Business for Social Responsibility
Large-scale factories, especially in developing countries, are infamous for their dangerous working conditions and lack of respect for their employees. Fortunately, this is taking a turn for the better, with businesses taking steps to ensure a bright future for their employees. There is even an organization dedicated solely to this purpose: Business for Social Responsibility (BSR).
BSR is a nonprofit that works with companies in order to improve the lives of their employees, and has so far partnered with over 250 organizations. Their goal is to work with these organizations in order to create a “systematic progress toward a just and sustainable world.”
The company states on their site that, “The role of business is to create and deliver products and services in a way that treats people fairly, meets individuals’ needs and aspirations within the boundaries of our planet and encourages market and policy frameworks that enable a sustainable future.”
One of the company’s main values is transparency and they heavily stress how important it is within any organization. BSR is hosting a conference in November focusing on this point and how transparency can improve supply change, climate, consumer engagement and impacts on a community.
Another main focus of BSR is keeping the earth clean through environmentally friendly business tactics. The company states on their site the belief that, “integrated, far-sighted planning can create resilient low-carbon emission transport networks, particularly in new urban areas.”
BSR works directly with farmers on sustainability training to keep the farming practices safe and environmentally friendly. They also do work reducing supply chain GHG emissions and work with ecosystem services to ensure all around sustainable businesses.
To make the safe and fair practices come full circle, BSR takes care of partnered companies’ employees by creating HERproject (HER=Health Enables Returns). This is a life skills training program for the factory workers, particularly the women, in BSR-partnered companies.
HERproject holds classes on health education to teach about general health knowledge, reproductive systems and preventative care. The group also has a finance curriculum, filled with modules about formal savings account and budgeting techniques.
HERproject works in the field with local NGOs, clinics and even governments to personalize the training given to each group. Beginning in Bangladesh, it has expanded to include Cambodia, China, Egypt, Haiti, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Pakistan and Vietnam; it has plans to begin projects in Brazil, Ethiopia, Mexico and Myanmar.
USAID headed a global health research project that showed when employees are better taken care of, their company is better off economically. When workers feel well, they are able to perform well. They do not need as many sick days, they become more productive and therefore more easily meet production goals.
Some notable corporations that have proven the success are J.Crew, Abercrombie & Fitch and Colombia Sportswear, and since the incorporation of BSR practices, they have strengthened their global supply chains. Sandra Cho of Colombia Sportswear states about HERproject:
“HERproject shows great return on investment numbers, but that’s not what’s inspiring about the project to me. What is inspiring is seeing the women excited about the knowledge they’re gaining and sharing, and the sense of empowerment that gives them, that’s exciting for consumers, too.”
BSR is making a global impact for business practices, and in turn they have helped the world move towards a more responsible, cleaner, more ethical future.
– Courtney Prentice
Sources: Global Envision, BSR 1, CSR Wire, Global Hand, BSR 2
Photo: CSRTimes
Using Satellite Technology to Eradicate Polio
To date, there have been eight attempts to eliminate polio, along with a score of other infectious diseases around the world, but only the elimination of smallpox has been successful. Using modern day smartphone and satellite technology, however, the World Health Organization (WHO) can better locate remote areas where polio is still a threat.
Polio has been eradicated in all but three countries: Nigeria, Afghanistan and Pakistan. The disease is spread by direct person-to-person contact, as well as indirect contact. Insecurity, poor health care and lack of proper sanitation are all reasons as to why these countries still struggle with a preventable disease that is only a distant memory to many countries around the world.
Polio is an disease that can lead to paralysis and even death if not treated. Unfortunately, there is no cure for polio once the infection takes hold, only treatment to make living with it more bearable. However, 100 percent of cases are preventable if every child under the age of five receives a vaccination. In countries like the U.S., the polio vaccine is mandatory.
In order to locate remote communities in Nigeria, Afghanistan and Pakistan, WHO workers use geographic information systems (GIS). GIS involves transmitting satellite images to a computer in order to map an area. In the past—as little as ten years ago—those who wanted to map an area of land would have to fly over it and take pictures. GIS is an improvement on this, as it is remote and allows for more land to be mapped more quickly.
By using GIS, those at WHO can determine the location of extremely rural villages where children need to be vaccinated for the first time, or maybe even the fourth or fifth time, as certain remaining strains of polio are stronger and require multiple vaccinations.
