Live Well Below Your Means

Thrift pays. Buying less and living under one's means not only saves money but helps fight pollution (less to throw away) and makes us think consciously about consuming responsibly.

Here are some tips from author Jeff Yeager on living below one's means:
- live green: buy and consume less
- use old-fashioned cleaning products: baking soda and vinegar can be used to wash most anything in your house
- drive less: carpool when possible, use public transport, walk or bicycle
- eat lower on the food chain: eat more fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes, poultry (eat less red meat and fewer dairy products)
- reduce the size of your lawn: mulch it over or replace it with ground cover (pachysandra or creeping thyme, for example)
- use things up and wear things out: then replace them
- spend less on clothes/make them last longer: launder less often, use cold water only, line dry clothing, keep shoes dry (dry them completely before wearing them again), turn clothing inside out before laundering, use baking soda instead of bleach
- save energy: insulate the attic, turn down your hot water heater, caulk gaps around the windows and doors

Jeff Yeager is the author of The Ultimate Cheapskate's Road Map to True Riches and The Cheapskate Next Door. His website is http://www.ultimatecheapskate.com/

TEMA Foundation: Attentive to Turkey's Biodiversity

Founded in 1992 by Nihat Gokyigit, "TEMA has pioneered a multistakeholder approach to tackling the problem of soil erosion in Turkey." According to the Foundation's website, TEMA's "mission is to raise public awareness of environmental problems, specifically soil erosion, deforestation, biodiversity loss and climate change."

"Nihat Gokyigit was a successful business entrepreneur, presiding over one of Turkey's largest conglomerates (Tekfen Holdings) when he decided to start TEMA with renowned environmentalist Hayrettin Karaca. Having grown up in Artvin, a secluded and pristine part of Turkey, he wanted to identify livelihoods through which Turkey's people could preserve their nation's rich biodiversity rather than destroy it. His private foundation operates Turkey's most prominent botanical garden, which complements TEMA's work through botanic education and research."

Excerpt from Outstanding Social Entrepreneurs 2010, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship

When a Child Is Born

A ray of hope flickers in the sky,
A tiny star lights up way up high,
All across the land dawns a brand new morn -
This comes to pass when a child is born.

A silent wish sails the seven seas,
The winds of change whisper in the trees,
And the walls of doubt crumble, tossed and torn -
This comes to pass when a child is born.

A rosy hue settles all around,
You get the feeling you're on solid ground,
For a spell or two no one seems forlorn -
This comes to pass when a child is born.

All of this happens because the world is waiting,
Waiting for one child. Black, white, yellow? No one knows.
But a child that will grow up and turn tears to laughter,
Hate to love, war to peace and everyone to everyone's neighbor,
And misery and suffering will be words to be forgotten forever.

It's all a dream, an illusion now.
It must come true sometime soon, somehow.
All across the land dawns a brand new morn -
This comes to pass when a child is born.
When a Child is Born (Soleado, 1972 melody by Ciro Dammicco/Zacar)

The Way Home

Founded in 1996 by Sergey Kostin, The Way Home "provides medical and psychological rehabilitation and social reintegration programs to homeless people, street children and drug users living on the streets in Ukraine."

"Sergey Kostin is a geologist by training. Shortly after the collapse of the Soviet Union, he became involved in the restoration of Odessa's major architectural treasures. To get help with his project, he set up a series of small workshops to teach carpentry, sewing and icon painting. In attempting to rescue the old buildings of Odessa, he rescued instead the exponentially growing numbers of homeless people, prostitutes, street children and drug addicts who roamed its streets. Kostin began The Way Home by offering a series of workshops similar to the ones he had run during his restoration work, seeking to build the skill base of those who had fallen on hard times. However, he soon discovered that the socially disenfranchised needed more than workshops. Thus, The Way Home rapidly expanded its programs and geographic scope to address this growing need across the Ukraine."

Excerpt from Outstanding Social Entrepreneurs 2010, the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship

Alleviating Poverty by Investing in Women and Girls

Founded in 1976, the International Center for Research on Women (ICRW) describes itself as "thought leaders driven by a passion to alleviate poverty and rectify injustice in the world." The Center "reduces global poverty by investing in the lives of women and girls." In particular, ICRW works with girls and boys in their communities to delay marriages in areas where child marriage is an established tradition. In addition it educates policymakers on the adverse consequences of the practice for girls.

The ICRW also focuses on gender equality in agriculture. Time and again, the work of women farmers goes unrecognized. Not only are they often not paid for their farming, but many are not allowed to own land. Yet research demonstrates that women are instrumental in alleviating poverty and hunger when given access to land, equipment and credit as in most cases they are the ones who ensure food gets to their family.

The Center aims to improve the status of women, help protect their rights, ensure their access to reproductive information and healthcare, and increase their opportunities to be educated, hold jobs and own property. It is doing a great deal in these areas in more than 30 countries, as well as in fighting violence against women. Help the International Center for Research on Women in a variety of ways: for example, make a donation, sign up for their newsletter, or join their community.

Growing with the Chinese Mainland Sustainably

Many of the communities that the company CLP serves are in urgent need of power to support their economic and social development. Bringing affordable energy on a long-term and sustainable basis means that CLP must work with coal as it is the dominant fuel of choice in the Asia-Pacific region, but the company intends to do so responsibly. CLP also works with cleaner sources of energy such as gas, renewables and nuclear when it is practical to do so.

Founded in Hong Kong over a century ago, CLP is a leading power company in the Asia-Pacific region. CLP is committed to providing energy solutions in a financially, socially and environmentally responsible manner.

CLP’s investments on the mainland epitomize its approach to powering Asia responsibly. Supporting the Chinese government’s goal of reducing the carbon intensity of its economy, CLP has been actively pursuing clean energy opportunities on the mainland. From a small hydro project in Guangdong province started in 1997, the company’s portfolio today includes wind, nuclear, hydro and biomass. Where CLP works with coal, it uses more efficient and cleaner technology. The company’s goal is to maintain a balanced portfolio that allows it to produce power in an affordable manner, while meeting the promise of decarbonizing its generation portfolio by 75% by 2050.

In addition to commercial investments, community investments also play a role in supporting sustainable growth on the mainland. Recognizing the importance of preparing the next generation of leaders for complex challenges, CLP has been supporting a number of education initiatives in China.

In November 2009, the company established the CLP-Tsinghua University Clean Energy Education Fund to support students with financial difficulties at the Department of Electrical Engineering at Tsinghua University and to support research programs on clean energy. Through these efforts, the Fund aims to contribute to the mainland’s electricity sector by developing a pool of experts in clean energy.

At the basic-education level, CLP also runs a Young Power Program to promote environmental awareness and social responsibility through activity-based thematic learning, and has been contributing to the establishment of 11 Hope Schools with the goal of raising the literacy level and improving the learning conditions for rural children in Guizhou and Sichuan.

CLP recognizes that sustainable growth requires collective action and will continue to raise awareness about the importance of sustainability and to exchange information so that a low-carbon future becomes a reality in China.

Article originally published in the November 2010 edition of Sustain, the magazine of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.

Anti-Corruption Awareness Day

9 December was International Anti-Corruption Day. More awareness is needed of the widespread problem of corruption, and what is being done to fight it. One effort is the United Nations Convention Against Corruption, which entered into force on 14 December 2005. So far 140 countries have signed the Convention. In January 2004, the World Economic Forum also launched an initiative to combat corruption, the Partnering Against Corruption Initiative (PACI). See also the UN's Global Compact and Transparency International's Global Coalition against Corruption.
Add your voice to the global battle by supporting the "Say No to Corruption" campaign on Facebook. It's everybody's business.

