Archive for category: Volunteer

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Volunteer for Bangladesh

In recent years, education in Bangladesh has greatly improved. Poverty rates have decreased, and with it, hunger. But the nation faces many challenges.

Ready to meet these challenges are the members of Volunteer for Bangladesh (VBD). It is a branch of the JAAGO Foundation, a larger organization which works to provide all children in Bangladesh with access to a quality education. Both have strong ties to and receive financial support from the U.S. Embassy in Dhaka.

There is much work to be done, so the VBD mission is broad; to end poverty and hunger and to protect children’s rights, including their right to an education. The organization promotes gender equality, works to improve nutrition, educates on sustainability and aids in local development projects. Its projects are as varied as its mission tenets.

VBD awareness campaigns fall on holidays like Universal Children’s Day, when they “spread consciousness among mass people about children’s education.” On World Water Day, they raise awareness of freshwater resources, and on Income Tax Day, they speak on the importance of paying taxes.

Last year in Dhaka, Gazipur, Chittagong, Narayanganj, Khulna and Rajshahi, Universal Children’s Day VBD workers, four corporate partners and five local media groups built carnivals for underprivileged children. There were sporting events, visits to the zoo, merry-go-round rides and introductions to Mickey Mouse. For several hundred destitute children, it was a day on which they could enjoy being a child.

The theme for World Environment Day of this year was “more care for the environment, lessen the rise of the sea level.” It is a poignant message for Bangladeshi citizens, 15 million of who stand to lose their homes to rising ocean waters.

On June 5, 1,150 volunteers in bright yellow VBD t-shirts rode bicycles to 12 districts. They planted over 400 saplings to further their goal of “reversing the greenhouse effect.”

All VBD efforts are truly community endeavors. More than 12,000 people are now working in VBD projects. Volunteer for Bangladesh hopes to establish Action Groups in all of Bangladesh’s 64 districts by 2016.

– Olivia Kostreva

Sources: Volunteer for Bangladesh 1, Volunteer for Bangladesh 2, Volunteer for Bangladesh 3, JAAGO
Photo: The Daily Star

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Why You Should Donate Time

There are many ways to give to your charity of choice, but one of the most effective ways to give back is to donate time – that is to say, volunteer. Being generous with your time is beneficial to both you and to your cause of choice.

The effort to eliminate poverty worldwide would not have advanced as far as it has without the hard work of thousands of volunteers – and continued initiatives to reduce poverty will require more volunteers as well. Here are three reasons why you should donate your time.

1. Volunteering Benefits Charities

When volunteers give their time to an organization, it allows that organization to use the money it would have otherwise paid someone to do the same task to make improvements elsewhere. According to the University of California San Diego, an average volunteer hour is worth $15.39. Volunteering permits organizations to make intelligent decisions about where that money is better spent.

Giving your time also saves you money, allowing you to invest it in other causes as you see fit – it truly spreads the wealth in more ways than one.

2. You Reap the Rewards

As opposed to donating money, donating your time allows you to see first-hand the difference you’re making. Volunteering also allows you to meet new people, explore new causes and develop skills that may be useful to you later in life. Not only that, volunteers often end up learning lessons that stick with them throughout their entire lives and lead to other opportunities.

3. Your Community is Enhanced

No matter what cause you support, donating your time enhances your community in that it brings people together. Even if your efforts aren’t aimed locally (for instance, in nearby schools, youth programs or elderly facilities), working to better the world makes your community a better place to live. Engaging in service strengthens individuals’ sense of “civic responsibility” and encourages further investment into communities everywhere.

Donating time is one of the best ways to give back to not only your charity of choice but also your community. In 2013, over a quarter of Americans volunteered in some fashion. Increasing the number of volunteers — and the hours they spend volunteering — across the world is sure to make a difference for a number of causes, poverty-elimination included.

– Elise L. Riley 

Sources: University of California San Diego, Huffington Post
Photo: Flickr

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The Changing Face of the Peace Corps

The Peace Corps has recently announced that, in order to increase its number of applicants, it will be making major changes to how the organization is run. Namely, the application process will be shorter and applicants will be given the ability to choose which country and program interests them.

