Archive for category: Nonprofit Organizations and NGOs

Information and stories about nonprofit organizations and NGOs

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The Education Development Center

In the fight against global poverty, it is important to acknowledge some of the more successful combatants. The Education Development Center (EDC) is one of these. As a global nonprofit, it recognizes the correlation between the lack of education and increased global poverty and helps give those marginalized in the world — either due to poverty or war — the chance of leading a better life by means of education. As their website states, over 100 million children do not attend school, and it is this statistic that the EDC is fighting to combat and reduce.

With offices based in New York, Chicago, Washington, D.C. and Waltham, Mass., the Education Development Center commands a global staff of 1,350 members. It has over a $190 million budget and over 250 programs spread throughout 30 different countries and across all 50 U.S. states.

Through grants from both private foundations and federal agencies, the EDC creates and implements projects to improve educational and economic prospects of those worldwide. According to the EDC, these projects have ranged from “seed projects to large-scale national and international initiatives.”

Notable donors to the EDC include: the Ford Motor Company, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, U.S. Agency for International Development, the U.S. Department of Education, UNESCO and the World Health Organization. Recently, the EDC has received three grants from the U.S. Department of Education, one for $3.5 million and two for almost $400,000 each, all meant for education development projects within the U.S.

Founded in 1958, the EDC’s first project was to design a new physics curriculum for American high school classrooms. This was partially a reaction to the Soviet Union’s new space program as well as a response to a perceived discrepancy between Soviet Union and American science educations.

Funded by the National Science Foundation, this project became highly successful, and the new curriculum was incorporated into roughly half of American high schools by the early 1960s.

Following the implementation of this first project in the United States, EDC soon began to establish a more global reach. In 1961 and 1966 it began work on advancing mathematics and science programs in Africa. These projects would eventually end up creating, as stated on EDC’s website, “the continent’s first indigenous education research and development organization, Science Education Programme for Africa.”

However, one of its most effective and interesting international projects is the Radio Education or Interactive Radio Instruction.

This radio program that began in 1985 (and still exists today) was funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development. It uses radios to educate large swaths of people, including adults and children from over 30 developing countries, that would otherwise be unable to receive a basic education, either because of war or poverty.

This dedication to improving the world and combating poverty through education has been sustained throughout the organization’s entire existence. As a result of projects from 1997-2007, for instance, student enrollment in Guinea has doubled.

More recently, the international work of the EDC has focused on reducing youth unemployment in both Rwanda and Macedonia. More vocational training centers, concentrated on teaching technical and interpersonal skills, are being created for these youths.

As 2015 draws near, so does the end of the Millennium Development Goals, eight goals signed in 2000 by 191 countries designed to drastically reduce global poverty. As the international community debates and draws up the next set of goals to target poverty, the EDC will be remembered and depended on for the continued positive change it has enacted since 1958.

– Albert Cavallaro 

Sources: EDC 1, EDC 2, EDC 3, EDC 4, EDC 5, IRIN
Photo: Sasaki

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Six Successes of Plant With Purpose Around the World

Plant With Purpose is a San Diego-based Christian development organization. It assists the impoverished living in rural areas “where poverty and environmental degradation intersect” globally.

Through agricultural training, restoring the land and providing financial education, Plant With Purpose helps poor farming families become self-sufficient. To date, they have helped plant 11.9 million trees since their founding in 1984.

Plant With Purpose is currently present in more than 325 communities, providing aid and support to over 17,132 individuals within Burundi, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Mexico, Tanzania and Thailand.

Location: Davi, Haiti

The Need: In Haiti, only 2 percent of its original forestry remains. Eighty-four percent of the population lives in poverty, and the country imports 60 percent of its food needs. Half of Haitian children under 5 are undernourished. With the help of Plant With Purpose, smallholder farming families are planting trees, implementing soil conservation methods and preventing soil erosion. Locals are educated on sustainable agriculture methods that restore the land and increase their food production and incomes. Village Savings and Loan Associations are also implemented.

Instead of providing food aid, Plant With Purpose is educating for self-sufficiency.

The communities in Davi are facing particular hardships. Floods and landslides cause destruction every rainy season, washing away the fertile topsoil and preventing farmers from growing crops. Families are forced to migrate to cities to find work. Plant With Purpose is working to reverse deforestation through its various methodologies.

