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Literacy in India: Room to Read


Literacy in India is distributed unevenly, and in the rural places where it is absent, it has continued to perpetuate poverty. Thirty-six percent of the world’s illiterate live in India, and one in five people were considered poor in 2016.

Room to Read is a program dedicated to using education as a weapon against that imbalance. It launched in 2003 in India and is now the most successful program among the 10 countries where it operates. By encouraging active reading habits and setting a goal to have all girls finish secondary school, literacy in India is improving immensely with the program’s help.

Students involved with the Room to Read Literacy Program read three times as fast as students in nearby schools, and of the 2014 graduates from the Girl’s Education Program, 84 percent went on to pursue post-secondary degrees.

Forty-seven percent of girls in India marry before the age of 18, and therefore do not pursue education. Young marriage perpetuates poverty, as the young women must provide for a family with limited opportunities. Today, female literacy in India is up to nearly 63 percent compared to 45 percent in 2000, and poverty is declining along with it.

For its humanitarian successes, Room to Read was given a Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship in 2006. This distinction represents the proven impact of an organization and grants it $1.25 million in support.

The sustainable model of Room to Read works largely with local governments to create a model of education that can be recreated and instated across developing countries even after the organization’s direct involvement has expired.

So far, the state governments of Uttarakhand and Chhattisgarh have been the most impressed in India, and have asked Room to Read to implement its educational system in the states for five years. What began as 360 schools in 2015 grew into 1,000 by 2016, and the three million children reached in India so far is expected to grow to a total of four million.

Putting that in the perspective of a campaign in its 14th active year, it is no surprise that Room to Read has benefited 11.5 million children globally, with its campaign in India ranking the most successful. Poverty will continue to become rare as literacy in India becomes the norm.

– Brooke Clayton

Photo: Flickr

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How Does Education Affect Poverty?


How does education affect poverty? Education can eradicate poverty if given the chance; those in poverty can only benefit from education. People living in poverty that are unable to attain a formal education will have a much more difficult time escaping their living and working conditions. The right education can lift people from poverty and improve their lives financially, physically and mentally.

For many countries, there is free public education, however, there are additional costs for uniforms, books or transportation. In rural areas, children may travel for hours each way to get to school on a bus. These expenses can be overwhelming for low-income families.

Sometimes the families are forced to pull children from school in order for them to work to support the family. The problem with taking children out of school to work is that it results in an education that was cut short, if it even began at all.

Poverty is more than simply not having enough money. But having an education can alleviate some of the problems faced in poverty. How does education affect poverty? Education improves food security and reduces malnutrition. By educating citizens on agriculture and farming techniques, they become capable of growing and selling their own food. This creates a source of income as well as healthy living.

Literacy allows women to read about prenatal vitamins, and other health information during pregnancy. Families can learn about the importance of drinking clean water and safely preparing food. Education reduces the spread of communicable diseases that plague poverty stricken areas. When a community does not understand how a disease is spread, it can catch like wildfire infecting many people. But through education, children and families can learn how to protect themselves against illnesses like HIV/AIDS and Ebola. Education improves gender equity. By allowing girls to be educated they are empowered to make their own decisions in life and it can cut the rates of early marriage and pregnancy.

How does education affect poverty? Education creates development, free-thinking citizens and better health and wellbeing. A good education can provide a lifetime of opportunities. Providing an education allows people living in poverty to think outside of only wondering when the next meal might be. An education can drastically improve quality of life for those living in poverty. Providing an education for the poverty-stricken allows them to provide for themselves in the future.

– Karyn Adams

Photo: Flickr

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Threefold Strategy to Fight Pneumonia in India


Pneumonia in India accounts for 20 percent of the deaths worldwide caused by pneumonia. Pneumonia is an acute respiratory infection which affects the lungs. It causes difficulty in breathing and limits oxygen intake. It can be caused by bacteria, fungi or viruses and is a contagious disease.

Pneumonia symptoms include a cough, difficulty in breathing, fast breathing or wheezing. Infants may experience an inability to feed or drink, unconsciousness or convulsions, or worse. Pneumonia is the largest infectious cause of death among children in the world.

India has the highest number of deaths by pneumonia and diarrhea among children. Pneumonia in India in children under five is caused by malnutrition, low birth weight, non-exclusive breastfeeding, lack of measles immunization, indoor air pollution and overcrowding.

Pneumonia in India can be fatal to all, but is especially dangerous to young children. According to the  World Health Organization (WHO), one in three deaths in India is caused by pneumonia. Pneumonia in India is the leading cause of infant deaths. Every year almost 200,000 children under five die of pneumonia in India. On a global level, pneumonia kills around 900,000 children in the world every year.

