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Richard Gorst and the team of international student volunteers

This week St. Clare's students and staff will be working together on a project to raise awareness of the crisis in Sudan. Alongside their language studies, students will be exploring the themes of global citizenship, particularly as they relate to the refugee camps in Darfur. Students from St. Clare's will be collecting donations to support relief aid for the victims and refugees of the crisis in Darfur.

These activities are all in the spirit of St. Clare's mission of advancing international education and understanding, the ethos of the college for over 50 years. St. Clare's attracts students from all over the world. Presently, 40 different nationalities are represented. Most students are from privileged backgrounds, and this is a unique opportunity for these young people to actively contribute and make a different to those in desperate circumstances.

Richard Gorst, Sales & Promotions Manager at St. Clare's, initiated the project. "Seeing images in the papers and on TV of the suffering of children in Sudan happened just days after the birth of my son Henry three weeks ago and I felt I just had to do something to help".

The situation in Sudan is a humanitarian disaster that can only be helped by an international response. At the moment we have 400 young people here at St. Clare's taking part in English language summer courses. Involving these young people in an appeal to raise money for the families in the refugee camps fits well with our charitable status and our mission to Advance International Education and Understanding. It just seemed to make sense not only to make our students aware of what is happening in Sudan, but also to actively do something to help.

Their response has been wonderful. So far they have arranged a charity football match with players and supporters making a donation to take part. They have organised a Dance for Sudan, a charity disco at the Bridge Club in Oxford, with half the entrance ticket price going to the appeal.

The crisis has been incorporated into lessons which reflects the international nature of the International Baccalaureate Diploma, the long-established alternative to A levels, which we teach at St. Clare's.

Even the smallest donation will help. £80 will keep a family in Darfur for up to one month.