Progress: Assisted families showed a 46 percent decrease in cholera and a 50 percent decrease in typhoid, compared with others. They also now actively save cash four times more frequently. They cultivate about 20 percent more land, own 30 percent more land and protect 20 percent more land through reforestation or erosion control.

These families also plant about three times as many trees as non-assisted local families.

Location: Panasawan & Pang Dang Nok, Thailand

The Need: The government of Thailand refuses to recognize many hill tribe members as citizens. Thus, they have few legal rights. They also have limited access to healthy fields, leaving them to grow crops on devastated hillsides. Plant With Purpose has been working with these communities to help them learn sustainable farming techniques and advocate for legal status in Thailand.

The village of Panasawan suffers from extreme poverty and a destroyed environment. Soil erosion, poor water quality and sanitation, difficult access to land rights and lacking availability of credit has ensnared the community in the cycle of poverty and environmental degradation. Plant With Purpose is providing farmers with environmental and financial training and economic opportunities necessary to break the cycle.

Progress: Hill tribe farming families are gaining access to land and basic rights. Village Savings and Loan Associations are providing a means to save and gain credit. Plant With Purpose is also helping congregations better meet the needs of their communities by training leaders.

Families aided now have twice as many children enrolled in high school, are 31 percent more likely to actively save cash, are 41 percent more likely to own land that is protected, have planted 2.5 times more trees, have shown a 19 percent decrease in admitted gambling and are 20 percent more likely to eat meat, eggs or fish on a daily or weekly basis.

Location: Lyasongoro, Tanzania

The Need: In Tanzania, Plant With Purpose mainly works with women, many of whom are widows or single mothers, because women and children there represent the poorest segment of the communities. Roughly 98 percent of these women who work earn through agriculture, but because they don’t have access to the same training their male counterparts receive, their yields suffer.

Plant With Purpose  provides agricultural training, which doubles crop output, and plants over a million trees each year around Mt. Kilimanjaro. They are also establishing Village Savings and Loan Associations.

Progress: Assisted families showed a 65 percent decrease in diarrheal disease and a 70 percent decrease in typhoid incidence. It’s also true that 99 percent of these families actively save cash, compared with 48 percent previously, and 50 percent have enough savings to cover household expenses for six months, compared with 6 percent previously.

Of participant families, 80 percent own cattle, which is 42 percent higher than those not assisted, and 66 percent of participants earn some household income through microenterprise endeavors, a significant 43 percent higher than those who were not trained.

Location: El Café, Dominican Republic

The Need: While the Dominican Republic is gaining wealth, there is a growing gap between the rich and poor. The most impoverished, deforested regions exist near the border of the Dominican Republic and Haiti.

The Dominican government relies on Plant With Purpose to help with their reforestation programs.

El Café mainly profits off of its oregano crop, but recent deforestation threatens this trade. Plant With Purpose is helping to replenish the soil and diversify their economy. The organization has started a nursery, growing seedlings, fruit trees and other plants to replenish the forests and provide an additional source of income. Plant With Purpose has also provided a solar drier to villagers to convert their oregano into a marketable good. They are also offering workshops teaching sustainable farming and land conservation methods.

Progress: Families who work with the organization own twice as much land and protect 75 percent more land than non-participant families. These households are 60 percent more likely to own cattle as well.

Cacao, a valuable cash crop, is harvested 30 percent more often by Plant With Purpose farmers than other locals. Assisted families have planted almost three times as many trees than before.

Location: Kiremba, Burundi

The Need: In the world’s hungriest country, 80 percent of Burundi’s 8.5 million people live below the poverty line. At least 90 percent of Burundians depend on agriculture, but their farmland has been devastated by deforestation, drought, war and over-farming. Plant With Purpose is helping these farmers access land and maximize their productivity. They are also working with agriculture research institutions to provide disease-resistant crops. Through the introduced Village Savings and Loan Associations, villagers are saving their money and providing loans to others.

