Archive for category: Advocacy

Information and news on advocacy.

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IRD Fights Suffering On Many Levels

IRD
Picture a world without suffering. Is it possible?

To some this may be but a far-fetched dream, but Dr. Arthur B. Keys, Jr. has set out to make this dream a reality.

Founded in 1998, Dr. Keys and his wife, Jasna, established International Relief and Development, a nonprofit organization that fights to relieve the suffering of the world’s most vulnerable and marginalized population through active engagement, empowerment and inclusion.

Over the years, IRD has provided $3.9 billion in humanitarian assistance to over 40 countries, including Afghanistan, Colombia, Ethiopia, Iraq and Ukraine. The organization heavily focuses on conflict zones and areas damaged by natural disasters. To improve the livelihoods of these people, the IRD believes it is best to provide the resources and training to become self-sufficient. Thus, rather than just providing clean water to a community suffering from drought, International Relief and Development aims to address the root causes of the problem, such as upgrading water pumps and management systems.

IRD has tackled issues ranging from a lack of schools in Haiti to impoverished women  in Mozambique to malnourishment among students in Laos. By organizing short-term and long-term interventions, they foster the path to a more developed and prosperous nation. But how does IRD get the funds to take on all these projects?

The nonprofit organization collaborates with many other agencies and donors, one of them being the U.S. Agency for International Development. As a contractor, 4,000 staff members all over the world carry out many of USAID’s programs in hopes to improve infrastructure, healthcare and governance in war-torn countries. The U.S. State Department as well as numerous UN agencies also fund IRD’s annual budget of $400-$500 million.

One of its most recent successes took place among refugees and internally displaced persons in Yemen, a country that hosts over 200,000 people from Eritrea Ethiopia, Iraq and Somalia.

Refugees and internally displaced persons all face similar struggles, but in a place where political instability and high unemployment wreak havoc on daily life, coping with the current circumstances becomes increasingly difficult.

Realizing the dire urgency, IRD has set out to assist the thousands of refugees and internally displaced persons. After assessing the deprivations and needs in the refugee camps, IRD along with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees worked to provide monthly allowances to the families. They also distributed thousands of dollars worth of school and medical supplies, hygiene kits and other goods to many school children and families. The United Methodist Committee on Relief donated most of the gifts. IRD also targeted many vulnerable groups, such as pregnant women and sexual abuse survivors, by establishing care centers and providing group therapy.

International Relief and Development continues to provide relief and assistance in the world’s hot spots. By going into desperate communities and initiating development, this organization guides countries to economic growth and stabilization. Success stories are seen all over Africa, Asia, Europe and the Middle East, but the range of IRD’s success does not stop there. Success like this is everlasting and enduring.

—Leeda Jewayni

Sources: International Relief and Development, Washington Post, Huffington Post

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Gender-Based Violence: A Global Issue

In the wake of the release of Ray Rice’s assault on Janay Palmer, reports of the NFL’s lack of punishment for other domestic violence and sexual assault cases have flooded the media. Many are calling for a boycott of the industry; others demand the resignation of NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.

This has not been the only news in gender-based violence within the United States. Men and women on college campuses have called attention to the high rates of sexual assault at colleges and universities across the country. Increased exposure also revealed the lack of effective investigation or punishment for the perpetrator. Even after the federal government became involved, lack of action at colleges and universities continues.

The problem of violence toward women is not limited to the United States. In many cases, incidence of sexual violence is closely related to poverty.

In India, survivors of sexual violence often experience the same lack of investigation and justice that survivors in the United States do. Al Jazeera reports that, in India, many women are offered a bribe in exchange for the perpetrator going free. These bribes do not come free of fear. In some cases, women are intimidated into dropping the charges.

In Fugana, India, this was the case for a 24-year-old woman, who, allegedly, was raped by three men. For other women, religious riots incited gang rapes, but fear of further attack prevents them from reporting the crimes. Even if survivors file reports, the conviction rate is only 25 percent.

According to SN Chaudhary, poverty plays a role in the occurrence of sexual violence in India. Women in lower socioeconomic groups are more often victims of rape. Higher rates of rape victims were illiterate than literate, suggesting a higher level of financial and social vulnerability.

In Uttar Pradesh, high rates of women have been raped while going to their bathroom outside. Over 90 percent of rape victims were Dalits, or members of the lowest caste. Most of these victims were minors.

