Three Cups of Tea

After a failed attempt to climb K2, the world's second highest peak, former mountain climber Greg Mortenson found himself welcomed into a small village in northern Pakistan. As his health slowly improved, he soaked in every aspect of life in Korphe. He was amazed at the way the people survived on so little, and heartbroken to find out that the children had nowhere to go to school. By the time he was well enough to return home to the US, Mortenson had become determined that he could make a difference, and he vowed to come back some day and build them a school.

Now, thirteen years later, a cozy school house with several classrooms stands in the little village of Korphe, and over 70 other schools have been established throughout remote villages in central Asia. As director of the Central Asia Institute, Mortenson's work centers around building schools for children and advocating for the education for girls. He has endured countless hardships while attempting to reach his goals, but perservered nonetheless. His story, published in a book called Three Cups of Tea, is a powerful account of how one man's determination can positively affect the lives of many.

Read more about it here.

SMART Aid

The ONE Campaign has, for a while now, been on the front lines of the debate about the effectiveness of aid. Contrary to what Dambisa Moyo's book says about development assisance, ONE believes that aid should be improved and increased. As a guideline, they have come up with "SMART aid," a list of attributes that would make aid effective in fighting global poverty:

S - Sufficient in scale to achieve its intended goals.
M -Measurable so taxpayers and recipients can see results and monitor progress over time.
A - Accountable to the citizens of developing nations.
R - Responsive to the specific needs of the citizens for whom it is intended.
T - Transparent, to allow scrutiny by civil society and the media.

Read more on the ONE website.

Engineers Helping the Developing World

Created in 2002, Engineers Without Borders is a nonprofit organization comprised of people with diverse technical expertise, whose goal is to provide those in the developing world with the tools and resources they need to fight poverty. They consist of several small groups around the world, who oversee various engineering projects. “Sustainable development will be impossible without the full input by the engineering profession,” said Maurice Strong, Secretary General, at 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development. The organization is trying to directly address this issue. Read more about them here.

Passing through Hurdles to Help

Medair, a Swiss humanitarian agency, has recently been able to access areas in Southern Sudan to aid the remote tribes devastated by measles. Because of the rainy season, they were unable to help out last November, since getting there requires a 1-3 day walk through forests and mountains. To reach one tribe, they had to swim through a river and float their equipment on cooking vessels. After travelling through treacherous conditions, they were able to vaccinate a total of about 1,200 children. With no roads, health posts, schools, or markets near their tribes, people were very happy to see Medair come and help out.
Source: Reuters AlertNet

UN's Newest Goodwill Ambassador

The United Nations World Health Organization recently named martial arts expert Jet Li as its Goodwill Ambassador. Having experienced the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, the actor has been committed to improving global disaster relief. According to Margaret Chan, the agency's Director-General, "[Li] has been personally involved in providing emergency response following natural disasters and has promoted mental health amongst youth. We are grateful that he is willing to use his energy and fame to promote health and well-being."
Source: UN News Centre

The actor's commitment to global disaster relief

World Water Day

Today, March 22, is World Water Day, a UN project aimed at bringing attention to the lack of access to clean water worldwide. In observance, the US Agency for International Development (USAID) is teaming up with Rotary International to bring clean water and basic sanitation to communities in selected developing countries. Dominican Republic, Ghana, and the Philippines will be receiving an estimated $2 million for the efforts. The results of the projects in these three countries will determine whether other developing nations will receive similar aid.
Source: USAID

Campaign to Increase U.S. Foreign Aid

Bread for the World launched its 2009 Offering of Letters Campaign aimed at making U.S. foreign assistance more effective in serving the world's poor and hungry people. More than 1,400 churches throughout the United States will participate in the campaign this year. As part of worship service or mass, congregations will write letters to Congress in support of legislation that will benefit poor and hungry people in the United States and abroad. Said Rev. David Beckmann, president of Bread for the World: "Congress must ensure that global development is as prominent as defense and diplomacy as instruments of U.S. foreign policy. This will create a better, safer world...Currently, U.S. global development policies and programs are scattered across 12 departments, 25 different agencies, and nearly 60 government offices. A more efficient foreign assistance system -- with better coordination, better accountability, and better clarity -- means that people will get help faster and more effectively."
Offering of Letters Campaign