Progress: Plant With Purpose reports that 95 percent of farmers in associations have shared their knowledge with other farmers; each farmer shares with an average of 23.5 people. Participants are 24 percent more likely to save cash than non-participants, have planted three times as many trees as non-participants and have harvested 31 different crops, compared with 20 crops harvested by non-participant farmers.

Location: Tamazola, Mexico

The Need: In Oaxaca and Chiapas, two of the poorest states in Mexico, more than 75 percent of indigenous people live in extreme poverty. As men migrate to find work elsewhere, women are frequently left to care for their children and households.

Plant With Purpose is teaching families in rural communities to plant vegetable gardens that will increase their food production and incomes. Village Savings and Loan Associations have also been established to provide financial security and opportunity.

Progress: Plant With Purpose reports that participant households actively save cash 68 percent of the time, while non-participants save cash only 45 percent of the time, with participants being 43 percent more likely to have enough savings to cover six months of needs. Seventy-seven percent of participants own cattle, compared with 51 percent of non-participants, with the number of cattle owned by participants being twice that of the number owned by non-participants. Only seven percent of participant households have dirt floors in their homes compared with 29 percent of non-participant households. Participant farmers harvested 22 different crops, compared with eight by non-participants.

Plant With Purpose has seen measurable success from its efforts, objectively putting donations to good use. If seeking an effective, Christian-based charity that assists the poor on the ground, look no further. Personal contributions can be guaranteed to yield maximal benefit in the hands of this organization.

– Elias Goodman

Sources: Charity Navigator, Plan with Purpose, Scribd
Photo: New Identity Magazine

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World Learning: Connecting Minds Across the Globe

World Learning, Inc. is a nonprofit organization that is dedicated to empowering youth and advancing leadership in 60 countries worldwide. With three specific and unique programs—in education, development and exchange—World Learning’s initiatives cover a broad range of issues to comprehensively address critical needs in the global education sector.

The Experiment in International Learning program offers high school students opportunities to take part in “immersive, life-transforming” experiences in more than 20 countries through three-week or five-week summer abroad programs.

At the graduate and undergraduate levels, World Learning’s School for International Training (SIT) is an accredited higher education institution that provides undergraduates with semester-long programs in 30 countries, each with a focus on critical global issues.

Additionally, SIT aims to offer deep cultural immersion through fieldwork, language courses and urban and rural home-stays with locals. SIT’s graduate institute offers masters degrees in conflict transformation, international education, sustainable education, and teaching English as a second language.

International Exchange programs enable World Learning to address larger worldwide issues in education such as teacher professional development, community and school enrichment, and English language/literacy improvement. Additionally, these programs work with policymakers and education reform programs, working to achieve the support and resources necessary to promoting sustainable development in education.

In addition to education programs, World Learning brings together emerging leaders from 140 countries around the world to the United States. on exchanges. These exchange programs are unique in that they are short-term, but offer high-value learning experiences for leaders who are eager to gain professional development by connecting with U.S. and international colleagues to gain a broader view of U.S. culture and values. This program provides people of all ages with the opportunity to learn together about leadership, current issues and peace building.

World Learning’s International Development programs work to educate communities worldwide to address issues relating to poverty, such as education access and disease prevention. Working with local partners, World Learning’s grassroots programs identify specific needs, challenges and resources within communities, customizing development plans.

One example of these projects is the Caribbean HIV/AIDS Grants Solicitation and Management program. World Learning’s development goal is to ensure that partners invest deeply in projects and provide the necessary support for successful, long-term improvements.

World Learning’s work is essential to global policy and affairs because, in essence, it pulls back the curtain from many cultures and communities and allows people to examine not only their own cultures and communities, but others as well. Education is key not only in breaking the cycle of poverty, but it’s crucial in the preserving of peace and in the building of understanding, trust, and respect across communities worldwide.

World Learning’s promotion of global communication through education, development and exchange programs and higher education opportunities are making strides in the effort to eliminate conflict and achieve equality across the board when it comes to worldwide education.

– Elizabeth Nutt

Sources: World Bank, World Learning, Inc.
Photo: World Learning

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How to Start a Nonprofit

Have you ever wondered what it takes to start a nonprofit? Extensive questioning and research are, unsurprisingly, pretty important, but such large steps can be daunting. Such steps can be intimidating, too; with a hasty research phase, a commendable mission may falter underneath shoddy business planning, or maybe a solid business plan is built only to support a redundant, unspectacular mission. The roads to failure are numerous.