More than that, high rates of sexual violence are an indicator of a highly patriarchal societal structure, which contributes to high rates of poverty.

How so? Survivors suffer from a high level of shame because they feel that their honor and respect are lost. In some cases, this translates into a loss of respect and honor for the family. This can lead to a lack of economic opportunity and isolation from a community. If women targeted come from poor backgrounds, rape often locks them into poverty.

As of 2013, India ranked 134 of 187 countries on a United Nations measurement of gender disparities in education, employment, health care and political representation. Limiting women’s access to these basic rights reduces the opportunity for nearly half of the population to reach financial security.

Allowing women to escape poverty can contribute to entire families reaching a new socioeconomic level and increasing access to education, healthcare and other key components of poverty reduction.

– Tara Wilson

Sources: Al Jazeera, PolicyMic, Human Rights and Poverty in India
Sources: EEA Grants

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Hip-Hop Educators Fight Ebola

Concern regarding Ebola has reached all corners of the globe. This year alone, the epidemic has contributed to the deaths of at least 2,400 people in the West African region. The World Health Organization also estimates around 79 health workers have been killed.

As the death toll escalates, authorities struggle to keep up with the rising number of people needing care. Clinics do not have enough workers—or even enough beds—to successfully treat everyone affected. Patients are being turned away, and as a result are bringing the virus back with them to their communities.

Despite the growing international response, with the U.K. and the U.S. promising to open new treatment centers in the region, there is still a heavy demand for health workers to come to the region. With an inability to keep the situation under control, public education has become a crucial component in addressing the epidemic.

Consider West Point, an impoverished neighborhood in Liberia’s capital Monrovia, where residents stormed an Ebola holding facility as a protest. The government responded with an overnight lock down on August 20. The quarantine ended 10 days later, after a number of additional protests.

The event is an important example of how shifting the community culture is crucial to addressing the disease. Many West Point inhabitants realized after the quarantine the true seriousness of the epidemic. A number of communities were convinced the epidemic was a government hoax, but now acknowledge the reality of the disease and have rallied against it.

Tan Tan B and Quincy B are Liberian hip-hop artists who try to convey the reality of Ebola through meaningful lyrics like “Ring the alarm, turn on the sirens. I see my people dying, but nobody’s firing.” Similarly, another popular song called “Ebola’s In Town” tells people to avoid touching friends to limit spreading of the virus. “Di Ebola Song” is a hit in Sierra Leone that encourages people to seek early medical attention.

Music can’t save a dying person, but community education efforts combat the spread of disease. Dr. Ibrahim Wadembere, a public health consultant in Uganda, explains the importance of community awareness for Ebola outbreaks in the region. He writes that community empowerment spreads awareness of how the disease is caught and spread, but also creates morale and prevents public panic.

As the world faces a clear lack of resources in addressing the epidemic, the importance of public education only grows. We may not be able to immediately create more clinics and find more doctors, but we can educate communities on disease prevention.

The community is the root of the disease’s spread, and prevention, intervention and control measures can only be implemented through the community. Making the ideas accepted and understood by community members will help maintain safety as the world scrambles to find ways to put a stop to this deadly outbreak.

– Fabeeha Ahmed

Sources: NPR 1, NPR 2, Academia, BBC

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Without Limits: United Cerebral Palsy

On the home page of the United Cerebral Palsy website, UCP.org, a picture of a young girl is posted. Her facial bis carefree and hopeful. Immediately above her, UCP’s logo is accompanies by the text: “Life without limits for people with disabilities.”

United Cerebral Palsy aims to remove barriers to success for people with disabilities. UCP started in 1949 in response to needs of parents of children with Cerebral Palsy by creating a network for information and resources.

Beyond Cerebral Palsy, UCP serves people with Down Syndrome, Autism Spectrum Disorder and physical and mental disabilities. The organization works with over 100 other affiliates to provide services such as housing, help finding a job, technology training and family support.

United Cerebral Palsy is a civil rights movement for those with disabilities. UCP does this by ensuring the basic human right of opportunity and equal living standards through expansive networks and lobbying Congress. UCP is uniting people and organizations to give a greater voice to the disabled.

This year, UCP released “The Case for Inclusion,” which tracks progress in providing care and opportunities for the disabled. Only 15 states make support services for families with a disabled member available for at least 200 families of 100,000.

