Kitechild

Kitechild works to elevate the standard of care for orphaned children through sustainable micro-projects. The Kitechild network, with more than 35 orphanages in 11 countries, is grounded in long-term solutions, transparency, and efficiency, so they are able to achieve visible and measurable results in the well-being of the child.

Launched in 2010, by two UCLA graduates, the organization envisioned using the power of the internet in the age of social media to provide a unified solution to many of the challenges orphanages face while providing resources and opportunities to orphans in the developing world.

Kitechild's programs support orphanages that adopt a hands-on approach to child care as opposed to the traditional large institutional format. The organization aims to help its members overcome some of the challenges facing orphanages and threatening the well-being and healthy development of each child. The challenges include:

• The cost of supplying energy. Kitechild's sustainable micro-projects promote development of renewable sources of energy and the reduction of energy consumption.
• Orphanages are severely understaffed: the average ration is 15 children per adult, (the ideal is 5 child per adult). Kitechild works with field partners to facilitate training in best practices.
• The lack of transparency in running and managing homes makes it difficult for donors and benefactors to see where their funds are being allocated and how they can create long-term change. Kitechild requires in-depth project proposals and media feedback so donors can see the direct impact of their of their contributions.
• Orphanage directors lack knowledge of how to attract support and exposure to their efforts or they lack the time to do it. Kitechild uses free mediums like social media networks and the Kitechild Network to promote the efforts of its orphanage members to potential donors, volunteers, and corporate sponsors.

The following programs address these challenges:

• Online Sustainable Projects: uses existing networks to obtain funding for sustainable micro-projects featured on their homepage. They work closely with orphanage partners to develop these projects, then use online promotion and marketing to fund them. Projects focus on: food security, income generation, self-sufficiency, and community caretaker training.
• Inspiration Series: aims to expose at-risk foster youth in local LA County to potential careers in the arts through unique interactive events.
• Leather Bands for Learning: partnering with Lucky Flirts Jewelry, every bracelet purchased raises money to contribute to the educational costs of the orphans in the Kitechild Network, (tuition, uniforms, books).

Kitechild's blog is fully of impact stories, which I highly recommend reading. Potential donors are able to review profiles on each orphanage in the network, so contributions can be directed to specific orphanages and projects.  

For more information on this great organization, please visit Kitechild's website.

GreaterGood

Background

GreaterGood is a network of websites that offer the unique opportunity to support causes you care about, with no cost to you. The organization partners with and funds leading nonprofit organizations around the world in order to alleviate poverty and hunger, promote peace, address cancer and other widespread health problems, foster literacy and education, preserve vital habitats in peril, and provide protection and care to vulnerable animals.

GreaterGood accomplishes this mission by:

• Alleviating and addressing the root causes of world hunger and food insecurity and promoting peaceful co-existence.
• Early detection and treatment of breast cancer and other widespread health concerns, particularly in women.
• Preventing and treating childhood illness, disease and other children's health and well-being concerns.
• Promoting children's literacy and education.
• Protecting and restoring the environment.
• Providing care and feeding of rescued animals in shelters and sanctuaries and addressing the root causes of their conditions.

How it Works

Each person's daily click on the Click to Give sites displays sponsor advertising. One hundred percent (100%) of sponsor advertising is paid as a royalty through GreaterGood.org. Supporters can also contribute directly to charity by purchasing Gifts that Give More, where 100% of the donations are given to charity, or by purchasing one of the over 4500 products they carry. There is a 5-30% charity royalty paid on every item purchased from any of the GreaterGood network of online stores.

Results

Last year GreaterGood  gave over $3.07 million to charity. And how's this for transparency, you can view exactly where the money went. The organization's website provides a breakdown of every charity they donated to, and the amount of money it received. Site visitors can even look at GreaterGood's giving from the last three years. The IRS 990 forms filed by GreaterGood are also easily accessible.

For more information please visit GreaterGood.org.

Project H.O.M.E.

Project H.O.M.E (Housing, Opportunities for Employment, Medical Care, Education)

None of us are home until all of us are home.

Background

Since 1988, Project H.O.M.E has been a leader in providing comprehensive and effective services to persons who experience chronic homelessness. The organization empowers people to break the cycle of homelessness, address the structural causes of poverty, and attain their fullest potential as members of society.

Co-founded by Sister Mary Scullion and Joan Dawson-McConnon, Project H.O.M.E is a nationally recognized organization that provides supportive housing, employment, education and health care to enable chronically homeless and low-income persons to break the cycle of homelessness and poverty. Under their leadership, Project H.O.M.E. has grown from a winter shelter to 447 units of housing and three businesses that employ formerly homeless individuals.

