1001buku: Colors the kid's world with books

1001buku: Colors the kid's world with books

Susanna Tjokro, Contributor, Jakarta

"I've always believed that books are the greatest treasures that
a child can have. That is why I joined 1001buku (buku means
"book" in Indonesian), an organization that aims to bring more
books to underprivileged Indonesian children," wrote Afia R.
Fitriati in Youth Action Net (http://www.youthactionnet.org).

Her essay about 1001buku in that youth website leads her to
become one of the 10 winners in December 2002. Each award
recipient receives US$500. Fitriati hopes that the money,
somehow, would help 1001buku enable rural children in Indonesia
to explore the world of books and reading.

She's just one of many, dedicated volunteers in the 1001buku
community. So, what's 1001buku? It was established in May 2002,
but was officially launched on Jan. 7, 2003 at The British
Council, Jakarta.

1001buku is an independent, non-profit organization with a
noble vision to bring books to underprivileged Indonesian
children through community children's libraries.

This community is full of color and character. Everyone is
welcome, regardless of age, gender, political or religious
beliefs, ethnicity and so on. Young and old, male and female,
employees, employers, housewives and students joined 1001buku,
hoping to make valuable contributions towards bringing more books
to underprivileged children.

In other words, 1001buku is a melting pot of volunteers from
different backgrounds who share the same vision to give children
a better future by giving them the opportunity to read more books
(particularly high-quality reading materials). Those dedicated
volunteers deliver people's donations -- mainly books and some
toys -- to children's libraries within their network.

I do believe, that every child -- or at least most children --
enjoys reading books. I still remember the indescribable pleasure
of reading children's magazines and book stories in my childhood.
I believe many adults have fond memories of their childhood books
as well. After all, books have always influenced our lives and
played an important part in most people's lives.

Unfortunately, for countless Indonesian families (particularly
after the economic crisis hit Indonesia) books are considered a
luxury. Many parents do not consider books as an invaluable tool
to support their children's education, for various reasons. Many
of them, simply do not have enough money to buy the books.

The 1001buku community hopes that by supporting non-profit
libraries, underprivileged kids would be able to read more books.

Its mailing list, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/1001buku/
becomes a forum where all members communicate, exchange ideas and
share their ups and downs. Non-members can read their postings
too.

Meanwhile, http://www.1001buku.org provides all necessary
information, in English and Indonesian, to the public. Currently,
there are more than 250 people in this community and the number
keeps growing.

"Up until now, we have received more than ten thousand books,"
said Wien Muldian, the spokesperson cum moderator of the 1001buku
mailing list. He is also the moderator of Pasar Buku
(http://groups.yahoo.com/group/pasarbuku/), a highly respectable
mailing list that discusses book-related stuff, from A to Z.

Monthly gatherings are held to strengthen network coordination
and also to evaluate all activities. A bond of friendship has
been forged among the volunteers, as they share the ups and downs
together.

Book Drop Box (BDB), Jemput Bola (pick up the ball), Sapu
Jagad (sweep the earth) and Book-A-thon are among the highlights
of 1001buku's other activities.

Book Drop Box is a box where people -- anybody -- can drop
used or new books, magazines and educative cum creative toys for
the community libraries. About 27 BDB spots are spread throughout
Jakarta, including in Sudirman - Thamrin area. Besides Jakarta,
the boxes are also placed in other major cities of Bandung,
Semarang and Yogyakarta.

Jemput Bola means the volunteers take the initiative to pick
up the books directly from the donators (at their offices or
houses). Sapu Jagad, this activity is aimed to extensively
collect books from certain residential area by giving out flyers,
announcing some `meeting points' where the volunteers collect the
books in certain locations within that residential area.

Normally, 1001buku does a door-to-door visit as well to
collect the books. Meanwhile, Book-A-Thon is a book-driven
activity held in public places, such as parks, and semi public
places, such as cafes or malls to collect donations.

Once the books have been collected, the volunteers would
record, compile and sort books and toys, to be distributed
accordingly to the children community libraries, based on their
needs and requests.

1001buku does not charge the libraries with any fees, as
mostly the volunteers would deliver the books themselves. Thirty-
one libraries have been registered under their network, in
Jakarta, Tangerang, Depok, Serang, Bogor, Cirebon, Surabaya,
Subang, Ponorogo, Purwakarta, Semarang, Lembang and Bandar
Lampung.

The libraries are slightly different (in terms of conditions)
from one another though. Some libraries charge diminutive fees,
such as Rp 100 (yes, one hundred rupiah) per book. The fee is
needed for daily maintenance and operation costs.

On the other hand, most libraries do not charge any fee
whatsoever. Some libraries let the kids borrow books to take
home, while others ask its members to read the books at their
reading areas.

Several libraries have other creative activities, besides
merely reading the books. Poetry reading, story telling, writing
and picture drawing are among creative activities offered to
their young members.

Some volunteers open libraries at their own house and involve
their family members to run the libraries, or they pay staff to
run them. Most libraries are designed as a home rather than a
formal one.

1001buku has spread its networking outside Indonesia.
Singapore, U.S., Germany, the Netherlands and the UK have joined
the list.

Through the "1001buku Fundraising Dinner" in the U.S., the
volunteers collected US$835.

The Indonesian students network in Europe collected about Rp
916,975 through "One Euro for 1001buku". In addition, 1001buku
sells some merchandise too, such as 1001buku pins and T-shirts to
run their activities. Individual donations are also welcomed.

Books can put a smile on a child's face; bring joyous laughter
and even spiritual enlightenment. Let's color their world by
supporting 1001buku - if you have neither extra time nor energy,
you can just drop some books into their Book Drop Boxes. Even
used books would be treasures for the children.

One would see the sheer of joy on their tiny faces when they
lose themselves in the books. Isn't it a rewarding thought?