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Pacific Trafficking in Persons Forum 2011

Tue, 13 Dec 2011 16:33:00 +1300

We were invited to attend The Pacific Trafficking in Persons Forum in Wellington in December. This was the second time the forum has taken place. It brings together the top organizations from the Pacific region working towards the elimination of human trafficking. This was a huge privilege for us and we got to mix and mingle with the best!

We débuted our human trafficking resource here and it received high praise from those attending. This is a huge encouragement for us, and a sign that we’re heading in the right direction. Close to 100 resource packs were taken by people attending the conference. This means that people from all over New Zealand, Australia, Fiji, Tonga, and even the United States have our resource packs in their hands to read over and share with colleagues. This is a great start for us.

During these two days, we formed some invaluable contacts and got to show off the results of our hard work. Key people working to eliminate human trafficking in the Pacific region know who The Préscha Initiative is, and more importantly, like what we do!

New Website

Tue, 13 Dec 2011 16:26:00 +1300

We know, we know, our website is looking a wee bit dated. It has served us well thus far, but it’s time for bigger and better things.

We’re in the process of getting a shiny new website designed. Once this is done, you’ll be able to find all the latest news about what we’re doing and you’ll even be able to download your own copy of our human trafficking resource pack!

Keep an eye out for it; it’s going to be exciting!

Préscha Journals

Tue, 13 Dec 2011 16:00:00 +1300

For those of you who have been lucky enough to see the prototype journals, we know you fell in love with them and wanted to know how you could get your hands on one.

This is one of our projects that combines making the most amazing looking journal with learning about human trafficking. We haven’t forgotten about them, but good things take time!

We’re really sorry to keep you waiting, but we can assure you, they will come eventually, and they’ll be worth it!

Human Trafficking Resource

Thu, 01 Dec 2011 16:36:00 +1300

We have been busily working on a human trafficking resource for secondary school teachers all year long and it is finally finished! You can downloading it HERE. This resource provides an overview of human rights, human trafficking and modern day slavery. We have designed it to comply with New Zealand’s level 5 curriculum requirements for social sciences.

Although targeted at years 9 and 10, this is the perfect introduction to human trafficking from a New Zealand perspective. This will be available on our website in the New Year. We ask that you’d keep an eye out for it and distribute it widely once you get your hands on it!

We are hugely passionate about education. There are still so many people that have no idea that this form of slavery still exists today, even happening in our own back yard. This puts people at greater risk as they have no idea of the tricks and deception used by traffickers. There is a huge need for the education of human trafficking in this country and we believe our human trafficking resource is exactly what teachers in this country need to get their hands on.

Collective Research

Mon, 08 Aug 2011 16:28:00 +1200

Earlier this year, Préscha was asked to join with Hagar New Zealand, ECPAT Child ALERT, and The Social Policy and Parliamentary Unit of the Salvation Army NZ to conduct research into human trafficking in New Zealand. There is very little information available and this makes it difficult to know where to focus efforts to stop it happening. The research has begun, but we encountered a few difficulties and so the remainder has been delayed until next year.

This is an exciting opportunity for us to be involved in, and an honour to work among the top anti-human trafficking organizations in New Zealand.

Préscha Information Pack

Fri, 13 May 2011 09:44:00 +1200

Get yourselves ready for...

The Préscha information pack provides an overview of human trafficking and modern day slavery. It is aimed at high school students but can be used by people of all ages.

This document has been created with the New Zealand high school curriculum in mind. We are currently working with teachers to get this ready so it will be easy to incorporate into a teaching environment. It is aimed at level 5 in the New Zealand curriculum which translates to years 9 and 10.

A pre-release version of the Préscha information pack was débuted at the BYM Northern Eastercamp 2011, so some of you got to get a sneak peek at this.

We hope to have the full version ready for you soon, keep your eyes peeled!

Eastercamp 2011 – Follow-up

Thu, 12 May 2011 10:17:00 +1200

We were lucky enough to have a stall in the village at the BYM Northern Eastercamp 2011. This was such a highlight for us as we got to see people interacting with the idea of human trafficking, many for the first time.