Saving the Tiger

Shekar Dattatri is a film-maker from India, who has produced documentaries on his country's wildlife to bring certain issues to the attention of the public, including a recent film on tiger conservation. "The Truth about Tigers" is about the tiger's alarming rate of decline, but it offers solutions to the problem. At the same time, it is a non-profit, non-commercial film available for free screenings. Want to know how you can contribute to saving the tiger? Watch the film here. And to get involved in this particular cause, go to www.truthabouttigers.org/home

Powering the Use of Alternative Fuels in China

As the world turns its attention towards the climate conference in Cancun, Mexico, it is important to remember that sustainable energy solutions already exist. Here is one example from China.

Sustainable development and social responsibility are at the core of the Chinese government’s current 5-year plan, and Holcim expects that they will be even more prominently represented in next year’s 5-year plan. Holcim, together with its Chinese partner Huaxin, also places great importance on these issues.

Huaxin’s environmental protection business unit contributes to the circular economy by converting certain industrial and municipal wastes into fuels and raw materials for cement production. In this way, Huaxin is able to substitute part of its coal consumption and can therefore preserve precious natural resources. Holcim is involved with the Chinese government in the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate task force, and engages with international organizations to help China develop environmentally-sound and safe practices.

Efforts to this end include following strict guidelines and policies on the use of waste materials in the clinker manufacturing process. Huaxin and Holcim are playing a key role in assisting governments to develop national and international guidelines and standards for co-processing. In China, Holcim has provided a great deal of input into the ‘Guidelines for Co-processing of Hazardous Wastes in Cement Kilns.’ This Sino-Norwegian project is under the responsibility of the Chinese Research Academy for Environmental Sciences and aims to regulate large-scale, environmentally sound management of hazardous waste disposal in cement kilns in order to strengthen the Chinese implementation of the Stockholm Convention and Basel Convention. Holcim’s and Huaxin’s work doesn’t stop there.

China is the world’s largest producer of pesticides, and the disposal of obsolete pesticides and their packaging constitutes a potential risk for people and the environment. Under the umbrella of the Sino-German project on ‘Management of obsolete pesticides,’ GTZ, Holcim and Huaxin formed a public-private partnership. Huaxin provides a waste management service through co-processing of obsolete pesticides in modern cement kilns.

High temperatures and long residence times ensure the complete and safe destruction of toxic chemicals. Thanks to its vast experience in the treatment of (sometimes hazardous) waste, Holcim is able to ensure that the disposal of this waste is carried out in an environmentally sound manner, and that relevant occupational health and safety issues are properly considered and managed. In total, Huaxin has disposed of around 1,500 metric tons of obsolete pesticides without compromising either the safety of workers and local communities or the quality of the clinker produced.

Article originally published in the November 2010 edition of Sustain, the magazine of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.

Child-Driven Education

Sugata Mitra is an educational scientist who has done a great deal of research on the social context of learning and technology. He makes clear that the social context where children are working together yields great benefits. One of his simple, optimistic messages is that, "If children have interest, then education happens." Mitra's research is powerful, as you'll hear in this video.

Cures from the Ocean

"Jewels in the Mud" is an encouraging story about how marine biomedicine can fight drug resistance and disease. A microbe found on seaweed by William Fenical and his team at the University of California San Diego's Scripps Institution of Oceanography has led to the drug Plinabulin, which blocks blood vessels in tumors from getting the nourishment they need, leading to their death, while leaving the healthy cells alone.

Professor Fenical is Director of the Center for Marine Biotechnology and Biomedicine (CMBB) at Scripps. His group "conducts research relevant to defining the roles and biomedical applications of the unique organic molecules produced by marine life. Programs are integrated to isolate and define chemical compounds which function as chemical defenses and molecules used for communication, and to assess the potential of these same compounds in the treatment of human and animal diseases. In drug discovery, a major focus is upon cancer, inflammatory diseases and in the discovery of new anti-infectives." Dr Fenical receives financial support for his research from the National Cancer Institute, the National Science Foundation, the National Sea Grant Program, the California BioStar Program and from a number of pharmaceutical companies.

The Bridgebuilder

He is indeed an inspiring hero. Toni Ruttimann, who is in Burma right now, is as usual helping the needy build a bridge from materials he secures free of charge from companies. He's been doing this since 1987 when he left his native Switzerland for Ecuador upon hearing about the earthquake that had just struck there. On the spot one of the most immediate needs in the disaster area was building a bridge. So he began what would become his mission, helping local people build or rebuild suspension bridges after natural disasters, war or simply to avoid lengthy or tortuous crossings.

Toni does this without payment. He obtains steel rope, pipes, cement and the needed building materials and freight transport from Swiss cablecar builders and other companies, all free of charge. So far he has helped build almost 500 bridges in Ecuador, Colombia, Honduras, Mexico, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam and Burma.

Actively engaged in promoting human welfare and social reform, "Toni the Swiss" is truly an unsung hero and humanitarian.

Enabling a Low-carbon Expo 2010 in Shanghai

Large-scale events are often a catalyst for sustainable urban development, improved infrastructure and increased investment. There is no better example than Expo 2010 in Shanghai. For the first time in the Expo’s history, the Shanghai edition was low-carbon, applying successful experiences in city development by using innovative "green" technologies in areas including building, transportation, energy supply and waste treatment. Sustainable companies like Siemens are a major driver behind this improvement.

Siemens is supplying more than 1 billion Euros worth of infrastructure for both the Expo and Shanghai. More than 40 Expo projects were built using Siemens technologies that improve energy efficiency without reducing quality or comfort. For example, Siemens technologies powered the "China Red" of the China Pavilion, not only creating a marvelous impression, but also reducing energy consumption by 50%. The Expo’s five permanent constructions featured the latest in Siemens building technology, thereby reducing energy consumption by 25% compared with conventional buildings. To ensure continuous and efficient power supply, especially during the peak summer season, Siemens installed energy-saving power distribution equipment.

In the "We Are the World" Pavilion, Siemens partnered with the Expo Bureau to bring visitors a vision of life in a low-carbon future. Visitors experienced innovative technologies, such as a facial recognition system used for easy home access, e-cars enabled by smart grids, a virtual workshop that helps achieve work-life balance, a tailored menu proposed by an intelligent home refrigerator, and remote diagnostic technologies showing easy healthcare solutions, just to name a few. Most of the technologies displayed are in the company’s R&D pipeline or are prototype applications.

About 90% of the total Expo-relevant business related to environmentally friendly products and solutions that aim to upgrade city infrastructure while bringing down carbon emissions. A highly efficient power plant using Siemens technology covers 30% of Shanghai’s energy demand, but uses more than 1 million tons less coal per year. One hundred environmentally friendly highspeed trains that use key Siemens components will ultimately transport passengers from Beijing to Shanghai in less than five hours. The terminal of the high-speed line in Shanghai serves as part of the Hongqiao Transportation Hub, where Siemens installed China’s largest parking management system.

By 2018, Siemens will supply infrastructure to more than 20 other major event host cities worldwide, including infrastructure for stable power grids, public mass transit and healthcare. Along with creating and preserving jobs, those projects will also improve visitors’ experiences and the quality of life in the cities in which they take place.

Article originally published in the November 2010 edition of Sustain, the magazine of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.

End Corruption Now

Support the United Nations Global Compact, Transparency International and the World Economic Forum Partnering Against Corruption Initiative in sending the message to end corruption, by joining the End Corruption Now! Facebook Community page. It aims to promote greater global participation to fight corruption. The launch of this page sends "a strong message to the world at large that corruption is not just a matter for a few business people and public officials to be concerned about but rather an issue that affects people at all levels of society like you and me -- and that it is an issue that the wider general public cares about." To send a powerful message on December 9, 2010, International Anti-Corruption Day, to leaders of business, government and civil society, the goal of 5,000 fans joining the page is needed. So sign up and learn more about the fight against corruption in Thailand, the UK, India, Malawi and elsewhere.

Good News from Burma

Pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi has been released. Finally some good news from Myanmar. It's being reported worldwide so read all about it.

