We are hosting a book drive for United for Literacy from September 5 to October 9, 2025.
United for Literacy serves people and communities across Canada that face systemic barriers to achieving literacy objectives. Each year, over 30,000 children, youth, and adults in over 190 urban, rural, and remote places across Canada (including over 90 Indigenous communities) gain access to free, inclusive literacy and numeracy programs, in person and online, supported by up to 1,600 trained volunteer tutors.
United for Literacy (formerly Frontier College) played a role in promoting non-Indigenous education. This contributed to the colonization of Indigenous peoples and communities. As an education-focused organization, they are committed to learning from our shared history. In their recent history (from 2005), they have progressively started to hire and train members of the communities they partner with. This is to ensure that the local culture, language, and traditions are the heart of all educational activities offered by United for Literacy. They are moving forward in the spirit of reflection, collaboration, reconciliation, and change.
They have adopted the United Nations Declaration of Rights of Indigenous Peoples as a plan for reconciliation, including:
• Indigenous families and communities keep shared responsibility for their children. This includes the children's upbringing, education, and well-being. This reflects the rights of the child.
• Indigenous peoples have the right to form and control their educational systems and schools. This includes use of their own languages. It also includes the community's cultural methods of teaching and learning.
United for Literacy is working to advance the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Calls to Action. To learn more please visit: https://www.unitedforliteracy.ca/About/News/Our-First-Steps-to-ReconciliACTION
How You Can Participate
United for Literacy has provided a list of children’s books needed by the communities they support. If you’d like to contribute:
- Please refer to the attached book list.
- Multiple copies of each title are needed.
- Books can be purchased from:
- GoodMinds, an Indigenous bookseller in Ontario (https://goodminds.com)
- Amazon
- Other book retailers
A donation box will be located on the 3rdFloor at Head Office, in front of Michelle Chung’s cubicle (Communications and Service Experience area).
Prefer to Donate Online?
You can also support the book drive through United for Literacy’s “Fill a Bookshelf” fundraising challenge, which provides learning materials to children in the communities they serve.
https://www.canadahelps.org/s/jhJqb8
Days of Significance
September 8, 2025 – International Literacy Day A global day to raise awareness about literacy challenges and celebrate progress.
September 30, 2025 – National Day for Truth and Reconciliation A day to honour the survivors of residential schools, the children who never returned home, and the families and communities affected.
Thank you in advance for your support! Let’s help build a more literate, inclusive, and reconciled future together.
#AGCOGives #Literacy #TruthAndReconciliation
