Archive for category: Charity

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Seven Ways #GivingTuesday 2016 Succeeded

#GivingTuesday CharityThe results of #GivingTuesday show that 2016 turned out to be a successful year in giving back to charity. In contrast with the high spending that occurs on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, #GivingTuesday offers a chance for the public to give back to charitable causes. According to the statistics, #GivingTuesday has demonstrated “double-digit growth,” projecting much hope for future years. Below are seven ways in which #GivingTuesday exceeded expectations this past year.

  1. iDonate is a popular giving platform that participated in funding for this year’s #GivingTuesday. It was revealed that this fifth consecutive year of the campaign accrued more support than other years. In fact, since 2012 when the campaign began, #GivingTuesday surpassed the initial first-year earnings from $12 million to $168 million for 2016. In addition, $50 million has been donated since 2015, which shows a 44 percent increase in total proceeds.
  2. Early data shows that the campaign received around 1.56 million donations.  The average contribution was over $100, and online donations increased by 20 percent.
  3. #GivingTuesday has gained momentum partially due to the increased utilization of mobile phones and advocacy from celebrities and major companies. The top five issues advocated for this year were education, environment, animals, health care and international affairs.
  4. The use of infographics this year have illustrated the impact #GivingTuesday has had. Similarly, funding platform CrowdRise used a virtual reality app to construct a building in which each brick represented a donation. Final donations ended up constructing a “Giving Tower,” virtually rising 6,853 feet tall which realistically surpasses the world’s current tallest tower in Dubai.
  5. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation started off #GivingTuesday 2016 by agreeing to match one million dollars worth of donations given on www.globalgiving.com at 50 percent. The Foundation’s initial goal of reaching 50 percent was achieved within the first few hours. The Foundation then raised its match point from $500,000 to $900,000. Ultimately, they succeeded in giving back to 9,800 charities.
  6. #GivingTuesday’s founding organization, 92y, compiled a report that revealed increased participation compared to previous years. In 2016, 98 countries participated in #GivingTuesday. Participation from 82 percent of the world’s largest companies, such as AOL and Macy’s, also increased.
  7. Other online funding platforms such as Blackbaud, Network for Good, CrowdRise, Razoo, GoFundMe and IndieGogo added to the advanced momentum. Blackbaud saw a 33 percent increase in nonprofit donations, Network for Good raised $7,654,954, CrowdRise raised over three million dollars from an accumulation of 26,018 donations, Razoo reached 2,556 charities, GoFundMe increased earnings by 46 percent from 2015, and IndieGogo hosted 132 campaigns, gaining 8,400 backers.

The Borgen Project participates yearly in #GivingTuesday and encourages readers to help give back to the world’s poor. Given the consistent growth seen over the past five years, Nov. 28, 2017, projects to be another prosperous year for giving back.

– Amy Williams

Photo: Flickr

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New World Bank Funding: Implications for U.S. Influence

New World Bank Funding Structure Has Implications for U.S. Influence
One proposal in a recent Center for Global Development (CGD) report focuses on restructuring multilateral institutions to better suit developmental needs. A new World Bank funding structure presented at the organization’s most recent replenishment conference aligns with CGD directives.

As more nations climb out of extreme poverty, the capacity in which foreign aid is needed evolves.

Experts stated in the Multilateral Development Banking for This Century’s Development Challenges report that “almost all developing countries now rely primarily on domestic resources to manage public investment.” This evolution renders the foundation of World Bank funding, which has historically relied on capital market failure, incongruous with the reality of global development.

Another issue is that major donor countries have most heavily funded health and education initiatives in the recent past. CGD scholars suggest that countries such as the U.S. redirect foreign aid funds to the development of strategic partnerships with recipient nations.

Such redirection is predicated on a donor country’s willingness to overhaul foreign aid policy.

Perhaps more complicated is the fact that the U.S., once a World Bank powerhouse, is now waning in its contributions to the International Development Association (IDA). This indicates that heavy foreign aid revision in the World Bank’s favor is unlikely. Still, the nation continues to play a monumental role in deciding where IDA funds are spent.

