Is it okay to laugh about global poverty? The Laughter Effect, a study into the impacts of comedy on serious issues such as global poverty, shows how comedy can help by raising awareness. Other ways comedy has been shown to impact global poverty are by providing opportunities for expression and raising money. Here are three ways that comedy can impact poverty.
Raise Awareness
Caty Borum Chattoo, an assistant professor of communications at American University, conducted the study “The Laughter Effect” and found that comedy can impact poverty. Her study shows how satire can draw attention to serious social issues because it captures the audience’s attention and improves the ability to remember information.
“The Laughter Effect” came about because of Chattoo’s work producing a serious TV show about ending world poverty. She and the producers wondered if the show might communicate its content better in a less serious form. This prompted the creation of “Stand Up Planet” in 2014. It is a documentary about global poverty through the lens of comedian Hasan Minhaj as he searches for up-and-coming comedians from the developing world.
In addition, “The Laughter Effect” examined how comedy can raise awareness in other settings. It looked at comedy’s ability to make people care about the issue being satirized. “Stand Up Planet” focused on the issue of global poverty, drawing attention to it and changing the conversation around it. When talking about “Stand Up Planet,” Chattoo said that, while people watching the documentary reported more learning, they reported more feeling while watching the satirical comedy.
Furthermore, the book “A Comedian and an Activist Walk into a Bar: The Serious Role of Comedy in Social Justice” studied the effect “Stand Up Planet” has on issue awareness compared to “The End,” a more serious documentary about global poverty. Its results showed that both documentaries increased support from U.S. citizens for overseas aid to poor countries. However, the study also found that more people who watched “Stand Up Planet” stated that they would take action against global poverty, such as signing petitions, compared to those who watched “The End.”
Provide Opportunities for Expression
Comedy can also impact poverty by providing an outlet for people to express themselves. One of the creators of “Stand Up Planet,” Xandra Carlson, “found humor was the outlet and relief from daily struggles everywhere, a universal language that may translate around the world.”
In 2015, about 56% of South Africa’s population was living in poverty. Goliath and Goliath, a comedy and entertainment agency based in South Africa, uses its brand to build the local comedy industry and provide comedians a place to share their experiences.
The company planned a Comedy Con for April 2020 in order to “propel the comedy landscape in South Africa.” Although the event was postponed due to COVID-19, Goliath and Goliath has been hosting a comedy club online in order to continue providing exposure for up-and-coming comedians in South Africa. Since its start in 2012, the agency has added to its group of entertainers, bringing in a “violinist duo,” a comedy magician and increasing its group of MCs by 10 comedians.
In 2019, Comedy Central Africa ran a special called “Comedians Solve World Problems.” In one episode, the channel featured Jason Goliath, founder of Goliath and Goliath, and Gilli Apter talking about the rich-poor divide. The two comedians discussed how to solve wealth disparities in a comedic way. While the video is largely satirical, it also provided a platform for these comedians to make jokes about their experiences. At one point, Goliath said to Apter, “I think I underestimated how much poorer than you I actually am. I can’t even imagine a scenario where I have 10 billion dollars and then someone says, ‘Don’t you want another 10 billion dollars?'”
Raise Money
Finally, comedy can impact poverty through fundraising. For example, the Red Nose Day Campaign works to fight child poverty using comedy. According to the campaign, “Through the power of entertainment, we bring people together to laugh and have fun, all while raising life-changing cash for the children that need it the most.” This year, Red Nose Day was held on May 21 even amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Since its start in 2015, the campaign has raised over $230 million to fight child poverty and has helped 25 million children globally.
Stand-up comedian Trevor Noah also uses comedy to fight poverty. His charity, the Trevor Noah Foundation, is dedicated to improving education for children in South Africa. A 2015 World Bank report found that those with post-secondary education were 48% more likely to participate in the South African labor market than those with no education. To address issues like this, Noah’s foundation has used the financial donations it receives to make a clear impact on the country’s education system.
Specifically, the organization does so through its work with the Khulani School program. The program works to help students develop learning skills, train and provide support for teachers and create viable learning infrastructures after secondary school. Since the start of the program, financial aid was approved for 23.2% of students in the program, and higher education institutions accepted about 30.3% of students in the program.