What makes this organization so effective, is its mission to alleviate the underlying causes of poverty, not simply treating the symptoms and its commitment to the dignity of every person.  They strive to create a safe and respectful environment where everyone supports one another in their struggle for self-esteem, recovery, and the confidence to move towards self-actualization. This mission is achieved through a continuum of care comprised of street outreach, a range of supportive housing, and comprehensive services. Project H.O.M.E. addresses the root causes of homelessness, through neighborhood-based affordable housing, economic development, and environmental enhancement programs, as well as providing access to employment opportunities; adult and youth education; and health care.

Project H.O.M.E is committed to social and political advocacy. An integral part of Project H.O.M.E.'s work is education about the realties of homelessness and poverty and vigorous advocacy on behalf of and with homeless and low-income persons for more just and humane public policies. It is also committed to nurturing the spirit of community among persons of walks of life, all of whom have a role to play in making this a more just and compassionate society.

The organization's website provides resources and facts about homelessness, particularly in Philadelphia, where Project H.O.M.E. is based. It is also important to note that Project H.O.M.E.'s board of directors include residents from the housing units, as well as program alumni.

Values 

The work of Project H.O.M.E. is rooted in their strong spiritual conviction of the dignity of each person. They believe:

• that all persons are entitled to decent, affordable housing and access to quality education, employment, and health care.
• in the transformational power of building relationships and community as the ultimate answer to the degradation of homelessness and poverty.
• that working to end homelessness and poverty enhances quality of life for everyone in the community.
• that the critical resources entrusted to Project H.O.M.E. to achieve its mission must be managed honorably and professionally.

Programs

Housing & Street Outreach- designed to deal with the complex issues of persons with special needs such as mental illness and addiction. The program consists of street outreach, a range of supportive housing from entry-level to permanent housing, and comprehensive services including health care, education, and employment.

• Street Outreach: Outreach Teams develop trusting relationships with homeless individuals who have severe mental illness or substance addiction.
• Women's Emergency Respite Center: serves women with a long history of street homelessness, many of whom are incompatible or resistant to city-run shelter services.
• Supportive Housing & Services: enables each person to break the cycle of homelessness, move towards self-sufficiency and achieve his or her full potential.
• Alumni Program: provides residents with the opportunity to stay connected to Project H.O.M.E. community even after moving out of the supportive housing programs.
• Affordable Rental Housing: an eleven-story building developed to help address the gap in Philadelphia's affordable housing inventory.
• Affordable Homeownership Program: designed to stimulate housing production in North Philadelphia, create positive community impact and scale, and increase development and transformation of a distressed urban community into an attractive place to live. The program includes Block Preservation and Place Making Initiatives, and  the Homebuyer Reservation Program

Community Development- The organization's revitalization work is focused in the North Central Philadelphia community known as 'St. Elizabeth's/Diamond Street" neighborhood and Ridge Ave commercial corridor, (a 33-square block neighborhood).

Since 1995, Project H.O.M.E. has been working in partnership with neighborhood residents, corporations, foundations, government, faith communities and others to revitalize this neighborhood. Efforts include the development of affordable rental housing, renovation of affordable homes for homeownership, greening of vacant lots, adult and youth education and enrichment programs and community based health care services.

• Economic Development: the program addresses the persistent challenges of long-term economic disinvestment: "vacancy, blight, and high rates of unemployment."
• Health Services Program: is committed to addressing the health and wellness needs of the urban community.
• Community Organizing: works in cooperation with local Block Captains and civic associations on activities such as community emergency food banks, block clean-ups, and the nationally ranked youth drill team, the North Philly Footstompers.
• Honickman Learning Center & Comcast Technology Lab: programs at this 38,000 square foot, three-story technology center are tailored to help residents of the community- children, youth, adults and families- move towards greater prosperity by increasing their educational and employment opportunities.

Education & Employment- Project H.O.M.E recognizes that education and employment are critical tools to help all people improve the quality of their lives. This is particularly vital for formerly homeless people and people from economically distressed neighborhoods that may not have access to meaningful educational and employment opportunities.

• Honickman Learning Center & Comcast Technology Lab
• Kindergarten-Sixth Grade Program
• Teem Program
• Adult Education and Workforce Development
• Employment Services
• Employment Initiatives
• Art Program
• Social Enterprises: Cafe & Thrift Shop

Awards & Honors

(Just to name a few)

• The National Alliance to End Homelessness' Nonprofit Sector Achievement Award
• STAR award from The National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty
• Named as one of the "16 most efficient and innovative charities [they] know of anywhere," by Philanthropy Roundtable.

