Books & Wanderlust Is a Featured Charity On WorkerAnts.com

Online, November 12, 2014 (Newswire.com) - Many sources agree that there has been a marked decline in people who read for pleasure.  The US National Endowment for the Arts said in its 2007 paper, To Read or Not To Read: A Question of National Consequence, that “As Americans, especially younger Americans, read less, they read less well.  Because they read less well they have lower levels of academic achievement. With lower levels of reading and writing ability, people do less well in the job market.  Poor reading skills correlate heavily with lack of employment, lower wages, and fewer opportunities for advancement.”   In 2014, the Pew Research Center reported that nearly a quarter of American adults had not read a single book in the past year.

Reading has declined in children, college students and adults and children in minority and poverty stricken areas are particularly affected by this plight as lack of access to reading materials increases the likelihood that a child or an adult will not read for pleasure.  Reading should not be a luxury.  The impact of reduced literacy on individual achievement and society’s advancement as a whole is a problem for any nation that suffers from low literacy skills or lack of access to reading materials.

So how can this problem be combatted?  What can be done to help fight the rising tide of poor reading skills and create an environment where people love to read? Make literacy an international priority and access to books on a local level.  

One organization that is making access to books and learning a priority is Books&Wanderlust.  Founded by Kimberly James, Books&Wanderlust is a non-profit dedicated to helping minorities and the underprivileged gain access to the world through books and travel. Kim is an English professor at Santa Monica College who has seen over and over again how limiting the lack of access to materials is for people struggling to learn and grow.  She has also seen how the mindset that comes with poverty can cause people to believe that travel and education are not realistic or useful. She has seen students who can’t afford text books and drop out of school and kids who live in Los Angeles but have never been to the beach, which is only 20 minutes away.  By founding Books & Wanderlust she seeks to give people the opportunity to grow and think beyond their current limitations by providing funding for readers, writers and travelers.  Kim’s premise is simple: people need to have access to the world in order to understand it. 

This month Books & Wanderlust is a featured charity on WorkerAnts.com.  Read all about the organization in Kim’s own words, here, to understand why she founded it and where she wants it to go.  Be inspired by her passion for solving a critical issue and by her vision of the world.

Also, find and support other charities that fight for literacy and promote reading by going to the WorkerAnts global charity search and looking under the category “Literacy and Learning.” 

The purpose of WorkerAnts.com is to connect charities, volunteers and activists.  It is a charity network that creates a place where people can collaborate, share best practices, and see hope in the ways people around the world are striving to make this world a better place.  They give people a place to be heard.

There are a million ways to do good.  WorkerAnts.com recognizes and values each one.