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War Child’s second annual Busking For Change fundraiser will take place on Tuesday, Sept. 29, according to ChartAttack. The Toronto-based event, which is largely run by Chantal Kreviazuk and her husband, Our Lady Peace’s Raine Maida, are hoping to raise $30,000 to build and run a youth centre in Darfur, Sudan’s war-torn region.

The event was inspired by Maida, who spent 12 hours in 2007 busking and raising $22,000 for War Child Canada’s School Rehabilitation and Revitalization project in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Busking For Change will feature some of Canada’s most prominent musical acts and will take place between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. on Tuesday. Using major streetcorners and downtown buildings as home, the downtown Toronto area will become alive with the sound of music. The musicians will play in exchange for donations that will go to War Child.

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Taking time off from entertaining the world’s youth with tales of wizards and witches, J.K Rowling and other prominent children’s writers published a letter calling for an end to the conflict in Darfur.

Just in time for the fifth anniversary of the ongoing civil feud in the Sudanese region, which has taken the lives of 200,000 people, the writers’ open letter appeared in newspapers in Britain on Saturday.

“It is time to change the narrative,” the letter says, according to CBC.ca.
“The world needs to wake up. For too long it has let these children suffer. Our politicians need to act on Darfur.”

The letter was written as a part of Sunday’s Global Day for Darfur, an international effort calling for an immediate ceasefire in the region and the deployment of a UN peacekeeping force.
“Children in Darfur draw pictures of bombs and guns,” the authors write. “It is all they have ever known. Childhood is under attack in Darfur.”
It is estimated that more than one million Sudanese children have been affected by the constant violence the conflict has caused.
The letter concludes with a definitive and moving statement:

“The world needs to act now to give the children of Darfur a future.”

Ready, set, bid: Waxploitation Record’s new Darfur Benefit Auction launched Thursday, with Kanye West, Coldplay, Avril Lavigne and Common among the many musicians pitching in.

Lavigne and Common signed guitars for the auction, as did the Flaming Lips, Norah Jones, Nickelback and Deftones.

West, Coldplay, Bloc Party, TV on the Radio, Wilco, the Decemberists, Gnarls Barkley, Aesop Rock, Macy Gray, Thievery Corporation and Gorillaz were among those who signed other items.

This is Waxploitation’s fourth auction to benefit the victims of Darfur.

One hundred per cent of the proceeds will go to three non-profit organizations working in the region: Doctors Without Borders, Human Rights Watch and Oxfam America.

Also available now, with all sales proceeds going to the three organizations, is a limited edition “Causes 1″ charity album. The CD features rare and exclusive tracks from artists including Bloc Party, Bright Eyes, The Cure, Death Cab for Cutie, The (International) Noise Conspiracy, Spoon and Travis.

Several high-profile artists are doing their part to help ease the humanitarian crisis in Darfur.

Bright Eyes, the Cure, Death Cab for Cutie, the (International) Noise Conspiracy, Spoon and Travis are just some of the musicians who have donated rare and exclusive tracks to “Causes 1,” Waxploitation Records’ first release in their “Causes” charity album series.

The album will help fund humanitarian aid to refugees escaping the genocide in Darfur. All sales proceeds are to be split between non-profit organizations Doctors Without Borders, Human Rights Watch and Oxfam America.

Other artists appearing on the album include: Animal Collective, The Black Keys, Bloc Party, Cornelius, David Sylvian, the Shins remixed by Clint Mansell, Teargas & Plateglass, and Thievery Corporation.

The album will be available as a download on iTunes for 90 days only, starting Nov. 27. A limited-edition CD can also be pre-ordered from the label’s website.

It is estimated that 200,000 to 400,000 people have been killed in Darfur. More than two million civilians have been displaced due to fighting between the Sudanese military and rebel militia groups.

Here is the track listing on the album:

Animal Collective — “Safer” (exclusive live version)
Black Keys — “Stay All Night” (exclusive chulahoma session)
Bloc Party — “Rhododendrons”
Bright Eyes — “Coat Check Dream Song” (exclusive live version)
Cornelius — “Wataridori” (exclusive piano version)
David Sylvian — “Late Night Shopping” (exclusive Chris Vrenna remix)
Death Cab For Cutie — “World Shut Your Mouth” (Julian Cope cover)
The (International) Noise Conspiracy — “Washington Bullets”
The Cure — “The Walk” (exclusive live version)
The Shins — “Turn On Me” (exclusive Clint Mansell remix)
Spoon — “Rhythm & Soul” (exclusive middle version)
Teargas & Plateglass — “One Day Across The Valley”
Thievery Corporation — “Passing The Stars”
Travis — “Gimme Some Truth” (exclusive John Lennon cover)