Archive for category: Global Poverty

Key articles and information on global poverty.

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Five Nonprofits Fighting Poverty in Gaza

Poverty in Gaza

According to the World Bank, poverty in Gaza has risen to nearly 40 percent, twice as high as that in the West Bank. More than 65 percent of Gazans have inadequate access to water and sanitary services and unemployment rates are over 40 percent.

Despite the extreme hardships endured by the Gazan people, there are numerous nonprofit organizations across the globe helping to improve conditions in the Gaza Strip.

1. United Palestinian Appeal (UPA) – Washington D.C.

UPA’s mission statement is to alleviate the sufferings of Palestinians living in Gaza, the West Bank and refugee camps across the Middle East by providing direct aid through program and grants.

The Healing Through Feeling Program provides Gazan children, 50 percent of whom suffer from PTSD, with trauma counseling and community support.

Other programs include scholarship funding, medical care provisions, food security and small business education.

2. Al Mezan Center For Human Rights – Gaza City, Gaza Strip

Al Mezan’s mission is to promote the protection of human rights in Gaza through research, legal intervention and advocacy. Projects include gathering information on human rights violations, meeting with governmental bodies to discuss violations and spreading awareness.

Al Mezan also offers a variety of training courses, workshops and lectures to train lawyers and analysts on the necessary information for their professional programs.

3. Just Vision – Jerusalem, New York, Washington D.C.

Just Vision’s goal is to foster peace and build a future of freedom and equality for both Palestinians and Israelis by ending the occupation. As a team of advocates, filmmakers and journalists, Just Vision creates films about the under-documented stories of Palestinian and Israeli activists.

Award-winning films include Encounter Point, My Neighborhood, Budrus and The Wanted 18.

4. The Jerusalem Fund – Washington D.C.

The Jerusalem Fund aims to foster a greater awareness for the Palestinian cause and improve the livelihood of Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip, West Bank and diaspora.

The Jerusalem Fund works to accomplish these goals through three programs:

The Humanitarian Link, which provides direct aid and relief services to Palestinian communities; the Palestine Center, which functions as the educational branch, hosting regular lectures and redistributing published articles; and the Gallery Al-Quds, which features contemporary Arab-American and Arab artists whose work centers on issues of the Arab and Islamic world.

5. The Freedom Theater – Jenin Refugee Camp, Gaza Strip

The Freedom Theater inspires creativity and encourages theater arts to empower the youth and women living in Jenin to explore their own potential and use art as a catalyst for social change.

In 2008, the Freedom Theater launched a theater school that offers intensive three-year programs in various fields: acting, dance, movement, voice, acrobatics, improvisation, playwriting, dramaturgy, history of theatre, costume design, set design, production and stage management.

Whether it is by providing direct aid or spreading awareness, these five nonprofit organizations are saving lives, providing sustainability and making a difference in the fight against poverty in Gaza.

– Kristyn Rohrer

Photo: Pixabay

Climate-Smart Agriculture: Helping Farmers in Africa

Climate-smart Agriculture

Although El Niño responsible for extreme weather changes around the world since the end of 2015, more productive and resilient farming practices are necessary to mitigate the future impact of climate change in Africa: Climate-smart agriculture.

A new briefing paper by the Montpellier Panel, consisting of African and European experts from the fields of agriculture, trade and ecology, have determined that African food security and agricultural development policies will fail if they do not promote farming practices that are climate-smart. The panel’s conclusion comes as Southern Africa tries to recover from a severe drought caused by the strongest El Niño in decades.

The Montpellier Panel’s paper critiques the Malabo Declaration, which was signed by member states of the African Union in 2014. It commits to doubling agricultural productivity by 2025 to feed Africa’s rapidly growing population. Increasing investment in agricultural sectors and boosting intra-African trade in agricultural services are among the main instruments the union will rely on to end hunger.

The Montpellier Panel argues that the targets set by the Malabo Declaration underemphasize the risk of climate change on food security, productivity and the importance of investing in Africa’s science potential. According to the briefing paper, African countries must integrate climate-smart programs. These are currently small in scale and set up by international or local NGOs into larger agriculture investment plans.

Climate-smart agriculture involves increasing productivity, strengthening resilience to sudden weather changes and minimizing farming-related greenhouse gas emissions in a sustainable manner.

The Montpellier Panel’s release of the paper occurred as Africa tries to recover from the worst drought in a generation, which is linked to El Niño.