Case for Inclusion also provides rankings of states based on providing support for people with disabilities and their families. In 2014, Arizona, Michigan and Hawaii ranked in the top three. Virginia, Texas and Mississippi ranked last.

Poverty and disability are closely related. Worldwide, one billion people, over 10 percent of the world’s population, live with a disability. Around 80 percent of disabled people live in developing countries, with around 20 percent of disabled people in these countries living in poverty.

Oftentimes, lack of services provided to people with disabilities results in limited access to basic necessities, healthcare, education, employment and political participation.

The World Health Organization states that disability is both a cause and a consequence of poverty. Lack of healthcare and limited nutrition contribute to disabilities created by poverty.

According to the WHO,” Poverty may lead to the onset of health conditions associated with disability including through: low birth weight, malnutrition, lack of clean water or adequate sanitation, unsafe work and living conditions, and injury.” For instance, 20 million women become disabled because of pregnancy and childbirth complications.

Many disabled people rely on a full-time caretaker. Most often, this caretaker is an immediate family member, so along with the disabled person, two members of the household do not receive a regular income. Disability also comes with extra healthcare costs and limited access to education and employment.

With the missing income and additional cost, poverty persists.

Beyond the U.S., disabled people lack the same network that United Cerebral Palsy provides for them and their families in the U.S. Giving a voice to the disabled and improving their quality of life plays a significant role in reducing global poverty, as a significant number of impoverished are disabled.

– Tara Wilson

Sources: Case for Inclusion, World Health Organization, United Cerebral Palsy, Huffington Post, Handicap International
Photo: Mandurah Mail

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Anti-Malaria Group Rallies on World Mosquito Day

Since 1897, August 20 has been a particularly important date for those in the developing world. On this day, British scientist Sir Ronald Ross made the breakthrough discovery that malaria, the deadly disease that kills 600,000 to one million people each year, was not caused by “bad air,” but rather by the female anopheles mosquito. His findings became the foundation for all scientific research and efforts to eradicate the widespread pandemic. And while institutions commemorate and celebrate Ross’s discovery with World Mosquito Day, anti-malaria groups perceive August 20 as a yearly reminder that the battle against mosquitoes continues.

Flash forward 117 years from 1897 and people are still dying from mosquitoes, with 3.4 billion people, or nearly half of the world’s population, at risk of malaria. According to the World Health Organization, there have been about 207 million malaria cases and an estimated 627,000 malaria-related deaths, particularly in poor countries in Africa. While virtually all of these deaths could be prevented by mosquito control and early treatment, malaria remains the fifth-leading cause of death from infectious diseases globally.

But since Ross’ discovery, increased malaria prevention and control measures have dramatically reduced the disease’s burden in many regions. Malaria mortality rates have fallen by 42 percent globally since 2000 and 49 percent in Africa, where 90 percent of the world’s malaria deaths occur. Cures and solutions such as artemisnin-based combination therapy drugs, insecticidal protection nets and indoor residual sprays have contributed to these decreased rates.

While people have been talking less about “malaria control” and more about “eradication,” it is clear that we are still far off from completely ridding the world of malaria parasites. But on World Mosquito Day, anti-malaria groups are organizing rallies to draw attention to the fight against malaria and empower those most at-risk to participate and take action.

In Cameroon, the NGO Malaria No More sent junior ambassadors to the country’s capital city to lead a raucous World Mosquito Day street rally. While some ambassadors dig out sewage trenches to prevent mosquitoes from breeding, others promote music, dancing and speeches to produce a celebratory atmosphere. Children are quizzed about malaria and given mosquito nets in exchange for right answers.

This is only a small part of Malaria No More’s efforts to diminish malaria outbreaks in Cameroon. In 2011, the organization launched NightWatch, a program that reminds Cameroonians to sleep under their mosquito nets through nightly television and radio advertisements, billboards featuring Cameroon’s celebrities and two hit songs about malaria by popular musicians.

Malaria No More also established a system to ensure that clinics are always supplied with malaria tests and treatments, known as SMS For Life. The initiative allows health workers to report stock levels of life-saving malaria medications before they run out to reduce the frequent shortages through simple cell phones.

A crucial role in Malaria No More’s mission to save lives from malaria in Cameroon and other African countries is advocacy. With cost-effective malaria interventions contributing to a 48 percent global decline in malaria deaths, the organization seeks to raise awareness and galvanize support among policymakers and businesses leaders for funding and policies needed to end the fight.