This is not meant to disappoint anyone. Although failure is easy, scrupulous work and copious help make starting a nonprofit feasible. There are a myriad of nonprofits that role model this success story-The Borgen Project included. To help you begin thinking about starting a nonprofit (or simply to inform anyone interested in the nonprofit thought process), here is a compilation of imperative questions to aid you in your research, with a little Borgen flare.

 

Key Questions:

 

1. You’re not flying solo, are you?

The answer should be simple: no. It is unrealistic to rely on a single committed person (presumably yourself) to carry the nonprofit (to carry it very far, that is). Before any nonprofit takes flight, there must be a team (the more, the merrier) of enthusiastic and inspired people to propel the project forward. If your passion is contagious, you’re off to a good start.

2. What resources do you think you will need, and why are they important?

While starting a nonprofit, having a detailed business plan and outline is integral. It allows you to establish a few practical points, examining both the efficacy and the originality of your nonprofit before it’s too late to reverse a bad decision.

For example, if there are similar organizations to your proposed one, instead of forming another, try what is called “fiscal sponsorship.” This means that your initiative becomes umbrellaed by a larger veteran nonprofit. Basically, this tax-exempt organization serves as the recipient of charitable donations to your organization, which would not yet be recognized as tax-exempt. It allows your project to grow (maybe one day allowing it to branch off on its own) without competing with identical nonprofits.

The second, just as important, benefit of a thorough business plan is that it gives you a comprehensive (and requisite) understanding of fiscal resources. If this sounds boring, sorry, but, too bad. Although establishing your goals, structure, budget, marketing plan and resource development/fundraising aren’t flashy, they are all important. This gives you time to think about partnerships as well – they can keep your nonprofit alive.

The Borgen Project has teams dedicated to working the logistics of the nonprofit. Clint Borgen may be the face of the organization, but without fundraisers, organizers or even interns, The Borgen Project would not be very effective.

3. What’s that avalanche of paperwork doing over there, and who can I go to to get rid of it?

Paperwork can be both dull and frustrating, and filing to become a registered nonprofit is no different. It is necessary in order to secure recognition at the state level and to become tax-exempt at the federal level. If you do at any time need help finding your way through this process, go to both friends and professionals. Friends can be supportive and offer helpful advice, but ultimately you will want to consult experts before making any serious decisions. Finding lawyers who specialize in tax-exempt organizations or nonprofit law will, in all likelihood, prove to be a rewarding course of action.

– Adam Kaminski

Sources: Grant Space, National Council of Nonprofits, About.com
Photo: Mashable

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The Hard Knock Life of Syrian Children

Try to imagine back to when you were in elementary school. Most children are happy living without major troubles, or at least children in the United States. Many do not have much to worry about. Most American children are going to school and are living stress-free lives. They are enjoying themselves, playing outside with their friends or playing video games, but the same could not be said for the children of Syria.

Millions on children have been affected by the conflict going on Syria for past three years, 6.5 million, to be exact. Over 2.8 million children are no longer attending school and more then one million are refugees in nearby countries. They no longer live their normal stress-free lives; they do not have “normal” childhoods.

Many Syrian children have endured horrible health issues due to poor sanitation and many are also malnourished. Many also face diseases such as measles and polio due to lack of proper immunizations.

Parents often turn to marrying their daughters off at early ages, as early as 13 years old, so that they do not get molested. Syrian refugee children are more vulnerable to rape and other acts of sexual violence.

In Syria, three million children no longer attend school, mostly because their schools have been destroyed, teachers have left and families are now using schools as homes. Other children quit school to work so that they could help make income to support their families.

The Lebanese government has been trying to help by setting up schools for child refugees but there have been problems such as overcrowding, language barriers and cost of transportation.

UNICEF has been helping since day one and partnering up with others to help. The organization has also immunized more than 20 million children when there was a polio breakout, supplied safe drinking water and provided psychological support.

Save The Children is another organization that has been getting involved and helping child refugees. Anyone could help through UNICEF or Save the Children. Just remember that you would not your children having to go through such horrible living conditions on a day-to-day basis.