Additionally, Noah launched a crowdfunding campaign through his foundation in 2018. Its goal was to raise money for education in South Africa through the platform backabuddy. So far, it has raised 130,495.17 rand. Noah has pledged to match every donation up to two million rand.
As the examples above illustrate, comedy can impact global poverty through awareness, providing opportunities for expression and raising money. These people, programs and platforms are only a handful of those using comedy to downsize poverty on a daily basis. For these comedy creators, laughing at global poverty has been shown to have a positive effect.
– Melody Kazel
Photo: Flickr
U.N. Supports Aid for Women and Girls
A recent hearing at the United Nations Human Rights Council illuminated the impact of COVID-19 and general global health emergencies on women and girls in impoverished communities, calling for increased aid for women and girls by the U.N.
How COVID-19 Impacts Women and Girls
The U.N. Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, Nada Al-Nashif, made a statement to the U.N. Council for Human Rights on the consequences of the global COVID-19 pandemic for women and girls stating, “experience demonstrates that insecurity and displacement fuel increases in sexual and gender-based violence, as well as other crimes and human rights violations.”
Testimonies like those shared by the U.N. News Podcast The Lid is On elaborate on the implications of COVID-19. One episode features a Ugandan activist named Zahara who reports that, in addition to increased rates of violence, rural women are currently suffering limited access to education, medical care and community support due to the pandemic.
The Deputy High Commissioner stresses that the situation for many women in poor communities is already critical. She notes that high rates of teen pregnancy, inadequate access to education and high rates of sexual violence in countries like Myanmar and South Sudan have only been exacerbated by the global COVID-19 outbreak. As a result, Al-Nashif called for greater legislation to provide judicial protection and increased aid for women and girls in vulnerable circumstances now and in the future.
Supporting Women through US Legislation
Like Al-Nashif, many members of Congress are pushing for increased aid for women and girls abroad. In addition to legislation providing international COVID-19 relief, bills are aiming to create long-term solutions to the challenges faced by women and girls. For instance, the Keeping Girls in School Act — recently passed in the House of Representatives and introduced in the Senate — would permit USAID to allocate funds specifically to confront “societal, cultural, health, and other barriers” that prevent girls from receiving a quality secondary education in foreign countries.
Similarly, the Girls’ Leadership, Engagement, Agency, and Development Act (Girls’ LEAD Act) — introduced in the Senate in October 2019 —seeks to create opportunities to gain experience in leadership and government through USAID. By expanding programs and aid for girls abroad, supporters of the bill hope to cultivate communities where women in leadership lift women and girls from positions of vulnerability to voices for societal change.
Looking Ahead
The U.N. has made it clear that women and girls in impoverished communities around the world suffer disproportionately during emergencies like the current COVID-19 outbreak. As such, international organizations firmly believe that increased foreign aid is critical. Legislation like the Keeping Girls in School Act and the Girls’ LEAD Act would support long-term assistance to prevent women and girls abroad from these vulnerabilities not just in times of crisis, but in everyday life.
– Courtney Bergsieker
Photo: Flickr
Rainwater Harvesting Brings Clean Water to Nepal
Infrastructure in Nepal
Nepal’s water infrastructure is underdeveloped. Citizens of Nepal struggle daily to find access to clean, usable water sources. Water containing arsenic and pollution from nearby cities plagues government buildings, schools and rural villages. Arsenic, while visibly undetectable, is a deadly chemical. Nepal’s Department of Water Supply and Sanitation had estimated that 85 percent of the population does not have access to safe water.
Water in Nepal
That is until Zachary Wong, a teenager from California, stepped in and founded Water in Nepal, or WIN. Wong raised about $27,000 to help fund more than twenty water-related projects from cities to villages around Nepal. WIN invests in water filtration systems and rainwater harvesting projects in Nepal. To do this, they “fund locally-appropriate solutions…focus[ed] on buying materials from local markets and [hired] local workers” to complete the project. Wong and his team have helped 11 schools, four rural villages, and five nonprofit groups. So far, he has brought safe drinking water to more than 8,000 people, with plans to help many more.
