Limerick's Gateway to Education gives stories a second life

LIMERICK’S Gateway to Education has launched its Books For Change campaign, an initiative rooted in sustainability and environmental responsibility. 

As part of Limerick’s ‘Going for Gold’ environmental scheme, the campaign champions the principles of reuse and circular economy by encouraging the donation and redistribution of quality children’s books.

Running until December, Books For Change promotes book recycling as a practical way to reduce waste, while also fostering community engagement and widening access to education globally.

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The focus this year is on collecting gently-used books for children aged three to fourteen, ensuring these valuable resources are given a second life in the hands of new young readers, rather than being discarded.

Suzanne Roche, CEO of Gateway to Education Limerick has spoken on the initiative saying, “Books for Change is about giving stories a second life. By rehoming children’s books, we’re not only helping the environment but also opening the door to imagination, learning, and opportunity for young readers.”

The project helps the environment by extending the life of books, reduces waste through responsible recycling, and supports literacy by making books available to children who may not otherwise have them.

Gateway is no stranger to sustainable initiatives following the success of their 2019 GiftABook campaign. The initiative was launched in 2019 and has seen more than 12,000 books distributed to schools in Gambia, Kenya, Malawi and Tanzania.

The Books For Change campaign will be donating their used books to schools and libraries in Malawi, Kenya, Ghana, and Uganda, helping promote global literacy and sustainability.

Gateway to Education ship all the donations to these schools and libraries through their charity partner Read to Grow.

Donations are currently being accepted at Gateway to Education’s shop on Wickham Street, open Monday to Saturday, as well as their store room at The Tait Business Centre, at  Lady’s Lane.

Gateway to Education has already received many donated books including a generous partial library donation from a local school. However, they are still in need of many more donations of used books to help reach their goal of global literacy promotion.

Volunteers are currently sorting, checking, and boxing them for distribution to community groups and schools later this year.

Limerick’s ‘Going for Gold’, which Gateway to Education has been supported by in the past, is a grant competition designed by the Limerick City and County Council. The grant scheme aims to assist with sustainable environmental improvement works undertaken by non-profit organisations working within Limerick City and County administrative area.

‘Going for Gold' is focused on promoting biodiversity, conservation, reuse, recycle, waste prevention, support of the circular economy and sustainability within the Limerick county.

All donations are welcome for Books for Change and all are encouraged to part take in order to promote global literacy.