For Malaria No More, August 20 is another opportunity to increase recognition of the persistent disease and the millions that suffer from it. Olivia Ngou of Malaria No More claims that “maybe giving mosquitos as much publicity as the diseases they cause will help,” while encouraging other organizations and anti-malaria projects to draw attention to World Mosquito Day.

While we can celebrate how much progress we have made in the global battle with malaria, it is important to remember that mosquitoes will not become extinct any time soon.

– Abby Bauer

Sources: Global Post, Malaria No More, WHO
Photo: Blogspot

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RESULTS: Advocates for the World’s Poor

RESULTS_opt
RESULTS is a U.S.-based charity that advocates for the world’s poor. RESULTS uses advocacy to bring the world’s wealthiest governments together to do more to help end extreme poverty.

It relies heavily on volunteers and has partner organizations in four other countries—Canada, Australia, Japan and the U.K.

Thirty years ago, a teacher named Sam Daley-Harris, was inspired by a report from the National Academy of Sciences which stated that ending poverty was possible through strong political will. This led to the creation of RESULTS.

Each national organization has its own campaigns. Canada’s campaigns are nutrition, education, water and sanitation and microfinance. In the U.K., RESULTS is working on campaigns for basic education, child health and tuberculosis.

In the U.S., RESULTS has four main campaigns. The first is appropriation, which works to ensure that Congress continues to fund foreign assistance programs, specifically the ones that are the most effective.

The next campaign works to expand economic opportunities like increasing micro finance and “changing the policies of international financial institutions that hinder development.”

The final two campaigns are ensuring that all children have access to basic education and basic healthcare.

These campaigns are meant to educate communities and individuals as well as congress and the media on global poverty and hunger.

RESULTS U.S. has worked within Congress in support of important legislation like the Education for All Act as well as convincing congressmen to support crucial organizations like the Global Fund to Fight AIDS.

A clear definitive example of how RESULTS operates and achieves results is their written letter to the president in 2010. The letter was co-written with Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) and asked the president to pledge $6 billion from 2012-2014 to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS.

An additional 101 members of congress signed the letter and the result was a $4 billion pledge which was a “38 percent increase over the preceding three-year period.”

There are many more examples of successes like this on their website—examples of how advocacy really made a difference.

Charity Navigator has only reviewed the U.S. based RESULTS organization. According to their website RESULTS has complete transparency and accountability with a 4 star rating and a score of 99 out of a 100.

It shows that 90 percent of their budget goes towards the programs they support. This is legitimate charity that anyone could feel confident donating too.

On the U.S. website they use a fitting quote that expresses how advocacy and education about poverty is the best way to end it.

Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus said during his acceptance speech, “I firmly believe that we can create a poverty-free world if we collectively believe in it. In a poverty-free world, the only place you would be able to see poverty is in the poverty museums.”

– Eleni Marino

Sources: RESULTS UK, RESULTS Canada, RESULTS USA, Charity Navigator
Photo: Newsday

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#GirlWithABook

Last month, the creators of #GirlWithABook, a project advocating for girl’s education, had the opportunity to meet Malala Yousafzai, their inspiration. #GirlWithABook, the hashtag coined by college students Olivia Curl and Lena Shareef, has caught the attention of leaders and advocates worldwide.

Students at American University in Washington, D.C., Curl and Shareef shared the world’s reaction of astonishment and disgust after 14-year-old Pakistani Yousafzai was attacked on her way home from school in October 2012.

Malala Yousafzai survived after she was shot in the head by the Taliban, and when United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon admonished the Taliban in an address to the world, his words stuck with the two American girls. Ki-moon explained that what frightens terrorists the most is “a girl with a book.”

Curl and Shareef decided to start a campaign based on those words. They sent out a call to action, asking their female friends and family to pose for photos with books and flood social media with the pictures accompanied by the hashtag #GirlWithABook.

“Stand with Malala Yousafzai and show the Taliban that there’s no way they can stop us girls from getting an education,” their website reads. “Post a picture of yourself reading a book or holding a sign of support.”

Just a month after the project had begun, hundreds of photos flooded in from notable figures around the world. Ki-moon is pictured reading to his granddaughter, violinist Midori sent in a photo and even scientist Jane Goodall participated in the campaign.