According to Scott Morris and Madeleine Gleave of the CGD, the U.S. is often defensive in its appropriation of aid funds. This strategy has global implications. Policymakers in the U.S. have a history of swaying World Bank investment, avoiding nations like Zimbabwe and Iran for its own interests.

As Morris said in his recent report, “Historically, the United States (and often the U.S. Congress) has exerted its will on issues like these by using the threat of withholding its IDA contributions in any given year.” Three years ago, IDA pledges from donor nations accounted for two-thirds of all World Bank resources. Today, it is estimated that they make up less than half. Threats to withhold become obsolete as such pledges hold less weight.

For that reason, a new World Bank funding structure that deemphasizes public-sector donation in favor of affordable lending and private-sector investment is significant. This new methodology took center stage at the World Bank’s most recent replenishment conference.

Reinvigorated partnerships with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) and Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) are key. Such partnerships would allow the World Bank to leverage IDA funds more holistically. The goal is to lend money to more worthwhile causes in a way that’s free from donor country allegiances.

The next step is to incentivize private investors to contribute to infrastructure ventures, which focus on areas like climate and energy. CGD scholars suggest using MDB resources to decrease risk by bridging gaps between sovereigns and investors. Bridging those gaps could get subsidies and grants to developing nations in a system that does not force borrowers to bear full costs.

Many of these recommendations played into the replenishment, which resulted in some of the most dramatic financial reforms in World Bank history. By combining existing resources with donor funds and the capital debt market, the World Bank hopes to respond to developmental needs with greater agility.

One side effect of this new World Bank funding structure is, as Morris points out, a decrease in influence from countries like the U.S. and U.K. that have dictated spending in the past.

While greater multilateral investment from the world’s wealthiest countries would be ideal, this plan addresses the new reality of global development. The unprecedented move could be just what the developing world needs in a time of transition.

– Madeline Distasio

Photo: Flickr

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A History of Australia’s Foreign Aid Program

Australia's Foreign Aid Program
Australia’s foreign aid program has seen many changes since it first became a single government agency in the 1970s. Besides the name, changes have taken place within the program’s administration, its focus, the countries that receive aid and the type of aid provided.

Australia provided aid to other countries well before there was an official government program. In the 1950s, Australia granted aid to Papua New Guinea in the form of grants and to South and Southeast Asia by way of educational scholarships and assistance with employment.

In 1974, under Prime Minister Whitlam, Australia established the Australian Development Assistance Agency (ADAA) as a single government entity that would administer the country’s aid. Since that time, the name of the program has changed several times, first to the Australian Development Assistance Bureau (ADAB), then to the Australian International Development Assistance Bureau (AIDAB), then to the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) and finally to its current name, Australian Aid.

In 2010, Australia established AusAID as an executive agency within the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. In Australia, an executive agency is separate from its department for staffing, accountability and reporting purposes. However, the 2013 change to the country’s current program, Australian Aid, integrated the executive agency into the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade so that it was no longer a stand-alone agency.

In a 2014 press release, the Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Julie Bishop, introduced Australian Aid: “The Australian Government’s new approach to overseas development assistance will focus on ways to drive economic growth in developing nations and create pathways out of poverty. Strict performance benchmarks will ensure aid spending is accountable to taxpayers and achieve results.”

The program incorporated a new development policy that focused on promoting prosperity, reducing poverty and enhancing stability. A new performance framework, Making Performance Count, enhanced the accountability and effectiveness of Australian aid by establishing performance benchmarks and impact assessments in targeted aid areas.

Australia’s foreign aid program will also have a new focus on the Indian Ocean and Asia-Pacific regions. In 2014, Minister Bishop gave a speech in which she further explained the reason for the change in focus. “In the past, [our aid program] has been spread far too thinly across the globe…We must direct our aid to where we can make the biggest difference and align it with our national interest.”