This technology can also be connected to WHO members’ smartphones and allow the organization to track the location of employees, volunteers and patients. This has allowed for an increase in the number of vaccinations, as well as better supervision on the part of the WHO. It is extremely difficult for volunteers to slack off or lie when the operation is being monitored so closely.
Before this collaboration of satellite imaging and smartphones, it was extremely difficult to know which households had been vaccinated and educated on polio prevention and which had not. But since 1988, polio has been reduced by 99 percent, with cases down from more than 350,000 a year to only 406 in 2013.
However, 99 percent is not 100 percent. Technology and dedication may not be enough to completely eradicate the disease, as distrust of western medicine instigated by propaganda from groups such as the Taliban have made it difficult for workers to administer the vaccine.
– Taylor Lovett
Sources: Information Week Health Care, Global Polio Eradication Initiative, World Health Organization
Photo: Lasker Foundation
Business for Social Responsibility
Large-scale factories, especially in developing countries, are infamous for their dangerous working conditions and lack of respect for their employees. Fortunately, this is taking a turn for the better, with businesses taking steps to ensure a bright future for their employees. There is even an organization dedicated solely to this purpose: Business for Social Responsibility (BSR).
BSR is a nonprofit that works with companies in order to improve the lives of their employees, and has so far partnered with over 250 organizations. Their goal is to work with these organizations in order to create a “systematic progress toward a just and sustainable world.”
The company states on their site that, “The role of business is to create and deliver products and services in a way that treats people fairly, meets individuals’ needs and aspirations within the boundaries of our planet and encourages market and policy frameworks that enable a sustainable future.”
One of the company’s main values is transparency and they heavily stress how important it is within any organization. BSR is hosting a conference in November focusing on this point and how transparency can improve supply change, climate, consumer engagement and impacts on a community.
Another main focus of BSR is keeping the earth clean through environmentally friendly business tactics. The company states on their site the belief that, “integrated, far-sighted planning can create resilient low-carbon emission transport networks, particularly in new urban areas.”
BSR works directly with farmers on sustainability training to keep the farming practices safe and environmentally friendly. They also do work reducing supply chain GHG emissions and work with ecosystem services to ensure all around sustainable businesses.
To make the safe and fair practices come full circle, BSR takes care of partnered companies’ employees by creating HERproject (HER=Health Enables Returns). This is a life skills training program for the factory workers, particularly the women, in BSR-partnered companies.
HERproject holds classes on health education to teach about general health knowledge, reproductive systems and preventative care. The group also has a finance curriculum, filled with modules about formal savings account and budgeting techniques.
HERproject works in the field with local NGOs, clinics and even governments to personalize the training given to each group. Beginning in Bangladesh, it has expanded to include Cambodia, China, Egypt, Haiti, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Pakistan and Vietnam; it has plans to begin projects in Brazil, Ethiopia, Mexico and Myanmar.
USAID headed a global health research project that showed when employees are better taken care of, their company is better off economically. When workers feel well, they are able to perform well. They do not need as many sick days, they become more productive and therefore more easily meet production goals.
Some notable corporations that have proven the success are J.Crew, Abercrombie & Fitch and Colombia Sportswear, and since the incorporation of BSR practices, they have strengthened their global supply chains. Sandra Cho of Colombia Sportswear states about HERproject:
“HERproject shows great return on investment numbers, but that’s not what’s inspiring about the project to me. What is inspiring is seeing the women excited about the knowledge they’re gaining and sharing, and the sense of empowerment that gives them, that’s exciting for consumers, too.”
BSR is making a global impact for business practices, and in turn they have helped the world move towards a more responsible, cleaner, more ethical future.
– Courtney Prentice
Sources: Global Envision, BSR 1, CSR Wire, Global Hand, BSR 2
Photo: CSRTimes
Global Food Security Index 2014
Last May, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) published its annual DuPont-commissioned Global Food Security Index (GFSI). The index aims to “provide a robust and consistent analytical framework for measuring and deepening the understanding of food insecurity around the globe.”
The index showed that food security in 70 percent of countries increased from 2012 to 2013. In that time span, the number of people suffering from chronic hunger decreased from 868 million to 842 million, with a 17 percent decline over the past 24 years.
