Girls on the Run is celebrating its 10th anniversary. The program began with nine sites and 90 girls. Over the past 10 years, 10,000 girls have participated in the program at more than 49 sites, and $250,000 in scholarships have been awarded for girls with financial needs to participate.
Greenpeace has launched a campaign against Thai Union, the world's largest canned tuna company. Greenpeace asks that Thai Union, "take urgent and far-reaching steps to eliminate labor abuse and destructive, wasteful fishing practices from its supply chains." In a statement, Greenpeace USA seafood markets lead, Graham Forbes, said, "We can no longer allow Thai Union Group and its brands around the world, including Chicken of the Sea, to sacrifice the world’s oceans and jeopardize workers at sea...Until this industry giant takes responsibility and demonstrates real leadership, we will work to ensure that every single customer knows it’s not just tuna that comes with buying one of its tainted brands.” In response, Thai Union issued a statement declaring, "“For us, improving the sustainability and ethics of our operations is an ongoing process – we are not content to stand still and are investing significantly in trials of new and innovative processes to identify further improvements that can be made throughout our operations."
Read more about Greenpeace's efforts to fix the global tuna industry and take action here.
The Foundation for International Community Assistance (FINCA) is expanding its London operations and seeking a high-profile city director. Rupert Scofield, President and CEO of FINCA, commented, "London is one of the burgeoning capitals of social enterprise. There are many interesting people there, both on the entrepreneurial side in areas we are targeting like renesable energy, and on the financing side who are interested in doing something about the world's big problems."
As part of a month-long campaign against oil drilling, Greenpeace held a Titanic-themed musical protest outside Shell's offices after the company began drilling in the Arctic's Chukchi Sea. Shell employees were offered gift bags containing copies of the music and whistle-blower email addresses.
India's Kailash Satyarthi is among 30 Nobel laureates asking that the world's nations take action to limit further environmental damage, protecting humanity from devastation. The group, which met as part of the 65th Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting, signed a new climate change pledge. The Mainu Declaration 2015 reads, "The nations of the world must take the opportunity at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris in December 2015 to take decisive action to limit future global emissions."
Fairtrasa's mission is to empower small-scale farmers to lift themselves out of poverty. Fairtrasa has worked with Greece since 2009, and is now strengthening ties there. Peter Abma of Fairtrasa Holland explains, "The contacts in Greece have been there for a long time, but if you want to truly collaborate, in the best way possible, you have to be present in the country. Of course that is a serious decision. It takes years of research and time before we settle in a country." Fairtrasa's presence in Greece has helped support Bio Agros, a growers group that produces kiwis. Fairtrasa plans to establish a greater presence in Greece, and is seeking more producers.
Photo courtsey of Fairtrasa
The 2015 TEDxGeorgeMasonU event will feature some of the most captivating and inspiring thought leaders within the GMU community and beyond. This year's theme, Gathering STEAM, will delve deeper into the crossroads of arts and sciences, both on the Mason campus and around the United States.
On April 6th, enter the Let's Play Video Contest sponsored by KaBOOM! and its funding partners to win a $20,000 equipment grant to improve local communities, schools or youth-serving nonprofits. KaBOOM! recognizes that one of the biggest obstacles communities face in the prioritization of play is fundraising; the organization's grant opportunities offer communities a step forward in creating safe and healthy playspaces for kids.
The SPOON Foundation has received a Meyer Memorial Trust grant for $39,310 to launch a pilot program in Lane County, Oregon, to improve nutrition for foster children in the area. In the SPOON Foundation's first seven years of programming, nearly 3,000 children were directly impacted through intervention of preventable malnutrition in the early stages of life (with 85,000 more children reached through training, education and advocacy efforts.) The foundation operates in multiple countries around the world, and this grant represents an opportunity to further stimulate the positive impact it has within the United States. Learn more about the grant on the Meyer Memorial Trust website and more about the SPOON Foundation on the organization's website.
