Looking for a Room to Read

A lot of us take books very lightly. We are secure in the fact that we can access them in libraries, over the internet or just by buying the book. But let me tell you of a man who discovered how valuable books and education really are.

A teacher in Nepal said something that caused a successful driven young man to radically alter his life and devote it to changing the world. The unnamed teacher was showing around a young American who was trekking across Nepal and had chanced upon their small Himalayan village.

The teacher eagerly showed the young American around and brought him to his school where he proudly showed off their library. In the library the books were considered treasures and kept under lock and key, all 20 of them. What was even more astounding was that many of the books were left over by backpackers and trekkers, discarded after reading, unnecessary weight for the backpacks.

The headmaster valued education very much and told the American, “We are too poor to afford education.” He continued, “ But until we have education, we will always be poor.” The American tourist was deeply affected by those words, and made a vow to do what he can to help.

When he got back, he began emailing friends to donate used books for that school. What began as a sincere desire to do his part eventually blossomed into an organization that has created a big positive impact in many parts of Asia. That man is John Wood, founder of Room to Read, a nonprofit group that builds schools and libraries for children in Asia.

John gave a very successful career in Microsoft spanning almost the whole of the nineties. He has held several positions such as the positions of Director of Marketing for the Asia-Pacific Division, Director of the Internet Customer Unit as well as Director of Marketing for Microsoft Australia. He gave up the financial certainty and security of a successful corporate career to devote himself to bringing change thru education in some of the poorest parts of the world.

Today Room to Read, has grown into an award winning non-profit foundation has established over 7,500 libraries, donated and published 6 million books, built over 830 schools, and funded over 8,800 long-term scholarships for girls - impacting the lives of over 3.1 million students worldwide. And that is just over the span of nine years.           

John has also received a lot of honors for his work, including recognition as a "Young Global Leader" by the World Economic Forum as well as recognition as one of Time Magazine's "Asian Heroes." Room to Read is a five-time recipient of Fast Company Magazine's Social Capitalist Award, as well as the Skoll Foundation Award for Social Innovation, and a recipient of Draper Richards Fellowship for social entrepreneurs.

We need to find our own local versions of John Wood who would also devote their time and energy to help impact the reach as well as the quality of education in our country. I myself am very inspired by Senator Benigno Aquino’s making education as one of the critical issues as well as foundation for his platform.

John Wood wrote that, “if you get education right, you get many things right: escape from poverty, better family health, and improved status of women.” Why the focus on women? John believed that when you properly educate a girl, you also educate her future children as well as the generations that follow.

I think we do need to look at how we are educating our children, because in order for change to happen, people have to understand the issues as well as the solutions needed. Thru education, we can ensure that the best and the brightest will be harnessed to work for the future of this country. People like John Wood and Efren Peñaflorida are showing us of how great things can arise from small sincere actions. Let us find our way to each doing our part.

Let’s follow the examples of these ordinary individuals as they strive to make a difference. Each week, lets all get together and share knowledge, stories, experiences, information, all for the sole purpose of getting One Step Up.

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