Never too young to make a difference

13 March 2009

Not many students conclude their high school career by staging a rock concert in the heart of Sydney. Isadore Biffin (pictured) concedes she really was aiming high when she invited major Australian artists to perform at the concert, which endeavoured to raise funds for a rehabilitation centre for former child soldiers run by JRS in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DCR).

 'I went for gold,' laughs Isadore, explaining how she contacted the managers of high-profile artists such as The John Butler Trio, Missy Higgins and The Whitlams. 'I had a running joke with my family that I could have made a scrapbook out of all of the polite refusals that I got. If I was a big-name artist I probably wouldn't say yes to a 17-year-old who was calling up saying "Will you play at a concert I'm not sure will actually happen?"'

But Isadore's perseverance was rewarded when seven bands - among them The Dawn Collective, Adam Cousens, Tim Ireland and The Shipwrecked - agreed to take part, and thus the Article 39 Concert was born. Named for Article 39 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which provides for the rehabilitation of children who have suffered traumatic events due to armed conflict, the concert started out as Isadore's Year 12 major work.

As a student of a Steiner school in Sydney, she was required to write a 10,000-word thesis, supplemented with a practical component. Leaning towards advocacy, and in a world 'filled with causes', Isadore selected one close to her heart: child soldiers. 'I see it as the worst abuse of every right that every child in the world should have,' she says. She focused her attention on the Democratic Republic of Congo in Africa, where, according to a JRS report, up to 30,000 children have been co-opted into a prolonged civil war. 'It has been such a long, ongoing war, and the world is really only just starting to wake up to the suffering of the people,' says Isadore, referring to the 5.4 million people who have died in the DRC in the past 10 years. 'If you think about that and break it down it's more than 45,000 people a month.'

A JRS-run rehabilitation centre for former child soldiers in the DRC was identified by Isadore as a beneficiary for any profits that might result from the Article 39 Concert. She conceptualised the project's brand with the invaluable help of a mentor and a graphic designer friend, then deftly organised a venue, artists, ticket sales, merchandise and guest speakers-including Associate Professor Steven Freeland, who is Visiting Professional at the International Criminal Court in The Hague. Two-hundred-and-fifty people attended the concert, raising almost $7000 net, an outcome that exceeded Isadore's expectations.

'It was an incredible journey and there were so many people along the way who helped to make it a reality,' she says. Isadore's parents introduced her to social advocacy at a young age. By the time she entered Year 8, she and her friends were putting their gardening and babysitting skills to use to raise money for a school in Bangladesh. 'Our goal was $550, which is enough for schooling for a year in a pre-primary school in Bangladesh. I think we got about $300!' Nurtured by a school that 'is very supportive of being more aware of the world and what's happening as opposed to just focusing on exams and getting the best mark and always trying to be better than everyone else', Isadore organised to do her Year 10 work experience in Ethiopia.

'One of the things I love about volunteering is being able to meet so many other people who are passionate about the same causes, and to have a great time while doing something that will make a tangible difference.' Isadore acknowledges that her advocacy 'won't save everyone', but she hopes that it will both enlighten her peers to the atrocities committed against children and return some of these former child soldiers to a more peaceful existence.

'If you're giving former child soldiers a chance to go back into school and then contribute to their community it really does make a big impact on the large picture.' The JRS-run rehabilitation centre offers the children counselling, medical support and vocational training or the opportunity to attend school. 'It's also giving them a network, integrating them back into their own age-group in a way that is more natural, and giving them a chance to have a childhood,' says Isadore. Isadore insists that there are many young people eager to advocate on behalf of others, but says knowledge and resources are often in short supply. 'Only once we're aware of a situation can we do anything about it.'

Her own journey as 'a crazy Year 12 student with an idea I wasn't sure could happen' has rewarded Isadore with some priceless lessons. 'Even a few months before the concert, nothing had come together. My venue had backed out on me. It was a great lesson for me to see that you have to persevere, and you have to believe that it can happen.'

Isadore is currently taking a gap year, working to save money for university and travel, and volunteering with JRS Australia. She hopes to encourage other young people to get involved in refugee issues and use their talents to make a difference. And she's also determined to stage the second annual Article 39 Concert this year, promising that it will be 'bigger and better!'

Read Isadore's blog at http://isadorebiffin.wordpress.com/ To see a live stream of the Article 39 Concert go to http://www.moshcam.com/blog/?p=124

By Catherine Marshall