About

What is this?
Starting from 9:00 pm GMT on Friday 27 March 2009, I plan to blog every half hour for 24 hours in aid of the Red Cross Victorian Bushfires Relief Fund 2009 and Wildlife Victoria. This is blatantly inspired by Blogathon, which I’ve previously participated in. Think of it as a marathon, except instead of running (because I can’t!), I will be staying up late and posting lots of interesting stuff.

Why?
1. The bushfires in Victoria on Saturday, February 7th 2009, now known as the Black Saturday fires, were the most devastating that Australia has ever seen. There have been 210 confirmed deaths and around 500 injured – so far. This does not include people who are still missing.

2. Over 5,000 homes and structures have been destroyed along with acres of land. A few towns have been completely wiped out, most notably Marysville and much of Kinglake. An estimated 7,500 people are now homeless.

3. The destruction of massive expanses of bushland has also had a vastly devastating effect on the wildlife and natural environment of Victoria. Millions of animals are estimated to have been killed and 7 wildlife shelters have been lost. Wildlife Victoria is appealing for help in their search, rescue, treatment and rehabilitation of native animals left injured, homeless and starving.

On a more personal note: Australia is kind of my 2.5th home (the UK being the 2.0th). My family’s been living there for four years now, and the brief few months every year I spend in the country have been bright spots in my university life, not least because it (well, Sydney, at least) is simply, really, a great place. Although I’ve never been to Victoria personally, my family owns property in Melbourne and I know people from there. The Black Saturday fires hit really close to home, somehow. There are tragedies, there are national emergencies, there are international crises, and then there are the few that just get you right in the heart and leave you feeling completely shaken. This was one of them for me.

How does it work?
Short answer: I blog, and you donate to the Red Cross.

Long answer: I’m going to do this old-school Blogathon style, which means no money passes through my hands. Makes things simpler and more straightforward for everyone. All donations are greatly appreciated and to be made directly to the Australian Red Cross at this page: Donations. If you are in the UK and would prefer to donate via the British Red Cross (to avoid annoying currency exchange problems), this is where you do it: Australian Bushfires Appeal. Alternatively, if you would prefer your donation to be channelled directly into helping the wildlife of Victoria, you can donate to Wildlife Victoria.

Following which, please take a moment to fill out this contact form and let me know how much you’ve donated to which organisation. I will keep a record of the donation total and update the summary page.

UK-based people who do not own a credit card and can’t donate online: you can bank transfer me the donation or send me a cheque and I will forward it on in full. Please contact me for more details.

Singapore-based people: I attempted to find a way you could donate in SGD but wasn’t successful, thus I’ve only linked to the British and Australian Red Cross websites.

What on earth are you going to blog about for 24 hours?
Something that is hopefully interesting, and that I’ve personally wanted to do for a while since moving to London – so it’s a win-win situation all round!

The plan is to photo-blog a tour of untouristy London: the parts of the capital which lie off the beaten track, places of interest that most people don’t realise are even there, and general little less-documented curiosities. I’ve spent 1.5 days out on foot round the city over the past weekend. and over the 24 hours of blogging here you will be able to revel in the photographic fallout + commentary of my expedition.

THE PROVERBIAL CARROT
Supporters who generously donate £20 and above will be emailed a password to access non-public posts with extra content. I promise you this will be the best and most interesting stuff. Stay tuned to the blog for pre-blogathon previews.

Any other questions
…please leave a comment or email me. Thank you!