The deadline to submit applications and nominations for the 2015 Peace First Prize has been extended to March 30th, 2015. Each year, Peace First recognizes five young people between the ages of 8-22 who demonstrate their compassion, courage and dedication to create collaborative change. The prize offers a two-year, $25,000 Peace First Fellowship that invests in the leadership and shares the story of each youth peacemaker across the nation. For more information on the 2015 Prize, visit the Peace First website.
Showcase your work as a musician, poet, dancer, writer or drama group and support the mission of Girl Child Network Worldwide. On February 20th, the Mayor of Lambeth in Central London is hosting a Valentine Cultural Event to further the mission of the GCNW and Ashoka Fellow Betty Makoni's life's work. Your creation should be less than three minutes in duration and must support a message of girl's empowerment and education, advocating against female genital mutilation and child marriage. People of all ages and all nationalities are welcome to participate. Submit your work or inquire further by contacting Betty Makoni on Facebook.
The creation of Fairtrasa China represents a significant expansion in the organization's ability to empower small-scale farmers in developing countries. With import offices in Europe, the UK, the US and now Shanghai, Fairtrasa will import fruit products from supply companies and sell them in China and other Asian markets. "China is one of the markets of the future for safe, healthy, organic fruit, and we're positioning ourselves early to capture that growth when it comes. Just as Fairtrasa was a pioneer of organic and fairtrade in Latin America and Europe, we want to be pioneers in China and the Asia region," says Fairtrasa founder and Ashoka Fellow Patrick Struebi of the expansion. Sophia Cai co-founded Fairtrasa China and will serve as its Country Manager. Learn more about this key growth in Fairtrasa's global impact here.
Rupert Scofield, President and CEO of FINCA, discusses the past, present and future of microfinance in Afghanistan in the very first issue of the Afghanistan Microfinance Association (AMA) magazine. The market for microfinance is currently "wide open and underserved" in Afghanistan, and Rupert expresses both the need for and promise of well-structured microfinance projects in the country to promote new technologies and economic growth, specifically in the agricultural sector.
Chris Underhill, founder of BasicNeeds, wrote a captivating summary of the stigmatization, lack of treatment and societal consequences surrounding depression for Medium.com preceding the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting for 2015. The information provided in the article dovetails seamlessly into the meeting's theme of "The New Global Context"; did you know that the macro-economic effect of non-communicable diseases (including depression) represent "a cumulative loss of $47 trillion over the next two decades"? The mental health component of this category of diseases alone accounts for $16.1 trillion. Find out more about the World Economic Forum meeting that took place in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland here.
The Ebola epidemic of 2014 is the largest in history; with over 14,000 cases and deaths totaling over 5,000, it has spread to multiple countries in West Africa and efforts to curb the disease have spread across many borders. Beyond obvious health concerns, Ebola threatens to weaken already fragile states in the process of recovering from civil wars. Rifts between citizens and governments due to a lack of trust and communication have caused riots and attacks on health facilities. To address cultural ramifications of the disease, Search for Common Ground has implemented focused programming in Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.
The featured photo, by Daniel Pilar/Laif/Redux, is of Smile FM, a radio station based in Zwerdu, LIberia that airs radio dramas about Ebola.
Dana Mortenson, Ashoka Fellow and cofounder and Executive Director of World Savvy, was granted the 2014 Jane Bagley Lehman Award for her dedication to making global competence and cultural awareness an integral part of the education system in the United States. Since 2002, World Savvy has reached over 375,000 youth and 2,200 educators, inspiring students to identify as global citizens and preparing them to have a positive influence on our world.
Kailash Satyarthi, founder of the Global March Against Child Labor, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014—along with Malala Yousafzai—for his achievements in championing human rights and fighting against child slavery. Thanks to Kailash's efforts, over 78,000 child slaves have been rescued, rehabilitated and enrolled in an education program. The honor is every bit deserved for Kailash for his lifelong dedication to his remarkable work.
On Tuesday, October 7th, the Foundation for International Community Assistance (FINCA) was joined by 150 supporters of social enterprise and thought leaders in the House of Commons in London to celebrate 30 years of microfinance programming success in alleviating global poverty. The milestone was commemorated by discussion of the power of social entrepreneurship, successful partnerships and scaleable solutions.