Since the Peace Corps’ inception in 1961 by President Kennedy, the organization has drawn more than 215,000 volunteers who have served in 139 impoverished countries. Volunteers stay in their assigned country for two years where they work in a number of fields including education, health services and agriculture. As the premier international service organization in the U.S., almost everyone has heard of the Peace Corps and many aspire to volunteer with it one day.

However, the positive image of the Peace Corps has been tarnished in recent years due to some volunteers’ bad experiences, which have been shared online and seen by many.

The number of applicants, which peaked in 2009, has fallen by more than a third since. Previously, applications were 60 pages long and took more than eight hours to complete. After submitting an application, one might not hear back about an acceptance for more than a year. The new application supposedly takes less than one hour to complete and the organization is promising to reduce wait times to no more than six months.

Additionally, applicants did not have the liberty to choose which country in which they wanted to serve. Countries and programs were assigned by the Peace Corps, sending people wherever they were needed most. The new model allows applicants to list countries and programs in order of preference. While this could lead to fewer volunteers in more dangerous countries, Peace Corps Director Carrie Hessler-Radelet says she is not worried about this, as many of the people who are drawn to the two-year long volunteer lifestyle are also intrigued by the more difficult areas and programs.

Unfortunately, the problems within the Peace Corps go deeper than the application process. Sixty-four percent of volunteers are women and in the past decade more than 1,000 of them have been raped or sexually assaulted while serving. Victims say that the Peace Corps did little to nothing to educate volunteers on self-defense, relocate volunteers who felt in danger or help victims after an attack. Many victims claim the Peace Corps blamed them for the assault and made attempts to cover up the incident.

While most volunteers have a positive experience serving for the Peace Corps, there is still a question of how safe the program actually is and what the organization can do to improve this. Women who have been raped or sexually assaulted say that the Peace Corps needs to address the issue and do all they can to help the women receive treatment for any physical and emotional damage. Hessler-Radelet, who is relatively new to her position as director, has agreed that the Peace Corps has a commitment to its volunteers and should be helping them.

– Taylor Lovett

Sources: NPR, Peace Corps, ABC News
Photo: Peace Corps

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Life to Life Building Group

In their own words, the Life to Life Building Group, Inc. (LTLBG) is “in the business of providing for people.” The company has been in this business since 2004, when founders Tim Mooney and Eric Brookhart developed, coordinated and ran a program in which high school students traveled to Uganda.

During the day, Mooney is a high school teacher and Brookheart is a firefighter and builder, so it is no surprise that together, the pair believes LTLBG has a dual effect that mirrors its profession. On a concrete level, the company builds schools and housing in poorer African countries. It also seeks to diversify the experience of American high school students.

While the construction of buildings speak for progress, the students must also prove they are ready to go abroad. Volunteers are required to complete an application that includes an essay portion. They must also launch their own fundraising campaign and are expected to pay for the entirety of their journey.

The program began organically, so it was small. It is also tightly run, so efficiency is quick to increase. In summer 2007, the founders led two groups that saw 50 total students build first a secondary school and then housing units. The company has their eyes on partnering with local businesses in Africa in an attempt to give back even more.

Like so many organizations and services that elect to operate and work in Africa, LTLBG is often asked “Why? Why go to Uganda?” One cheeky response is as follows: “How would our local school district react when, full of excitement, we attend a board meeting and announce we have worked to raise $25,000 to build a school? Perhaps we can add more mulch to the playground.” Wit aside, the founders have plenty of reasons to go.

The truth is that rarely do projects come around as organically as this. Subsequent to earning his degree, Mooney worked in Uganda as a missionary for three years, forming long bonds with educators, doctors and leaders of NGOs in the country. After returning home, an individual reached out to Mooney who brought Brookhart on a home building trip.

After several summers of working in Uganda, a class of Mooney’s students came to him and suggested that they be included on the next trip. The next summer they traveled together under the company name.

Even with all this, LTLBG should not feel the need to answer the question as judgment. The Sub Sahara is home to the most disadvantaged individuals in the world and it is one of the most important places in which to build.

– Andrew Rywak

Sources: Global Building Group, TeleSoft Partners
Photo: Global Building Group

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How To Pick A Charity To Give To

There are many great charities out there doing much-needed work to reduce global poverty. Here are some tips on deciding which charity you should give to.

