Life Education Australia

Life Education Australia is an educational program to help teach young Australian school children safety regarding topics of sex, alcohol and drug abuse. It is the largest independent health education provider for primary school aged students. Founded in 1979 by Ted Noffs, the program has reached over seven million students as of 2019. Although initially founded to operate in Australian states, the program has had international reach including Europe and Asia.

Life Education Australia Logo as of 2021

The program is notably represented by "Healthy Harold," a giraffe masco puppet operated by a Life Education Instructor, a human teacher who assists in the program, although the character has been portrayed in cartoon form in recent years.[1][2]

History

Life Education Australia began in 1979, in The Wayside Chapel in Kings Cross by Reverend Ted Noffs, who used his experience with religion to focus on an action-based approach as opposed to preaching.[2]

In 2016, the program began to teach topics of illicit drug use like methamphetamine, in response to rising narcotics usage rates in Australia.[3]

In 2017, the Australian government announced plans to defund the program, but was not implemented after public backlash.[4][5]

The in-person program was temporary halted and moved online due to restrictions placed by the Australian government in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but resumed on October 13, 2020.[6][7]

References
  1. Jepsen, Belinda (2019-02-11). "What ever happened to Healthy Harold? An investigation". Mamamia. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  2. "Life Education and Healthy Harold | The Saturday Paper". web.archive.org. 2021-05-06. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  3. Cook, Henrietta (2016-08-24). "Healthy Harold the giraffe makes strides to teach dangers of ice". The Age. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  4. Street, Andrew P. (2017-05-31). "Healthy Harold, the adorable funding-saving mascot!". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  5. "Aussie social media left distraught after news of Healthy Harold's defunding". Special Broadcasting Service. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  6. "Healthy Harold returns to local schools". The Young Witness. 2020-06-18. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
  7. Gregory, Helen (2020-05-17). "Healthy Harold moves message online". Newcastle Herald. Retrieved 2022-02-07.
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