Click here for more information on Project H.O.M.E.'s initiatives.

I'd love to hear about any organizations in your city that are addressing the underlying causes of homelessness and poverty in the community.

Center for Development in Central America

Center for Development in Central America (CDCA) is a nonprofit organization seeking to address human needs created by poverty in the Western Hemisphere's second poorest nation: Nicaragua. This mission is accomplished by helping communities become self-sufficient, sustainable, democratic entities. CDCA works with the Nicaraguan community to help them realize their own goals, rather than bringing in "ready made solutions."

CDCA's involvement includes community organization, a flexible approach to needs and priorities as they shift over time, identifying areas where the CDCA can be of service, and following through in those areas, while empowering Nicaraguans and gradually phasing out the need for CDCA's assistance.

The organization's projects are focused in the municipality of Ciudad Sandino, which has been a dumping ground for victims of natural disasters, and is located just outside the capital city of Managua. Ciudad Sandino is the most densely populated area of Nicaragua and the poorest urban area in Nicaragua, with an estimated 80% of the population lacking formal employment, and many living on less than $1.00 U.S per day. 

CDCA works in the following areas:

• Sustainable economic development- developing long-term jobs so families can feed their own children
• Sustainable agriculture- so that poor farmers don't lose their land
• Primary health care- in the face of privatization of health care
• Education- both technical training for Nicaraguans as well as education of first world volunteers both in the U.S. and Nicaragua
• Appropriate technology- seeking to care for the earth as natural resources are consumed, and introducing work techniques that are maintainable

Since its founding in 1994, the organization has:

• Organized 1,600 small farmers into a cooperative business to market their organic crops
• Built three health centers and one school in rural communities
• Built a preschool/feeding center in a community where they also got water and latrines to every house
• Organized five cooperatives of workers from the poverty-stricken resettlement community of Nueva Vida (created in response to Hurricane Mitch in 1998)
• Started a full-time health clinic to meet the health care needs of poor people in Ciudad Sandino
• Hosted nearly 100 delegations and 400 individual volunteers in Nicaragua, all of whom go back to their homes and teach people about Nicaragua
• Developed solar composting latrines, stoves that use less wood, and a bio-diesel project

For more information on CDCA's projects and how you can get involved, please visit their website.

These Numbers Have Faces

I want to thank Executive Director Justin Zoradi for making me aware of the wonderful organization he founded, and Communications Director Jonathan Saur for providing us with such amazing information on this organization.

"These Numbers Have Faces is a Portland, OR based nonprofit organization working in Cape Town, South Africa. These Numbers Have Faces exists to confront generational poverty in South Africa by providing college scholarships for youth in the township of Gugulethu. It is our goal that through education, we can give young people the opportunity to make positive change in their own communities. These Numbers Have Faces isn't about a cause, it's about people.

No matter what the news media tell us, our dear friends in South Africa are not numbers. They are not color coded charts, pie graphs, or economic statistics. These Numbers Have Faces."

These Numbers Have Faces- The Introduction from These Numbers Have Faces on Vimeo.

For more information please visit the These Numbers Have Faces website. You can also watch more videos about the organization by visiting their Vimeo page.

Unitus

Unitus, founded in 2000, is an international nonprofit organization working to reduce global poverty by increasing access to life-changing microfinance services.

In 2001, Unitus' founders traveled to Bangladesh to learn about Grameen Bank and meet its founder, Muhammad Yunus. The trip left the founders of Unitus convinced that microcredit was the key to large-scale poverty alleviation and they began their increased efforts to eliminate poverty.

Their goal is to reach the most people in need as quickly as possible. To do this, Unitus seeks out and partners with young, high-potential microfinance institutions (MFIs), helping them build capacity, attract capital, and achieve exponential growth. "Rather than directly providing microfinance services, Unitus connects the ambitious visionary social entrepreneurs  who lead our partner MFIs with the business expertise, capital investments, and innovative tools and services required to grow faster, dream bigger, and reach farther. Their success in turn provides hope and opportunity for thousands who would otherwise remain stuck in the downward cycle of poverty."

"Unitus believes in the inherent value of every global citizen. They see the potential of all individuals to change the world for the better, given the opportunity. They believe they can transform the future for million of the world's least fortunate by scaling up highly leverages, market-based approaches to fighting poverty using the power of microfinance. Once the working poor are no longer excluded from the resources and opportunities of the world's financial markets, they are empowered to realize their full potential, building stronger families, communities, and lives."