In 2016, India managed to achieve improvement of 7 percentage points in the GAPPD score. The GAPPD score measures the use of interventions that protect, treat and prevent phenomena and diarrhea. India’s 2016 score was 41 percent, a major improvement achieved by improving exclusive breastfeeding rates and the Hib vaccine, but well short of its target score of 86 percent.

A new vaccine to protect children was introduced in India this year as part of the Universal Immunization Program. Called the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV), this new vaccine will be available to children who need it, especially the underprivileged. Millions of children will receive the vaccine for free. The vaccine protects children from pneumococcal diseases like pneumonia and meningitis.

The aim of this vaccine is to reduce the death of children from pneumococcal pneumonia. “No child should die from the vaccine-preventable disease,” said the Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare in India.

To fight pneumonia, a threefold strategy needs to be incorporated:

  1. Protection: Exclusive breastfeeding for six months, vitamin A and zinc supplementation and adequate nutrition
  2. Prevention via vaccination: Pneumococcus, HIV Protection, promotion of washing and hygiene, reduction of indoor air pollution
  3. Treatment: improving care-seeking behavior, community case management and health facility case management

India has taken significant initiatives to fight against this disease. Through implementing this threefold strategy, overcoming pneumonia in India is hopeful.

– Aishwarya Bansal

Photo: Flickr

Washing Hands with Recycled Soap to Save Lives


Using soap is the simplest way of preventing the spread, contracting and infection of diseases. This luxury is only available and affordable in developed nations. Lack of access to clean water, poor sanitation and hygiene contribute to two leading causes of high child mortality in the poorest countries: pneumonia and diarrhea. The simple practice of washing hands with soap reduces this risk by 50 percent.

Because so many people who live in these countries do so on a dollar a day, soap is a luxury rather than a necessity. This leads to a higher risk of illnesses that might have been prevented by simple hygiene like washing hands. Because of its relatively high cost within many economies, Clean the World reports that 35 percent of health care facilities in impoverished countries lack soap.

Shawn Seipler, founder of Clean the World, learned that most of the barely used hotel soap bars ended up in landfills after guests check out. According to the Global Soap Project, the hotel industry in the U.S., which uses a third of the global soap supply, throws away an astonishing 2.6 million bars of soap on a daily basis.

Seipler chose to change this by recycling soap hotels were throwing away. He has dedicated his time and effort to recycling soap and sending it to developing countries for continued use. “The recycling, which ends up costing hotels just 75 cents per room a month, allows leftover soap, body wash, shampoo and conditioner to be melted down, sterilized and formed into new soap that is sent all over the world.” Since Clean the World began in 2009, the organization has delivered 40 million bars of soap to more than 115 countries.

In 2015, Clean the World partnered with the Global Soap Project to increase production, delivery and outreach. Since the partnership formation, in addition to joining forces with contributions from 4,000-plus hotels, they have delivered 24 million bars of soap to 99 countries.

Seipler focuses his recycling efforts on bringing soap to schools within developing countries. The result of his recycling efforts might be an additional 1.9 billion school days. Clean the World is also working to provide soap to health care facilities and communities.

It is hopeful that the impact from the above projects will help improve not only health, but the overall quality of life in undeveloped nations.

– Taylor Elgarten

Photo: Flickr

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Sesame Street Program for Refugees


The children’s educational television program Sesame Street first aired in 1969. Since then it has expanded to more than 150 countries. The Sesame Workshop aims to create region-specific programs; last year the company introduced a puppet named “Zari” to its Afghanistan program to promote messages of female empowerment. The newest project, a collaboration with the International Rescue Committee (IRC), will create a Sesame Street program for refugees.

The Sesame Workshop and the IRC announced plans to create a holistic education program accessible to children in refugee camps. This Sesame Street program for refugees was recently named one of eight semifinalists for the MacArthur Foundation 100&Change grant, which would provide $100 million for the development and execution of the project.

This programming aims specifically at refugee children and families from Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and northern Iraq — all areas where children have been exposed to high levels of violence. These children are at risk for low levels of academic achievement, unemployment, depression and violence. They also have grown up in high-stress environments and deal with the emotional struggle that arises from displacement. The Sesame Street program for refugees aims to tackle not only educational learning but also focuses on continuing to build resiliency in children and reduce the mental and emotional damage arising from life as a refugee.

The Sesame Workshop does extensive research for show development. With the IRC, the company is seeking guidance and expertise from other relief organizations such as UNICEF and World Vision, academic advisors and leading trauma experts. The workshop is also planning visits to refugee camps in Jordan. These visits to refugee camps will consist of focus groups of Syrian refugees. Children and their parents will watch drafts of content, engage with Arabic versions of the Sesame Street puppets and provide feedback for the project.

