Reading Goals

Maktaba x Generation Amazing

Reading Goals

Generation Amazing Foundation (GA) is a human and social legacy-focused organization launched by the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy in 2010, during Qatar’s successful bid for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™.

GA operates its sport for development programmes in alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and Qatar National Vision 2030, to promote sustainability, inclusion, and gender equality. GA’s unique methodology utilises the power of football to impart crucial life skills including communication, leadership, teamwork and compassion to youth and communities in need across the globe. Since its launch, GA, in collaboration with key partners, has reached and positively impacted over 1 million lives in 75 countries and counting.

The Generation Amazing Children’s Book collection was created as a part of Reading Goals, a Generation Amazing legacy project developed in collaboration with Maktaba Children’s Library. Reading Goals uses the platform of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ to create greater awareness of the importance of literacy and to foster a lifelong love of reading for global youth skill development.

It’s long been understood that promoting literacy is essential tool for international development but what is often overlooked is the power of reading for pleasure to support the emotional development of children by increasing empathy and promoting tolerance, creating a better world for all.

Sarah Champa, Founder, Maktaba

Our work began with publishing 12 bi-lingual Arabic/English children’s books that use stories with football at their heart to teach about the UN Sustainable Development Goals of gender equity, good health and wellbeing, responsible consumption and production, climate action and life below water. All 12 books are authored and illustrated by Qataris or Qatar residents bringing Qatari voices to children around the world.

Since their publication we have reached over 2022 children through story times in schools, brought story time and educational enrichment activities to 1000s of children in collaboration with Qatar Foundation International, the National Museum of Qatar, the Museum of Islamic Art, Doha International Film Festival, WISH and EcoKids. We are especially proud to have been able to keep story times going through the COVID-19 Pandemic through various online book clubs.

After Kabul fell and the Afghanistan evacuation effort brought more than 100,000 Afghans through Qatar, Reading Goals stepped up by providing assistance and socio-emotional support to more than 1,000 children including several hundred unaccompanied minors. We took the reading goals model and put it into action, establishing a safe space for evacuees and their families and delivering over 1500 hours of reading and sports for development programming to over 7000 evacuees with the help of over 150 volunteers from 17 different countries. 

The war on Gaza has brought more than 2000 medical evacuees and their families to Qatar and Generation Amazing and Reading Goals are once again providing social emotional support to children and families through our safe space program that promotes community, preserves culture and builds capacity. 

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Through its programming, Generation Amazing is committed to furthering the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015, provides a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future. At its heart are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are an urgent call for action by all countries – developed and developing – in a global partnership. They recognize that ending poverty and other deprivations must go hand-in-hand with strategies that improve health and education, reduce inequality, and spur economic growth – all while tackling climate change and working to preserve our oceans and forests. These 12 children’s books tackle these issues in fun and engaging ways.

Oscar the Oryx always leaves the tap running when he brushes his teeth. He takes really long showers, waters his garden every day, and even throws water away before finishing his bottle! Fadi the Falcon thinks Oscar doesn’t realise how important it is not to waste water, so he decides to teach Oscar a lesson. What would the world look like if all the water ran out? Poor Oscar gets quite a shock when he finds out!

UN SDGs: Good Health and Well-Being, Sustainable Cities and Communities, Responsible Consumption, Climate Action, and Partnerships for the Goals

There’s a new Oryx in school and Oscar isn’t happy about it, not one bit. Mike the new Oryx seems nice enough but he’s very different to Oscar… For starters, he looks different, and he doesn’t even like football! But with the help of Fadi the Falcon, Oscar soon learns that being different isn’t so bad after all.

UN SDGs: Good Health and Well-Being, Reduced Inequalities, and Partnerships for the Goals

Oscar loves French fries. He refuses to try anything new, especially not fruit or vegetables. He would eat French fries all day long if he could! But when that’s exactly what happens and Oscar is forced to eat French fries for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, he soon learns that eating healthily is much more important than he realised…

UN SDGs: Good Health and Well-Being and Partnerships for the Goals

Ahmed is an active boy. He loves to play football but he can’t figure out what to eat to give him all the energy he needs. Luckily his aunt Noora is happy to help teach Ahmed about a healthy diet that will keep his tummy happy.

UN SDGs: Good Health and Well-Being and Partnerships for the Goals

Four friends come out to play around their beloved Sidra Tree. Each brings a football with special meaning to them. What will they do when their balls get stuck in the tree?

UN SDGs: Good Health and Well-Being, Reduced Inequalities, and Partnerships for the Goals

It’s almost time for the big match and the coach gets called away for an emergency. Can the beloved school security guard help the team bring home the Big Win?

UN SDGs: Good Health and Well-Being, Reduced Inequalities, and Partnerships for the Goals

Tuttle the Turtle starts out a bit later than all his brothers and sisters. As he ventures out to sea he gets caught up in a plastic bag he mistakes for food. Luckily he is rescued and along with his fellow injured turtles nursed back to health. Where will they go once they are released back into the ocean?

UN SDGs: Sustainable Cities and Communities, Responsible Consumption, Climate Action, Life Below Water, and Partnerships for the Goals

After a sand storm four friends come back out to play around their beloved Sidra Tree. When they arrive they can’t believe their eyes. The storm has strewn plastic bags across the park and they are even tangled in the tree. What can these four friends do to help tackle the plastic problem?

UN SDGs: Sustainable Cities and Communities, Responsible Consumption, Climate Action, and Partnerships for the Goals

Omar challenges his friend Jaber to help him collect plastic bottle caps. Jaber can’t help but wonder why. Can Omar and Jaber use these bottle caps to help injured footballers get back on the pitch?

UN SDGs: Responsible Consumption, Climate Action, and Partnerships for the Goals

Noura and her brother Jassim have always played together so you can imagine Noura’s frustration when Jassim rushes out to play football with friends and won’t let her join because she doesn’t know how to play. Noura is not going to give up and accepts her brother’s challenge to learn to play football. Noura embarks on a wonderful journey to discover more about the game. She even gets her mom to join her in learning about a healthy lifestyle.

UN SDGs: Good Health and Well-Being, Gender Equality, and Partnerships for the Goals

Noora has an accident and can’t play football while she recovers. Tired of watching from the stands and desperate to get back into the action, Noora and her brother Jassim work on a special invention that allows her and her friends with different physical capabilities to get into the game.

UN SDGs: Good Health and Well-Being, Gender Equality, Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure, Reduced Inequalities, and Partnerships for the Goals

Noora, Jassim and their football team take a trip through Al Thakira Mangrove forest. Along the way they meet Fufu the Flamingo and her friends who are desperate to learn how to play football. In exchange for football lessons, Fufu takes Noora and Jassim on a tour of her home and teaches them how to help protect this beautiful natural resource.

UN SDGs: Good Health and Well-Being, Gender Equality, Sustainable Cities and Communities, Responsible Consumption, Climate Action, and Partnerships for the Goals