In just seven years the organization has helped their partners serve more than seven million clients. Unitus' goal is to help their partners extend their reach to 15 million families by 2010.

Unitus website is full of useful information about microfinance and their approach. For more information, including the various ways you can get involved please visit their website.

Acumen Fund

Acumen Fund is a nonprofit global venture fund that uses entrepreneurial approaches to solve the problems of global poverty. They "seek to prove that small amounts of philanthropic capital, combined with large doses of business acumen, can build thriving enterprises that serve vast numbers of the poor. Acumen Fund's investments focus on delivering affordable, critical goods and services- like health, water, housing and energy- through innovative, market-oriented approaches."

Established in 2001, with seed capital from the Rockfeller Foundation, Cisco Systems Foundation, and three individual philanthropists, the Acumen Fund believes something must be done to extend the benefits of the global economy to the world's population that lives on less than $4 a day. The fund uses philanthropic capital to make disciplined loans or equity- not grants- that yield financial and social returns. Financial returns received are used towards new investments.  To date, Acumen Fund has invested in India, East and South Africa, and Pakistan.

For more information on Acumen Fund's initiatives, and how you can get involved, please visit their website. Also visit the Acumen Fund Blog to learn more.

Micro-finance Week

Today kicks off Micro-finance Week. This week we'll be featuring a variety of organizations that use micro-credit and venture philanthropy to help the world's poorest citizens move towards a life of self-sufficiency. On a broader scale, micro-finance helps communities to get out of what economist Jeffrey Sachs calls the 'poverty trap,' by providing the assistance necessary to overcome poverty and create sustainable communities.  The organizations this week will should the wide range of projects you can support, regardless of how much you actually have invest. As you'll see, even an investment of $20 can make a world of difference to those who have nothing.

As an introduction to Micro-Finance week, what better place to start than where it began: Grameen Bank.

Grameen Bank first began in Jobra Bangladesh in 1976 as the Grameen Bank Project. In the Bangla language Grameen means 'rural' or 'village.' The project provided microcredit, (small loans to very poor people for self-employment projects that generate income, allowing them to care for themselves and their families), to the individuals in Jobra Bangladesh. By 1983 the success of Muhammad Yunus' project was evident. The project transformed to become a formal bank under a special law passed for its creation. 

Grameen Bank came into operation with the following objectives:

• Extend banking facilities to poor men and women
• Eliminate the exploitation of the poor by money lenders
• Create opportunities for self-employment for the vast multitude of unemployed people in rural Bangladesh.
• Bring the disadvantaged, mostly the women from the poorest households, within the fold of an organizational format which they can understand and manage by themselves
• Reverse the age-old vicious cycle of "low income, low savings and low investment," into virtuous cycle of "low income, injection of credit, investment, more income, more savings, more investment, more income"

GB's is a banking system based on mutual trust, accountability, participation, and creativity. The bank provides credit to the poorest of the poor in rural Bangladesh, without collateral. 'At GB, credit is a cost effective weapon to fight poverty and it serves as a catalyst in the over all development of socio-economic conditions of the poor who have been kept outside the banking orbit on the grounds that they are poor and hence not bankable. Professor Yunus, founder and Managing Director of GB, reasoned that  if financial resources can be made available to the poor people on terms and conditions that are appropriate and reasonable, "these millions of small people with their millions of small pursuits can add up to create the biggest development wonder.""

Yunus' theory proved correct. To date the total amount loaned since its inception is $7.68 billion, with $6.83 billion having been repaid. Grameen Bank can boast a loan recovery rate of 97.82%. It shows just how far trust and accountability can go.

In 1995, Grameen Bank decided is no longer would receive donor funds. In fact they had the money necessary to continue their work independently. Since 1998 the bank has been without donor funds or loans from local or external sources. Grameen Bank is owned by the poor borrowers (95%) and the government (5%).

In 2006, Professor Muhammad Yunus received the Noble Prize for his work with Grameen Bank.

As of February 2009, GB has 7.75 million borrowers, 97% of whom are women, with 2,545 branches. The bank provides services in 83,967 villages, covering more than 100% of the total villages in Bangladesh. 

Grameen Bank's website offers plenty of information on their initiatives, borrowers' successes, and a wonderful introduction into the world of micro-lending. I urge you all to visit Grameen Bank's website.

Also, if you are interested in learning more about Muhammad Yunus and Grameen Bank the following books are available:

Banker to the Poor: Micro-Lending and the Battle Against World Poverty by Muhammad Yunus

 Creating a World Without Poverty: Social Business and the Future of Capitalism by Muhammad Yunus

 The Price of a Dream: The Story of Grameen Bank by David Bornstein

Cambodian Children's Fund

Cambodian Children's Fund (CCF) was founded by Hollywood film executive Scott Neeson after a visit to Cambodia in 2003. Having been forever changed by his experience, Neeson left the glitz of Hollywood to live in Phnom Penh year round as CCF's Executive Director.