According to preliminary data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Australia’s official development assistance (ODA) was $3.22 billion in 2015, which was 0.27 percent of their gross national income (GNI). The United Nations adopted a resolution in 1970 stating that ODA spending in developed countries should be at least 0.7 percent of GNI. Preliminary data from the OECD shows that only Sweden, Norway, Luxembourg, Denmark and the United Kingdom met that target in 2015.

– Kristin Westad

Photo: Flickr

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“Thomas Rhett and Friends” Concert Aids 147 Million Orphans

"Thomas Rhett and Friends" Concert aids 147 Million Orphans
Thomas Rhett emerged in 2016 as one of country music’s notable rising stars. This year he released his sophomore studio album Tangled Up, which spawned multiple hits including “T-Shirt,” “Star of the Show” and CMA song of the year, “Die a Happy Man.”

Off stage, however, Rhett’s success is supplemented by his enthusiastic support of relief projects for impoverished communities in developing nations. Following the conclusion of his ‘Six String Circus Tour’ co-headlining Jason Aldean, Rhett hosted the first annual “Thomas Rhett and Friends” charity concert benefiting 147 Million Orphans.

On Twitter, Rhett often calls attention to 147 Million Orphans, an organization sponsoring trips to Africa and Latin America with a purpose of building up local communities. Beginning in 2009, the organization’s original mission was to provide food, water, medicine and shelter to children in Uganda.

However, it has since expanded to Haiti and Honduras with remarkable achievements such as funding the construction of a large-scale medical center in Gressier, Haiti. According to its website, the organization accomplishes its goals by focusing on sustainable income projects that encourage healthier technologies and family preservation.

As a longtime supporter of the organization, Rhett announced a charity concert held on the evening of October 4, 2016. Tickets were limited and hopeful attendees raised money by bidding for the chance to take part in the event. Before the concert, guests participated in a silent auction to bid on exclusive items such as autographed guitars and appropriately customized t-shirts. Guests then arrived at The Old School in Nashville for dinner and drinks, a private concert, a personal meet and greet and an after-party bonfire.

Drawing additional publicity, Rhett’s performance was accompanied by fellow musicians: Dierks Bentley, Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley of Florida Georgia Line, Walker Hayes, Shane McAnally and Russell Dickerson. With all proceeds benefiting his charity, the concert all in all raised over $250,000.

Further, Rhett’s wife Lauren Atkins is an avid supporter of the organization. Atkins is professionally trained as a nurse, and she frequently embarks on mission trips herself to deliver medical supplies, new mattresses, and bed covers to the aforementioned nations.

Most recently, the couple also celebrated Giving Tuesday in Kenya by raising awareness of a wildlife refuge. Rhett then announced a few dates for his solo “Home Team Tour” beginning in spring 2017. While a follow-up “Thomas Rhett and Friends” concert has not been formalized yet, it is clear that the causes in developing nations will remain an important component of the Atkins’ family philanthropy.

– Zachary Machuga

Photo: Flickr

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The Smile Train: How Kylie Lip Kit Helps the Developing World

Kylie Lip Kit
Recently, Kylie Jenner has used her fame to put a smile on the face of children in developing countries. Earlier in October, Jenner released a brand new shade of her famous Kylie Lip Kits. One hundred percent of the proceeds went straight to the non-profit organization Smile Train, which funds surgeries for cleft lip, one of the leading birth defects that children in many developing countries suffer from. Raising nearly $160,000 in sales, hundreds of people will be able to afford the treatment that they need in order to eat and speak properly.

Clefts involve the lip and the palate, or roof of the mouth, and occur when there is a split as a result of certain structures not fusing together during fetal development. The cause of cleft lip is relatively unknown, but a genetic connection is an assumed possibility. Outside forces such as exposure to drug and alcohol use, smoking, maternal illness, infections or lack of vitamin B are also factors.

According to Smile Train’s website, cleft lip is an easily treatable issue. Though more than 170,000 children in 85 developing countries suffer from it, all it takes is $250 and 45 minutes for a surgery that will change a child’s life.