The program will not only focus on the experiences of children but also their parents. The goal of the program is to engage children, parents and caregivers by providing learning opportunities that are rooted in the needs and experiences of refugees. The program will be available through a variety of networks, including schools, community centers, radio, the internet and health clinics.

More than 12 million children involuntarily fled their homes and native country due to violence and war, and this number is expected to continue rising. The Sesame Street program for refugees provides a powerful way to negate the long-term effects conflict has on this vulnerable population.

– Nicole Toomey

Photo: Flickr

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CIFA Begins with Schoolchildren to Address Hunger in Curacao

CIFA Begins with Schoolchildren to Address Hunger in Curacao
Curacao, an island country north of Venezuela in the southern Caribbean Sea, has become a popular tourist destination for its picturesque beaches and exciting nightlife. Nonetheless, hunger in Curacao is an issue for many families as the country has struggled to become stable since regaining its freedom from the Dutch in 2010 and electing a series of ineffectual leaders. In just six years of self-governance, the country has had six prime ministers.

In 2011, a quarter of Curacao’s total population sat below the poverty line, with more than half below the line in certain regions. Nationwide employment has fluctuated over the past three decades and has seen significant dips and surges as recently as 2015. The economy’s instability has left many children without enough to eat.

In response, the Curacao International Financial Association (CIFA) launched a campaign in May to guarantee nutritious meals for schoolchildren from struggling families. The project, entitled “Tur Mucha Mester Kome” (Papiamento for “All Children Must Eat”), provides breakfast to students who would otherwise go hungry at school and is conducted via the Lions Club.

The first school to benefit from the project is the VSO-ZMLK Marieta Alberto school, where 12 needy children received breakfast on May 12. The foundation also collaborates with psychologists, advisors and churches in hopes of taking the campaign’s benefits beyond schools and into students’ home lives.

CIFA plans to continue expanding the program with a website in the works that will allow people to sponsor schools or individual students.

Curacao’s tenuous political framework has bred a fairly fragile economy. The Economist predicts that the country will continue to face economic obstacles in 2017 and 2018, so initiatives like Tur Mucha Mester Kome are bold, influential and necessary when it comes to decreasing hunger in Curacao.

With all hands on deck, Curacao may well become prosperous in the years ahead.

– Madeline Forwerck

Photo: Flickr

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What Does Education in Iceland Look Like?


Education in Iceland is incredibly important. In a 2016 study, Iceland was ranked the third most literate nation in the world, trailing behind Finland and Norway. The small island country is home to a population of around 332,000 people.

Iceland is well known for being progressive. Its equality endeavors are evident in the structure of its education system. According to the nation’s website, “A fundamental principle of the Icelandic educational system is that everyone should have equal opportunities to acquire an education, irrespective of sex, economic status, residential location, religion, possible handicap and cultural or social background.”

Education in Iceland is a four-level system.

  1. Preschool is the first level of education, which children attend between one and six years of age. There are fees for preschool, but they are largely subsidized.
  2. Compulsory education follows preschool education. Compulsory education is free and mandatory for children between the ages of six and 16. Unlike in the United States, homeschooling is not an option.
  3. Upper secondary education is the third level. It is available to anyone who has completed compulsory education, and is mostly compromised of students 16 to 20 years of age. The upper secondary level is essentially the equivalent of high school in the United States and is free with the exception of one private school.
  4. The fourth tier is education at a university, otherwise known as higher education. To apply for university, a student must first have completed upper secondary education. For the most part, universities in Iceland are required to accept all students with an upper secondary degree. Public universities in Iceland are tuition-free; the only costs associated with higher education are registration fees.

With a literacy rate of 99 percent and an unemployment rate at around 2.7 percent, perhaps the rest of the world can learn from the system of education in Iceland.

– Shannon Elder

Photo: Flickr

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5 Facts About Hunger in Hungary

5 Facts About the Hunger in Hungary
While Hungary is a thriving country, the nation still struggles with feeding its people. Here are five facts about Hunger in Hungary.