1. Clarify your beliefs

Before you start looking for a charity to give to, be sure you know what you believe. Figure out what missions matter the most to you and your family. Do you care the most about protecting the environment? Fighting human trafficking? Providing education? Once you have selected the category that you care about most, you can begin to research the different methods of solving that problem.

2. Start broad

Use websites like CharityNavigator.org, GuideStar.org or GiveWell.org to learn how different charities in the category you picked spend their money. Sites like these aggregate tax information and other records you can use to learn how different charities spend their money.

3. Do your research

Find a clear description of the charity’s mission, programs and achievements. Figure out what their goals are, how they measure their success and how they use that information to function better. If you can’t find this information easily, be wary. But be aware that some problems are hard to solve. Don’t place a dollar sign on a human life. Some organizations invest thousands of dollars rescuing women and children from slavery because, simply put, extracting slaves is hard and expensive.

Nancy Lublin CEO of DoSomething.org  knows that “Low overhead doesn’t necessarily mean an organization is awesome at fighting poverty, or that its turnover is low and its people productive. And it certainly doesn’t guarantee that the group is spending wisely.”

Lublin cited Apple as an example from the for-profit world of a company with high overhead but incredible products.

“According to Apple’s Q4 2008 report, 78% of its expenses were sales, general, and administrative — the corporate equivalent of overhead. Seventy-eight percent! Yet nobody flinches,” she wrote.

4. Contact the charity and become personally involved

If you’re going to establish a long-term relationship with an organization, take the time to call them, or at least email them about your interest. Best of all, take the time to become personally involved in the charity you donate to allows you incomparable insight into how they operate.

“Be very reluctant to give to strangers,” Dan Moore, vice president of public affairs for GuideStar, an online source of financial information on charities told NBC. “If you know the organization and you know their work, you will know with some degree of confidence that your gift will be put to good use.”

5. Trust your gut

If an organization seems questionable, don’t give. Find a group that you feel comfortable supporting and give what you can.

Picking a charity to support can be daunting but taking the time to give well is incredibly rewarding.

– Sally Nelson

Sources: Fast Company, NBC
Photo: Infiniti

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5 Ways to Put Your Time Toward Change

In just one month in 2012, Americans spent a combined 230,060 years on social media according to the annual Nielsen Report. That’s about 6.5 hours per person, if every American used social media, and a whopping 121 billion minutes total. That was two years ago, and social media platforms and usage continue to grow.

That we have managed to collectively squeeze thousands of years worth of time out of just one month is amazing, a true feat that proves the potential for impact when an entire society chooses to dedicate time to one purpose. That this feat was accomplished in the name of liking, posting, commenting and pinning is disheartening. We can do better.

Imagine the improvements to our world if every American spent even half that time, about three hours every month, addressing global poverty issues and working toward solutions. We can no longer claim we don’t have time to make the world a better place.

Here are five ways to put your time toward change:

1. Take a free class on global issues (1-5 hours per week)

Educate yourself on the problems and solutions of global poverty! There are many free courses offered online by prestigious universities that focus on issues like global health and development. Auditing or taking a class for credit is a great way to learn about the current landscape of global poverty issues, and what we can do about them.

Check out sites like coursera.com and openculture.com to access free classes from top universities around the world. Many universities now offer free classes through their websites as well.

Multiply your impact: Take it one step further and share what you’ve learned with your friends, family and community. Give a talk at a local school, write an op-ed for your newspaper or hold a fundraiser. Most importantly, spread the good news; although it sounds too big to conquer, we CAN (and have) reduced global poverty rates.

2. Send a care package (1-2 hours to a weekend project)

Basic supplies can make all the difference. Consider the fact that women and girls around the world miss days of school and work because they lack access to feminine hygiene products/menstrual pads. These collective days of missed income and education add up to real economic losses, keeping women in the cycle of poverty. Girls are forced to use whatever they can find — newspapers, leaves, rocks — as sanitary supplies, and are sometimes exploited in exchange for hygiene.

Days for Girls distributes sustainable feminine hygiene kits made by individuals and groups in the U.S. to women and girls around the world. The website includes patterns, instructions and videos so that you can get involved and sew reusable pads for the organization to send. There is also information about joining a kit-sewing chapter near you and tips for starting your own, as well as ways to help if you can’t sew.