Children that don’t receive adequate medical care will often live in isolation, and struggle with carrying out basic physical tasks such as eating, breathing and speaking. As a result, most of these children don’t attend school or ever hold a job. Jenner has helped bring further attention to this issue and the launch of the Kylie Lip Kit will serve to ensure that hundreds of children can go on to lead better and healthier lives.

The light pink shade, “Smile,” was dropped on the Kylie Cosmetics website on Oct. 3 in recognition of World Smile Day. Incredibly popular, selling quickly like the other products in Jenner’s makeup collection, the unique Kylie Lip Kit collected a massive amount of money for the international organization.

As a new Smile Train Ambassador, Jenner presented a check for $159,500 to the organization’s CEO Susannah Schaefer. The money will fund cleft lip and palate surgeries for 638 children in need. On her collaboration with Smile Train, Jenner stated, “I’m excited to continue my relationship with Smile Train and see the difference we make together […] I wanted to use my social media platforms to help inform my fans about clefts and raise money to give these young kids the surgeries they need to get the smiles they deserve.”

In situations where the fulfillment of proper solutions is lacking, it is significant to note successful methods for giving back to those who are disadvantaged and ones that anyone can get involved in. The Kylie Lip Kit exemplifies this, acknowledging the generous efforts and tremendous effects that can come from the purchase of one simple product.

– Mikaela Frigillana

Photo: Flickr

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Cristiano Ronaldo’s Selfie App to Help Save the Children

Cristiano Ronaldo's Selfie App
Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid’s star forward and Global Artist Ambassador for Save the Children, recently released his latest initiative for the organization, the CR7Selfie: Fans with a Cause app.

According to Save the Children’s website, Cristiano Ronaldo’s selfie app costs $1.99 and will allow fans to “take a selfie with Ronaldo in one of several different outfits and poses.” A portion of all money raised from the app, which can be downloaded from the Apple App and Google Play stores, will go toward the non-profit organization.

Save the Children, which was founded in 1932, focuses on providing children in 120 countries around the world with proper education, food and health services, especially in the wake of natural disasters or war. In 2015, Save the Children delivered health care to 22.6 million children, and 11.6 million children participated in the organization’s nutrition programs.

Ronaldo has represented Save the Children as an ambassador since January 2013, directing his attention to the worldwide issue of child hunger. The athlete first realized that he wanted to join the fight against poverty when he learned that one in seven children go to bed hungry every night.

Over the past few years, it has become common for advocates to utilize social media. More than 230 million people follow Ronaldo on his various accounts, which allows Save the Children’s message to spread quickly. Cristiano Ronaldo’s selfie app — The CR7Selfie: Fans with a Cause app — puts this same strategy to use, allowing users to have fun sharing their selfies with the superstar while also supporting the organization’s mission.

Ronaldo is one of the most admired athletes on the planet, making him an expert when it comes to taking selfies. During the premiere of his documentary Ronaldo, he even tried to break the world record for most selfies taken in three minutes. Ultimately, Ronaldo failed in this endeavor, but his widespread popularity could make the new app a huge success.

– Liam Travers

Photo: Flickr

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Highlighting Celebrity Advocates in the Fight Against Poverty

Celebrity Advocates in the Fight Against Poverty
Celebrities, whether they earn their status through talent, wealth or other characteristics, have many opportunities to use their power for the greater good. The following five celebrities frequently impress with both their commitment to and passion for serving the world’s poor in the fight against poverty.