– Priscilla Rodarte

Sources: Save the Children, World Vision, UNICEF
Photo: World Vision

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Jhpiego Receives USAID Award

Jhpiego is an international nonprofit health organization and an affiliate of Johns Hopkins University. Jhpiego’s programs are primarily centered on the prevention of unnecessary deaths of women and children in developing countries. The organization works on the front lines in urban slums and rural settings to design accessible and affordable healthcare solutions. Jhpiego is currently active in 40 countries, concentrated in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean.

The organization works with healthcare professionals, influential community members and government leaders to deliver quality healthcare for those in need. It also focuses on developing sustainable strategies for communities in developing countries to manage their own well-being. Jhpiego trains local healthcare workers, improves the quality of community health systems and makes delivery of care, services or products more efficient and dependable. It focuses on developing technologies and solutions that can be used both in hospitals or in the home. The organization’s provision of affordable healthcare for women and families ensures of level of care previously unattainable by many of the recipients.

Jhpiego began as an acronym for the Johns Hopkins Program for International Education in Gynecology and Obstetrics, yet the organization has now expanded its efforts to tackle issues such as the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS, infection, malaria, tuberculosis and cervical cancer. Jhpiego’s science division also researches innovative technology that has the potential to help poor and vulnerable communities. The ultimate goal is sustainability—giving poor communities the tools and education they need to build a foundation of good health and continue the cycle without outside assistance or aid.

As an affiliate of a prestigious university, Jhpiego has the advantage of being well-connected. In June 2014, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) awarded $500 million to Jhpiego to fund a program to alleviate maternal and child mortality. Jhpiego is currently using the funds to spearhead a five-year program centered around preventing child deaths due to treatable causes like diarrhea and pneumonia. By working in conjunction with other partners and nonprofits, Jhpiego seeks to create a network of aid to mothers and children in need.

Jhpiego will use the funds to provide cost-effective vaccines and antibiotics to the 24 countries with the highest numbers of child mortality. Jhpiego will also provide other medical equipment, train community medical providers and reach out to women in slums and rural areas. The USAID funds will be used to research prevention and treatments for the leading causes of death for mothers and children. Among mothers, the leading causes of mortality include uncontrolled bleeding after birth, infections and high blood pressure during pregnancy. Among newborns, asphyxia and low birth rate. And among young children, pneumonia, malaria and diarrhea.

Since 1990, the global child mortality rate has nearly been halved. Yet Jhpiego’s efforts instill hope that the number can be further lowered. Jhpiego works with NGOs and government policymakers alike to increase accessibility to quality health services. By focusing on sustainable, cost-effective health solutions, Jhpiego can help provide care for underrepresented, vulnerable populations.

– Mari LeGagnoux 

Sources: Baltimore Sun, Jhpiego
Photo: Jhpiego

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Earthquake Protection by Build Change

Build Change, an international nonprofit organization, is working to “greatly reduce deaths, injuries and economic losses caused by housing collapses due to earthquakes in developing countries.” In short, it envisions a world where all homes are earthquake resistant, so that no one has to live in an unsafe environment and face the devastation of losing their entire home after an earthquake.

The organization was founded by Dr. Elizabeth Hausler, who holds a Ph.D. in civil engineering and is passionate about sustainable construction. Currently, the organization works in China, Colombia, Haiti, Indonesia and the Philippines, some of the most earthquake-prone regions in the world.

In the Sichuan Province of China, Build Change has constructed over 1,000 earthquake-resistant homes. The organization personalizes each design for the specific homeowners and also takes steps to ensure that locals are educated about what makes houses vulnerable so that disaster can be avoided.

Xiao Qianghui, a villager from Minle in the Sichuan province, attested to the positive change the organization can make. “I’m a bit surprised that Build Change would come here because Minle is such a remote village. Elizabeth [Hausler] is the first foreigner who has ever come to Minle. But, of course, I welcome Build Change’s suggestions and help. What they’re doing here is very good. Before Build Change came, I thought I’d be living in this tent for the rest of my life.”