Imagine trying to run a school without chalkboards, books or pencils. Check out organizations like Books for Africa, International Book Project and Kids to Kids International to learn more about how to send books and supplies to schools and kids around the world.

Multiply your impact: Enlist the help of your team, group or classroom to hold book and school supply drives, and make care packages together. Gather your crafty friends and have a hygiene kit sewing party.

3. Contact Congress to secure support for essential poverty-reducing legislation (30 seconds to 2 minutes)

Getting in touch with your congressional leaders is surprisingly easy and highly effective. Because congressional leaders want to track what issues are important to constituents, their staffers tally every issue and bill the office receives calls, letters and emails about. Every contact you make counts (literally) and even one email means your issue or bill is on the leader’s radar.

The Borgen Project’s Action Center page lists current bills relevant to global poverty and includes links to send a formal email to congressional leaders for each. Just fill out your contact info once, and then click to send emails urging support for crucial legislation. Use the link at the bottom of the page to read more about each bill.

Click here to search congressional phone numbers by your zip code, and here for tips on making the call. It’s as easy as saying, “I’m a constituent and a Borgen Project supporter, calling to ask (leader name) to support the (Water for the World Act).”

And if you have more than two minutes to spare, you can write your own letter or email to Congress. Click here for tips and samples to get started!

Multiply your impact: Call weekly, and enlist friends and family members to do the same. Forward a link to the Action Center to your address book. Host a letter and/or email-writing party on your campus, with your friends or in your community.

4. Volunteer your time and skills to the cause

There are plenty of ways to impact global poverty without leaving your city. A quick Google or GuideStar search will return many volunteer opportunities and ways to get involved with international aid organizations based in your area. These groups need volunteers for everything from packing boxes of supplies for relief efforts, to helping organize runs, fundraisers and other community events, to representing the organization by tabling events.

Hands-on volunteer projects abroad are also great — if you possess the skills necessary to be successful. Consider your skill sets when choosing a project, and avoid things like signing up to build a school if you know nothing about bricklaying. Taking part in projects in which you can’t actually be helpful can do more harm than good. Instead, focus on what skills you have to offer and choose volunteer opportunities accordingly.

Multiply your impact: Ask staff to stay in touch about upcoming activities, and volunteer regularly. Bring friends and family along. Use social media to advertise any organization events or upcoming volunteer opportunities.

5. Write a check (30 seconds!)

There are many deserving organizations working on a host of issues related to global poverty. GuideStar is a great place to search for nonprofits of interest to you, or start right here and give to The Borgen Project! Donating is a quick and easy way to make a difference.

Multiply your impact: Sign up to give monthly. Practice deferring — writing a small donation check instead of that cup of coffee, movie or dinner out you could do without. Ask the company you work for to consider donating to The Borgen Project and other global poverty organizations.

— Sarah Morrison

Sources: Nielsen, The Borgen Project, BooksForAfrica, CongressMerge
Photo: Wallpapers Craft

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Tzu Chi: Compassionate Relief

The Tzu Chi Foundation is a globally immersed Chinese Buddhist humanitarian organization that is originated and based in Taiwan. It was founded in 1999 by the Buddhist nun Cheng Yen and is a volunteer organization that provides aid to roughly 70 nations worldwide.

The foundation is present in all of the world’s five major continents and maintains offices in 47 different countries.

The organization’s website clearly delineates its goals and mission. The group’s four expressed goals are referred to as its “Four Major Missions” of charity, medical help and attention, education and humanity. It also focuses on four other venues: bone marrow donation efforts, environmental considerations, community volunteering and international relief.

Their four goals combine with these considerations to form “Tzu Chi’s Eight Footprints.”

Tzu Chi maintains consultative relations with the United Nations Economic and Social Council. Its members are often referred to as “blue angels” due to their signature blue uniforms. The group has built numerous villages, nursing homes, schools and hospitals across the world. It also maintains the Tzu Chi International Medical Association, which includes professional doctors who travel in times of international disaster to provide medical relief to victims.