CCF was originally developed as one shelter providing a safe haven for 45 children in critical need. Today the organization has grown to five separate facilities, where nearly 400 children receive nutrition, housing, medical treatment, dental services, and vaccinations. The also receive an education, job training, and access to cultural and athletic activities.

CCF is also increasing  their community relief efforts to provide suffering families better access o education, healthcare, food assistance and safe drinking water- which is essential in an environment where an estimated 80% of illnesses are water related.

CCF Programs include the following:

• The CCF Education Program- which provides a comprehensive education, culture and sports and extra-curricular activities, and eventual public school integration. Subjects include: multi-level English,  local language reading and writing, social studies, and math. In addition evening cultural classes teach traditional Khmer music, dance and drama.
• Region of Lazio Community Leadership Program- designed for students who are smart, articulate and charismatic- children who are demonstrably natural leaders, regardless of their education status or grade level. The program emphasizes entrepreneurship, human rights issues, social activism and media studies, as well as land rights and community intervention. The goal of this program is to prepare a select group of promising students to enter Cambodian society with skills, ambition, and integrity to become progressive leaders and spokespeople for the emerging generation.
• The CCF Vocational Training Program- is invaluable to older children who came to CFF with limited schooling, as they are unlikely to complete high school at a reasonable age and go on to higher studies. The program encourages children to pursue on- and off-site studies in: computer training, cosmetology, hair-dressing, graphic design, restaurant management, and language instruction. In 2006, CCF also opened Star Bakery, a facility that provides training in baking techniques, bread production, food hygiene, and business management.
• CCF Healthcare Program- the program oversees the healthcare, nutrition, and medical treatment of over 300 students.

"Cambodian children are some of the most deprived and abused in the world. They've had no choice in being born into a country with some of the highest rates of child prostitution and domestic violence in the world... In such a plentiful world, it is inexcusable that any child should have to live this way."

The above statement appears to be ever-present in the minds of those working to advance CCF's mission. It is a call to action for all of us. As Bono has said, we cannot let the misfortunes of geography determine the fate of others.

For more information, including how you can sponsor a child, please visit CCF's website.

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

Traditionally I've tried to share with you a variety of organizations and causes you may not be familiar with. Today I thought it would be good to provide information on an organization many people have heard of, but few actually know the specifics of its work: The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

At the core of the foundation's mission is the belief that every life has equal worth. Their goal is to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. Formed in 2000, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has committed a total of $19.8 billion since its inception, giving $2.8 billions in grants in 2008. Their work reaches all 50 United States and the District of Columbia and over 100 countries internationally.

The foundation work is defined by 15 Guiding Principles:

1. This is a family foundation driven by the interests and passions of the Gates family.
2. Philanthropy plays an important but limited role.
3. Science and technology have great potential to improve lives around the world.
4. We are funders and shapers- we rely on others to act and implement.
5. Our focus is clear- and limited- and prioritizes some of the most neglected issues.
6. We identify a specific point of intervention and apply our efforts against a theory of change.
7. We take risks, make big bets, and move with urgency. We are in it for the long haul.
8. We advocate- vigorously but responsibly- in our areas of focus
9. We must be humble and mindful in our actions and words. We seek and heed the counsel of outside voices.
10. We treat our grantees as valued partners and we treat the ultimate beneficiaries of our work with respect.
11. Delivering results with the resources we have been given is of the utmost importance- and we seek and share information about those results.
12. We demand ethical behavior of ourselves.
13. We treat each other as valued colleagues.
14. Meeting our mission- to increase opportunity and equity for those most in need- requires great stewardship of the money we have available.
15. We leave room for growth and change.

This principles reflect the Gate's family's beliefs about the role of philanthropy and the impact they want this foundation to have.

Their approach to giving is a cyclical process: develop strategy, make grants, measure progress, adjust strategy, repeat.

The Seattle based foundation is led by CEO Jeff Raikes and co-chair William H. Gates Sr., under the direction of Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett. Their work is divided between international and national work. In developing countries the focus is on improving people's health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the U.S. the foundation seeks to ensure that all people- especially those with the fewest resources- have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life.

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation focuses on grant making in three areas:

1. Global Development Program- focusing on areas with the potential for high-impact, sustainable solutions that can reach hundreds of millions of people. They work closely with partners to support innovative approaches and expand existing one so they can reach the people who need them the most. They also support policy and advocacy efforts to accelerate progress against the world's most acute poverty. 