The Southern African Development Community has reported that crop failure and livestock deaths as a result of water shortages has led to higher food prices. Additionally, they have caused an estimated 41 million people in Southern Africa to become food insecure with 21 million needing immediate food assistance.

In Zimbabwe and Madagascar, last year’s harvest decreased “by half compared to the previous year because of substantial crop failures,” according to the Montpellier Panel. Cereal producers from South Africa to the Democratic Republic of Congo have also experienced a 9.6 million metric ton shortfall in production. South Africa is facing a 2.6 million ton deficit in maize harvests, the SADC said.

Although El Niño has ended and water deficits may improve if a La Niña weather pattern develops, climate change is expected to continue to have a significant impact on Africa. Over the next decades, mean temperatures across the continent will increase faster than the global average. Sea level rise will threaten land in the Nile Delta and other coastal areas.

The Montpellier Panel has recommended ways for African countries to expand the use of climate-smart agriculture and help farmers overcome the impact of droughts and other extreme weather changes.

The briefing paper stresses the need for investments in innovation and scientific research. These investments will develop drought-tolerant crops and expose farmers to more efficient agricultural methods that can improve soil fertility and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Reliable climate information services that provide weather forecasts and insurance programs that compensate farmers after severe climate events can also increase reliance.

Several countries have already experienced the benefits of climate-smart agriculture.

In Kenya, bucket drip kits supported by the Kenya Agriculture Research Institute have helped farmers deliver water to crops effectively and at a cheaper cost than other irrigation techniques. According to the Montpellier Panel, high-iron beans and orange maize have also become staple crops in Zambia because of their ability to tolerate droughts and heat.

– Sam Turken

Photo: Pixabay

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Five Charities Working to Stop World Hunger

Charities

Activists often participate in endless debates about what they think will be the key to unlocking a world without hungry children and families. There are numerous charities that work to stop world hunger, and many of them are making real, sustainable impact in countries all over the world. One way to take a step towards a world with healthy, well-fed families is to spread awareness of these foundations. By spreading awareness, there is a higher chance these charities will get the funding they need to continue to meet their goals.

Five Charities Looking to End World Hunger:

1. Action Against Hunger

With more than 6,500 staff workers all over the globe, Action Against Hunger’s programs have been able to reach more than 13.6 million people as of 2014. Its programs not only save lives but also teaches impoverished people how to live safely long-term. With more than 35 years of experience in food crises and disaster, this foundation knows how to keep children healthy and understands where and when to expect malnutrition.

Regarding nutrition and health, Action Against Hunger has treated 5 million people around the world. This includes almost 3 million people from Nigeria, over 104,000 people in the Democratic Republic of Congo and over 93,000 people in South Sudan. They are able to impact millions of hungry people by evaluating nutritional needs, treating acute malnutrition, preventing acute malnutrition and building local capacity. This is done by collecting data on nutritional indicators like geography, infrastructure, local capacities, resources and cultural practices.

2. Bread for the World Institute

The Bread for the World Institute is a voice that urges national leaders throughout the world to end hunger in their own countries and others around the globe. The foundation has been able to help the hunger epidemic in the United States, Asia, Latin America and Africa. The institute works with members of Congress on issues that affect world hunger including immigration reform, incarceration and child nutrition. Basically, Bread for the World Institute wants the goal of eliminating world hunger to be a priority and believes that by doing so, world hunger can be eliminated by 2030.

Through their Vote to End Hunger campaign, Bread for the World Institute encourages voters to make world hunger one of their top priorities during the 2016 election campaigns and in the ballot box. Their goal is to elect a leader who will make ending world hunger a priority in congress.

3. Freedom from Hunger

Freedom from Hunger provides families the resources necessary to build a healthy future. By equipping families with the proper resources, they can live sufficiently on their own and build healthy lives without continuous aid. Freedom from Hunger believes in educating and empowering communities to fight world hunger. Education modules are influenced by the needs of chronically hungry women, a demographic deemed a priority during the research phase. Group activities, training sessions, guidance counselors and interactive discussions are implemented to inform and encourage the women in safe health practices, like HIV/AIDS prevention or breastfeeding practices and hygiene.

4. The Hunger Project

The Hunger Project focuses on ten principles fundamental to ending world hunger: human dignity, gender equality, empowerment, leverage, interconnectedness, sustainability, social transformation, holistic approach, decentralization and transformative leadership.