The overwhelming response from women’s education supporters worldwide prompted Curl and Shareef to compile all the photos into a book. The Secretary-General presented Yousafzai with the book on her 16th birthday, when she visited the United Nations headquarters in New York.

A year has passed since #GirlWithABook was published, but the excitement over the movement continues.

Recently, Curl and Shareef were invited to participate in a conversation about the Millennium Development Goals as a part of the U.N.’s 500 days of action. On August 18, the girls spent the day at United Nations headquarters, along with 500 other young people.

They had the opportunity to meet face to face with Yousafzai and her father, who showered the girls with words of encouragement to continue their advocacy efforts.

Lena Shareef speaks on behalf of her partner when she describes the future of #GirlWithABook: “If Malala wants us to keep going, then there’s no question that we will.”

– Grace Flaherty

Sources: UN
Photo: UN

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History of Advocacy 101

History of Advocacy
John Wilkes, a man from England born in the 18th century, is credited as the forefather of modern advocacy. Wilkes was critical of the Treaty of Paris that ended the Seven Years War and was imprisoned for libel shortly thereafter, although he was later acquitted. After Wilkes’ act of defiance, a pro-abolition movement arose in England, effectively ending slavery in England.

The beginning of the 19th century was relatively quiet, but in the middle of the century, a philosopher coined the term social movement. The term was only used to describe relatively smaller events at the time.

Around the turn of the century, advocacy began to make progress. The socialist movement and the labor movement were the most popular, and were soon to be the model of contemporary advocacy. Out of these movements, the communist and democratic parties were born.

Following World War I, there was a renewed push for activism. This period led to a new classification of groups—the new social movements. The post-industrial economy gave way to a large number of groups, including women’s rights, gay rights, civil rights, the peace movement and the environmentalist movement. These movements stayed fairly static in terms of organization. More groups, such as the anti-nuclear movement, joined toward the middle of the century.

With the advent of the television, advocacy began to see incredible progression, which only foreshadowed the contemporary movement. The 1960s, in particular, were heavily influential, as civil rights took center stage.

The next step occurred around the 1990s. This period marked the era of global social activism, spurred on by the rise of the Internet. E-mail replaced postal mail and e-bulletin boards replaced traditional ones. The transition from analog to digital communication proved to be more effective in gathering support and more effective in increasing awareness. Groups that once couldn’t afford traditional publishing began to use the web as a platform for their activism.

Beyond Internet activism is the rise of social media and the role it plays in the history of advocacy. Popular social networks like Facebook and Twitter have begun to be utilized as platforms for advocacy. Sites like these allow people to connect and interact in ways that were previously impossible.

– Andrew Rywak

Sources: University of Michigan, Mashable, Academia.edu, The Borgen Project
Photo: GuardianLV

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Remembering the Words of Simin Behbahani

“My poems and the wild mint
bear messages and perfumes.
Don’t let them create a riot with their wild singing.
My heart is greener than green,
flowers sprout from the mud and water of my being.
Don’t let me stand, if you are the enemies of Spring.”

These lines are from the poem “It’s Time to Mow the Flowers” written by the late Simin Behbahani, who was considered by many to be Iran’s most influential poet. Born on July 20, 1927, Behbahani lived and wrote through much of 20th century Iranian history.

She worked from within Iran for six decades and wrote over 600 poems.

Her words became a part of social resistance against a strict and oppressed Iranian culture. Behbahani wrote openly against the repression following the 1979 revolution, as well as about many other issues ranging from egalitarianism to women’s rights to sexism, prostitution, peace, violence and even poverty.

Her poems were well known as some even made their way into popular Iranian love songs. For this she was given the nickname, the “Lioness of Iran.”

Despite censorship and even restricted travel from a government that feared her, Behbahani continued to write and share her ideas with her fellow Iranians. She remained part of Iran’s Writers Association despite the murders of several of its members during the 1990s.

She addressed the social issue of poverty in her book “From the Street”, which is a series of poems she wrote between 1983 and 1985. The poems discuss concerns of homelessness and hunger. One covers the sadness of a hungry boy, while in another a pregnant woman gives birth while she waits for rationed food.

In 2009 she won the Simone de Beauvoir Prize for Women’s Freedom. This was for her tireless efforts in fighting for women’s rights, as many of her poems delve into women’s freedom.