Their work supports: 

• Agricultural development, financial services for the poor
• Special initiatives (libraries, water, sanitation, and hygiene, urban poverty, emergency relief)
• Policy and advocacy.

2. Global Health Program- its mission is to help ensure that advances in health are created and shared with those who need them most. They work with organizations around the world that are using innovative methods to improve health in developing countries. 

They focus on three priority areas: 

• Discover new insights to fight serious diseases ad other health problems affecting developing countries
• Develop effective and affordable vaccines, medicines, and other health tools
• Deliver proven health solutions to those who need them most.

The foundation targets diseases and health conditions that cause the greatest illness and death in developing countries, yet receive little attention and resources. They support advocacy efforts to build awareness of global health challenges, develop new ways to finance health programs, and improve health data.  In particular they support the Grand Challenges in Global Health Initiative, which funds research on scientific problems that, if solved, could lead to advances against multiple diseases.

3. United States Program- its mission is to help ensure greater opportunity for all Americans through the attainment of secondary and post-secondary education with genuine economic value. The foundation works with partners to tackle some of the difficult problems we face in the United States. Their primary focus is on improving public education. 

Their priority areas include:

• Education- work to make sure high school students graduate ready for success ad prepared to earn post-secondary degrees. They fund college and graduate school scholarships. They support high-quality early learning programs in Washington state.
• Libraries- support efforts to supply and sustain free public access to computers and the internet through local public libraries.
• Pacific Northwest- assist struggling families by supporting early childhood learning programs and efforts that help break the cycle of homelessness.
• Special Initiatives- explore new ways to increase opportunities or respond to unique challenges in the U.S. These currently include grants that support post-secondary education and emergency relief efforts. They also offer support to many dedicated and innovative community organizations in the Pacific Northwest.

They also use advocacy to raise awareness of the issues we face, inform government policy, and develop new and innovative ways of financing initiatives that improve outcomes.

I should note that the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation does not and will not solicit for donations. They have the funds needed to advance their mission. Instead they preference donors to give directly to the foundation's grantee organizations. If you still wish to donate to the foundation, you should read their guidelines for accepting individual donations.

Their website is filled with information on the foundation and the organizations and causes they support. I urge to visit the website to learn more about the foundation you've heard so much about.

           

New Eyes for the Needy

New Eyes for the Needy (New Eyes) purchases new eyeglasses for poor children and adults in the United States and recycles donated glasses for distribution to indigent people in developing nations worldwide.

Founded in 1932, the organization's mission is simple: "to improve the vision of poor children and adults." To date the organization has brought improved vision to over 7 million people. For about $60, New Eyes can improve a person's life by providing them with a new pair of glasses.

The organization, located in New Jersey, is run primary by volunteers. They are a United Way organization, endorsed by:

• The National Society for the Prevention of Blindness
• Fight for Sight
• The American Academy of Ophthalmology 
• The Opticians Association of America

New Eyes is a reminder that little can do so much for those in need. The site, like this feature, is direct and to the point. The need for eyeglasses for those living in poverty can easily be overlooked, or may seem like the least of a child or adult's problems. However, the opportunity these glasses provide can have a profound effect. Reading, working, and many other tasks are performed better by having improved vision. These tools are vital to helping those living in poverty take the first steps out of poverty.

For more information please visit the New Eyes for the Needy website.

Whole Foods Market

Today marks the end of our week long focus on for-profit businesses who support the nonprofit sector. We've seen businesses who have implemented practices that are environmentally and socially responsible, businesses who have been inspired to help champion nonprofit causes, and businesses who work for nonprofit organizations. 

Today's feature, Whole Foods Market, is a chain of markets  specializing in natural and organic products and geared towards socially and environmentally conscious consumers. The company is being featured not only for its business practices, but also for the foundation it established to help the global community.

Whole Foods Market's commitment to community is evident. One of their core values is: 'Caring about our communities and our environment.' This means:

• Sustainable agriculture- by supporting organic farmers, growers, and the environment through their commitment to sustainable agriculture and by expanding the market for organic products
• Wise environmental practices- by respecting their environment- recycling, reusing, and reducing waste whenever possible.
• Community Citizenship- by recognizing their responsibility to be active participants in their local community. They give a minimum of 5% of their profits every year to a wide variety of community and nonprofit organizations.
• Integrity in all business dealings- by viewing their trade partners as allies in serving their stakeholders, treating them with respect, fairness, and integrity at all times.