5 Facts About Hunger in Hungary

  1. In Hungary, more than 40,000 children go without sufficient nourishment. For every 1,000 children, 6.1 die before their fifth birthday. Although the issue of hunger is indisputable, discussing the topic is considered taboo, and many fail to address it.
  2. Half a million children live in poverty in Hungary. There are three different types of hunger — children being unable to afford food is the first. Another kind of hunger is the lack of a quality diet. The third type of hunger occurs when the child is deprived of the proper nutrients while in the womb. This hunger occurs when the mother is not eating properly and healthily. Lack of nutrition for the mother and fetus can result in premature birth, and sometimes maternal mortality.
  3. According to the report of the Hungarian UNICEF Child Welfare Committee, the international deprivation index states that every other Hungarian child is deemed deprived.
  4.  More than half of Hungary’s area lies in the Great Plain. Although the soil is fertile, most of the region lacks adequate rainfall and is prone to drought, requiring extensive irrigation. Hungarians mainly harvest corn, wheat, sugar beets, potatoes and rye. The economy in Hungary is thriving, but the hunger in Hungary is still a large problem. The country exports most of its crops, when they could be used to feed the people at home. The rate of poverty among single-earner households was 10 percent in 2005. In 2014, it reached 25 percent.
  5. Fortunately, few children actually die of hunger in the country. The government provides cheap or free meals in nurseries, pre-schools and schools for 370,000 children in need. Hunger in Hungary is a problem that schools take very seriously, and administrations are sure that no child leaves school needing food.

Hungary is working to solve its hunger problem through schools, community programs and government involvement. The hunger in Hungary is making slow continuous progress, and the improvement shows considerable hope that the problem will be eradicated.

– Rilee Pickle

Photo: Flickr

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Compassion International: Educating Children on Global Poverty

Compassion International Aims to Educate Children on Global Poverty
In the U.S., a sheltered and privileged lifestyle can reduce potential opportunities for happiness and prosperity for those living in developing countries. But how? As time progresses, younger generations develop a lack of understanding in regards to the devastating living conditions in the developing world, inhibiting the potential for philanthropic efforts from youthful generations.

In aiming to educate children on global poverty, Compassion International has designed an interactive exhibit that gives children the opportunity to learn about the developing world. Compassion International is a child-advocacy ministry with the goal to free children in the developing world from various forms of poverty.

This exhibit strives to open a privileged child’s eyes to the barriers that prevent less privileged children from escaping the consequences of devastating inequality.

In working with churches throughout the U.S., the Compassion Experience aims to educate children on global poverty by pushing them to learn about the specific living conditions and daily lives of those who face poverty every day in developing countries.

The exhibit allows children to choose between different variations of a self-guided tour, represented by recreations of actual homes throughout struggling countries, like Ethiopia and the Dominican Republic.

These children will hear other less privileged children describe their own life and living conditions. At the end of the tour, the less privileged discuss how they overcame poverty through education and church sponsorships.

With three operable mobile units in the U.S., featuring five poor children’s stories, the exhibit draws hundreds of thousands of visitors. Compassion International aims to further expand its initiative with the development of more dialogues and tours across the U.S. With about a million and a half children sponsored through their program, Compassion International grossed an annual budget in the 2014 fiscal year of $710 million, continuing to show promising results and increases in their annual budget.

These exhibits aim to open the eyes of many children by demonstrating the difficulties of those growing up in extreme poverty. By showing younger generations these overwhelming differences, Compassion International hopes children will express more gratitude in their own lives and join the fight in alleviating global poverty.

– Brandon Johnson

Photo: Flickr

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UNICEF Polio Eradication Campaign Reaches Five Million Children


Thanks to an unprecedented U.N. Children’s Fund operation, five million Yemeni children received vaccinations against polio in early 2017. This record polio eradication campaign consisted of 40,000 people on mobile health teams going door-to-door in Yemen to reach the nation’s vulnerable children. The brave vaccinators courted danger by hiking over mountains, through valleys and across battle lines to reach the children in need. The children also received Vitamin A supplements to bolster their immune systems.

Vigilance is Critical

Despite the encouraging numbers from the vaccination efforts, continued vigilance is vital to prevent new cases. UNICEF‘s Representative in Yemen, Meritxell Relaño, echoed the importance: “In the last two years, more children have died from preventable diseases than those killed in the violence. This is why vaccination campaigns are so crucial to save the lives of Yemen’s children and to secure their future.”

The campaign couldn’t have come at a better time. Relaño indicated that the children in Yemen are especially vulnerable because the nation’s conflict is keeping them from adequate nutrition and healthcare.

Reza Hossaini of UNICEF  also reiterated the need for vigilance: “There is no question that progress to end polio is real and tangible. But – and it’s a big ‘but’ – until all children everywhere are consistently and routinely immunized against polio, the threat is there.”

Eradication on the Horizon?

Significant progress has been made since 1988 when UNICEF joined the Global Polio Eradication Initiative. At that time, there were 350,000 documented cases of the debilitating disease worldwide. These organizations hope to completely eliminate polio by 2019.

Their efforts have been working. By 2014, there were only 359 documented cases worldwide. More than 60 years after the first polio vaccine was developed by Jonas Salk, our planet is finally nearing total eradication of this devastating disease.

– Gisele Dunn

Photo: Flickr