The Hunger Project believes there are three essential pillars their foundation must follow in order to make an impact on impoverished communities: empowering women as key change agents, mobilizing entire communities into self-reliant action and fostering effective governments to engage local government.

In Africa, India, Bangladesh, Mexico and Peru, The Hunger Project has supported community development and empowered local entrepreneurship.

5. Heifer International

Heifer International works with various impoverished communities to help boost their economies. Their approach focuses on developing income and assets, food security and nutrition, and the environment. They then work on empowering women and social capital in order to multiple the success of their efforts. The foundation has seen much success in bringing sustainable agriculture and commerce to families without food.

Heifer International supports the “passing on the gift” model. By giving a family a goat, a cow or even a water buffalo, a family can build a sustainable life. Cows produce milk, fertilizer for crops or the capacity to plow fields. When these animals create offspring, families are encouraged to pass on the first female baby to another family. This family then does the same with the offspring of their animals.

It is important to raise awareness and donate to these foundations, seeing that they have been making real-time change and investments. Like these vastly different organizations, ending world hunger does not take a single fix-all approach. Different strategies, supported by generous gifts, provide hungry people with the tools and willpower they need to stop world hunger.

–Casey Marx

Photo: Flickr

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UNICEF Releases Video for Childhood Poverty Awareness

Childhood poverty awareness
UNICEF recently released a video showing how people react to children based on the types of clothes they are wearing. The video was in conjunction with the State of the World’s Children Report of 2016, sending a strong message to society about childhood poverty awareness.

The social experiment video that UNICEF released in company with the State of the World’s Children Report of 2016 has sparked an overdue societal reaction. The video has ignited conversations about what can be done to increase childhood poverty awareness.

UNICEF’s message following the video was that the world must invest in poor children before the world becomes more divided and unequal. It is a call to action motivated by a sense of urgency and the conviction that a better world is possible.

In the video, the production team dresses a little girl named Anano in very nice clothes. As she stands alone on the sidewalk, people consistently ask her if she is lost and try to help her. When the production team changes Anano’s appearance, dressing her in scrappy clothes with soot on her face, a drastic change occurs. Looking as if she is stricken by poverty, those passing by ignore her. She is left alone in the street without anyone giving her a second glance.

In the second experiment, the production team has Anano enter a restaurant using the same set-up. When she was dressed in stylish clothing, many customers are very friendly towards her and are willing to entertain her. When her appearance changes, she is greatly ignored. As she walks past tables, women move their purses out of range and suggest that she be taken out of the restaurant. Anano became so upset after this scene that production had to halt the video.

What is clear is the heart-wrenching message that UNICEF is trying to portray with the release of this video. Although reading a report may strike a chord, visual images often evoke stronger reactions.

The emotions that society feels while watching the video are the emotions that UNICEF would like everyone to feel knowing that there are millions of children around the world living in extreme poverty. It is not enough to feel for just Anano; as a society, it is imperative that these reactions are put into actions and are carried out throughout the world.

In the 180 pages of the State of the World’s Children Report of 2016, UNICEF notes that childhood poverty awareness must be increased today in order to achieve the Millennium Development Goals by 2030. If these goals are not met, 167 million children will live in extreme poverty by that time. In addition, 69 million children that are now under the age of five will die before 2030 and 60 million children of age to attend primary school will not attend.

The report covers child health, education, poverty and equality. It urges society to strengthen the principles of increasing child poverty awareness by allowing the public to have access to information about the number of children living in poverty. The report also suggests ways to accelerate the processes of investing in equity and creating innovative ways to finance the poorest of the poor.

One disparity that UNICEF reports on is the lack of health providers in poor countries. Sub-Saharan Africa has 1.8 million fewer health workers than its population needs. With women facing a 1-in-36 chance of dying from pregnancy-related complications, UNICEF urges that child survival begins with women’s health.

The report concludes that the futures of millions of impoverished and vulnerable children will be endangered unless the world advances the pace of the developments that are being made in mitigating childhood poverty awareness.

– Kimber Kraus

Photo: YouTube

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GMOs Can Help Combat World Hunger

End World Hunger GMOs
GMOs, or genetically modified organisms, are plants or animals whose genetic codes have been altered by the insertion of genes from a different plant or animal in order to gain advantageous traits. Plants can be modified, for example, to better resist disease, pests and drought.

GMOs undergo rigorous testing (a period ranging from five to eight years) conducted by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration to make sure the genetically modified food is safe for human consumption. Currently, there is no legislation requiring food packagers to label the genetically modified food that sits on supermarket shelves.