The group also acted closer to home than many U.S. citizens may know or think. After Hurricane Sandy devastated parts of New York and New Jersey, Tzu Chi members personally dispersed $10 million total in $300 and $600 Visa credit gift cards to victims in the area.

Its efforts abroad are plentiful and very personalized, illustrating an admirable method of involved humanitarianism. For example, after the 2008 earthquake in Sichuan, China, Tzu Chi members brought blankets, nourishment and medical aid to the disaster-stricken area. The group also focuses on very impoverished areas in China and elsewhere, distributing rice, oil, blankets, clothes and medical services to those in need.

The organization ignores ethnic, religious, national or racial boundaries or restrictions, but instead spreads Buddhist principles of morality, kindness, humanism and selflessness. Furthermore, they provide both instant and long-term infrastructural solutions to community problems throughout the world.

Tzu Chi is making a difference one blue angel at a time.

– Arielle Swett

Sources: Tzu Chi, The Register

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Millennials Give Back

The image of the starving college student or struggling young adult seems to juxtapose the image of a citizen willing to give part of their hard-earned salary to nonprofit organizations. However, the Millennials (roughly described as those born between 1979 and 1994) are actually more willing to give to causes they believe in than you would think. Although only seven percent of adults believe that the younger generation is more generous than the previous ones, statistics have shown that Millennials have been unselfish in donating both their time and money.

In 2011, 75% of young people aged 20-35 donated monetarily, 63% donated their time and 70% raised money for nonprofit organizations. In 2012, this increased to 83% that donated financially to an organization while 52% were interested in monthly donating.

We ask ourselves though, what is the motivation driving the younger generation to give? According to a report composed by Achieve titled “The 2013 Millennial Impact Report,” the top four reasons are:

  • They are passionate about a cause or issue.
  • They feel like they can make a difference.
  •  Getting involved gives them an opportunity to connect and network with like-minded people.
  • They can utilize their professional skills and expertise to help others.

Although it was found that the younger generation give relatively small amounts, this can actually be positive because it means they are more concerned in seeing the efficacy of each dollar donated.

“If they can give, I can too!”

You’re absolutely right! There are so many ways to give back to organizations both in your community and internationally:

  • Make a list of causes you care about and set aside a predetermined amount per year you plan to donate.
  • Give clothes you haven’t worn in years or clothes you don’t need to charity.
  • Sell items you don’t use on EBay or host a yard sale and give the profits to a cause you care about.
  • Find volunteer opportunities near you. (Volunteermatch.org is a great place to start!)
  • If an organization doesn’t already exist for the cause you care about, create your own nonprofit.

The reasons to give are endless. Even donating a small amount can give you a sense of community when you see the collective efforts of your small donation combined with the donations of others all contributing to a larger cause. Donating any amount makes you more grateful for what you have, and you are given a sense of wealth by being able to share what little you have with others.

When you donate, it inspires those around you to donate, too. Create a movement among your friends to volunteer together, or pool your money for a cause you all care deeply about and see the effects of your efforts working to make the world a better place.

Whether it’s providing people in developing countries with water, donating to breast cancer research or volunteering at a local soup kitchen, get involved and know that even the smallest donation of time or money can help.

– Kimberly Tierney

Sources: Family Share, Huffington Post, Millennial Impact Report, Philanthropy, Stay Classy, USA Today, U.S. News, World Vision

Photo: Chillicothe

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3 Ways to Volunteer Abroad

There are many different ways to make an impact in the fight against global poverty. Volunteering abroad is one option that offers numerous ways to help.
Volunteer abroad programs offer a variety of opportunities to help global communities. Whether you are interested in teaching children, building schools or helping communities establish cleaner water supplies, there is most likely a program to fit your needs.

Cross-Cultural Solutions

“Cross-Cultural Solutions is a nonprofit working to address critical global issues by providing meaningful volunteer service to communities abroad, and contributing responsibly to local economies.” Cross-Cultural Solutions is a volunteer abroad organization that seeks to do just what its name implies: find cross-cultural ways to combat poverty.

The organization only sends volunteers to locations with established relationships between themselves and local organizations and communities, so when you arrive to volunteer, you’re working with people who are invested in improving their community. In each Cross-Cultural Solutions location, volunteers are housed at a home base that provides them with three meals a day, which is what the majority of the program fee goes to.

