Otago school pupils are being given a taste of life in Third World countries this week, as part of Purple Cake Day (March 8).
The charity event supports underprivileged children to get the education they need to break the poverty cycle and create a better future for themselves, their families and their communities.
It is connecting New Zealand children with children around the world living in poverty, and helping them learn about their role in the global community, and enrich their sense of compassion, respect and leadership.
Purple Cake Day was founded by Emily Sanson-Rejouis, who lost her husband and two daughters in the Haiti earthquake in 2010.
She hopes to raise $100,000 this year, to sustain support for education projects in Haiti and Nepal, and extend this to Kenya through a new partnership with the Hilde Back Education Fund.
Pupils from Dunedin to Alexandra, as well as the University of Otago College of Education, are getting into the spirit of Purple Cake Day by ''purple-ising'' parts of their buildings.
Kaikorai Primary School pupils will run a carnival/enterprise day this Friday, where they will raise funds by selling things they have made.
The Haitian words ''kenbe la'', which mean ''never give up'', had become part of the Haitian school culture since the earthquake in 2010, and the phrase was synonymous with the philosophy of Kaikorai School, which emphasises grit, determination and self-esteem.
Dunstan High School teacher Heather Taylor said her year 9 pupils had been baking and selling decorated cakes, making and evaluating a Kenyan meal, and creating a profile of a Kenyan child.
''The girls in class were horrified at the idea of child marriages, shaking their heads in disbelief.''
This Friday, year 9 pupils would be selling an assortment of mini cakes with purple icing, she said.
''I hope they will learn that what they do, even the little things, can make a difference. And I hope that they will realise that the world outside Alexandra is very different.''