In Haiti, disaster-safe construction is especially important as the country is still rebuilding from the overwhelmingly deadly 2010 earthquake. Over 2,500 builders in Haiti have been trained by Build Change to incorporate earthquake and hurricane-resistant techniques into local infrastructure.

Efforts are made to ensure that each home is built in the context of its location. Build Change has said, “Understanding local materials, tools, skills, cultural preferences and market forces is key to identifying small changes that can make a big difference in construction quality and safety.”

In addition to building disaster-resistant homes through its own programs, Build Change is making efforts to expand the availability of information about resistant construction methods. “Earthquake-resistant construction,” the organization has said, “will become common only if the right technology is locally available, widely known, and culturally accepted.”

Build Change has done significant work across the world disaster-proofing homes in developing countries and has undoubtedly saved families from experiencing the devastation of losing a home following an earthquake.

– Emily Jablonski

Sources: Build Change, Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation
Photo: Gizmodo

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Top 10 Global Poverty Nonprofits

Top 10 Global Poverty Nonprofits
Let’s begin with the obvious, all of us at The Borgen Project… are big fans of The Borgen Project. Our bias aside, below is a list of 10 of the top global poverty nonprofits and their commendable work.

 

Top Global Poverty Nonprofits

 

1. The Borgen Project – The Borgen Project has taken the plight of the world’s poor to the political level. With access to most members of Congress and an advocacy network of volunteers in every state, The Borgen Project is considered one of the most politically influential organizations fighting for the world’s poor.

2. ONE Campaign – ONE Campaign uses grassroots and advocacy to raise awareness and money to help put a stop to global poverty. They mainly focus their attention on those living in impoverished conditions in Africa.

3. Global Giving – Global Giving is a charity fundraising web site that gives nonprofits from anywhere in the world a chance to raise the money that they need to improve their communities. Since 2002, the project has raised $114,889,647 from 392,257 donors and has supported 10,252 projects.

4. UNICEF – UNICEF is one of the largest nonprofit organizations and it is dedicated to helping children in need. UNICEF does so much for children around the globe, all while promoting education for girls and better health for pregnant women.

5. Partners in Health – Partners in Health is another nonprofit much like Shot@Life, which is geared towards providing a better quality of living and preventing disease. Partners in Health partners with doctors and health institutions across the globe to provide much needed relief for people who would otherwise be unable to afford health care.

6. GiveWell – GiveWell is a combination of several top rated charities all over the world. Most, if not all, of these charities provide relief for impoverished people in every nation.

7. CARE – CARE wants to cut poverty off at its roots. This nonprofit provide tools for people who are at a higher risk of falling into poverty and they help them to be successful and rise above the poverty within their nations.

8. Life in Abundance – Life in Abundance is a Christian-run organization that mobilizes churches and missionaries alike to provide relief for those who are suffering. This nonprofit wants to provide a healthier lifestyle to those who are living in poverty.

9. International Rescue Committee – The International Rescue Committee responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people to survive and rebuild their lives to prevent global poverty. The nonprofit was founded in 1933 due to a request from Albert Einstein himself. The IRC has since offered lifesaving care and life-changing assistance to refugees forced to flee from war or disaster.

10. Shot@Life – Shot@Life, while not primarily putting an end to global poverty, is trying to eradicate one facet of it. Shot@Life is a nonprofit that provides vaccinations for those less fortunate so they will not be plagued by preventable diseases.

 

 

Sources: About.com, CARE, GiveWell, Global Giving, International Rescue Committee, Life in Abundance, Partners in Health, Philanthropedia, The Borgen Project, UNICEF
Photo: The Guardian

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All About the RAND Corporation

RAND corporation mission statement: “We exist to help policymakers make decisions that are based on the best available information.”

The RAND corporation was developed by Henry Arnold in 1946, and became an independent nonprofit organization in 1948 after WWII. He believed that there should be a group to keep America’s technology ahead of the rest of the world. The main idea behind the organization was to connect military planning with research and development decisions. It was initially formed to offer research and analysis to the United States Armed forces. In the 60’s, the organization became known as a think tank. At that time, a think tank was a research institute that came up with new ideas that could influence public policy.

RAND’s vision is “To be the world’s most trusted source for policy ideas and analysis.” Today, RAND does research on more than 1,000 topics a year.