Our Préscha information packs on human trafficking were also on show for the weekend. These are a great resource for learning about the basics of what trafficking is, perfect for schools or groups. We are currently working with teachers to see if our information packs can be used as part of the NZ school curriculum so have not published these to our website, but we will soon so keep an eye out for these in the near future.

Again, a huge thank you to Annie Blackberry who made so many amazing necklaces for us. These were a huge hit and we hope all people who bought necklaces can have them serve as a reminder of human trafficking and the hope of having this injustice eliminated!

We loved meeting you all, your questions, your interest and your desire to do something to stop trafficking happening. So if you saw us at Eastercamp 2011 (or wish you had), don’t forget to find out more and respond creatively!

To check out more photos of the event click here

Prescha at Easter Camp 2011!

Sat, 09 Apr 2011 09:24:00 +1200

Prescha is going to be at Easter Camp - Mystery Creek this year. Whoop!!

We are going to be running a stall in the village that will be interactive with lots of human trafficking information, facts and resources for you to take away.

Our team will be there for you to talk to if you have any human trafficking questions or want to know how YOU can get involved. We look forward to seeing you there!

On a side note - have you thought about fairtrade easter eggs this year? Check out the Fairtrade website to see what you should be buying.

Hydrate 2011

Sat, 26 Feb 2011 10:33:00 +1300

Prescha are running a cafe at Hydrate again this year! We are STOKED to have the opportunity to raise some money for our projects and chat to you about human trafficking.

This year we will be serving SUPREME fairtrade organic coffee. This brew is DELICIOUS and the crew from Supreme have generously donated all the coffee and cups to Prescha to use at Hydrate! We are so blown away by this generosity. Thanks Supreme!!

We are passionate about fair trade coffee. What does fair trade mean to us? Not exploiting labourers. Paying workers a fair price for what they do. Does this relate to human trafficking? Heck yes!

Check out our menu for Hydrate below. Remember it is CASH ONLY.

We are also going to be selling Annie Blackberry's Prescha necklaces. Annie is also designing some "one offs" (similar to these) with a freedom theme for this event! Bring some cash to purchase these super cool necklaces. All proceeds to Prescha to help fund our projects for 2011! Thanks Annie!!

SEE YOU AT HYDRATE!!

She Has A Name

Thu, 24 Feb 2011 11:52:00 +1300

Andrew Kooman has once again used Art as Justice. He has skillfully written a play - SHE HAS A NAME - that tells of one of the greatest human rights abuses in a simple, stunning and effective way.

She Has A Name is a story about number 18 - a young woman who is trafficked for sex and a young lawyer who tries to rescue her.

The story was Inspired by an event in April of 2008 in which an abandoned storage container was found in Thailand containing 121 workers from Burma, 54 of them dead.

Andrew Kooman’s She Has A Name dramatically gives human trafficking a face.

Make sure you go and see this play if you are in Red Deer or Alberta. We love that Andrew is using what is in his hand - his talent and expertise to raise awareness of human trafficking. Big ups from us!

Annie Blackberry

Wed, 23 Feb 2011 11:03:00 +1300

Annie Blackberry continues to support Préscha with her fantastic necklaces! Check out the beautiful range she designed for our Holly night. Her necklaces are available to purchase SOON on our website. We applaud Annie for using her creativity to provoke thought and awareness about issues close to Préscha’s heart. Annie will be creating a one-off “freedom line” for Hydrate so look out for them if you’re going! Our friends ECPAT, standing for "(End Child Prostitution, Pornography and Trafficking") have a deal going at the moment. Sign up to their FACEBOOK PAGE and be into win a Préscha necklace! We encourage you to support ECPAT - they are doing good things. Their vision and purpose is similar to Préscha's!

Ariel and Nathan

Wed, 08 Dec 2010 11:31:00 +1300

Préscha was invited to speak at an evening full of beautiful melodies and thought provoking lyrics at Eastwest College in Gordonton. Ariel and Nathan Lauridsen, who were both the organisers and musicians, planned this evening with the intention of drawing the crowd’s attentions toward the issue of human trafficking. Setting the scene for such a sombre topic using their musical talents meant that people left the event entertained and informed rather than just informed and overwhelmed. With a heart for social justice, I’m sure it won’t be long until we see another event like this from these two.

Check Ariel out on myspace

Holly night!