However, the index also highlighted numerous obstacles inhibiting the growth of food security that both poor and rich countries have yet to surmount.
One hundred nine countries were ranked. The top five, in order, were the United States, Austria, the Netherlands, Norway (tied with the Netherlands) and Singapore. The bottom five were Burundi, Togo, Madagascar, Chad and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Of all 109 countries, Uganda saw the biggest increase and Myanmar saw the biggest decrease in food security.
To determine these rankings, the GFSI incorporates three categories: Affordability, Availability and Quality & Safety.
The Affordability category incorporates measures like food consumption as a percentage of household expenditure, the proportion of a country’s population living under the $2 dollar per day global poverty line and import tariffs on agricultural goods. This category, a combination of six indicators, seeks to determine the degree to which people can purchase nutritional food without depleting their financial resources. In the top performing countries (U.S. and Singapore), people spent less than 15 percent of their budget on food.
This all matters little if food is affordable, but unavailable, so the GFSI assesses how easily people can access food as well. Acquiring the food one needs can be difficult in countries plagued by corruption, a lack of infrastructure and unpredictable agricultural outputs. Low-income countries in Sub-Saharan Africa scored the lowest in Availability, though the region experienced a notable increase in overall food security.
Lastly, the GFSI analyzes the quality and safety of diets in different countries. It looks at the availability of micronutrients like vitamin A and vegetal iron, protein quality and diet diversification, among other indicators.
According to the index, the majority of countries made gains in Affordability, but many countries lost points in Availability and Quality & Safety. In many countries grouped in the “Asia & Pacific” region, food indeed became more affordable, but only because diet diversification had been markedly reduced.
Two new indicators were added this year: food loss as part of the Availability category and obesity as part of the Quality & Safety category. Both have been controversial in recent years. In India, for example, a lack of food-chain infrastructure results in tremendous food loss—as much as 25 percent of produce every year.
Furthermore, obesity has become a growing concern even in countries with high food insecurity, though experts are still at a loss to explain this phenomenon.
The upshot of the index seems positive, with food security increasing in most countries. Despite this progress, areas for improvement have been pointed out. For one, women farmers across the globe still lack the same access to education, land and machinery that men have. Moreover, governments in developing countries are still struggling to make food more affordable without sacrificing dietary quality.
– Ryan Yanke
Sources: Economist, Blouin News, Dupont, Global Food Security Index
Photo: BlouInNews blog
IMA World Health
IMA World Health is a faith-based organization that is dedicated to providing health services in order to create sustainable and long-lasting healthy communities around the world.
The organization operates with four major goals at the forefront of all of its projects: to build new health systems and strengthen existing health systems in order to provide people vulnerable to disease with the care they deserve; to partner with other faith-based and international organizations in order to best spread the mission of universal care; to exercise technical excellence in all aspects of its practice; and finally to set up a organized health systems in order to best distribute quality care to mass amounts of people.
IMA World Health is also a big proponent of empowering women across the globe and currently has many projects set up in order to help give women the chance at a better life. Some of these projects include literary circles, in which women are taught basic reading and writing skills to help them gain a higher position within their communities. USHINDI is a program that provides legal and psychological counseling to women who have faced traumatic experiences. WeWillSpeakOut.US is a program dedicated to breaking the silence surrounding sexual violence against women, and the Women’s Leadership project is an effort to promote women’s leadership both in and outside of the home.
IMA World Health additionally prides itself on its ability to deliver medical supplies to communities that are unable to provide for themselves. Projects currently being implemented include the IMA Medicine Box, which when distributed, can treat up to 1,000 people in remote villages for around two months. The box includes antibiotics, first aid items and pain medication. The IMA Safe Motherhood Kit includes sterile birthing materials in order to reduce mothers’ chance of infection upon delivery. Lastly, the Gifts in Kind program has allowed supplies to be donated to 72 countries with over $100 million worth of medical supplies.
– Jordyn Horowitz
Sources: IMA World Health, GlobalGiving, Forbes
Photo: IMA World Health
Ten Thousand Villages Fair Trade Model
Stopping into any Ten Thousand Villages store, there are multicolored products as diverse as the countries they are produced in. The Akron-based company runs on a Fair Trade business plan with craftsmen in over 38 countries. With over 65 years of business, Ten Thousand Villages has become one of the most prominent Fair Trade businesses in the world.
