Difficulty: Summiteer (Level 3)
A 19-year-old Hong Kong university student, known as Belle, has gained more than 25,000 followers since she started posting on social media in January.
In her viral videos, she hands out free meals to underprivileged elderly people in Hong Kong. Belle largely focuses on “cardboard grannies” when distributing free meals.
Cardboard grannies are the elderly women in Hong Kong who earn money by collecting cardboard scraps and taking them to recycling stations.
According to the Hong Kong Poverty Report for 2024 by Oxfam Hong Kong, more than 580,000 individuals aged 65 or above live in poverty in the city.
“I just want to inspire people and show how easy it is to make a difference in somebody’s life,” she said.
Belle started her account when she was a first-year university student. She was feeling purposeless in her programme, and many of her friends had gone abroad for their studies. Then, she was inspired by videos of people in other countries giving food and money to those in need.
In the past, the cost of food came from Belle’s pocket. But now, she crowdfunds her project through a donation link attached to her Instagram account.