One of the more recent projects took place at Gita Maata Secondary School in Kathmandu, Nepal. Wong is currently implementing a rainwater harvesting system to ensure that all 2,500 students, staff, and faculty have enough water. Before WIN’s involvement, the school had one water-well that could not satisfy the school’s needs. Forced to pay for water tanks, the school lost money that could be used to improve facilities and education programs. Thanks to WIN, the school has 380 feet of rain gutters and high-quality pipes that lead to a storage tank for excess rainwater.
Between 1990 and 2012, the number of those living without clean water has decreased by half “with 2.3 billion people gaining access to improved drinking water.” Thanks to people like Zachary Wong and so many other researchers and innovators, the awareness of the link between access to water and poverty is coming to light. Companies like WIN are devoting time and resources to help communities across the globe fight poverty through water projects. Rainwater harvesting is an excellent way to do just that.
– Hannah Kaufman
Photo: Flickr
4 Nonprofits Encouraging Education in the Philippines
These numbers show that there is still room for improvement. Educational access is vital for every child, and providing that for Filipino youth is a mission that many nonprofit organizations have taken up. Here are four organizations that are working to equalize and encourage education in the Philippines.
Education Foundation of the Philippines
Education Foundation of the Philippines has sponsored many elementary schools throughout the Philippines through its projects and has provided various resources to hundreds of students and teachers in the area. It has worked with Calapacuan Elementary, Batiawan Integrated School and Salvasion Elementary, and has also partnered with other organizations in the country to provide for the students. The resources it has provided are science materials that are used by all grades, math and reading materials and general school supplies.
The organizations it has worked with are God’s Little Lambs, Child Evangelism Fellowship and Quezon Hill Community Church. These partnerships work to provide their respective communities with adequate resources to help students succeed in their educational paths. They also advocate and raise awareness for the needs of school children in the Philippines. Together, they help to provide better education in the Philippines.
Teach for the Philippines
Teach for the Philippines believes in providing access to adequate education for Filipino children through enlisting young leaders as teachers in public schools. The country has a shortage of teachers, with 40,000 teachers needed in the Philippines. They focus on improving the quality of teachers and addressing systematic educational challenges. Teach for the Philippines uses a three core program to create teachers who improve student learning and spark the reform needed to transform public schools.
Teach for the Philippines has engaged over 300 leaders working toward expanding educational access and fostering change for education in the Philippines. Through its fellowship program, in place since 2013, over 10,000 public school students are reached annually. Its work has enabled children across the country to have better educational outcomes and access to previously inaccessible opportunities.
Room to Read
Room to Read reaches students all across Asia and Africa, with over 18 million children helped in 16 countries. It is an organization that focuses on children’s literacy and girls’ education. With the goal of encouraging learning and ending illiteracy, one way they have reached students is by distributing books. The group has recently published books in its 36th language, Filipino.
Room to Read provides books in Filipino to encourage Filipino children to develop reading skills and have confidence. The organization unveiled 20 new books at an event with the Department for Education, publishers, authors and more. These books share themes of personal challenge, inclusion and gender inequality. Room to Read has impacted children across the country and helps to reduce illiteracy through accessible books, helping education in the Philippines to flourish.
Save the Children
Save the Children has been working in the Philippines for over 30 years better children’s lives through access to equality education. They work with the government to develop policies and plans to ensure access and protection of children’s rights.
Sace the Children creates mother tongue books that have developmentally appropriate and culturally sensitive content. It established a Book Development Review Committee (BDRC), which ensures the process of choosing topics and languages includes tribal chieftains, community leaders. It also advocates and spreads awareness for educational issues, reaching over 145,000 people on its platforms. This organization also helps with other areas such as health and sanitation and natural disaster aid. Their programs have helped access to education in the Philippines.
In Conclusion
These four organizations show various ways people are working towards education equality in the Philippines. While the work they are doing is admirable, education equality for Filipino youth is an area that requires more aid and effort. Education in the Philippines will grow more robust and accessible as more organizations are created and equalize the playing field for elementary and high schools students throughout the country.
– Kiana Powers
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
From Singing to Social Activism: Musicians Making a Difference
Music continues to unite people all around the world despite social distance. With cities urging self-isolation, celebrities are stepping up through charity donations and virtual concert performances. Here are several ways social activism by musicians is making a difference.