Many of the artisans employed by Ten Thousand Villages are underprivileged and the long-term contracts with the business create opportunities to alleviate their poverty. Many of the people who receive contracts are women who generally have fewer opportunities in their countries.
As a founding member of the World Free Trade Organization, Ten Thousand Villages has formed a business plan that is being used as a template for other companies with business dealings in poorer nations. Fair Trade models enable the craftsmen to be paid reasonable salaries, generally much higher than those they would be paid by businesses in their home country.
The payment is given in two parts: half when the order is placed and the rest after the product is completed. Together, the artists negotiate a deal with the company to cover their costs of production, as well as an adequate fee.
Through the contracts with Ten Thousand Villages, the artists are able to provide health care, education and nourishment to their families which they might have otherwise not had access to. The trickle-down effect of Fair Trade lasts for generations. More children are able to continue their education and then have more opportunities than the previous generation.
The contracts typically last several years, which provides a stable source of income for the artisans, as well as reliable products for the stores. The products are a homage to the unique cultures and materials accessible.
Though Ten Thousand Villages was one of the pioneers of the Fair Trade model, said model has proliferated to over 350 organizations in more than 70 countries united in the WFTO. One of the cornerstones of the Fair Trade model is to eliminate global poverty through raising wages to livable standards; so far, Ten Thousand Villages is helping achieve this goal.
–Kristin Ronzi
Sources: Ten Thousand Villages, WFTO
Photo: Blogto
Human Trafficking in Bangkok
According to the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime, Thailand is a “top destination for victims of human trafficking.” The majority of Thailand’s trafficking victims are voluntary economic migrants from countries like Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and China. They come only for the promise of a good job.
Without documentation, knowledge of Thailand or understanding of its language, they are vulnerable to traffickers. For the same reasons, it is nearly impossible for them to escape. Many are trapped in Thailand’s bustling capital of Bangkok, famous for its rich history, stunning architecture and thriving sex tourism industry.
Operation Graceland began with a tip-off by an Uzbek woman trafficked into prostitution at Bangkok’s Grace Hotel and desperate to return home. What followed was a police raid, the holding of 19 women and an investigation of all involved. In the end, only two of the detainees admitted to being trafficked. They identified their abusive ‘manager’ amongst the group, but after receiving word that their families had been threatened, they spoke favorably of her in court. She was released.
In 2002, there were an estimated 200,000 sex workers in Bangkok and the trade has grown. It is a lucrative job: women and men from poor families earn money to support their relatives, finance future aspirations or live a life of previously unknown affluence.
Though many are forced by circumstance, involvement in the sex industry is considered voluntary. Because there are so many willing sex workers in Bangkok, it is difficult to identify victims of trafficking. Officers are being trained to recognize trafficked workers. Do they work excessive hours? Do they have documentation? Are they of age?
But even if they manage a rescue, it is difficult to convict the perpetrators. Gangs threaten those rescued and their families, warning them against speaking out. Some victims hope that, by cooperating with their captors, they will be released with a small share of their earnings, all of which typically go to their slavers. Still others are undocumented migrants, who fear legal retribution for involving themselves in any legal affair.
In any case, testifying is risky, since many prosecutors base their arguments entirely on hearsay and the victim’s statements. Slavers are often released and the case against them deemed unsubstantial.
The prevalence of trafficking in Thailand and the legal support for victims have not improved enough for international recognition. In June, the United States dropped Thailand from tier two to tier three on the 2014
Trafficking in Persons report.
But the Thai government is making headway. In 2013, the number of trafficking cases investigated was double that of 2012. Nearly 750 victims received some form of assistance from the Thai government: most were referred to one of nine shelters run by the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security. Thousands of public officers were trained on new anti-trafficking laws; ideally, they will offer victims the legal support they need and give them hope of a life once again in freedom.
-Olivia Kostreva
Sources: Bangkok Post, Time, UNIAP
Photo: Laura Leigh Parker
INMED Partnerships for Children
Institute for International Medicine Partnerships for Children is an organization dedicated to preventing and combating the harm that comes to children through violence, disease, hunger and neglect.
INMED Partnerships for Children values taking a holistic approach to improve children’s health worldwide through addressing the causes of disease and hunger and attempting to remedy them from the source. INMED is dedicated in implementing long-term solutions to enhance both the quality and longevity of children’s lives.