Sustainability is a key focus of Whole Foods Market. Their vision of a sustainable future "means our children and grandchildren will be living in a world that values human creativity, diversity, and individual choice. Businesses will harness human and material resources without devaluing the integrity of the individual or the planet's ecosystems. Companies, governments, and institutions will be held accountable for their actions. People will better understand that all actions have repercussions and that planning and foresight coupled with hard work and flexibility can overcome almost any problem encountered. It will be a world that values education and a free exchange of ideas by an informed citizenry; where people are encouraged to discover, nurture, and share their life's passions."

The company has begun implementing this vision "by changing the way we think about the relationships between our food, supply, the environment, and our bodies." The realization of their vision can be divided into following:

• Holistic thinking in a conventional world
• Holistic actions for a sustainable world
• Healthy foods and healthy products begin at the source
• Sustainability beyond organic food
• Respect for all forms of life
• Education and Public Participation
• Regulation, enforcement, and accountability.

Beyond all this, Whole Foods Markets make a point of giving back to the communities they serve and the global community. At the local level, each store donates to area food banks and shelters. There are also several times a year when the stores host 5% Days,  5% of the day's net sales are donated to a local nonprofit or educational organization.

On the global level, the company has established the Whole Planet Foundation. The mission of the foundation is "to create economic partnerships with the poor in those developing-world communities that supply our stores with product. Through innovative assistance for entrepreneurship - including direct micro-credit loans and tangible support for other community partnership projects - [they] seek to unleash the energy and creativity of every human being [they] work with in order to create wealth and prosperity in emerging economies."

Whole Foods Market provides a large portion of the funding for the loans and underwrites the administrative costs so every dollar donated goes directly to those in need. The company also supports projects that directly relate to organics and environmentally-friendly production methods, animal welfare, sustainable seafood, and healthy families and nutrition.

Finally, should the need arise, Whole Foods Markets accepts donations at store cash registers for regional and national disasters.

Both the Whole Foods Market website and the Whole Planet Foundation website provide a wealth of information. For more information on Whole Foods Market's initiatives and how you can get involved please visit both sites.

Cauzal Coffee

Today continues our look at for-profit businesses that are doing good.  Cauzal Coffee not only employs socially responsible business practices, but also uses their proceeds and resources to help improve the world we live in.

Coffee is the second most traded commodity in the world. It's an $18 billion industry in the United States alone, with 3 out of 4 American adults purchasing coffee. With that in mind, Cauzal Coffee has committed themselves to using those facts to make a difference. Twenty-five percent of every sale goes to a humanitarian cauze. When you purchase from the company you not only choose from six blends, but also choose the cause you want to support: huger, poverty, human trafficking, HIV/AIDS, Disaster: Congo Crisis, or Unclean Water. Cauzal Effect helps people suffering from these tragedies.

The Cauzal Effect is a global movement that encourages generous and responsible living to benefit people in need. Nonprofit organizations are carefully selected; organizations that practice financial integrity and effective aid distribution in the six areas of global need previously mentioned.

The premium micro-roasted coffee starts with responsible sourcing, making organic and shade grown coffee available and using 100% post-consumer recycling materials for shipping boxes. By sourcing coffee through their roaster's Farm Friendly Direct program, Cauzal is able to support poverty stricken communities as they work to build a stronger future. This means paying farmers above market prices for their coffee, in addition to a premium that finances farm and community assistance projects such as tree planting, water treatment facilities, community centers, school buildings, and funding teachers' salaries. Each project is tailored to the needs of the local community.  Many of the programs Cauzal Coffee supports aid coffee growing regions.  

Cauzal Coffee also offers opportunities for individuals and nonprofit organizations to benefit from their philanthropic initiatives. Through MyCauze (for Individuals) and Our Cauze (for nonprofits), individuals and nonprofit organizations can have Cazual Coffee support their causes. MyCauze and OurCauze help generate financial support for your humanitarian cause. Purchases by your constituents gains your cause 25%- 33% of the sale proceeds. For more information on the programs and organization criteria please visit Cauzal Coffee.

Please visit Cauzal Coffee's site. It's a wonderful company, and it goes to show how making a simple change in brand can make such a huge difference. They provide great information about the causes they support, including stories about why their work is so important. There is plenty of information on how you can get involved, whether it's by purchasing coffee or fundraising for your own cauze.

International Development Enterprises

International Development Enterprises (IDE) is an international nonprofit organization, with affiliates in the United Kingdom, Canada, and the United States. Founded by Paul Polak, IDE has been helping poor farmers in developing countries for over 25 years.