Biofuels Power China

In a major step forward for its carbon dioxide-cutting program, Unilever has launched a manufacturing process at its Hefei factory in China based on second-generation biofuels. Unlike the first-generation biofuels, the second generation uses non-edible plant residues and therefore does not compete with crops for food supply.

First active in China some 80 years ago, Unilever set up its manufacturing base for home and personal care products in Hefei in 2003, making it one of the biggest manufacturing sites for Unilever globally.

The business is now using straw as a source of fuel to produce laundry powder, reducing CO2 emissions by 15,000 tons annually (32% of total site emissions) at a considerably reduced cost to the business. The move further benefits the environment because it is no longer necessary to burn straw to produce a source of mineral replenishment for soil, which caused severe air pollution. Fortunately, the ash produced in the Hefei plant can also be used to replenish the soil – without the damage to air quality caused by burning.

"China clearly faces serious environmental challenges, making our new biofuel-based process even more meaningful, in addition to helping our local farming community to find a new commercial outlet for their waste. A win-win for all,” says David Ingram, VP, Supply Chain, Greater China Group. China is not alone in implementing biofuels programs. In Sri Lanka, the business has unveiled a new biofuel-powered boiler that uses agricultural residues such as coconut shells and sawdust to generate steam for manufacturing processes.

In India, Hindustan Unilever (HUL) has been using biofuels in its Chiplun plant, in the Ratnagiri district, since 2006. Factories in Maharashtra and Pondicherry followed suit in 2007 and 2008 respectively – using biomass as fuel to generate steam. Plants in Kenya, Tanzania, Ghana and South Africa are also now using biofuels in their manufacturing processes.

As they do not compromise food supplies, second-generation biofuels are a prime example of Unilever’s commitment to renewable energies that deliver social and environmental benefits in the way they are sourced as well as in their eventual use. They will help Unilever boost its use of renewable energy, which currently stands at 17% of overall energy consumption.

Article originally published in the November 2010 edition of Sustain, the magazine of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development.

Good News from Bond Markets: Is QE Already Working?

The Fed's decision to start printing money has generated no shortage of debate. On one hand, devaluing the US dollar to try to inflate asset prices in hopes of kick-starting spending, investment and job creation seems like a cheap trick that's bound to go badly -- after all, as critics point out, it seems to encourage the US to just keep on racking up larger and larger debts. On the other hand, the Federal Government seems unable or unwilling to produce stimulus packages large enough to do the job, leaving it to the Fed to figure out how to lower unemployment. Many argued that QE2 might not work, since handing cash to banks might not result in expanded credit. Banks aren't stupid: if economic conditions mean that lending out more will only result in more bad debts, they'll sit on their cash or use it to buy more bonds and sell those to the Fed for a profit. Or they'll lend it to their own traders and other hedge funds so it can be invested in higher-yielding bonds or stocks or other securities at home or overseas.

Some have argued that the goal of QE2 is to lower interest rates and therefore borrowing costs. This is only partially true. While the goal of quantitative easing is to pump cheap cash into the economy, the goal is not to push down long-term interest rates for homeowners to refinance. That might make sense: the promise that the Fed will buy $600 billion in Treasury bonds would drive up the price and drive the corresponding yields lower. In fact, the opposite is happening. Remember that inflation is the enemy of bonds, since it reduces the real value of repayments in the future. More importantly, inflation generally coincides with higher interest rates, which make existing bonds with lower rates less attractive as assets, particularly since they can end up yielding negative real returns. So the prospect of the Fed pumping cash into the economy and creating inflation should tend to push prices for longer-term bonds lower and yields higher.

In fact, this is what has been happening since Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke first suggested that he might launch a new program of bond purchases back in late August at Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Since then, yields on short-term Treasuries have dropped, while yields on longer-term Treasuries have climbed. The result is what is known as a steepening yield curve, which because it suggests rising inflation in the future, also implies accelerating economic growth. Here is the result in charts (with thanks to Stockcharts.com:

Here's the yield curve the day before Beranke's Jackson Hole speech:

And here it is today:

The difference in yields is small, but the overall effect is a steeper curve.

Pink Stinks

The Pink Stinks website endorses a campaign "that challenges the culture of pink which invades every aspect of girls' lives." Their message is that "body image obsession is starting younger and younger, and that the seeds are sown during the pink stage, as young girls are taught the boundaries within which they will grow up, as well as narrow and damaging messages about what it is to be a girl." Pink Stinks and cooltobe.me, a non-profit organization that highlights female role models, have collaborated on a film featuring Isa Guha of the England women's cricket team. They seek to celebrate women who are "inspirational, important, ground-breaking and motivating" because "by presenting children with images of women... all shapes, sizes, colours and kinds, doing all sorts of amazing things... we can go some way to improving their self-esteem and self worth." Help promote positive gender roles: support Pink Stinks.

Good News in Africa

Positive news does come out of Africa. For example, the largest African film festival, Africa in Motion, featuring 70 films from 28 countries, is currently taking place in Scotland, the 5th such festival to date. This year's theme is celebrations.

Other examples: South Africa and India are joining forces on HIV vaccine research; Uganda receives a grant of $207 million for clean energy; Angola increases tourism significantly; Nigeria boosts its status as the top oil producer in Africa, Rwanda initiates a plan for economic recovery.... For details on these stories and other good news from Africa, go to http://www.africagoodnews.com/ and http://www.sagoodnews.co.za/

A Public-Private Partnership to Reduce HIV/AIDS

North Star Alliance sets up roadside wellness clinics for truck drivers. Established in 2006, it currently has more than 60 partners, including governments (the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands), private companies (TNT) and non-governmental organizations (the Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria - GBC), all working together across different countries to reduce HIV/AIDS.
North Star's vision: "a world in which mobility and dynamic workplaces do not fuel the spread of disease, sexual abuse and human trafficking"
North Star's mission: to "provide transporters, sex workers and related communities sustainable access to basic healthcare and safety"
This large partnership is an excellent example of how a public-private alliance can tackle an important global health challenge. Partners include the Federation of East and South African Road Transport Associations (FESARTA), PharmAccess Foundation, the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF), UNAIDS and system developer ORTEC.

Women Making a Difference

Unite for Sight, an organization founded in 2000 to provide "high quality eye care for all," was created by Jennifer Staple-Clark. The non-profit's website celebrates having provided eye care services to 1 million people, performed over 36,800 sight-restoring surgeries and trained 7,450 fellows to help eliminate preventable blindness. The eye care is administered by local optometrists and ophthalmologists to patients in their own villages. Unite for Sight also supports eye clinics worldwide.

First Book, also a non-profit social enterprise, was founded in 1992 by Kyle Zimmer, who realized that the children she tutored at a soup kitchen had no books. Today, First Book lays claim to having delivered more than 70 million new books to children in need in communities across the US and Canada. It thus addresses "one of the most important factors affecting literacy -- access to books". Volunteer to distribute books to the needy by contacting First Book.

Sustainable Health Enterprises (SHE), founded by Elizabeth Scharpf, aims to "improve the quality of life for people in developing countries" via market-based means. A major project has been the development of a low-priced sanitary pad from natural raw materials for women in Africa and Asia. The idea is to help women start their own businesses making and locally distributing eco-friendly pads. Meanwhile, SHE is helping girls stay in school rather than staying home during menstruation because of the lack of sanitary facilities.


These women are not drops in the bucket. Every person they educate, every person they help can in turn help others and teach others to acquire the skills needed in their own villages and towns. Altruism is indeed contagious. Thanks to The New York Times' Nicholas D. Kristof for pointing that out.