  1. Bono: No list of superstar advocates, activists and charity workers is complete without his name. The U2 frontman has worked diligently for years to reduce global poverty as well as educate the public on the subject. In a 2013 TedTalk, Bono identified himself as an “evidence-based activist” or “factivist.” His advocacy work is well known and has earned him three Nobel Peace Prize nominations as well as a spot on Forbes’ Most Generous list. In addition, his wide-reaching impact has helped in the creation of charity endeavors such as the ONE Campaign and the RED Global Fund Campaign.
  2. Brad Pitt: He is a big name in both Hollywood as well as the world of celebrity advocates. Pitt joined Bono in 2004 when he teamed up with the ONE Campaign. He acted as a spokesperson, pushing for an additional one percent of the U.S. budget to go toward poverty alleviation in Africa. In a 2005 interview with Oprah Winfrey, Pitt spoke with passion about the poverty and disease he saw while traveling: “I feel it is our responsibility to make those [life-saving medicines] available.”
  3. Angelina Jolie: Known primarily for her outstanding performances in films like Mr. and Mrs. Smith and The Tourist, her generosity may outweigh even her acting talent. Jolie has donated millions of dollars, through the Jolie-Pitt foundation, to organizations such as Doctors Without Borders that help the world’s poorest people. She was recognized and named as a U.N. Goodwill Ambassador and was the recipient of the U.N. Citizen of the World award in 2003. Together, she and Pitt have been incredibly influential voices in the fight against global poverty.
  4. Annie Lennox: This talented singer-songwriter has long been using her talents to contribute to her causes. She released her single, Sing, in 2007, raising funds for the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC). She has been appointed a UNAIDS Goodwill Ambassador for her incredible commitment to the cause and is a firm supporter of numerous charities including the TAC and Mothers2Mothers.
  5. George Clooney: He is well known among celebrity advocates for famously founding Not On Our Watch, an organization that deals with human rights violations in the global community. In addition, the star is a supporter of the ONE Campaign and has done much work in the area of poverty alleviation and advocacy.

While celebrity news often seems irrelevant to serious matters such as the fight against poverty, many celebrities use their position as a public figure to raise awareness and funds for vulnerable populations.

These five celebrities have set an example for the ways in which other influential members of society can use their talents, fame or funds to contribute to their global community.

– Jordan Little

Photo: Flickr

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China’s New Charity Law

Charity LawChina is now home to more billionaires than the United States and has experienced an annual economic growth rate of 7% since 2010. Despite this, the country is still ranked second to last in a list of 145 most charitable countries, according to the 2015 U.K.-based Charities Aid Foundation’s World Giving Index. However, China’s new Charity Law seeks to promote a model for greater domestic charitable giving within the country.

The law will also prospectively support the country’s sustainability in disaster relief, environmental protection, public health and anti-poverty efforts to lift rural residents out of poverty by 2020. As of 2015, 55.75 million of China’s rural residents were still considered impoverished.

What Will China’s New Charity Law Assist?

While China’s annual donations to charities have soared from 10 billion to 100 billion yuan in the last ten years, growth has remained stagnant within the last five years paradoxically alongside economic prosperity.

According to the Boston Globe, the China Philanthropy Project at the Harvard Kennedy School’s Ash Center identified three reasons.

First, giving in China remains localized and focused on a single cause — six out of 10 renminbi was donated to the same province where the donor’s corporate headquarters was situated, leaving the poorest rural areas without financial support.

Second, three-quarters of the donors gave to a single cause: education, leaving out other realms needing support.

Third, the majority of donors gave through their corporations, a pattern “reflecting the range of legal, regulatory, and political challenges facing the development of a vibrant giving environment on a national level.”

China’s new Charity Law will encourage a more sturdy model of contemporary giving, allowing for more charities to raise funds from the public without a complex registration system or a need for approval from the supervisory board and China’s Ministry of Civil Affairs.

The law will also allow for tax incentives for charities and make it easier for the wealthy to establish charitable trusts on their own. Moreover, with a track record of scandals in the past which have deterred success in charitable giving, transparency, as well as tighter management, will be incorporated. “From the philanthropy side and public policy side, it’s very well written,” Edward Cunningham, a scholar at Harvard University said.

The global community looks forward to the results from the Charity Law, not just in better services and poverty alleviation for Chinese citizens but a transparent and confident government charity program.

– Priscilla Son

Photo: Gauthier DELECROIX

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Rethinking Effective Charity: Giving What We Can

Effective Charity
Giving What We Can (GWWC) is an international society that works to eliminate extreme poverty. It recommends effective charity organizations and its members pledge to give at least 10% of their income to such charities.

