Sustainable Good

Now is the Time for Haiti!

We must take advantage of this time of opportunity in Haiti, the poorest country in the Western hemisphere, where illiteracy stands at 48% and unemployment is at 50%.

Outreach International runs 74 schools in Haiti, ten of which have nutrition programs. Altogether, we are providing opportunity through education to 7,000 students.

In the Meantime, Children are Dying

There is legislation in both the US House and Senate to revamp and rewrite the way that the US does foeign assitance, something that we talk about a lot on this blog.  Experts know what is required for international aid to be truly effective, and yet the current international aid process is outdated, inefficient, and often ineffective.  Sometimes Western countries' aid even makes problems worse, as Matt reported in an ealier post.  There is hope that the Foreign Aid Reform bills in the House and the Senate will change this situation.  However, there just isn't the political will-power to move this legislation right now.  And in the meantime, 3 million children die every year because they are undernourished.

Investigate the killing of human rights activists in Chechnya

I was deeply shocked and saddened to learn today of the brutal killing of Zarema Sadulayeva and her husband, Alik Dzhabrailov. Ms. Sadulayeva was a tireless campaigner for the welfare of children with disabilities and/or traumatized by war in Chechnya. Though I did not personally know her, we had exchanged a few emails and I was sickened to hear of her death.

“Ms Sadulayeva was a tireless activist who was committed to creating public awareness about the landmine problem in the region and advocating for the rights of landmine survivors and other people with disabilities,” said Ms Kasia Derlicka, Advocacy and Campaign Officer for the International Campaign to Ban Landmines, in a press release on their website. “Her death is a huge loss to the mine action community.”

Diarrhoea: An Unpopular but Important Cause

Diarrhoea kills some 1.7 million children every year -- that over three times the population of Kansas City wiped out annually by a preventable disease.  And yet, given the 'gross-out factor' it is highly unlikely that this disease will ever get the kind of celebrity endorsements that have helped raise awareness of breast cancer and AIDS.  Likewise, few development professionals want to become known as a 'diarrhoea expert.'  There is no glamor, it seems, in excrement.

Rocky Mountain Mission Center Hunger Challenge

I just attended a Hunger Challenge in Ft. Collins, CO, USA.  There were over 60 kids, teens, and adults who fasted for 24 hours, learned about poverty, raised awareness in the community, collected cans, donated money, and brainstormed their own solutions to hunger.  It was an inspiring weekend and I am thankful to Dezi Rae Astle and her crew for raising so much money for Outreach International.  Thanks to all of you!

Haiti Still Struggling to Recover from Hurricanes

Haiti is struggling to overcome the impact of Hurricanes Gustav and Ike that hit during August and September this year. In Gonaives, hit worst by the terrible storms, only a fifth of the city has been cleared of the mud that buried much of the town.

Haiti's government says that 60% of the expected harvest was lost and the the hurricane's cost the country some $900 million -- almost a tenth of Haiti's GDP.  World Bank President Robert Zoellick described the damage caused by the hurricane as 'eye-popping.'

Hope Based On Openness

“Why are you here?” voiced a 12 year old boy living in a refugee camp on the border of Darfur, Sudan.  When Canadian Senator Mobina Jaffer, who at the time in 2005 was Canada’s Special Envoy to Sudan, started to reply, the boy interrupted – “No, I mean why are you wasting your time here? – it’s too late for us!  You should be in Iraq helping people before they end up like us in refugee camps!” 

Upon returning to Canada, when Senator Jaffer told a group of us this story, I asked her what might have been the hidden agenda of the boy -- maybe family trying to make him look special and gain favour, or someone using him to make a political statement?  In this particular case, she couldn’t see one – it simply seemed to be a spontaneous, honest reaction. 

 

 

The People Behind the Numbers

I listened to This American Life this weekend and it talked about people who quantify things that should never be quantified, such as their love lives, the perfect song, and every daily task. One of the lessons of the show (I hate to give it away) was that quantifying deep experiences prevents us from feeling the depth...It glazes over them. This morning I was walking to work and I started thinking about some of the numbers in my life that prevent me from engaging in the depth behind them.

And I remembered that 25,000 children die every day from poverty-related causes.

To Feed the Child, Nourish the Village

Almost half of Malawi's children under five are orphaned, largely due to the HIV/AIDS pandemic which has impacted the country severely. Traditionally, orphans have been incorporated into the families of relatives.  However, the current crisis is straining this support system. As a result, rural communities are struggling to feed, clothe and educate the orphans in their midst.

Ceremony Highlights Plight of Children in War

Today my wife and I attended a very moving ceremony at St. Mary's school in Aboke, northern Uganda, commemorating the twelfth anniversary of the abduction of 139 girls by rebel troops, many of them younger than their victims.

In an act of incredible bravery, two teachers, John Bosco and Sister Rachelle Fassera, had pursued and tracked down the rebel unit and negotiated the release of 109 girls. However, most of the remaining 30 were forced to become 'wives' for top commanders of the rebel Lord's Resistance Army (LRA).  The parents of the abductees formed a local pressure group, the Concerned Parents Association, to push for the children's release and advocate for peace.

The 'Aboke Girls' are among the over 30,000 children who have been abducted by the LRA since 1986. Since the LRA has had little support among the civilian population, they turned to forced recruitment of children to fill their ranks. According to some estimates, over 80 percent of the LRA's ranks are abductees.

Possibilities In India

India has held a special place in my heart since the second time I went there in the summer of 2005. The richness of culture, the multitudes of people, languages, and religions…along with the best food in the world, make India special in my eyes. India has also held a special place in the work of Outreach International. The Gummiguda School in one of the poorest states in India, Orissa, is one of Outreach International’s first projects. We have funded this school for 30 years.

Perhaps the best thing about India is its possibilities. In the last few decades, India has developed tremendously. There are many economic opportunities for Indians to lift themselves out of extreme poverty. However, most of these opportunities have been limited to the elite. The gap between the rich and the poor is widening quickly in India. There are also a myriad of possibilities for Outreach International in India to help the poorest of the poor, which are some of the poorest people in the world.