In Gear | Rotary in Southern New Zealand Issue 2 | Page 22

“It’s all supply and demand, just like every other
industry. As long as people seek it, traffickers and
brothel owners will round up these kids and sell them.
“People might say: ‘Oh, you should get the police, you
should do this and do that’, but you have to be careful
and strategic. Put a foot wrong, and all you do is drive it
further underground and behind closed doors,” David
says.

the Rotary world, to the Interactors, the Rotaractors,
the NRG clubs, the traditional Rotary clubs, so that
everyone in our family – which is nearly two million
people collectively – knows about it, because, then, we
can have a big impact.
“For a start, to undertake a Tier 1 sponsorship of a child
at the centre, it’s about $50 a month – that’s for food,
clothing, education and medical care.

“Then it’s totally in the shadows, and then you won’t
know what’s going on.”

“If we go to all Rotarians and ask them to do something
to make a small difference, and ask the question: ‘Could
you go out to all your family, friends, your Facebook
friends and, in some way, raise $10?’ They’d say: ‘Of
course I could – I could raise $100’.

T

“Okay – you go and multiply that by the two million
people in the Rotary family and you can see where it
could head, and the great work you could do. That’s my
vision with Project Starfish.

RUE to the starfish allegory for which
his project is named, David continues to
methodically break down his goal into
methodical, manageable steps.

Involving the younger Rotarians, who made this latest
journey to Asia with him, is another vital phase, not
just for Project Starfish, not just for the Rescue Mission
for Children and the Akha children, but also for Rotary
itself.

“Ultimately, I want the focus to move away from the
horrific histories these children have to one where they
have bright, positive futures.
“My question is, as Rotarians, have we got what it takes
to step up to the plate and really take on slavery and
trafficking?”

“You can get Rotaractors to join a Rotary club; that’s
easy, But keeping them there? That’s the hard thing,”
David says.
“If you don’t give them something relevant, if you don’t
ignite that passion and fan that flame, they’re just going
to go.
“They don’t want the traditional Rotary meet-ups. They
just want to get out there and do it. And they have
a great head start, because these guys are so well
connected through social media.”
David is the Oceania regional co-ordinator for the
Rotarian Action Group Against Slavery (RAGAS) – the
17th, and most recent, chartered “RAG” – which has
been established to tackle trafficking and slavery in all
forms.
Next year, his aim is to register Project Starfish as a
charity in its own right, although he’s adamant it will
remain very closely aligned with Rotary.
In fact, David says, what better organisation than
Rotary to take on spearheading worldwide efforts to
shut down trafficking and slavery once and for all?

FOLLOW
www.facebook.com/
rotaractforprojectstarfish/

rotaractforprojectstarfish

www.twitter.com/DunedinR4PS

“We’ve nearly eradicated polio – what’s going to be our
next mission?
“As passionate as I am, I am just one person. I will use
every skerrick of resources available to me through
Rotary as a global service organisation to get our young
people mobilised and inspired.

www.givealittle.co.nz/cause/
projectstarfishnz

“We need to get this thing global, and we need to get
support. We need to get it out there more widely in

www.rotaractforprojectstarfish.weebly.com
Page 22 | In Gear - Rotary in southern New Zealand - District 9980 | www.rotarydistrict9980.org