Doodle Boy raises awareness of children in poverty
Young artist doodles for World Vision
Up-and-coming artist Joe Whale, 12, AKA Doodle Boy on social media platforms, has created a giant doodle showing how children are empowered to overcome poverty and achieve their dreams.
Passengers and workers at Waterloo Station were able to watch Joe produce the artwork to raise awareness of World Vision’s work with children impacted by poverty.
World Vision has helped over 49,000 Ukrainian children
World Vision works to help the most vulnerable children across the globe and most recently has been supporting Ukrainian children. It’s been six months since the invasion of Ukraine and in that time World Vision has helped more than 116,313 refugees, including 49,976 children. We're working in Ukraine itself, as well as neighbouring Moldova, Romania and Georgia - bringing food, healthcare, education and psychosocial support.
Kids are dreaming of a better future
As a child, Joe was drawing his quirky characters to celebrate the work World Vision carries out in more than 100 countries. But for this piece, he took inspiration from World Vision’s Kids Who Dared to Dream book, which is filled with stories of children who are overcoming challenging times to achieve their dreams.
Isaac and Anita are both from communities where World Vision is helping communities transform their lives, using different interventions like better education, clean water and sustainable nutrition. Their stories are featured in the Kids Who Dared to Dream book.
Imagine if every child’s dream came true
Anita, nine, from Kenya, found a solution to the hunger problem in her community. When the rain stopped, Anita started looking for alternative plants that she could grow in the dry conditions. Now her garden is full of fruit and vegetables, her family are all fed, and they can make an extra income by selling some of the crops.
Isaac, the clean-up kid from Nicaragua, was horrified by the mountains of ugly rubbish in his community. It attracted disease-ridden mosquitoes that spread dengue fever – a nasty illness that causes skin rashes, vomiting and dehydration.
Healthier and happier
When he was 16, Isaac learnt about how to stop the rubbish from building up on the streets, how to stop the village’s drinking water from getting dirty, and how to wash his hands properly. He shares what he learnt with the families in his community. Now the whole village is healthier and happier, thanks to Isaac’s efforts.
Together we’ve impacted the lives of over 200 million vulnerable children by tackling the root causes of poverty.
Alina Sisianu, Head of Digital Marketing and Communications at World Vision UK, says: “We know that some children are born into communities where there isn’t adequate food, water, healthcare or education. We work with those communities to find sustainable ways of providing all of those things. Other children can find their lives are changed in an instant as they suddenly find themselves having to flee because of conflict. We aim to ensure every child has the opportunity of hope and a positive future.
“Thanks to Joe for producing this fantastic piece of art to raise awareness of our work and to all our supporters who help make this work possible.”
