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Campus Bulletin

December 07, 2006

Books for Africa Drive Under Way

U of G’s second annual “Books for Africa” book drive is on now through Dec. 15.Students, faculty, staff and community members are invited to drop off used books and textbooks at on-campus bookstores and in the University Centre. The books help libraries and schools in Africa.

“Last year was our first year having the book drive, and it couldn’t have been more successful,” says Erin Frank, the co-executive chair and public relations director for the U of G drive. “We collected and shipped enough books to Better World Books to stock 15 school libraries in Tanzania.”

The drive also generated $2,200 (Guelph received 50 cents for every textbook collected that was published after 1999), which was donated to two selected charities: Habitat for Humanity and Best Buddies, which provides friendship and employment opportunities to intellectually disabled individuals.

“It’s amazing how, by working together, we can positively impact education,” Frank says. The drive is an initiative organized through Better World Books, a U.S.-based literacy organization that collects books and sells some of them to raise money to ship texts abroad where they’re needed most.

According to the Better World Books, 100 qualifying books donated can fund the shipment of 400 books, enough for an entire classroom in Africa. A thousand books collected translates into a shipment of 4,000 books, which provides enough material for four school libraries.

“Not only is this a great way to dispose of unwanted books and old textbooks, but it’s also a great way to reduce the volume of books going to landfill,” says Frank.

The Books for Africa drive will operate alongside the buyback locations in both campus bookstores and in the University Centre. The drive will resume at the beginning of the winter semester.

For more details or to inquire about making large donations, contact Frank at efrank@uoguelph.ca or co-executive chair Ana Perkovic at aperkovi@uoguelph.ca.