AgriLife Research at Texas A & M investigated the introduction of spinach proteins into citrus trees to help protect them against citrus greening, a disease responsible for millions of dollars in citrus crop losses annually. The spinach protein-infused citrus trees were less susceptible to citrus greening compared to normal citrus trees, allowing a larger crop to be harvested for consumption.

 

GMOs Tackle World Hunger

 

With the success of many GMO projects, research is being done to determine how this technology can be used to address the issue of world hunger. Modified crops that can benefit developing countries include C4 Rice, which is being funded by the Gates Foundation. Rice naturally photosynthesizes through the C3 pathway, which is less efficient than the C4 pathway utilized primarily by grass crops such as maize and sugarcane. Converting the cellular structure of rice from C3 to C4 will allow the crop to support more people than is currently possible. While a single hectare of land in Asia produces enough rice to feed 27 people, the International Rice Research Institute has estimated that by 2050, that same hectare will need to produce enough rice to feed 43 people, a problem that genetically modified C4 rice may be able to address.

Since rice provides one-fifth of the calories consumed by people worldwide, more efficient rice crops have the potential to combat world hunger related to population growth.  Other projects, such as editing and deleting genetic information in crops using CRISPR-Cas9 technology, are making headway in an effort to produce crops that are less reliant on chemical pesticides and more adaptable to inhospitable growing conditions.

GMOs have the potential to help solve food production issues in the future, making a dent in the fight against global poverty. Yet it is important to recognize the reality of and work to address the downsides, as the introduction of GMO crops (large, industrialized yields) to a country’s economy could change local farming practices (smaller, local yields), may dominate their food markets, can harm the environment through the required pesticides and can result in large-scale monocultures.

– Bayley McComb

Photo: Flickr

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Brexit Implications: How Will Africa Fare?

Brexit_Implications
People across all nations are asking about the impact of Brexit on the world, but only a few are asking the very important question of, “What will be Brexit’s impact on Africa?” As powerful countries such as the U.S. and Germany wait anxiously for the final vote count, anticipating possible financial fallout, the third world has much larger concerns, especially Africa.

Brexit Implications on Africa: Humanitarian, Political and Economic

Whether or not there will be a recession in Britain following the country’s exit from the EU is unclear, but what is certain is that if an economic crisis does occur, Africa will be hit hard.

Great Britain has long been a strong trading ally for Africa, and according to The Chicago Tribune, the European Union has preferential trade agreements with every African country except for Libya and South Sudan.

Due to the Brexit, British officials will now have to rewrite many of their trade agreements with African nations, which will take extensive time and manpower. However, this could prove to be fruitful for Africa, as strict regulations such as the Common Agricultural Policy — set in place by the EU will no longer apply to trade legislation.

According to the European Commission, the Common Agricultural Policy is an EU initiative aimed at invigorating “agricultural productivity, so that consumers have a stable supply of healthy food”. Part of this policy grants subsidies to European farmers to promote sustainable agriculture and the growth of healthy food.

BBC reports that African farmers feel as though the subsidies attached to the Common Agricultural Policy “undermine the concept of a level playing field”. The U.K. agrees with their African allies and adamantly fought for policy reformation before their exit. Brexit’s impact on Africa will not only be economic, for it will also influence the political and humanitarian realm.

The U.K. and Aid to Africa

Prior to the U.K.’s decision to leave the European Union, it had incredible authority over the EU’s political and humanitarian initiatives in Africa.

The European Development Fund, according to the Chicago Tribune, is “the European Union’s main vehicle for providing development aid to Africa”. Britain was a leading voice in dictating the mission of the fund, as the third biggest contributor at 14 percent.

Even more impressive was the U.K.’s power over the African Peace Facility and its backing of the African Union Mission in Somalia. Britain made sure that the EU paid for 90 percent of the program, a 22,000-strong multinational force that protects the Somali Federal Government from the extremist militant group al-Shabab.

Before the Brexit, Britain was already beginning to lose their battle over policy in Somalia as the rest of the EU voted to pull some funding, hinting at a divided opinion about African aid.

The future of European policy in Africa is ambiguous, as one of the continent’s most passionate advocates is no longer a member of the EU. While this may seem like troubling news for Africa, the Brexit could turn out to be a blessing for the entire region.

