World Retina Day, an initiative of Retina Australia, is designed to raise awareness of blindness, specifically, Retinitis Pigmentosa and other retinal dystrophies. Prompted by the Executive Team's interest in supporting a charity organisation that Golden Key had not previously assisted, our Community Service Director, Amar Germani, took the initiative to contact Retina Australia to see whether Golden Key's members could assist the charity in some way.

Although Retina Australia had not permitted any other university groups to become involved in their fundraising efforts, Amar's enthusiasm and willingness to help persuaded Retina Australia to allow Golden Key to become involved in selling owl badges.

So - who gives 'two hoots about eyesight'? It is testament to Amar's persistence that he was able to sell 250 of the badges with the assistance of several members of the GK Executive, raising a total of $545.90 for Retina Australia. Well done, Amar.

This kind of selfless community service is exactly the kind of thing that we would like to see in more of our Golden Key members. We look forward to seeing more of you at our next charity fundraiser. Keep an eye out for details - we would love to see you there!

Emma Leung
President 2004-2005

In what has become quite a tradition, the Sydney University chapter of Golden Key has once again provided its enthusiastic support for the Cancer Council's annual 'Daffodil Day'. August 20th was the day that saw 33 Golden Key volunteers kindly offering their assistance at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital.

For some it was an early start, it was a testament to the commitment of the group that six people volunteered to start their shift at the bright and early hour of 7am. Onwards into the day the numbers of volunteers increased and during each one to two hour block there would be a number of volunteers at the prominently placed stand, as well as pairs of volunteers who circumnavigated the hospital in search of willing donors.

Over $4,400 was raised on the day at the RPA site, this was thanks to the fine coordination and awareness fostered by the Cancer Council, the eager volunteers, the generous donors, and of course the dazzling range of merchandise, the favourites of which were the 'Dougal Bear' the stuffed soccer balls. Of course the fresh Daffodils were a favourite as well, the reason for a daffodil, as we were informed is that the daffodil is the international symbol of hope, and 'hope' was the central feature of this year'ms campaign, which had the catch line of "I believe we can defeat cancer in my lifetime".

The goal of the Cancer Council this year is to raise over $3.5 million in NSW alone, and with over 4,000 volunteers at 87 sites on Daffodil Day, this target looks set to be achieved.

Thank you to all the volunteers who so willingly offered time out of busy schedules, Cancer is a concern that touches each and every one of us in some way, so it is encouraging and heartening to know that so many people are committed to finding a cure to this condition. With the support and awareness that was shown on August 20th, I am confident that we are closer than ever to that end.

Amar Germani
Community Service Officer 2004

On May 7, 2004, the Sydney University Chapter of Golden Key held a Forum in order to promote community awareness of the major health crisis which is facing many Indigenous Australians today. Four experts in the field of Aboriginal health were invited to speak at this on-campus forum: Mr Jeff McMullen (former ABC foreign correspondent on "4 Corners"; and Channel 9 "Sixty Minutes" reporter, currently a Director of Ian Thorpe's Fountain for Youth Trust); Dr Shane Hearn (first Aboriginal lecturer appointed permanently to Sydney University's School of Public Health); Dr Kelvin Kong (from the Indigenous Doctors' Association); and finally, Ms Olga Havnen (Head of Indigenous Projects for the Fred Hollows Foundation). Almost a hundred Golden Key members, students and academics from universities from all over Sydney, as well as members of the public (including several Indigenous representatives) attended this event.

Phoebe Poon
Newsletter Editor 2003-2004

A Health Emergency in Australia's Backyard

How many of us know that Aboriginal babies die at three times the rate of the rest of our children from illnesses and diseases that were largely eliminated from the rest of our country decades ago? Do we realize that Aboriginal people have the lowest life expectancy of any indigenous people within a "first world" country? Or maybe that a devastating cluster of chronic illnesses (renal failure, strokes, heart disease, hypertension and diabetes), known as "Syndrome X," leads to a death rate more than five times the national average? A human crisis is happening in our own backyard, but hardly anyone knows about it because it isn't on the front of our newspapers.

Ian Thorpe's Fountain for Youth is currently working to help alleviate this health emergency facing Aboriginal children in the remote communities east of Katherine in the Northern Territory. In the hope of giving all children every opportunity to live a fulfilling and healthy life, the Fountain for Youth Trust in partnership with the Fred Hollows Foundation, aims to do more than throw money into this remote outback community. These organizations are committed to listening to and educating the people of East Katherine so that they can develop their own health program.

So where does Golden Key come in? As our major community project this year (and hopefully, in years to come), Golden Key is holding an Indigenous Health Forum on Wednesday, May 5, 2004. The main goal is to promote social awareness of this shocking health crisis to both indigenous and nonindigenous people, starting within the academic community of Sydney University (as well as UNSW and Macquarie University). The speakers at this forum include Jeff McMullen (formerly a journalist from "60 Minutes," but now the Director of the Fountain for Youth Trust), Olga Havnen (from the Fred Hollows Foundation), and Shane Hearn (Senior Lecturer in Sydney University's School of Public Health). All three speakers are experts in the field of indigenous health - they know that Aboriginal children need to be educated, but perhaps more importantly, the Australian public also needs to know. What better way to break the great national silence on Aboriginal health than to inform students and academics about how they can help, simply by being active and vocal? Through this forum, you can also find out how to help on other practical levels - for example, donating your old childhood comic books can be the first step in improving the literacy of one Aboriginal child, denied access to the educational opportunities that university students have had.

This event will be held on-campus at Sydney University on May 5, 5-7pm. Refreshments will be served at the end, and there are plenty of opportunities for you to direct questions and opinions to the speakers, during and after the formal proceedings of the forum. At this stage, please note down in your diaries to keep that date free! Spread the word - EVERYONE, absolute everyone, is welcome, not just Golden Key members!

Phoebe Poon
Newsletter Editor 2003-2004