Online Concert Streaming
Musician friends Lucius and Courtney Barnett, joined together to raise money for Oxfam’s COVID-19 Relief Fund. Their 4-hour live performance streamed via Instagram was packed with new song debuts and famous cover remixes. Accompanied by individual performances from singers like Sheryl Crow and Lukas Nelson, the event raised more than $38,000.
Through his “Living Room Concert for America,” Elton John joined with musicians such as Alicia Keys and Lady Gaga to raise more than $10 million for Feeding America and the First Responders Children’s Foundation. The Lumineers also raised over $600,000 for MusiCares and the Colorado Restaurant Association through their live stream concert on May 8th.
Relief Efforts to Fight COVID-19
Through the Clara Lionel Foundation, Rihanna has given $5 million in grants to organizations such as Direct Relief, the International Rescue Committee and the World Health Organization to help underprivileged communities fight COVID-19. Musician Dierks Bentley has also demonstrated interest in alleviating pain from the vulnerable communities. In 2019, Dierks Bentley performed at a benefit for the Troy Gentry Foundation, which works with families in need. Bentley has also worked with WE Day, Stand Up to Cancer, Amnesty International and the Children’s Miracle Network to raise awareness and provide financial support.
Donations Given to MusiCares
On June 29th, The Weeknd announced a $1,000,000 donation to support relief efforts. The donation will be split in half with $500,000 for MusiCares and the other half for the Scarborough Health Network, which aids front-line healthcare workers.
Dolly Parton, widely recognized for her philanthropic efforts, was named the MusiCares Person of the Year. She founded the Imagination Library in 1995, which gives kids one book per month until they reach kindergarten. To date, more than 100 million books have been provided through her literacy program. In 2016, she put together the Smoky Mountains Rise telethon, which raised more than $13 million to be given to victims of the wildfires in Gatlinburg. Parton continued her strides in 2020, when she gave $1 million to fund research by Vanderbilt University Medical Center on a cure for COVID-19.
Taylor Swift is also known to lend a hand when she can, and in the face of the Coronavirus, she did just that. Swift supported her favorite record shop in Nashville by making a disclosed donation and giving three months of paid health insurance to the staffers. She has also donated to her fans in need and to Feeding America.
Looking Forward
While much still needs to be done in regards to addressing the COVID-19 pandemic, social activism by musicians like these is bringing about change by providing relief to organizations and underserved communities. Through music, these musicians are making change by giving hope and comfort to the world in light of the pandemic.
– Erica Fealtman
Photo: Flickr
3 Ways Comedy Can Impact Global Poverty
Is it okay to laugh about global poverty? The Laughter Effect, a study into the impacts of comedy on serious issues such as global poverty, shows how comedy can help by raising awareness. Other ways comedy has been shown to impact global poverty are by providing opportunities for expression and raising money. Here are three ways that comedy can impact poverty.
Raise Awareness
Caty Borum Chattoo, an assistant professor of communications at American University, conducted the study “The Laughter Effect” and found that comedy can impact poverty. Her study shows how satire can draw attention to serious social issues because it captures the audience’s attention and improves the ability to remember information.
“The Laughter Effect” came about because of Chattoo’s work producing a serious TV show about ending world poverty. She and the producers wondered if the show might communicate its content better in a less serious form. This prompted the creation of “Stand Up Planet” in 2014. It is a documentary about global poverty through the lens of comedian Hasan Minhaj as he searches for up-and-coming comedians from the developing world.
In addition, “The Laughter Effect” examined how comedy can raise awareness in other settings. It looked at comedy’s ability to make people care about the issue being satirized. “Stand Up Planet” focused on the issue of global poverty, drawing attention to it and changing the conversation around it. When talking about “Stand Up Planet,” Chattoo said that, while people watching the documentary reported more learning, they reported more feeling while watching the satirical comedy.
Furthermore, the book “A Comedian and an Activist Walk into a Bar: The Serious Role of Comedy in Social Justice” studied the effect “Stand Up Planet” has on issue awareness compared to “The End,” a more serious documentary about global poverty. Its results showed that both documentaries increased support from U.S. citizens for overseas aid to poor countries. However, the study also found that more people who watched “Stand Up Planet” stated that they would take action against global poverty, such as signing petitions, compared to those who watched “The End.”