The U.K. will no longer be held back by the EU’s restrictive guidelines as it applies to foreign policy and unless recession strikes Britain’s economy, it is likely that they will stay true to their promise of providing 0.7 percent of their gross national income to African aid.

– Liam Travers

Photo: Public Domain Images

Flipkart: Amazon of the East

Flipkart

The king of e-commerce in India is not Amazon but rather a locally formed competitor: Flipkart. Like Amazon, Flipkart began as an online bookstore in 2007. Today, it has more than 75 million and accounts for almost 50 percent of online purchases. Along with another homegrown company, Snapdeal, Flipkart has created thousands of jobs and access to higher quality goods at lower prices—a win-win situation for struggling communities in India.

The popularity of online shopping can be attributed to the increasing availability of smartphones. Within just six months, the usage of smartphones among total mobile phones grew from one in five to one in every four mobile phones. Thus, analysts believe that internet usage will grow by 27 percent in just five years and contribute to the doubling of income per person from $1,570 to roughly $3,000 a year by 2025.

The growth of the cell phone industry and e-commerce in India indicates a positive spike in the quality of life. In its analysis of poverty levels in 2011, the World Bank reported that about 21 percent of India’s population lived on less than $1.90 a day. In 2015, that figure dropped to 12.4 percent, meaning 97 million people have officially emerged from extreme poverty. Since Flipkart and its competitors expect a bright future, it is believed that these numbers will only improve.

With more people on the internet, Indian firms like Flipkart and Snapdeal plan to increase their sales seven times over by 2020. This growth is good not only for those in the e-commerce market but also for local businesses and low-skilled labor.

According to The Economist, one of the primary areas of job creation is delivery services. Although these services were already widely used, such as transporting groceries from local corner markets or delivering lunch, the explosion of online shopping has made the demand for deliveries even stronger. Delivery men can now make up to $200 a month—well above what is average for low-skilled labor.

Overall employment is predicted to rise by as much as 30 percent in the next three years. Other estimates claim that as many as two million jobs were created in 2015 by Flipkart alone.

Physical stores are also making progress through e-commerce. The Indian division of Amazon, along with other online distributors, has made it much easier for new businesses to reach a wider selection of consumers, thereby expanding their sales and revenues. As it goes, India is in the middle of an economic upward spiral that is both energizing and hopeful.

– Emiliano Perez

Photo: Flickr

Power Africa: An Update on Progress

Power Africa
President Obama launched Power Africa, a program that would combine aid for those living in poverty with environmentally conscious energy options. The goal of the program was to double access to power in sub-Saharan Africa. Since that initial date, Power Africa has made much progress on their goals to add 60 million new electricity connections and do so in a clean way.

We can already see the growth that has occurred through the efforts of the Power Africa initiative. In 2015 the government of Sweden committed $1 billion to the project, which added onto the $8 billion already provided by the African Development Bank and the World Bank Group.

Transactions made by the project are expected to bring 4,100 Megawatts of electricity to areas in need. And during the Ebola crisis in Liberia, Power Africa partnered with the U.S. Government’s Disaster Assistance Response Team, providing generators for Ebola Treatment Units and thus supporting the work that healthcare professionals were doing in the containment and treatment of the disease.

Much of the progress the project has made in in the past several years is rooted in its partnerships with NGO’s, governments and corporations. For example, Google is investing in an exciting new renewable energy project that, when finished, will be the largest wind farm in both Kenya and Africa as a whole. This is an investment that Power Africa helped set in motion.

In addition to the partnerships that Power Africa has forged, they have also created tangible change through their programs such as the Beyond the Grid sub-initiative. This initiative encompasses over 100 projects that enable small-scale improvements such as mini-hydropower projects and rooftop solar systems. These improvements not only provide light and power but also provide jobs and stimulate economic growth.

The Power Africa project is taking on a massive issue that is of the utmost importance for the world’s most vulnerable populations. They have made great progress and are set to continue their good work quietly and behind the scenes, bringing life-changing light and power to those who need it the most.

– Jordan Little

Photo: Bosco Uganda

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Designing Africa’s Digital Education at the World Economic Forum

Africa_Digital_Education World Economic Forum

Digital education is a hot button topic in the United States, and last week, an international panel convened in Kigali, Rwanda, to discuss the efficacy of digitalizing African education systems. Held at the World Economic Forum on Africa, the friendly debate included education and governmental officials and digital education technology experts from around the world. Together, the panel discussed the two great hardships of African education—access to education and quality of education—in the context of a digital education revolution.