The organization uses a market based approach that enables millions to permanently escape poverty. They use business principles to facilitate unsubsidized market systems in which the rural can can participate effectively as micro-entrepreneurs and earn income. IDE programs create an environment that helps these farmers progress from subsistence agriculture to commercial farming.

IDE maintains right country programs in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Africa, areas marked by extreme poverty. These programs are in the following locations: Bangladesh, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Myanmar, Nepal, Vietnam, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. 

Please visit IDE's website for more information. The site provides a lot of great information, including success stories from IDE's programs.

You can now join IDE on facebook as well, click here to join the cause.

John Legend

John Legend's mostly known as a grammy winning, multi-platinum artist, but today it's his philanthropic work that's getting recognized. Listed below are the organizations Legend has founded or advocates for. Inspired to create songs about the tragedies in Africa, Legend took those words and decided words weren't enough. And now he encourages us to move beyond words toward action. Please check out this amazing organizations, and visit their sites to find out more information.

The Show Me Campaign - Launched in 2007, the organization works to improve the living situations and prospects of victims of extreme poverty in Mbola, Tanzania. The mission of the organization is, "to fight economic and spiritual poverty through fostering sustainable development (personal, social, education, economic) at the individual, family, and small community levels. The Show Me Campaign is grassroots movement that engages all of its participants as agents of transformative change from the bottom up."

The Campaign supports Mbola, a remote village in Tanzania, in an effort to permanently lift itself from extreme poverty. The Campaign works with Millennium Promise and the local Mbola community to implement practical solutions to advance its mission. I highly recommend visiting the Show Me Campaign's website to see an outline of the seven initiatives to help this village. They range from providing fertilizer to help farmers to education and internet. They  not only provide relief, but also offer sustainable solutions. These life-changing initiatives can be secured for just $60 per villager per year over 5 years. 

Millennium Promise - their mission "is to support the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals to halve extreme poverty in Africa by 2015. To that end, Millennium Promise works with impoverished communities, national and local governments, and partner organizations to implement high-impact programs aimed at transforming lives on the continent and engaging donor nations, corporations, an the general public in the effort. Our work is premised on the belief that, for the first time in history, our generation has the opportunity to end extreme poverty, hunger, and disease." They envision the end extreme worldwide poverty by 2025.

"Millennium Development Goals are the world's time-bound and quantified targets for addressing extreme poverty in its many dimensions-income poverty, hunger, disease, lack of adequate shelter, and exclusion- while promoting gender equality, education, and environmental sustainability. They are also basic human rights- the rights of each person on the planet to health, education, shelter, and security." 

These eight goals are:

• Eradicate Extreme Hunger and Poverty
• Achieve Universal Primary Education
• Promote Gender Equality and Empower Women
• Reduce Child Mortality
• Improve Maternal Health
• Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and other diseases
• Ensure Environmental Sustainability
• Develop a Global Partnership for Development

Management Leadership for Tomorrow (MLT) - a national nonprofit that develops African American, Hispanic and Native American young people for leadership positions in corporations, nonprofits, and entrepreneurial ventures where these minority groups are under-represented. The organization partners with MBA programs and blue-chip corporations to provide programming at critical career transition points: high school to college, college to early career, early career to MBA, and MBA to executive leadership. MLT provides high-potential minority talent with the skills needed to succeed. To date the organization has over 300 Career Prep alumni and 500 MBA Prep alumni.

The Gentlemen's Fund -  an initiative established in 2007 to commemorate GQ's 50th anniversary. The Fund has partnered with five charities and five celebrity ambassadors to support the five cornerstones essential to men: Opportunity, Health, Education, Environment, and Mentorship. As an ambassador, John Legend, raises support and awareness for organizations that embody these five principles.

For more information about these organizations, their work and how you can help please visit their websites.

The Heifer Project

In 1944, Dan West founded the Heifer Project with the hope of ending hunger by providing a source of food, rather than a short-term remedy.  More than 60 years later, the organization has served millions of families in 128 countries.

Their mission is simple: to work with communities to end hunger and poverty and to care for the earth. Their strategy is simple: have people share their animals offspring with others, in other words, "pass on the gift."

Passing on the Gift means that each family receiving a heifer, (a young cow that hasn't yet given birth), agrees to donate the female offspring to another family in need. Thus the gift of food is never ending.

Since it's start the organization has expanded its initiatives to advance its mission. These initiatives include: Agroecology, Animal Well-Being, Gender Equity, HIV/AIDS, Micro-enterprise, Urban Agriculture, and Young People's Initiatives.

The website is filled with information on the various programs and the many ways you can get involved. Please visit the site to learn more.