Reframing the Fight against Poverty for Better Results

In case you missed it, in "Boast, build and sell" (International Herald Tribune, 24 September 2010), Nicholas D. Kristof offers three suggestions to improve humanitarian assistance in fighting poverty:
1. Spread the good news: the fight against poverty currently saves the lives of approximately 32,000 children daily (around 22,0o0 children die per day at present against 54,000 per day in 1960)
2. Promote economic growth over charity
3. Market antipoverty work better

As Mr. Kristof likes to remind us: "We should note that schools have a better record of fighting terrorism than missiles do and wobbly governments can be buttressed not just with helicopter gunships but also with school lunch programs (at 25 cents per kid per day)."
So let's emphasize the positive and recall that today's fight again poverty is "where the success is."

Put Pressure on Politicians to End Hunger

As of now, more than one million people have signed the petition that you will find at http://www.1billionhungry.org/

If you are mad as hell, if you "find it unacceptable that close to one billion people are chronically hungry" then sign the petition. Its aims: "Through the United Nations, we call upon governments to make the elimination of hunger their top priority until that goal is reached." The more the political pressure, the more governments will have to do more to end hunger.

Swiss Association Kaicedra Funds Classroom in Remote Village

This story begins in December 2009 under the "village tree" of Gorin, in northern Burkina Faso. The "ancients" and the women welcomed members of Kaicedra to their town and asked their help in providing an adequate learning environment for their children. With their meager means, the community had built a temporary shelter that was bound to be destroyed in the next rainy season (which it was).

Back from their trip, the Kaicedra team chose to make the Gorin classroom their main project for the year. The budgeted 19,000 Swiss francs were raised in the first half of the year and construction began in June 2010. Just a couple of weeks ago, on October 1st (official back-t0-school day in Burkina Faso), children from the village of Gorin had their first lesson in their new classroom.

Kaicedra supports education and health community projects in Burkina Faso. It also sponsors children in kindergarten so they can enter primary school and young girls so they can continue their education. (www.kaicedra.org/)

Walking for Hope

It is cold and a bit windy in Geneva; the sun will certainly not shine very bright today. Nonetheless we put on our walking shoes and headed out for the 19th edition of the “Marche de l’Espoir” or “Walk for Hope”, run by Terre des Hommes. This walk, which takes place in early October every year, benefits one or more countries, and specifically children in these countries. Last year, it was Senegal; this year it is Brazil, Burkina Faso and India.

Importantly, this year’s edition is focused on healthy, sustainable food for all. Today, more than one billion of the 6.7 billion people on our planet suffer from hunger or malnutrition, or 150 million more than in 2008. More than half are children.

This number is growing in spite of the Millennium Development Goals which aim to reduce malnutrition by 50% by 2015. But the Earth could feed 12 billion people, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. This food is inaccessible to a large part of the world’s population, especially those in the Southern hemisphere, because of low wages and agricultural practices that are not adapted to the regions where food is needed the most.

It is with this in mind that we set out this morning to bring our part of “Hope”. As with all walks of this kind, our children have dragged their parents along. They have already done the advanced footwork, going to neighbors, family and friends and getting them to pledge money for each kilometer walked. And it will not be in vain.

During our walk, we mingle with the thousands of other participants, old and young and all ages in between, who have come along to bring their bit of “Hope” to the world. We walk along the route, have our “passport” stamped every kilometer, and take part in the two quizzes that will bring us two bonus kilometers – that much less for our feet to trod.

Our oldest child logged 12 kilometers, and the youngest 16 ‑ a nice reversal that will lighten a few of their sponsors’ pocketbooks, and put healthy, sustainable food in a few more stomachs.

The "Truth" for Free

Launched in 2008, Mozambique's biggest circulation weekly @Verdade, which reaches more than 400,000 people in that south-eastern African country, is the nation's first high-quality, free newspaper. According to its founder, Erik Charas, "@Verdade was really created to bring out good values and positive morals as well as to raise our society to the levels we want. ... The average Mozambican is so preoccupied with his survival that he has put his ambition aside. If we are in no condition to dream, then we have no ability to have ambition. And that is where @Verdade fits in; to bring back hope, to raise the level of ambition of the Mozambican and hopefully instigate change." As few people in Mozambique have electricity, not to mention TV sets or computers, and few can afford to buy a newspaper, most had little, if any, access to mass media communication before @Verdade was created. Today the newspaper provides information at the local level, including on health and women's issues and even on domestic violence, in order to "be informative but at the same time to have potential for behavioural change". It also reports more widely on the news in Maputo and in the rest of Africa. @Verdade has become a very popular and successful social enterprise that serves the people of Mozambique while transforming the nation.

Hope from Testimony

Kenyan company Ushahidi is a free, open source or shared platform designed to crowdsource (use a community or large group of people to accomplish particular goals), amass and map crisis information from numerous sources in real time, including via text message, Twitter, Facebook, blogs, media sources and e-mail. Ushahidi can thus track real-time information, but it also puts that information into context by aggregating, categorizing and mapping what has been reported. In Haiti, Ushahidi introduced the 4636 SMS short code so individuals there could send free text messages with their location and need, and to report emergency information. Ushahidi's technology has also helped citizen participation initiatives and monitoring in elections in India, Argentina, Mozambique and Venezuela. But in addition to reporting vote-tampering, it can also be used to report violence, or any event or incident. In Russia in August, for example, it was used to establish a "map of help" to solicit volunteers needed after the wildfires, and it has been used in the USA to track crime in Atlanta. In its own words, "Ushahidi builds tools for democratizing information, increasing transparency and lowering the barriers for individuals to share their stories."

Helping AIDS Children Reach Their Full Potential

One of the consequences of the AIDS pandemic is the estimated 15 million or more children worldwide under the age of 18 who have been orphaned as a result of the disease. In response to this huge problem, in 2000 Dr. Sunette Pienaar Steyn founded Heartbeat. Heartbeat is a non-profit organization whose stated missions is: "To empower orphaned and vulnerable children to reach their full potential through quality service provision, development and capacity building." This translates into helping children access water, electricity, housing, schooling and government grants. Since its inception, Heartbeat has cared directly or indirectly for 54,000 orphans and vulnerable children.
Consider making an in-kind donation to Heartbeat in the form of new or used clothing or household goods, toiletries and candy, as well as school supplies as it's back-to-school time. Contact Heartbeat's Karina Swann at karina@heartbeat.org.za regarding in-kind contributions.

Preserving Coral Reefs

A group of six countries in Oceania - Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, the Solomon Islands and Timor-Leste - have agreed to develop a roadmap and plan of action, called the Coral Triangle Initiative, to preserve their coral reefs. The area, which covers over 2 million square miles of ocean, encompases more than 50% of the planet's reefs and holds 500 reef-building coral species, about 75% of all known species. Yet the region has among the highest human population density and growth in the world, straining coastal resources with high demands for tuna, shark fin, turtle products and live reef fish. Thus saving the coral triangle is becoming an urgent concern.

Ideas of what you can do to help:

- travel with the WWF to support their conservation work

- go to the WWF's Conservation Action Network to take specific action to save life on Earth

- make a Guardian Gift donation

More information is available from the WWF.

Just for Smiles

A Swiss non-profit, public service Foundation, Just for Smiles (www.just4smiles.ch/) was founded to give polyhandicapped persons a chance to enjoy the outdoors and experience environments and sensations they are unfamiliar with. In the Foundation's words, it was created to offer joy to those whose multiple handicaps confine them all too often to their wheelchairs and to indoor environments. And yet the founders affirm that the Foundation's real gift is that received from the handicapped people themselves, who demonstrate courage and the will to live. Activities proposed include skiing (tandemski and dual ski) and sailing, available free of charge to the residents of Switzerland's 120 institutions for the disabled.

To give the gift of fresh air and smiles, contact Just for Smiles.

