Walk in Her Shoes on International Women's Day 8 March 2016

CARE Australia’s biggest annual charity event, Walk In Her Shoes is held each year on International Women’s Day on 8th March. The event asks participants to walk from 25km to 100km over a week from 8 to 14 March, to raise much needed funds for women and girls living in poverty, in developing countries.

The Walk in Her Shoes campaign is inspired by the fact that women and girls in developing countries will walk more than six kilometres a day, with up to 20 kilos of additional weight, to collect water, food and firewood to survive. These journeys can be dangerous and prevent women from being employed and prevent girls from getting an education.

New research commissioned by CARE Australia found that almost 70% of Australians feel overwhelmed about the plight of those living in poverty and 80% are concerned their contribution won’t get to people in need. More Australians would contribute if they knew where their donations would be spent and that their contribution made a difference.

89 cents of every dollar raised by CARE Australia is spent on programs in developing countries, including: providing sustainable water and food sources near communities; training village health attendants; and helping CARE Australia to respond in emergency situations.

Furthermore, providing aid to women in developing countries makes a lot of sense because for every one woman who overcomes poverty, four people are also lifted out of poverty. This is because women are much more likely than men, to pass on improvements in their own lives to their children, families and communities.

How far could you carry 20 kilograms?

This year, CARE Australia is aiming to raise $1 million from the “Walk in Her Shoes” event. To participate, simply register at walkinhershoes.org.au then, ask your family, friends and work colleagues to sponsor you. You’ll find more information on how it works on the website.

On the website, you’ll also find walking tips, suggested walks and ways you can help promote the event at your school and via social media.

For people who are unable to walk the distance, you can still participate by volunteering your time to help out at one of the walks, hosting a walk in your area, or by performing some admin tasks for the event.

You can also donate to this worthy cause on the website at walkinhershoes.org.au.