Street canvassers may well be a busy pedestrian’s worst nightmare, but Celine Lau looks beyond the ‘charity mugger’ stigma to discover a geniune call-out for support

Greenpeace
Ken Ho, 27

Greenpeace supports…
• Awareness of environmental issues among corporations, governments and citizens
• Campaigns against climate change, water pollution and genetically-modified food
• Air pollution reduction – a touchy subject in China, where 650,000 die each year from respiratory-related illness

Hi Ken! Can you tell us how you might go about enticing a passer-by to stop and listen?
One of the tactics is to talk about things that would concern citizens. For example everyone knows we are drinking water from China, so we want to inform the public that water pollution in China is very serious.

What’s the weirdest experience you’ve had as a street canvasser?
Personally, the weirdest or most upsetting experience is racism among Hong Kong people. Since Greenpeace is an international organisation, some of our funding will be channelled overseas to other countries. When some people find out that funds are going to China, they refuse to donate.

Have you ever been tempted by a different line of work?

To be honest, if you are a successful Greenpeace fundraiser, you can earn a lot of money as a sales person. But we choose to stay at Greenpeace because of our attachment and our insistence on environmental protection.

Hong Kong Cancer Fund
Cheung Man-chung, 22

Hong Kong Cancer Fund supports…
• Free services and peer support to all cancer patients and those affected by cancer
• The Cancer Fighter Workshop, which brings together patients at the same stage of cancer for mutual support
• Public education campaigns to build a cancer-smart community

Hi Cheung! What got you into fundraising?
My uncle has nasopharyngeal cancer but he is only 40 years old. After treatment, his memory was so damaged that he can only do temporary jobs or stay at home. When I think about my uncle, I realise that this is a much more meaningful job than others.
What has been your proudest or most
touching experience?
On my third day of work, a lady passed by in a rush but I managed to tell her my name and she said she would come back for me. At 5.30pm that day, the lady actually came back. She told me that her husband had just passed away because of cancer and his name was Cheung too. I felt very touched. I think that when we genuinely talk to people, they might have stories behind that motivate them to find out more about the Hong Kong Cancer Fund.

Why do you think some pedestrians ignore you?
Hong Kong people are very busy. We call the flyover from Southorn Stadium to the Wan Chai Tower a ‘runway’, because no matter how hard we try, we wouldn’t be able to stop a single person there for a whole morning.

UNICEF
Alva Liu, 25

UNICEF supports…
• Children’s basic rights to live, to primary health care and to education
• Emergency relief to humanitarian situations and natural disasters
• Development programmes for health, education and child protection
• Fundraising, advocacy and awareness on a local level

Why did you become a fundraiser?
I began fundraising by chance and it made me think that life is short. Although I can’t add to the length of my life, I can do something to make it more meaningful. Fundraising achieves this purpose.

Tell us your funniest experience as a fundraiser…
I remember I talked to a woman for 30 minutes. During the presentation she nodded and smiled, but after the presentation she said
“I don’t understand” in Mandarin!

Do you ever feel discouraged?
I was very upset for a period of time because of pressure from my parents and my girlfriend. They were against my job – they wanted me to do something less demanding. But again, the job satisfaction and my urge to do something meaningful while I’m still young kept me going. A trip to Yunnan, in which I visited several families, has reconfirmed my determination.

Save the Children
Honora Wong, 24

Save the Children supports…
• Awareness on children’s issues, namely protection, education and emergency relief
• Local health care workers and clinics
• Improvement of health and nutrition in conflict-affected countries

What’s the best part of your job?
I love meeting people and I love seeing people start helping these children. Whenever they start helping and show their concern, I feel good because there is still love and people are still willing to step forward to create a good impact for these children who need our help.

What are some of the stranger ‘rejection lines’ that you’ve heard?
Sometimes they’ll tell you: “I have lots of money but I don’t want to help.” Maybe they’re rushing so they don’t want to be disturbed. Some people say: “I would rather donate for pets and dogs, I don’t like children at all.”

Have you ever felt threatened during your work?
Since we all work as a group, there isn’t much danger. We usually try to avoid drunken people to protect ourselves.

Do you ever feel discouraged?
Sometimes – I am also human. We face different rejections every single day but sometimes when people are rude or grumpy they will let you down. But it’s okay, I get used to it and I understand that different people have different emotions. Maybe it’s just not the right time to talk to them.

WWF
Sam Yip, 40

WWF supports…
• Global environmental education and conservation
• Research and education centres at Mai Po Nature Reserve, Hoi Ha Wan Marine Park and Island House
• The protection of Tai Long Sai Wan and the campaign against shark finning

What’s the most dangerous experience you’ve had?
Some informal moneylenders warned us we were using their space, but as soon as we explained who we were they were fine with us being there.
What do you think is the major reason of people not responding?
A lot of people don’t understand what environmental conservation is – or they think that it’s the responsibility of our government. But that’s not discouraging to us because we can usually convince people of the importance of protecting our environment after a face-to-face conversation.

Have you been inspired by your work in any way?
Before I started this job I didn’t like talking to strangers. I used to doubt if I could really stop a teenager and make him or her listen to me. But I soon found that I could reach out to people of all ages.