Greater Balance and Joy in Education

The good news on the education front is that there is great momentum building among teachers across the United States (and abroad) to bring a more balanced and joyful approach to the education of children. I feel fortunate to work with an organization (the Northeast Foundation for Children) that is making a positive impact in the lives of children and adults. We are a mission-driven foundation that strives to create joyful and challenging schools, where equal emphasis is placed on social and academic curriculum. Our approach to teaching is known as the Responsive Classroom approach, and we believe that children’s (and adults’) best learning occurs in social contexts, and that schools have a responsibility to teach the skills needed for living and learning in community (skills like cooperation, assertion, empathy, self-control and responsibility).

This type of approach is very much needed in the stardards-based and testing-focused educational climate of today. When we work with teachers and schools, it’s as if we are giving them the skills and permission “to teach,” versus “preparing children to take a test.” In a workshop a few years ago, I had the privilege of working with a group of teachers and a parent who had traveled from Israel to Nashville, TN to learn more about Responsive Classroom. During the course of the week, these women shared poignant stories about how Responsive Classroom practices, like daily Morning Meetings that provide opportunities for students to become know and to know others, were helping to plant seeds of hope and compassion among students, families and the larger community. I hear similar stories of hope and inspiration every day from teachers across the country.

Insects to Feed the World?

Most of the world eats insects - only in North America, Europe and Australia do people not usually include this staple in their diets. Yet insects as food provide quality nutrients (protein, omega-3 fatty acids, minerals and vitamins) and are an excellent environmentally and ecologically beneficial alternative to the production of expensive beef and other animal meats. Currently 70% of agricultural land is used for the production of meat. So were more of that land used to farm certain insects, the amount of food produced would increase. Consider the fact that 10 kilos of feed produce 1 kilo of beef or 9 kilos of locusts, a large grasshopper. So with one-sixth of the world's population considered malnourished, dragonflies, waterbugs, termites, caterpillars and as many as 1,000 different insect species could well supplement the 10 or so animals usually eaten in the West.

But attitudes about eating insects must change in the parts of the world where they are not normally consumed, if they are to contribute widely to the global diet. Yet according to Professor Marcel Dicke at Wageningen University in the Netherlands, even in the West about 500 grams of insects per year are eaten per person. Insect parts can be found in tomato juice, soup or ketchup, in chocolate and in peanut butter - in fact in most processed foods. Thus changing our attitudes should not be too difficult.

Ant or beetle, anyone?

Voluntary Worldwide Efforts to Curb Nuclear Weapons

The Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), consisting in a group of nuclear supplier nations, aims "to contribute to the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons through the implementation of Guidelines for nuclear exports and nuclear related exports." The Guidelines seek "to ensure that nuclear trade for peaceful purposes does not contribute to the proliferation of nuclear weapons or other nuclear explosive devices which would hinder international trade and cooperation in the nuclear field. The NSG Guidelines facilitate the development of trade in this area by providing the means whereby obligations to facilitate peaceful nuclear cooperation can be implemented in a manner consistent with international nuclear non-proliferation norms." Current NSG participating governments are: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, the Republic of Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, the Russian Federation, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The US-led Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) prohibits shipments of biological, chemical and nuclear weapons, as well as missiles and other materials that could be used to produce weapons of mass destruction, to terrorists and potential country proliferators. When the initiative was announced in 2003, 10 countries, Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, and the United Kingdom, joined the US's effort to define and promote the regime. Today 80 more countries, including Russia, have committed to this voluntary call to action, intercepting items of proliferation concern at sea, on land and in the air before they reach their final destination.

Launched by the US and Russian presidents in 2006, the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism fosters wide cooperation in an international partnership against the acquisition, transportation and use of nuclear materials and radioactive substances.

Granted, the results of these and other efforts are difficult to assess, but such voluntary threat-reduction actions show countries can collaborate in an important area traditionally associated with national sovereignty.

In Fast-Growing Asia, New Attention on Quality Over Quantity

Automakers received an unexpected boost in August, when Asian sales surged thanks to variations on the American "cash for clunkers" scheme to encourage consumers to turn in old gas guzzlers and buy new, cleaner models. The US plan, you may recall, was designed in part to help rescue the American auto industry, but ended up doing more to boost sales of Japanese and Korean cars. So Tokyo decided in April to offer consumers rebates if they would also purchase new hybrid cars. And in June, China followed suit, offering even larger subsidies to consumers in five cities that bought more environmentally friendly cars.

More than just a plan to revive domestic auto sales, the moves are part of a broader shift among Asian policy makers from pursuing economic growth at all costs to promoting what is widely known as "green growth." Asian governments used to focus almost exclusively on GDP growth as the barometer of policy success, but as rapid development creates growing environmental and social stresses, more policy makers are focusing on how to make their economies better, and not just bigger. Fast-growing economies in which citizens face crippling pollution and destabilizing disparities in income aren't necessarily healthier economies. So governments are quickly bringing sustainable growth, once a rallying cry for non-governmental organizations, into the policy mainstream.

Some Good News from Pakistan

Edhi Foundation, a reputable non-profit NGO, has been providing social services in Pakistan since 1951, including direct humanitarian assistance. The Foundation is currently delivering basic items of food, water and essentials (blankets, soap, mosquito nets) to the country's flood affected areas. Its typical aid includes sheltering abandoned babies, providing homes for the destitute or mentally ill and safe houses for abused women, offering food, medicine, clothing and other supplies to the needy at Edhi's 300 service centers, administering first aid to accident victims, and maintaining a fleet of ambulances that transports over one million people per year to hospitals, among other services. Edhi also collects blood from volunteer donors which it then gives free of charge to hospitals for heart surgery and other major operations for the poor. In addition to all of this, the Edhi Foundation provides services to refugees from Afghanistan, Bosnia, Iraq, Burma, Nepal and Uganda, among other countries.

As the Foundation's work is geared towards the masses, donations from religious organizations, governments or relief agencies are not accepted. Instead, it operates on donations from individuals and businesses, and in-kind contributions. Consider a donation through one of Edhi Foundation's offices or contact the NGO at
edhikarachi@hotmail.com

Put Your Computer to Work for Science

Interested in helping astronomers search outer space? It's possible with a program called Einstein@Home, which allows your computer, when it's idle, to help scientists search the skies for pulsars and other neutron stars. The idea behind the program, called distributed computing, is straightforward: downloaded software connects your home computer with thousands of others throughout the world that have the program, and which combined have the computational power of a supercomputer that can analyze very large amounts of data without the extremely high costs associated with unique, custom-made supercomputers. When your PC is not being used, the program downloads LIGO (Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory) data from a central server and searches for gravitational-wave sources. Such waves are discharged by neutron stars, which are dense celestial bodies chiefly composed of neutrons, believed to be formed by the gravitational collapse of a star, and pulsars, rapidly rotating neutron stars that emit regular radio waves. Discovering such celestial objects can provide important insights on matter at high densities.

Find out more and enter here to volunteer and download the software.

Airlines Buy Alternative Fuels

Fifteen airlines and air cargo carriers have joined forces to purchase hundreds of millions of gallons of alternative fuels. The airlines signed a memorandum of understanding with AltAir Fuels and Rentech (Renewable Energy Technologies), the fuel producers, to purchase about 325 million gallons of alternative fuels per year, with potential to increase this further. Industry studies so far have shown that synthetic renewable fuels burn cleaner and reduce greenhouse gases by 5-12% over traditional jet fuel. Read more here.

And follow the CleanTechies Blog!

Saving Captive Wild Animals

It’s hot and dusty; the sun is about to set; the grass that covers the plains is brown, wilting, wishing for rain that rarely falls. When the lions start to roar, you could forgive yourself for thinking you are in the African savanna.

But you are not. You are at the western edge of the North American Great Plains, stretching from the Rocky Mountains to the Mississippi River and from Northern Canada to Mexico, covering about 2.5 million square kilometers.

The roar of the lions is not a hallucination. Neither is the howling of the wolves, nor the growling of the bears. You can find all of these animals and more at The Wild Animal Sanctuary (http://www.wildanimalsanctuary.org/) just a few miles northeast of Denver, Colorado, in Keenesburg.