Provide Opportunities for Expression
Comedy can also impact poverty by providing an outlet for people to express themselves. One of the creators of “Stand Up Planet,” Xandra Carlson, “found humor was the outlet and relief from daily struggles everywhere, a universal language that may translate around the world.”
In 2015, about 56% of South Africa’s population was living in poverty. Goliath and Goliath, a comedy and entertainment agency based in South Africa, uses its brand to build the local comedy industry and provide comedians a place to share their experiences.
The company planned a Comedy Con for April 2020 in order to “propel the comedy landscape in South Africa.” Although the event was postponed due to COVID-19, Goliath and Goliath has been hosting a comedy club online in order to continue providing exposure for up-and-coming comedians in South Africa. Since its start in 2012, the agency has added to its group of entertainers, bringing in a “violinist duo,” a comedy magician and increasing its group of MCs by 10 comedians.
In 2019, Comedy Central Africa ran a special called “Comedians Solve World Problems.” In one episode, the channel featured Jason Goliath, founder of Goliath and Goliath, and Gilli Apter talking about the rich-poor divide. The two comedians discussed how to solve wealth disparities in a comedic way. While the video is largely satirical, it also provided a platform for these comedians to make jokes about their experiences. At one point, Goliath said to Apter, “I think I underestimated how much poorer than you I actually am. I can’t even imagine a scenario where I have 10 billion dollars and then someone says, ‘Don’t you want another 10 billion dollars?'”
Raise Money
Finally, comedy can impact poverty through fundraising. For example, the Red Nose Day Campaign works to fight child poverty using comedy. According to the campaign, “Through the power of entertainment, we bring people together to laugh and have fun, all while raising life-changing cash for the children that need it the most.” This year, Red Nose Day was held on May 21 even amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Since its start in 2015, the campaign has raised over $230 million to fight child poverty and has helped 25 million children globally.
Stand-up comedian Trevor Noah also uses comedy to fight poverty. His charity, the Trevor Noah Foundation, is dedicated to improving education for children in South Africa. A 2015 World Bank report found that those with post-secondary education were 48% more likely to participate in the South African labor market than those with no education. To address issues like this, Noah’s foundation has used the financial donations it receives to make a clear impact on the country’s education system.
Specifically, the organization does so through its work with the Khulani School program. The program works to help students develop learning skills, train and provide support for teachers and create viable learning infrastructures after secondary school. Since the start of the program, financial aid was approved for 23.2% of students in the program, and higher education institutions accepted about 30.3% of students in the program.
Additionally, Noah launched a crowdfunding campaign through his foundation in 2018. Its goal was to raise money for education in South Africa through the platform backabuddy. So far, it has raised 130,495.17 rand. Noah has pledged to match every donation up to two million rand.
As the examples above illustrate, comedy can impact global poverty through awareness, providing opportunities for expression and raising money. These people, programs and platforms are only a handful of those using comedy to downsize poverty on a daily basis. For these comedy creators, laughing at global poverty has been shown to have a positive effect.
– Melody Kazel
Photo: Flickr
5 Facts About the Garment Industry in Bangladesh
The garment industry in Bangladesh is the number one business in the country, accounting for 80% of the country’s exports. Four out of five of the 4.4 million workers employed in the garment industry in Bangladesh are women, so one can often consider issues facing this industry to be feminist issues. Here are five facts about the garment industry in Bangladesh including how they relate to feminism.
5 Facts About the Garment Industry in Bangladesh
Despite the seemingly dire state of the garment industry in Bangladesh in the face of constant poverty coupled with a global pandemic, some are making many efforts and are continuing to implement them in order to better the industry. The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has launched many efforts to better the garment industry in Bangladesh since the disasters of 2012 and 2013. One of these efforts is called the Gender Equality and Returns (GEAR) program which offers career progression opportunities for female sewing operators. They receive training in the soft and technical skills necessary for them to assume supervisory positions. The program also trains managers on how to select, promote and support female workers in the industry. Since the launch of this program, IFC has trained over 140 female sewing operators in 28 factories, 60% of whom received promotion weeks after completing the training. Remake, a nonprofit in San Francisco that aims to make the global fashion industry more humane and environmentally sustainable, has launched another effort. Recently, Remake has pressured big brands to pay back contractors in Bangladesh for whatever they ordered before the pandemic. Of these brands, 16 have already agreed to do so.