Founded 27 years ago, INMED has stuck by its original goal of helping to improve the health and safety of children all over the globe. Led by President and CEO Linda Pfeiffer, INMED has been targeting programs and delivering care to help children in both urban and rural areas of the world. INMED also has offices worldwide, in places such as Virginia, Peru, Brazil, South Africa and the Caribbean.
INMED has partnered with a diverse group of companies in order to make sure they best spread their mission. They have partnered with companies such as Macy’s, the Ronald McDonald House Charities, the International Foundation, United States Agency for International Development, Kids in Distressed Situations, Johnson and Johnson and many more.
INMED maps out large areas they want to improve and then tailors specific projects to fall into those categories. These broader categories include health and nutrition, youth development, education and skill building, and adaptive agriculture and aquaponics.
One of INMEDs upcoming events will be the 2015 Harvest the Future International Conference, which is set to take place June 14-17, 2015 in Montego Bay, Jamaica. Experts from across the globe will gather at this conference in order to discuss possible solutions to problems such as water scarcity, income generation sustainable livelihoods, nutrition and health, food security and climate change adaptation.
Conference speakers include Christopher Somerville, an Urban Agriculture Consultant at Food and Agriculture Organization of the United States, Denise A. Herbol, Mission Director at US Agency for International Development, and Thad M. Jackson, Executive Vice President of INMED Partnership.
– Jordyn Horowitz
Sources: INMED, INMED 2, INMED 3, Middleburg Women
Photo: Zimbio
International Youth Day 2014
On Aug. 12, the U.N. hosted an International Youth Day event at its headquarters in New York City. The event focused on the importance of addressing the mental health concerns of youth around the world, thus making them less susceptible to homelessness, crime and conflict situations.
The theme of this year’s International Youth Day was “Mental Health Matters.” The half-day event in New York City brought together young people, youth organizations, U.N. Member State representatives, civil society and U.N. entities for a series of presentations including panelists and young artist performances.
This event marked the official launch of the U.N. Department of Economic and Social Affairs publication, Social Inclusion of Youth with Mental Health Conditions.
The report reveals “one-fifth of the young people around the world experience a mental health condition, with risks especially great during the transition from childhood to adulthood.”
The U.N. seeks to banish the stigma that plagues those suffering from mental illness. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned in his opening remarks that failing to address access to mental health services makes affected youth “more vulnerable to poverty, violence, and social exclusion, and negatively impacting society as a whole.”
International Youth Day was marked overseas at a U.N. peacekeeping mission in Somalia, where the mental health of the young is of particular concern. Somali youth face violence and crime on a daily basis, and many are forced to join military groups or survive on the streets.
A traumatic childhood, like that experienced by youth in Somalia, breeds mental illness. According to Philippe Lazzarini, the U.N. Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Somalia, “We must be clear that what we need is nothing less than a paradigm shift in policies and attitudes towards the role of youth in order to empower and place them at the core of the development agenda.”
The population of those 25 years of age or younger is growing in countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo, where young people are 70 percent of the civilian body. It is especially important for countries like the DRC to focus on mental health because the youth “are not only the Congo of tomorrow, but also the Congo of today,” said a U.N. representative from the country.
The World Health Organization recommends a range of specific actions that should be integrated into national development plans in order to break the cycle of debilitating mental illness. These strategies include supporting access to school for children with mental disabilities, integrating mental health issues into broader health policies and creating employment for those suffering from mental illness.
Assembly President John Ashe summed up the objective of this year’s International Youth Day, urging, “We should be especially focused on addressing the needs of youth with mental health conditions, many of whom experience discrimination on a daily basis. We must work together to ensure that young people with mental health conditions can lead full and healthy lives.”
– Grace Flaherty
Sources: World Health Organization, United Nations, UN DESA
Photo: Idealist Careers
More Natural Disasters?
It’s widely accepted by scientists today that natural disasters are on the rise and there’s increased risk for everyone. It’s more likely that people are going to experience a natural disaster in their lifetime.
One reason for this is that there are simply more people and many are concentrated in areas that are prone to disaster. The proportion of people living in cities of developing countries has doubled since 1960. This is important because 13 of the world’s 19 largest cities are located in coastal regions that are naturally at risk for disaster. This proportion is expected to rise 55 percent, too, by the year 2030.