Volunteer programs can range from a week to three months, so volunteers have a lot of options even if they’re in school or have a full-time job. Additionally, volunteers have the option to take excursions on the weekends during longer trips, or volunteer in multiple destinations in a row, making travel a part of the program as well!

Global Volunteers

Known as the origin of “the volunteer vacation,” Global Volunteers focuses on short-term volunteer abroad programs, making them a perfect fit for students or anyone who cannot commit to a long period abroad.

Global Volunteers works to “engage short-term volunteers on long-term projects” in countries in Asia, Europe, Africa, North and South America. As volunteers only stay for a short period of time, they are working with existing projects, or projects that will continue long after they leave.

An additional focus of the program is that volunteers “work at the invitation and under the direction of local community partners, and one-on-one with local people.” They only do what they are asked to do and work with and under the direction of local people to find out what’s best from the community from the people who understand it best.

WorldTeach

As its name suggests, WorldTeach focuses on sending teachers to foreign countries as they “partner with governments and other organizations in developing countries to provide volunteer teachers to meet local needs and promote responsible citizenship.”

Because the program sends volunteers out to teach, its programs tend to run longer than Cross-Cultural Solutions or Global Volunteers. Full-year programs are available in a wealth of countries around the globe such as Chile, Colombia, Guyana, the Marshall Islands and Thailand, just to name a few.

Similarly, shorter summer programs exist where volunteers can travel to countries like Poland, Nepal and South Africa. For volunteers who prefer to spend a semester teaching abroad, there are programs in Ecuador and Namibia. Before applying, WorldTeach requires applicants choose their country and departure date, unlike some other programs.

Volunteers receive support throughout the duration of their work, and have an alumni network that they can access at the conclusion of their program.
Additionally, volunteers have the opportunity to receive his or her teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL) certification through professional development and a $350 fee.

The funds for WorldTeach programs come directly from the organization, the volunteer and the chosen country’s host institution. As such, costs for different programs vary, with some requiring a higher monetary commitment, and a few countries paying in full for volunteer teachers.

No matter which program you choose, there are a few things to keep in mind when seeking to volunteer abroad.

Volunteers are working with a community. That means helping local organizations and communities while being humble about your place there and working to understand the new culture in which you’ve immersed yourself.

Volunteering is about helping people, and even though you will find fulfillment and gain valuable experience, the focus is always on working with your chosen community.

Once you find a program that you are passionate about and that works responsibly with organizations within the community, you’re all set to start your volunteer abroad experience!

– Cameron Barney

Sources: WorldTeach, Global Volunteers, Cross-Cultural Solutions
Photo: The Interpreter

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5 Reasons To Go Volunteer

Volunteers are a major part of many different organizations. In some cases, they are what keep an organizations running. Volunteering can be a very rewarding way to use your spare time or it can be used to strengthen your resume. If you are on the fence about volunteering, here are five reasons to get out and help make a difference.

1. Volunteers help save resources – Those who donate their time allow organizations to use the resources they save and apply them elsewhere. Volunteering can be a great way to help out an organization you support.

2. Connect with the community– Volunteering allows you to meet other people who share the same interests and passions as you. Volunteering can also help you help your community. Volunteering with mentoring, tutoring or elderly care programs allows you the opportunity to give back and can improve the overall quality of resources and facilities where you live.

3. An opportunity to gain professional experience– If you are looking to gain relevant work experience, volunteering is a good way to improve your resume. Volunteering is also a way to help you decide where you want to take your career. Volunteering in different places in high school and college can help you narrow down your interests while gaining valuable life skills and work experience.

4. You will be surprised by what you learn– You may go in with expectations when you start volunteering, but often times you will be surprised about what you will learn about where you work and even yourself. Depending on where you volunteer, you can learn a lot about how that particular place works. Maybe you work as a receptionist answering phones at a nonprofit, but by the end, you will have an inside look at how nonprofits generally work.

5. You can make a difference– Volunteering is one of the best ways to make a difference in an area you are passionate about. One of the most important things to know is that every person counts, so get up, donate your time, and help change the world.

– Colleen Eckvahl

Sources: UCSD, The Lean Green Been, Volunteer Match
Photo: Wallpaperseek