Mon, 13 Sep 2010 11:42:00 +1200

We held a movie night in August showcasing “Holly” — a movie about a girl in Cambodia who was trafficked forsex. It displayed an amazing insight into the subtlety of trafficking in South East Asia. Nearly 100 people attend the event, many of whom were learning about trafficking for their first time.We served popcorn and fair-trade chocolate, kindly donated by Whittakers, and had cold drinks for sale.

Thanks Whittakers!

The purpose of this night was to raise awareness of human trafficking. We had flyers on chairs showing statistics and stories on human trafficking. We had positive feedback from this event and have encouraged individuals to host their own “Holly” night in their communities.

Some photos below:

Holly Movie Night

Tue, 17 Aug 2010 13:15:00 +1200

August 27
7.30pm til 10pm
Wintec Hub

corner Angelsea Street and Collingwood Street, Hamilton

$10

Prescha Charitable Trust is holding an educational movie night, which aims to create awareness around the issue of modern day slavery and human trafficking.

We will be screening the movie titled "Holly". This movie is about a man set out to rescue a 12 year old girl sold by her family and smuggled across the Cambodian border to work as a prostitute.

Tickets will cost $10 and will be sold on the night. (CASH ONLY)
Popcorn and information packs will be provided.

Hope to see you there!

Préscha necklaces!

Mon, 31 May 2010 14:01:00 +1200

The talented Annie Blackberry has designed a necklace exclusively for The Préscha Initiative!! Annie aspires to design jewellery that has a purpose. We were amazed that she designed a bird and cage which was coincidentally the symbol we had only just decided upon to be our logo.

Annie says about her newly designed prescha necklace:

"The cage represents the bondage that many of us live in. The bird is the hope that we can be free from this bondage. The cage serves as a reminder that what has happened to us will never fully go away, but in time, the bird, full of hope and dreams for the future will outgrow the cage and become larger and larger and the bondage (cage) will increasingly be minimised as healing takes place."

Necklaces can be purchased for $29 on trademe and will be coming to our online store soon! All proceeds go to The Prescha Initiative toward the elimination of human trafficking.

If you would like to place an order please email annieblackberry@hotmail.com

Photo copyrite to The Smile Book. 1979 Shree Media Productions Pty Limited ISBN: 0 9595084 0 6

prescha hearts recycle jeans

Thu, 29 Apr 2010 11:12:00 +1200

Recycle Jeans in a new company that we stumbled upon... and we love it!
The concept is... trade in your old jeans and get a discount off new ones. It helps you get rid of your old jeans and clothes, letting you buy new ones that you'll actually wear. The flip side to you wearing your nice new threads is that your old ones are donated off to charitable organisations, and end up being worn by someone who actually needs them. If the clothing you send them back is so tatty no one would want to wear it then the fabric is re-manufactured into something new, and if they're really, really bad then they are turned into rags. AWESOME.
Check out their website and jump on board!

Hydrate

Sat, 24 Apr 2010 15:01:00 +1200

On the 6th and 7th March HYDRATE made it's debut. Hydrate is a worship event with the idea of a day away from the noise of life, a day to chill out in nature, join with others in worship, be refreshed, explore God, enjoy the space, listen, and see what happens.

The Prescha Initiative was fortunate to be invited to run a café over the weekend to raise awareness of human trafficking and a little money too!

To check out some photos of the event click here

Snap Printing Tauranga

Fri, 05 Mar 2010 09:40:00 +1300

Big ups to Snap Printing Tauranga!!! Thanks for sponsoring our fliers, you guys are amazing!
Check out their website for all your printing needs!

Prescha on Facebook

Thu, 07 Jan 2010 21:32:00 +1300

You can become a fan of prescha on facebook! Search for "prescha" to find us. Join this group to be updated with events that are taking place and current articles in the news on trafficking.

Creative Response Launched!

Thu, 07 Jan 2010 21:27:00 +1300

Prescha is passionate about people interacting with the issue of human trafficking. How does human trafficking influence you? What is your creative response to this issue? We encourage painters, poets, song-writers, movie makers to upload your art in response to human trafficking. We also want to hear from people who are creatively responding in other ways. If you have run an event or used your skills and talents to help people who have been trafficked, we want to hear from you! Please upload your experience or a video showing what you did!