It’s important to note also that developing countries, harboring the greatest populations in the world, experienced 94 percent of the world’s natural disasters between 1990 and 1998.
On the other hand, there are more natural disasters today than there used to be. The earth’s southern hemisphere is most likely to bear the brunt of climate change, a fairly well-known driver of the planet’s increase in the frequency of natural disasters. Since 1950, there have been more droughts, hurricanes, floods and windstorms than there used to be. And most developing countries can be found in the global south.
But regardless of what’s causing these disasters to tear cities and lives apart, the experiences are costly. Since the 1960s, the costs of natural disasters have increased sevenfold and low-income economies are at the greatest risk. Here, the poor stand to suffer the most. Consequently, natural disasters are quickly rising as a major issue in efforts at global poverty reduction.
Recall the recent typhoon Rammasun in the Philippines, which flooded streets in Quezon City, killed thirty-eight and left eight missing. It came on the heels of the devastating Typhoon Haiyan which killed more than 5,000. These storms left the already-poor coconut farmers of the nation in devastation after having lost their livelihoods in the storm. Poor fishers, whose boats were destroyed, were threatened with relocation away from coasts, as well.
In southern Karnataka in India, coffee growers fear for their yield as the yearly monsoon rains have delivered 14 percent more water than normal.
But there is hope. Despite the increasingly costly nature of natural disasters, data shows that this year represents a leveling-out in disaster costs, which have generally been on the increase over the past ten years. The first six months of 2014 have had costs nearly 50 percent lower than the $95 billion average.
As climate change moves across the globe as an unstoppable force behind disaster and people concentrate in vulnerable regions, we can only hope that losses continue to fall with increased responsiveness and preparation.
– Rachel Davis
Sources: IMF, CBC, The Hindu, Actuarial Post
Photo: The Stress Surfer
Extreme Poverty Has Been Halved
Back in 2000, countries around the world convened to discuss the United Nations Millennium Development Goals – goals to make the world a safer, healthier place and to ultimately eradicate global poverty. Countries pledged that by 2015, they would halve the number of people living in poverty, cut maternal mortality by three-quarters and cut child mortality by two-thirds. Though there are considerable strides to make toward the latter two objectives, the former goal of halving extreme poverty has been achieved even earlier than expected.
In 1990, 1.9 billion people in developing nations were living in extreme poverty, or 43 percent of the world’s population. By 2000, that number was down by one-third. By 2010, the number was 1.2 billion – or 21 percent of the Earth’s population. This indicates that in a short 20 years, the global poverty rate was cut in half.
The quick, yet drastic improvements that were made in just two decades raise the question: what is stopping world leaders from reaching 1 percent in the near future?
According to Martin Ravallion, the World Bank’s head of research, growth alone does not ensure less poverty in a nation. Based on Ravallion’s research and surveys, he found that two-thirds of the poverty decrease was the result of growth and one third came from greater income equality. His surveys reveal that a one percent increase in incomes cut poverty by 0.6 percent in the most unequal countries and by 4.3 percent in the most equal ones.
China is responsible for three-quarters of the world’s total decline in extreme poverty over the past twenty years. Back in 1980, the country was home to the greatest poverty-ridden population in the world. In just two decades, China lifted 600 million citizens out of extreme poverty.
It is not the only nation, however, that has experienced accelerated economic growth. In Brazil, new poverty reduction policies – including equality through minimum wages, cash transfer programs for the poor and better public services – have largely contributed to the nation’s economic development. Not only has poverty been considerably reduced, but deforestation of the Amazon has also been cut by 80 percent.
World leaders argue that today’s developed nations have the resources and technology to eventually eradicate extreme poverty. It is the small factors, however, that will be most important. Not only is it essential for a nation to experience economic growth and income equality, but it must also foster a healthy and stable population.
This means that education and health are at the forefront of the United Nations’ agenda. Though 17,000 more children are alive per day compared with the situation twenty years ago and mosquito nets have saved 3.3 million lives from malaria, there are still large obstacles to overcome. Taking small initiatives, while tackling large issues with the proper resources, will be the key to seeing the end of extreme poverty by the year 2030.
– Samantha Scheetz
Sources: The Economist, UN, Devex
Photo: My Modern Met