– Caroline Warrick-Schkolnik
Photo: Flickr
Poverty Reduction and Forest Protection
Over a quarter of the world’s population is dependent upon forests for their livelihoods. Forests provide important sources of food, fuel and income for developing countries. Therefore, the relationship between forests and vulnerable communities must strengthen in order to pursue both poverty reduction and forest protection. Two ways that these goals have proven achievable are through conditional cash transfers and community-based forest management systems.
Conditional Cash Transfers
Conditional cash transfers’ success in both reducing poverty and preserving forests is evidence that the goals of ecosystem preservation and poverty alleviation do not have to be at odds with one another. This is accomplished by providing poor families with cash transfers if they meet education and health requirements, raising them above the poverty line if accepted. This has been proven to lessen the burden on the forests to provide fuel and other products for the inhabitants. It also decreases deforestation and the emission of greenhouse gasses in the process and strengthens the bond between impoverished families and their land.
An example of this is the “Family Hopes Program” which provided cash transfers to 266,533 families across 7,468 rural forested villages in Indonesia. Indonesia has incredible amounts of tropical forests and biodiversity. However, people are cutting its forests down at some of the highest rates in the world. Paul Ferraro and Rhita Simorangkir analyzed the effects that conditional cash transfers had on deforestation in this area. They found that over four years, tree cover loss in rural villages’ surrounding forests had decreased by 30%. These are very encouraging results for the future of the simultaneous pursuit of poverty reduction and forest protection.
Community-Based Forest Management Systems
Community-based forest management systems also display the link between poverty reduction and forest protection. Unlike conditional cash transfers, which target poverty and indirectly reduce deforestation, community-based forest management targets environmental protection specifically. This gives communities control over their forests and addresses the conservation of natural resources through community ownership.
A study led by The University of Manchester examined 18,000 community-based forest management systems across Nepal. The study determines how successful national initiatives were at achieving both poverty reduction and forest protection. The result shows a clear link between communities that manage their own forests and simultaneous reductions in deforestation and poverty. It concludes that community-managed forests were 51% more likely to experience both lessened poverty and decreased deforestation.
Community-based forest management and conditional cash transfers are just two examples of how programs promoting strong relationships between impoverished communities and their neighboring forests can alleviate poverty. Additionally, these programs can also protect the resources needed for subsistence, agriculture and fuel. The World Bank lists existing projects in China, India, Tanzania and Mexico that also aim to protect communities who rely on forests through conservation and local management. These initiatives are essential to poverty reduction and forest protection and should undergo pursuit internationally to provide sustainable solutions for poverty.
– Eleanor Williams
Photo: Flickr
6 Facts about Universal Child Benefits
6 Facts About Universal Child Benefits:
The implementation of universal child benefits will require the cooperation of all countries. Without global support, it will be difficult to establish universal child benefits in poorer countries with large populations because these governments do not have the capital to effectively carry out these programs. Universal child benefits may be key to solving child poverty. It will help give millions of poor families around the world a chance to provide a better future for their children.
– Abbas Raza
Photo: Flickr
6 Facts about Healthcare in Palau
6 Facts About Palau’s Healthcare
On the whole, healthcare in Palau has a strong base, and the nation continuously seeks improvement in this arena. As its population ages, the “Big Five” – referring to cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes, chronic obstructive lung diseases and mental health disorders – will become increasingly prevalent health concerns. These diseases will likely become the focus of healthcare initiatives in the future of healthcare in Palau.
– Olivia du Bois
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
10 Facts About Sanitation in East Timor
East Timor has a long history of colonial and other foreign occupation; however, the nation has been independent since 2002. From the point of liberation in 2002 until 2008, the country experienced violent policing and political upheaval. This came as a result of unrest regarding national security. Instability led to the involvement of an Australian-led International Stabilization Force (ISF) and the United Nations Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT). These peacekeeping forces remained active in East Timor until 2008 when rebels within the country lost power. Since 2008, the country has experienced steadiness in national security, presidential guidance and rebuilding of important infrastructure like sanitation.
10 Facts About Sanitation in East Timor
– Lilia Wilson
Photo: Flickr