GPE Photo and Video Contest Launched Today

I watched in amazement as each of my three daughters learned to read. Their early books were well-loved, torn and scuffed, and dragged around our house to be read dozens if not hundreds of times.Reading helped them grow, and it changed their lives. Seeing my kids learn to read is still one of my most profound joys and memories, but millions of children are denied this simple opportunity that most of us take for granted.

Reading unlocks the potential of every child so they can contribute to their community and achieve their potential. Not only that, education–especially reading–saves lives. Reading improves health, it increases incomes, and strengthens the nation that nurtures those learners. It changes lives.

Today the Global Partnership for Education, USAID and over 70 other co-sponsor organizations launch the ReadingChangedMyLife.org photo and video contest. We hope to uplift the stories of hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people across the world to tell the story how reading changed their lives. The 10 semifinalists will get stocked e-readers, and the grand prize winners will win camera and video equipment. We hope you’ll check the ReadingChangedMyLife.org photos and videos, contribute your own if you like, vote for your favorites, and spread the word by passing this along to friends and family.

Help us tell the world how reading changes children’s lives, helps them learn and grow, and helps them change their world.