For example, her poem “The Ballad Of The Brothel” talks about the issue of prostitution in Iran, an issue that continues to be prominently ignored by Iranian society.

Behbahani also spoke out against the controversial elections of 2009, in which Mahmoud Ahmadinejad returned to the presidency and protests occurred in Tehran. She wrote a poem titled “Stop Throwing My Country To The Wind.”

The poem points out Ahmadinejad’s dishonesty, pride and his recklessness. At the end she writes—“You may wish to have me burned, or decide to stone me. But in your hand match or stone will lose their power to harm me.”

It was Behbahani’s life’s work to spread the word of justice and freedom—to fight from within the country she loved to help promote social change. She believed that “We [writers] will be truly honored the day when no writer is in jail, no student is under arrest, when journalists are free and their pens are free.”

– Eleni Marino 

Sources: BBC News, NPR, The Guardian, Simin Behbahani Poems, PBS,
Photo: 1000 Kitap

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5 Reasons To Give to Charity

In every place around the world regardless of religious tradition, culture and language, giving to others has always been an idea encouraged for thousands of years. From Lao Tzu to Ralph Waldo Emerson, the Prophet Mohammed to St. Thomas Aquinas, the importance of giving to others has been written and spoken about extensively.

Yet, despite the long history of giving, many people today do not donate to any cause for various reasons. It may be that they are unsure how to navigate the vast array of organizations and causes, or that they are hesitant about how their money will be used, or simply they don’t realize what benefit it has on others.

As Aristotle said:

“To give away money is an easy matter and in any man’s power. But to decide to whom to give it, and how large and when, and for what purpose and how, is neither in every man’s power nor an easy matter.”

Giving is easy, but why and where to give are difficult questions to answer. Listed below are five great reasons why people should give to charity. Deciding where and how much is a personal decision, but there is not much to argue with when it comes to why. In fact, with Americans donating $335.17 billion in 2013 there seems to be some very good reasons for donating.

1. Sense of Purpose

Giving to charity helps you participate in a cause you feel strongly about. Even if you don’t have the time to volunteer, charitable gifts go a long way in helping organizations operate and impact those they help.

In addition, studies show that people who give to charity are happier people. So when faced with the decision of whether to buy an unneeded new pair of shoes or donate that money to a cause, choose the cause. You may not get new shoes, but you’ll be much happier in the long run.

2. You can make a difference

While it may seem that a small donation won’t make a big difference, however even small gifts can have a big impact.

For instance, through programs like Kiva, a nonprofit micro-lender, individuals can loan as little as $25 to help impoverished, would-be entrepreneurs in the developing world start a small business. Many of these people do not have access to a strong banking sector so these loans provide are a great method of empowerment.

To date Kiva has had 860,000 individual lenders participate and has a 99 percent loan payback rate.

3. Donations are often tax-deductible

Giving to money to most charitable organizations has the added benefit of being tax deductible. There are approximately 1, 536,084 charitable organizations in the U.S. according to 2013 data, which means that are plenty of places for people to give.

What does this mean in concrete terms? If someone were to give $100 to a tax-exempt organization of their choice, the donation may actually only turn out to be $65 or less due to tax refunds. The donation not only benefits the organization, but also the individual giving.

4. Matching Gifts can have a big impact

A great way to give to charity is to find an organization or corporation that will do a matching gift. Matching gifts are when a company will match dollar-for-dollar what their employee gives; maximizing the impact of the gift as well as creating a positive image for the company.

Corporations like General Electric, Gap Inc., Boeing, ExxonMobil, British Petroleum, Johnson & Johnson and Microsoft all offer some of the best employee matching gift programs.

5. Create a budget, plan ahead

Whether its $25 or $2500, donations are possible from every budget. Plan a charity budget that allows for a donation each year. Even two percent of your yearly income can make a big difference. For someone making $30,000, that could be around $500 – all of which can be deductible!

Before giving to charity, be sure to do research. Numerous websites exist to help potential donors find out what organizations are most legitimate and what cause they think could benefit most. Like all things in life, research will not only make potential donors better informed, but will also maximize the impact for each donation.

– Andrea Blinkhorn

Sources: Sweating the Big Stuff, Dime Spring, Giving What We Can, Gaiam, The Guardian,Bank Rate, NP Trust, Live Science
Photo: Business2Community