According to their website, “The Wild Animal Sanctuary is the oldest and largest nonprofit Sanctuary in the US dedicated exclusively to rescuing captive exotic and endangered large carnivores, providing them with a wonderful life for as long as they live, and educating about the tragic plight faced by an estimated 30,000 such animals in America today.”

The very knowledgeable staff member who greeted us as we entered the facility on a sweltering Wednesday evening informed us that there are more tigers being held in private hands, in basements and garages, in the state of Texas than are living in the wild in the world. That is some scary stuff, and underlines the need for the Sanctuary. Unfortunately, people who take on large carnivores often find that they cannot actually take care of them – as they grow up they become a danger to their host families. When they are abandoned, someone needs to take them in or they will be put down.

“Countless other great cats, bears, wolves and other large carnivores live in abusive conditions in roadside stands, circuses, magic acts, traveling shows, and other substandard situations. Untold numbers of animals suffer and die each year due to neglect, abuse or because they are abandoned and left to die, starving and alone,” says their website.

“Comprising 320 acres and sheltering more than 200 lions, tigers, bears, leopards, mountain lions, wolves and other large carnivores, it is the first sanctuary of its kind to create large acreage species-specific habitats for its rescued animals,” it continues.

We are told upon arrival that the facility is 100% non-smoking and if we choose to ignore this rule, we will be summarily removed from the site. This is because the bears in the Sanctuary that have been saved from roadside shows are nicotine addicts. The nicotine is what the trainers used to get the bears to do their tricks. Thus even the smell of a cigarette can have devastating consequences. It is a good thing no one in our group smokes.

The three main points of the organization’s mission are to rescue captive large carnivores that have been abused, abandoned, illegally kept or exploited; to create for them a wonderful life for as long as they live; and to educate about the causes and solutions to the captive wildlife crisis.
On site, it is obvious that they are committed to their mission. The animals that have completed their rehabilitation program roam freely in their large enclosures, encountering others of their kind. They look healthy from afar. As they are wild animals, I will obviously not climb into the enclosures for a close inspection, but trust in the organization to do what is necessary.

Remarkable Results from Simple Solutions

Providing free school uniforms in Kenya actually decreased girls' dropout rates by 15%, teen marriage by 12% and childbearing by 10%. The rationale for providing the uniforms was to decrease the cost of education, empower children and increase motivation. By raising the girls' ability to conceptualize themselves and increasing their self-esteem, while lowering costs, those who received free uniforms were significantly more likely to stay in school, thus reducing the likelihood of getting married and having babies. These results were published in World Bank Policy Research Working Paper 4024 following a randomized evaluation of 70,000 students in 328 primary schools in rural Kenya.

Introducing cable television in rural India has been shown to improve the status of women there. In particular, a study published in the Quarterly Journal of Economics (MIT Press) in 2009 found "significant increases in reported autonomy, decreases in the reported acceptability of beating and decreases in reported son preference [over daughters]. [The authors] also find increases in female school enrollment and decreases in fertility (primarily via increased birth spacing). The effects are large, equivalent in some cases to about five years of education ...". The report suggests that exposing women and men to new and more diverse sets of information via the cable TV has produced these positive results.

Seeking Huge Improvements in Energy Efficiency

The GreenTouch association was formed "to find new approaches for energy efficiency and to invent radical new technologies that will be at the heart of sustainable networks in the decades to come." Concretely, the group "aims to create the technologies needed to make communications networks 1,000 times more energy efficient than they are today." The networks specifically targeted are the Internet and those that support communications, commerce and entertainment. GreenTouch is also an excellent example of a successful partnership involving different types of establishments, in this case academia, industry, government and non-profit research institutes, working together in a common goal. What's more, the founding organizations hail from across the globe and include AT&T, China Mobile, Samsung, MIT Research Laboratory for Electronics, France Telecom, Swisscom, Portugal Telecom, and the University of Melbourne's Institute for a Broadband-Enabled Society. Recognizing that today's networks are geared to performance and not to energy efficiency and that their entire architecture and design must be changed to be optimized for both, the GreenTouch Initiative has been launched "to invent the technologies that can achieve sustainable networks" for the future.

Entertainment in the Service of the Underpriviledged in Mexico

CinePop is a business venture that brings family entertainment, services and products to underserved communities while engaging the business sector and local government. The organization sets up open-air movie theaters in Mexico using large, inflatable film screens, projecting general-audience films dubbed into Spanish, free of charge. The multitude of movies include Peter Pan, Zorro, Aladdin, A Farewell to Arms, Chicken Little, Hannah and Her Sisters, Mary Poppins, etc. Businesses sponsor projections and provide products and services to the movie-goers. Brands can sample their products, offer promotions, sell and advertise their goods while the attendants not only enjoy a popular cultural event and movies but get access to shoes, toiletries, food, medicine, telecommunications, clothing, banking services and other commodities.
CinePop is just one example of the power and success of joint enterprise and innovative partnerships as it brings together the entertainment industry and the public and private sectors in social investing efforts that profit all.

Wisdom from The Elders

Engaged in a number of missions, a group of well-known global leaders called The Elders, comprised of Nelson Mandela, its originator, and Martti Ahtisaari, Kofi Annan, Ela Bhatt, Lakhdar Brahimi, Gro Brundtland, Fernando H. Cardoso, Jimmy Carter, Graca Machel, Mary Robinson and Desmond Tutu, has made equality for womankind one of their priorities. They appeal for "an end to the use of religious and traditional practices to justify and entrench discrimination against women and girls." The group is also assisting efforts to address the predicaments in Zimbabwe, Burma (Myanmar) and Cyprus. Their prestige, renown and moral standing allow them to be particularly influential in advancing the initiatives they tackle. As Lakhdar Brahimi so aptly puts it: "We're extremely careful not to claim that we're going to take a problem and solve it. What we're saying is that from time to time, in certain situations, a problem needs a little push."
Read more about The Elders and their initiatives.

Profile: Ada Lovelace - 19th Century Computer Pioneer‏

Ada Lovelace, born Augusta Ada Byron, Lord Byron's daughter, was the first to suggest a computer program, back in 1842. She was a formidable mathematician and writer. When translating Italian engineer and mathematician Luigi Menabrea's memoir on Charles Babbage's proposed general-purpose machine, the Analytical Engine, Lovelace added her own notes, which contain a method for calculating a sequence of numbers with the Engine, which would have run correctly had the Analytical Engine ever been built. She is thus credited with being the first to propose an algorithm, or set of rules to be followed in calculations, intended to be processed by a machine. As such Ada is the world's first computer programmer. Babbage's Analytical Engine has now been recognized as an early model for a computer and Lovelace's notes as a description of a computer and software.

More on this early computer pioneer can be found in:
-Joan Baum, The Calculating Passion of Ada Byron. Archon Books, 1986. ISBN: 0208021191.
-Dorothy Stein, Ada: A Life and a Legacy. MIT Press Series in the History of Computing. Cambridge, Mass.: The MIT Press. ISBN: 026219242X.
-Betty Alexandra Toole Ed.D., Ada, The Enchantress of Numbers, Prophet of the Computer Age. 1998.
-Catherine Turney, Byron's Daughter. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. ISBN: 0684127539.
-Benjamin Woolley, The Bride of Science: Romance, Reason, and Byron's Daughter. ISBN: 0333724364.

Mummies Help Fight Tuberculosis

The largest exhibition of mummies to date has opened in Los Angeles, California. The show not only provides a glimpse into the lives of ancient humans; as it is fundamentally a scientific project, it also allows researchers the opportunity to examine the different exhibits to elucidate the history of tuberculosis, by putting the mummies through medical technology, such as non-invasive CT scans, MRIs and X-rays, to look inside them without damage. "We're able to explore tuberculosis in several ancient populations, and so by studying the pathogen DNA over time, we've been able to look at how the strain has developed," says Dr. Heather Gill-Frerking, scientific research curator for the German Mummy Project. "Now with the resurgence of tuberculosis and drug resistant tuberculosis in modern populations, we can trace the evolution of the disease and perhaps find better ways to treat it." Photos of some of the 150 mummies on display can be viewed at BBC News.