When some imagine the future of digital education, they see holograms and tablets, but the Digital Education panel put that idea to rest. “An educational overhaul isn’t feasible or realistic,” said Rapeland Rabana, founder of Rekindle Learning. “[We need to] look where we can build on what we already have,” she added.

In this way, struggling African governments will not be overwhelmed by new technological demands. Besides, according to TIME Magazine, only around 20 percent of Africans have access to the internet, and 40 percent don’t even have access to regular electricity. The argument can be seen that a hologram-touting educational reform system would do little in this environment.

One of the most important ideas discussed by the panel was that of privatized messaging platforms, like Messenger, WhatsApp or WeChat, as the digital basis for educational apps. Although attempting to privatize education could pose challenges of its own, Minister of Youth Jean Philbert Nsengimana pointed out that most African governments could not complete an educational transformation on their own. Instead, he said, “[We should] move away from the either-or debate and look at how the system can work together.”

Globally 57 million school-age children, many of whom are young girls, do not have the opportunity to attend school. Although the panel’s focus was digital education in Africa, the members did not forget that education is an issue outside of the continent.

Nsengimana brought this up and made it clear that he sees digital education as a means of inclusion for these educationless students, especially the young girls. Despite the logistical difficulties and the long implementation project, the Digital Education Panel at the World Economic Forum on Africa came to an encouragingly simple conclusion: by using the technologies that are already in place and focusing on accessibility in addition to advanced development, digital education tools will without a doubt be the future of education in Africa.

– Sage Smiley

Photo: Flickr

Red Nose Day: Updates with Jack Black

Red Nose Day
Jack Black checked up on a Ugandan teen that he met during last year’s Red Nose Day.

Red Nose Day, a fundraising campaign run by the non-profit organization Comic Relief Inc., was held this year on May 26. The campaign works to free children around the world from poverty.

The Red Nose Day Special is a live two-hour primetime television event that brings celebrities together to use the power of comedy to raise money. This year, the organization partnered with NBC, Walgreens, M&Ms and the Bill and Melissa Gates Foundation.

Jack Black, an American actor, comedian, musician and producer, was one of the 2016 participants of Red Nose Day’s inaugural telethon. He took a look back on his experience last year, when he traveled to a Ugandan slum and met an impactful young man.

Black was brought to tears when he visited the slums of Kampala, Uganda, where he met the orphaned teen named Felix. Black spent two days with Felix, learning how the teen made his living selling plastic bottles and slept on the dangerous streets at night.

The experience stuck with Black. The telethon covered an update on Felix, showing viewers how the teen benefitted from the organization’s efforts and giving Black some peace of mind.

When Black visited the slums, he was shocked at how much it emotionally affected him. He found it unfathomable that teenagers were sleeping on the streets and had little to no access to basic necessities.

During Black’s trip, the teen asked if he could go home with Black, saying, “I want to go with you.” While holding back tears, the actor replied, “I don’t think I can take you home. I don’t think it’s allowed.”

After the emotional experience, Black now feels better knowing that Red Nose Day has helped teens like Felix. In the video clip update, Felix describes his life now, saying: “I’m not scared anymore. There is no scary place. I would like to do well at school and complete my bright future. Now I have a dream.”

Felix additionally thanked Black for sharing his story with the world. With the funds raised by Red Nose Day, Felix was placed in a counseling program and then with a foster family. He is also now receiving an education.

This year, Black took a comedic spin on tackling child poverty. He said the best way to donate is simply by buying a little red nose, noting that they are great stocking stuffers.

The little red noses must have been a hit, as Red Nose Day raised $31.5 million this year. This money goes a long way in aiding the global poor. According to the Red Nose Day organization, $4 buys anti-malaria to protect mothers and children against mosquitos, $5 buys antibiotics to prevent pneumonia in children, and $15 can keep a child safe and sheltered for a week.

Globally, Red Nose Day has raised $1 billion in the last 25 years. While half of the money is given domestically, the other half goes to the poorest communities in places like Africa, Latin America and Asia. The funds are directly given to children in need of safety, education and healthcare.

In 2015, $170,000 was given to provide vaccines to children under the age of five living in the poorest communities in Africa. $30,000 was given to children and families in Africa that do not have access to clean water and sanitation.

Some of the 2016 charity partners included the Children’s Health Fund, The Global Fund, OXFAM, Save the Children and Gavi.

– Kimber Kraus

Photo: Flickr