*National Geographic travels further

National Geographic Channel is expanding its reach this fall to include Australia and Scandinavia. The Australian and Scandinavian channels will be localized versions of what is currently being prepared for the U.K. The three channels will launch on the same date, which is yet to be announced.

The specialty channel will be carried by British Sky Broadcasting in the U.K., FOXTEL in Australia and Telenor’s 1 Degree West satellite service in Scandinavia.

*Spring summit in Southeast Asia

The Philippines will host the first Southeast Asian Summit for Children’s Television in May. The gathering will include delegates from Cambodia, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, and will focus on ways to create quality programming for the region.

The key seminars will highlight co-production opportunities, the development of a human resource base for children’s programming in Asia and the promotion of child-friendly TV shows. The conference is scheduled to take place from May 27 to 30, 1998, in Quezon City, The Philippines.

*Nick encourages Latin American kids to help others

Nickelodeon Latin America has launched the Ayuda A Tu Mundo (Help Your World) initiative. The effort, which is running throughout the region, is aimed at connecting kids to their communities and the world through volunteering.

Blockbuster and Simon & Schuster have joined forces with the 24-hour kids channel to reach the region’s youth. Blockbuster will be promoting the initiative through its 280 stores in Latin America. Simon & Schuster will use its existing educational outreach program to inform teachers and students in Mexico City.

Nickelodeon also plans to team up with local cable affiliates to hold Ayuda A Tu Mundo fairs in Argentina and Mexico.

Help Your World was inspired by The Big Help campaign created by Nickelodeon in the U.S. To date, over 8.5 million kids in the U.S. have donated 92.5 million volunteer hours through the program.