Education and Opportunity at the Grass Roots

Friends of India's mission is to "fight poverty and create opportunities for children and women in Tamil Nadu, India, by supporting basic education for underserved children and investing in vocational training, life-skills development and income generating activities for women." A non-profit, charitable organization, Friends of India was founded in 2001 by its current President, Pamela Walsh.

Friends of India supports skills training for impoverished people who need to take on menial labour to supplement their family’s income. One young woman, for example, learned computer skills and typing, and now works at a local software company. Another learned to make detergents and cleaning products for sale, generating a regular income. The organization has also made the women of Sembakkam aware of their rights and helped them form a self-help group that empowered them to petition local authorities to pipe water to their village rather than spending hours each day walking long distances to collect and carry water home. In 2009 the Richard Walsh Music Project was established to teach music and the performing arts to disadvantaged children in southern India. In addition, the organization has provided financial and advisory assistance and helped fund Anbumalar School for handicapped children.

If interested in these or other Friends of India programs, contact: info@friends-of-india.org

Demographic Delight?

One often hears of the demographic doom-and-gloom scenarios. The world's population is rising at such a rapid rate that by some estimates by 2050 there will be 9 billion people on the planet, up from about 7 billion today. Yet some experts believe in a more optimistic state of affairs for the planet. Fred Pearce is one:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Fred Pearce
http://www.thedailyshow.com/
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

Assisting the Poorest

Already in its 15th year, CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor) is playing an important role in reducing poverty through advancing financial access for the world’s poor. An independent policy and research center, CGAP is a world-recognized authority in microfinance. Its Microfinance Gateway is a vast online resource for the global microfinance community. The website defines what microfinance and microcredit are exactly, and offers a wealth of updated information, research and news on the movement, which includes access for the poor to such financial services as credit, savings, insurance and fund transfers. The Gateway affirms, as one example, that Agricultural Bank of China (ABC) loaned the equivalent of about US$ 12.2 billion in microcredit to Chinese farmers in the first three months of 2010, compared with US$ 10 billion during all of 2009. According to ABC official Lu Chuan, the bank's microfinance venture has helped 15 million farmers in China since it started in April 2008, offering loans of approximately US$ 440-7,300.

CGAP has successfully developed as a platform for peer pressure towards improved microfinance effectiveness and is recognized for truly decreasing poverty through improving poor people's access to financial services. More on CGAP's assistance to the poor can be found at http://www.cgap.org/p/site/c/

Table for Two Tonight?

A group of energetic young men and women, the Young Global Leaders, have launched the "Table for Two" initiative, simultaneously targeting hunger in the developing world and obesity in developed countries. "Every time someone eats a healthy meal at participating company cafeterias, restaurants and events, 20 cents is donated to fund a healthy school meal in developing countries," said James Kondo, President and Vice-Chairman, Health Policy Institute in Japan, and a Young Global Leader. The aim is to spread the initiative worldwide. "The World Economic Forum is supporting this Young Global Leaders’ initiative and encouraging businesses to consider the enormous impact that even a small company or organization can make in providing school meals and improving the health of its employees by implementing "Table for Two" in its cafeteria," said Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum. "With this initiative the Young Global Leaders show that they want to engage in innovative approaches to respond to major global challenges."

To date, pilot programs have been conducted in Japan at Family Mart; IBM Japan; Itochu; Japan Airlines; NEC; the Yokohama City Government; and at Godrej India. Donations so far from these pilots support around 40,600 school meals, equivalent to meals for around 200 students throughout the school year. Find out more at Tablefor2.

The Millennium Development Goals: It's Time for a "People's Plan of Action"

Recognizing that "individuals, companies and non-governmental organizations need to stand alongside their governments to advance the best solutions to extreme poverty, to sustain public engagement and to hold their governments accountable," through a "people's plan of action" a group of Young Global Leaders have made action-oriented pledges to support the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) by 2015.

One such individual, Ayla Goksel, through the Husnu M. Ozyegin Foundation, has pledged by 2014 to provide access to sustainable income-generating activities for 1,600 people in rural Turkey and to ensure 27,000 children have access to education in primary and secondary schools and programs built by the Foundation. This pledge supports MDG1 on poverty and productive employment, and MDG2 on education.

In addition, Ms Goksel has pledged by 2011, through the Mother Child Education Foundation (ACEV), to impact approximately 1 million families in Turkey through increased awareness of early childhood development and education; to raise US$ 20 million for these activities; to provide preschool, parenting and literacy education to 400,000 young children, parents and illiterate women; and to train 2,500 new volunteer instructors for this program, thereby contributing to MDG2 on primary education, MDG3 on gender equality, MDG4 on child health and MDG8 on building a global partnership for development.

Justice for All

International Bridges to Justice (IBJ) describes itself as an independent, non-profit NGO that "strives to protect due process and achieve fair trials for the accused throughout the world. In countries where governmental commitment to human rights principles has, as of yet, failed to meet its practical goal, IBJ fills the gap between human rights legislation and domestic implementation." Learn more about IBJ's important work.

IBJ MISSION STATEMENT:
"In recognition of the fundamental principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, International Bridges to Justice (IBJ) is dedicated to protecting the basic legal rights of ordinary citizens in developing countries. Specifically IBJ works to guarantee all citizens the right to competent legal respresentation, the right to be protected from cruel and unusual punishment, and the right to a fair trial."

A Medical Miracle? It's Your Beeswax!

The Concise Oxford English Dictionary (11th edition) defines "Propolis" as: n. a red or brown resinous substance collected by honeybees from tree buds for constructing and varnishing honeycombs. The term comes from the Greek propolis meaning "suburb" from pro "before" and polis "city".
Brazilian propolis has been found to be a remarkable supplement to cancer therapy. The Journal of the American Apitherapy Society gives details of the use of propolis in cancer treatment. "A literature review finds that propolis’s pharmacological properties make it safe and effective as an adjunct for patients receiving cancer treatment:
• Biological therapy. Biological therapy works hand in hand with the immune system. Propolis’s biological activities such as anti-tumoral activity, DNA protection, free-radicals scavenging, and immune stimulation act in synergy with each other and with conventional chemotherapy medication.
• Synergy with chemotherapy. Antioxidants may boost the effects of anti-carcinogenic drugs, thus enabling a decrease in the administered dose and in turn leading to a reduction in side effects. They may also influence the response to chemotherapy.
• Anti-inflammatory activity. This results from propolis’s inhibitory effect on prostaglandins, leukotrienes, and histamine release.
• Healing activity. Propolis promotes epithelial formation as well as vascular and fibroblastic neoformation of the connective tissue.
• Antimicrobial activity. Propolis’s flavonoids and phenolic acids are pharmacologically active compounds that have effects on bacteria, fungi, and viruses."
Source: “Biological Therapy Using Propolis as Nutritional Supplement in Cancer Treatment,” J. Galvao et al., International Journal of Cancer Research 3:1 (2007), pp. 43-53.
Read more: "Brazilian Propolis: A Promising Adjunct to Dental Care, Cancer Treatment, Vaccines" by José Alexandre S. Abreu, Brazil

Engines Can Turn Waste into Value

Commercial customers all over the world are discovering the new ways to capture and use gas to meet energy needs through onsite power generation, all while reducing greenhouse gas emissions. One prime example is General Electric's Jenbacher gas engines.

