support the ILP in 2007. THANK YOU!

Andy Griffiths (author of The Big Fat Cow that Goes Kapow! and Ambassador of the ILP) travelled to remote Indigenous communities in the Jawoyn region, located east of Katherine in the Northern Territory, to see the work of the ILP and meet the locals.

> Find out what happened on Andy's trip