Five years ago, in response to the hyper-consumerism of November’s ‘Black Friday’ and ‘Cyber Monday’ – the biggest shopping days of the year in much of the Western world – a movement was started in the US to create an international day of giving, to be held every year on the last Tuesday in November. #givingtuesday has now spread to over 70 countries and has become one of the year’s most important days for British charities, raising millions of pounds for good causes.
In the UK, #givingtuesday is promoted by the Charities Aid Foundation, who run a series throughout each year called The Good ‘Uns. This features 8 ordinary people doing amazing things for charity, as way to inspire the rest of us to do our own ‘good stuff’ for charity, both on the day and through the year.
Naturally, we were thrilled when CAF asked if they could include Ecologia’s dedicated supporter Simon Clark in their series for 2017. Since last Easter, Simon has been running around the coast of mainland Britain in support of our work with vulnerable and marginalised children and young people, and has now covered over 3,500 miles and raised nearly £11,000, all while keeping up with his architectural design work on his laptop! It is wonderful that his efforts are being recognised nationally and we hope you will share his story to encourage him on over the last leg of his journey. To read more about what inspired Simon to take on his incredible challenge, scroll down to The Good ‘Uns on #GivingTuesday’s ‘What Can I Do’ page.
Join our dedicated team of volunteers and experience the joy of giving back, while making a meaningful impact in the lives of individuals and the community
Your contribution has the power to make a difference in the lives of those in need, enabling us to continue our vital work and create positive change
“Building a world where every young person thrives.”
Ecologia Youth Trust supports children and young people to shape their futures sustainably. Keep up to date with our activities and projects by following us on social media!
Subscribe to our emails today to receive our latest news, updates, and inspiring stories.
*Names have been changed according to our child protection policy.
Subscribe to our emails today to receive our latest news, updates, and inspiring stories.
Susie has 30+ experience as a creative copywriter, editor, and proofreader, starting out as a 20-year-old copywriter in the Mad Men world of early 1990s advertising in South Africa. Ever since, she’s had a love affair with creative conceptualisation, thinking outside of the box, writing to a deadline, and being thrown in the deep end!
She took an MSc in Publishing at Edinburgh Napier University as a mature student, in 2015, and continues to keep herself busy working as a copy-editor, proofreader and copywriter in book publishing, corporate communications, and publishing project management.
Apart from her love of working with independent authors, Susie has a fondness for working in the third sector and likes to use her corporate communications and marketing experience to support projects close to her heart. She has lived and worked in the Findhorn area for 25 years, and has been involved in a number of third sector projects and organisations, and family businesses.
Working at Ecologia Youth Trust helps Susie to live in integrity with her values of supporting the next generation to be the best that they can be, and she sees it as a way to give back to Mama Africa, the beloved continent on which she was born.
Ellen joined the Ecologia team in June 2018 as Marketing and Communications Manager. Ellen has lived in Scotland for 6 years and has worked for non-profit and charitable organisations across varied fields. She currently shares her passion for helping young people through Ecologia Youth Trust and she works as a dancer and dance teacher in her spare time.
Robyn is the Associate Director of International Projects, having previously worked within the team as a Project Development and Marketing Officer from April 2019 until May 2021. As Associate Director, Robyn is co-leading the International side of Ecologia with Founder and Director, Liza Hollingshead, bringing a new energy into Ecologia as they look towards the future of the charity.
Liza is the founder of Ecologia and Director of International Projects. She was born and educated in South Africa and worked there as a high school teacher. She moved to live in the Findhorn Community in 1974. She started Ecologia in 1995 after being introduced to Dmitry Morozov, the founder of Kitezh Children’s Community in Russia, and was inspired to support the community in its mission to rescue orphaned children from institutions and give them homes, families and education in a supportive environment.
This led to projects supporting disadvantaged youth and children in South East Asia and in East Africa. TRead more about Liza’s story here.
