Today is Universal Children’s Day, conceived by the United Nations and celebrated around the world.
November 20 marks the date in 1959 that the UN adopted the Declaration of the Rights of the Child, followed by the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989.
For those Google users out there (or more accurately, for all you out there) today’s Google doodle pays tribute to the day, with a cute graphic of “Google” spelled out of building blocks.
If you Google Flight Centre and Make-A-Wish Foundation, you’ll see our commitment to the welfare of children, through sponsorship of this meaningful charity. Since 2003, through Make-A-Wish Foundation, Flight Centre has sent Canadian children with life-threatening health conditions to their dream destinations around the globe, from Disney World to meet Mickey Mouse, to Rome to meet the Pope.
As well as aspiring to help children see the world, we believe in providing travel experiences to families that educate and enlighten youngsters.
According to the UN website, Children’s Day is to promote “worldwide fraternity and understanding between children,” a concept that aligns with our view of travel being an optimal way to promote this awareness.
It’s easy to for so many Canadian children to have “tunnel-vision” when it comes to the plight of their peers in the developing world. Organizations like GoVoluntouring offer excellent tours that foster understanding and empathy in not only kids, but all of us. Update your family’s passports and tour the lost city of Petra, where your kids will sleep under the stars and meet their Bedouin counterparts. Or embark on an exhilarating journey to Borneo, to learn the importance of wilderness conservation and enhanced knowledge of the world at large.
It’s actually “A Small World After All”, and while Disney happily shows us this, it’s also important to have children see this first-hand, at a grassroots level.
If you’re interested in finding out more about family vacations that go beyond your typical sightseeing, contact a Flight Centre Travel Agent today.