They are reaching for their work to be understood by everyone, not just the experts. Because of this, they make all their research and findings available for download on their webpage.

They are proud that they have been able to remain independent of commercial and political pressures. It is stated on their “History and Mission” page that quality and objectivity are their two core values.

RAND Corporation is commissioned by government agencies, foundations and private firms.

The corporation is made up of 1,700 staff from around the world and is located in 47 different countries. Having this many people allows for RAND to have a diverse professional and educational background. There are 65 different languages spoken throughout RAND, and many of the staff are multilingual. Some of the popular languages are Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Japanese, Korean, Russian, and Spanish. Fifty-seven percent of the people working for RAND have one or more doctorate degrees, and another 29 percent have one or more master’s degrees. This shows that RAND’s staff is well rounded, extremely educated and knowledgeable on the topics they are researching.

– Priscilla Rodarte

Sources: RAND Corporation, Mental Floss
Photo: Hands off Mother Earth

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Alliance for Peacebuilding

Alliance for Peacebuilding
The Alliance for Peacebuilding, or AfP, seeks to find innovative approaches to Peacebuilding through a number of related fields, including development, relief, human rights, democracy and security sector reform.

Launched in 1999 as the Applied Conflict Resolution Organization Network, the organization obtained a $1 million dollar funding grant from the Hewlett Foundation in 2003. Following the grant, ACORN became the Alliance for International Conflict Prevention and Resolution. In 2006, AICPR became AfP with a focus on collaboration among organizations and different peacebuilding parties.

Today, AfP aims to innovate, influence and connect Congress as well as the general public to strengthen peacebuilding activities. Consisting of more than 70 peacebuilding organizations from across the world, AfP has over 15,000 volunteers and employees throughout the globe and employs 1,000 professionals.

With its headquarters in Washington, D.C., AfP focuses it energy on eight different programs as it advocates for peacebuilding. These include policymaker engagement, human security, strategic communication and genocide prevention. The organization also hosts an annual conference where AfP members can reach out to other members of the broader peacebuilding community to share ideas and insights within the field.

The keynote address at this year’s AfP conference, hosted in May, focused on developing games as a tool for peace. Asi Burak, the president of Games for Change, noted how the gaming industry is a multi-billion dollar industry that draws gamers throughout the world of different races, genders and nationalities. “Peacemaker,” a game based on the events of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, allows players to become their own leader and to try to bring peace to the region.

May’s conference also featured discussions on the challenges facing African countries, including Nigeria and Kenya, the need for peacebuilders to collect relevant data in their fields and a discussion on providing peacebuilders with the necessary communication tools for storytelling purposes.

AfP maintains partnerships with a number of organizations, coalitions and platforms. These include the United States Institute of Peace, the Conflict Prevention and Resolution Forum and the Peace Portal, among others.

AfP also publishes an online magazine titled “Building Peace: A Forum for Peace and Security in the 21st Century.” With its most recent publication being March of this year, each issue features a variety of stories following a particular theme. The most recent theme, detailing men, women and peace, featured stories exploring the role of gender in peacebuilding activities.

Along with other human rights organizations, AfP recently announced its support for the Syrian Humanitarian Resolution of 2014. The resolution, introduced by 19 senators in March, expressed concern for the crisis in the country and “the urgent need for a political solution to the crisis.”

AfP and the organizations in support of the resolution stated in a joint statement their commitment to ensuring the Syrian nation does not “lose another year to bloodshed and suffering…We stand with the people of Syria…in calling our leaders to make the same commitment and engage the public. We urge strong support for and swift passage of this critical resolution.”

At last year’s U.N. General Assembly, AfP asked members of the Civil Society Platform for Peacebuilding and Statebuilding and people on the street what they believed the post-Millennium goals should be. Numerous interviewees said they intended to see advances in human rights and gender equality as well as an increased awareness in climate change.

Additionally, those interviewed stated such goals could help to promote global peace.

As death tolls in Iraq soar into the hundreds following jihadist violence in the past several weeks, calls for nonviolent resolutions to issues separating different cultures and countries remains at the forefront of the world’s collective consciousness.

— Ethan Safran

Sources: Alliance for Peacebuilding, Building Peace
Photo: CNN