Dr. Toby Ord Established Giving What We Can in 2009

Dr. Ord, an Oxford ethics researcher, claims the inspiration for the organization came from Peter Singer’s essay “Famine, Affluence, and Morality,” which argues that the affluent have a moral obligation to donate to the people less well-off.

The organization draws heavily on modern ethical philosophy, especially the effective altruism movement. This philosophical movement attempts to use evidence and analysis to determine the most effective humanitarian causes and charities to donate to.

Taking a Top-down Approach to Evaluating Charities

The organization begins with the big-picture, evaluating which areas — health, education, emergency aid, etc. — require the most attention. The group compares sub-areas within those categories, such as specific diseases. Finally, it analyzes the particular charities that work in this sub-area, such as the Against Malaria Foundation.

In this evaluation process, the organization focuses on three main criteria: neglect, tractability and impact. A neglected cause means the issue is not receiving proper attention from humanitarian efforts. Tractability defines a cause that has a workable solution that the sponsor can effectively implement. Impact focuses on the number of lives that can be improved by investing in a given cause.

GWWC’s website uses schistosomiasis, a disease involving parasitic flatworms, as an example of a cause that clearly meets all three criteria: “[Schistosomiasis] affects millions of people (impact) but it’s cheap and easy to treat (tractability) […] However, it is relatively underfunded (it is part of the so-called ‘Neglected Tropical Diseases’).”

For this reason, GWWC lists the Schistosomiasis Control Initiative as one of its top charities. Its other established, most effective charity is the Against Malaria Foundation. They list Deworming the World Initiative and Project Healthy Children as promising top charities.

Though it accepts donations, Giving What We Can does not ask for them. Instead, the humanitarian organization prefers to play “a complementary role,” asking members to commit to giving to effective charities instead.

So far, GWWC’s 1,696 members have donated more than $36.3 million to effective charities and pledged to donate a further $649 million over their lifetimes.

– Steffen Seitz

Photo: Flickr

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3 Charity Apps You Should Know About

Charity appsIn addition to advocacy and mobilizing governments to make a difference, donating to charities can have a major impact in the fight against global poverty and hunger. Here are three charity apps that are making a difference on a global scale:

  1. Share The Meal: Share The Meal is the world’s first charity app against global hunger. By donating only 50 cents you can feed one child in hunger for an entire day. Since its founding in 2014, Share The Meal has donated more than 7 million meals to children suffering from hunger. Share The Meal funds are distributed by the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), the world’s largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger. Currently, Share The Meal funds are being used to feed Syrian refugee children in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley where 40 percent of the 360,000 Syrian refugees living in the Bekaa Valley are under the age of 12, according to data compiled by the UNHCR.
  2. Donate A Photo: Taking a picture can do more than just capture a moment, it can help people across the world. For every photo you share through the Donate a Photo charity app, Johnson & Johnson donates $1 to a cause of your choice. So far, over 1.3 million photos have been donated through the app. Causes vary from helping a newborn in Ethiopia survive through UNICEF, to giving a girl in Guatemala school supplies via Girl Up. Sharing photos not only helps to raise money but also spreads awareness. Sharing one photo per day is equivalent to donating $365 in a year.
  3. Charity Miles: Charity Miles allows you to raise money for every mile that you walk, run, or bike. The app uses your phone’s GPS and accelerometer to calculate the distance you traveled. Walkers and runners earn up to 25 cents per mile and bikers earn up to 10 cents per mile, according to Charity Miles’ Terms of Service. There are more than 30 different charities to earn donations on behalf, including The World Food Programme, Pencils of Promise, Girl Up and Every Mother Counts. Charity Miles’ goal is to raise $1 billion for charities by the end of 2016.

If you are looking for ways to donate funds, in addition to empowering others and spreading the word on poverty reduction, these three charity apps put the opportunity to make an impact directly at your fingertips.

– Kristyn Rohrer

Photo: Pixabay