In Australia, the Jenbacher gas engine business has contributed to several of the country's largest coal mine methane projects, including a power plant commissioned in 2008 operating on Jenbacher coal mine methane gas engines. The methane-rich gas coming from the mine is used to generate onsite power at Anglo Coal's Moranbah North mine in the state of Queensland, helping to reduce the amount of greenhouse gas that escapes into the atmosphere. Through the capture and use of mine gas, the Moranbah North project will deliver significant environmental benefits, reducing about 1.5 million tons of CO2 equivalent per year.

In Mexico, Jenbacher engines are at the heart of a newly expanded landfill gas-to-energy project, hailed by President Felipe Calderón as “a model renewable energy project” for Latin America. The 12 MW project converts gas from the Simeprode landfill near Monterrey into electricity, which is used to support the solid waste facility's operations as well as Monterrey‘s light-rail system during the day and city street lights at night.

In a sprawling commercial tomato greenhouse outside of Amsterdam, the world's first commercial 24-cylinder gas engine is in operation. The Royal Pride Holland project is made possible by two Jenbacher units, which were installed in a pilot project to demonstrate the engine's commercial viability for the horticultural industry. It highlights the increased emphasis on combined heat and power in Europe as the region increases its focus on energy efficiency.

Thousands of miles to the east, Jenbacher gas engines are at work in a far different way, using biogas created from chicken manure to generate power and heat at a large chicken farm north of Beijing.

The plant is the first of its type in China, and could pave the way for similar applications in the future. Providing 14,600 MWh of electricity per year, the project is designed to help reduce suburban electricity shortages. By using the biogas for power generation instead of coal, the new project is expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 95,000 tons of CO2 equivalent per year.

Harnessing the Earth's Resources Efficiently and Equitably

“Environmental issues have the power to unify groups with seemingly irreconcilable differences. Shared concerns about resources and conservation can help resolve even bitter conflicts.”
Environmental Scientist Saleem H. Ali believes “the environment itself can be a powerful force in resolving conflicts, even between groups who seem diametrically opposed over how the world’s limited resources should be used.” Moreover, Ali says natural resources can be a positive force in alleviating poverty. Read more about this remarkable “emerging explorer” who argues we can manage our desire for resources while safeguarding the environment and alleviating poverty!

2010 Is the International Year of Biodiversity: This Is Good News for the Planet

The United Nations declared 2010 to be the International Year of Biodiversity, a celebration of life on Earth and of the value of biodiversity for our lives. This is good news for the planet, highlighting steps that have already been taken and those that can yet be taken to safeguard the variety of life on earth: biodiversity.

According to the United Nations Environment Programme, “restoring lost and damaged ecosystems - from forests and freshwaters to mangroves and wetlands - can trigger multi-million dollar returns, generate jobs and combat poverty.” It maintains that “far from being a tax on growth and development, many environmental investments in degraded, nature-based assets can generate substantial and multiple returns.” These include restoring water flows to rivers and lakes, improved soil stability and fertility vital for agriculture and combating climate change by sequestrating and storing carbon from the atmosphere.

And governments worldwide are already taking action. For instance, initial studies compiled by The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity indicate that restoration of grasslands, woodlands and forests offer some of the highest rates of returns. Examples include:

• The Turkish city of Istanbul has increased the number of people served with wastewater treatment over 20 years from a few hundred thousand to over nine million ‑ 95% of the population ‑ by rehabilitating and cleaning river banks, relocating polluting industries, installing water treatment works and re-establishing river-side vegetation.


• In Vietnam, planting and protecting nearly 12,000 hectares of mangroves has cost just over $1 million but saved annual expenditure on dyke maintenance of well over $7 million.


• In Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, strict law enforcement has helped restore the critically endangered mountain gorilla population back to a slight increase in the Virungas National Park ‑ and is generating large revenues from tourism.


• Restoration of over 500 hectares of mangroves in India's Andhra Pradesh region has increased the population of edible crabs and fodder for livestock thereby boosting local incomes while increasing biodiversity such as otter and birds, at a cost of only $3 million over seven years.


• Coastal ecosystems in Biscayne Bay, Florida have been restored for annual benefit worth $1.7 million.


• Banning unsustainable fishing methods, reintroductions of native fish species and re-planting of native aquatic grasses have transformed the once highly polluted and degraded Lake Hong in China. Since 2003, water quality has improved dramatically, rare birds like the Oriental White Stork have returned after 20 years and fisher folk have seen incomes triple.

Beyond governments, businesses are also lending a helping hand. Cimpor’s Conservancy in South Africa has eradicated some 65% of invasive plants. In addition, a large portion of this successful clearing exercise has seen the reintroduction of indigenous grasses that serve as a major food source for certain birds. In Brazil, the company’s quarry in Atlantic Forest area, one of the most endangered tropical biomes in the world, and considered as one of the largest biodiversity repositories globally, is being carefully rehabilitated. CEMEX is also doing conservation and restoration in Costa Rica, Mexico and France, among other places, to keep its quarries and surrounding areas healthy. Mondi has a sustainable wetlands program in South Africa, and Syngenta has one in Spain. Lafarge protects onsite wildlife and biodiversity.

And the list goes on. All of these drops in the bucket eventually overflow and the result is a healthier world with greater biodiversity benefitting all inhabitants.

According to Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary General and UNEP Executive Director: "The ecological infrastructure of the planet is generating services to humanity worth by some estimates over $70 trillion a year, perhaps substantially more.” Due to the impact of biodiversity on all our lives, 2010 is thus THE year to undertake biodiversity efforts and highlight what has already been done.

Eco-tourism Builds Livelihoods and Bolsters Whale Shark Populations

Eco-tourism has changed everyone's life in Donsol, Philippines. It is helping build livelihoods for local residents while bolstering whale shark populations. CNN reports on this shift in nature's balance -- from destruction to preservation -- in this remote area:

"Welcome to Donsol, the home of the gentle giants," Alan Amanse says, smiling broadly at us as we awkwardly scramble onto the traditional fishing boat.

"We have something that must be followed; the rules about whale shark interaction."

He's delivered this speech countless times, but says he never tires of seeing newcomers' eager faces. Donsol in the province of Sorsogon, Philippines, was once a sleepy fishing village; now it buzzes with excited tourists who flock here for what many later describe as a life-changing experience -- swimming with the largest fish in the ocean, the whale shark.

I have to admit, I was filled with childish excitement I hadn't experienced in years.
"If I say 'Ok, let's rock and roll', it's time to get in the water; that's my magic word, 'rock and roll'," Alan tells us, perched on the edge of the boat, a devilish twinkle in his eyes.

He and the crew are experts at whale shark spotting, able to scan what to us looks like a blank horizon for signs of the sharks below the surface. Small boats filled with tourists dot the tricolor waters, the shoreline rolling hills of emerald green.

"Look, look right there," Alan points at what to me initially looks like nothing.

"Wow! Its huge, 3-meters-long, about 20 meters in front of us," I shrieked as I began to make out the dark shape moving alongside our boat.

We jumped in, but only just barely caught a glimpse of the whale shark before it disappeared into the depths of the ocean. I should note at this stage that, despite my initial reaction, 3 meters isn't a "huge" whale shark -- they can grow up to 20 meters in length.

In fact at 3 meters they are still considered young, and seeing small ones is a rarity we are told. The whale shark interactions are closely regulated; 6 tourists per boat, 1 boat per whale shark, and no more than 30 boats in the water at a time. Plus, we're briefed to swim 3 meters away from the head and body, 4 meters away from the tail -- one powerful inadvertent hit can cause serious damage.

We had a professional underwater cameraman, Rico, added on to our crew for the day. I envied his lung capacity, his ability to free dive for minutes alongside these majestic creatures, filming them from all angles while I gasped for air and struggled to keep up.

We end up spotting a total of four whale sharks, the last one huge and right underneath our boat. It stayed close to the surface as if bemused by the attention and splashing.

I managed to dive down and see its gentle eyes, upturned mouth formed into a permanent smile. All I could think was, "Wow". That short moment I had was special, as if nothing existed but me and this graceful animal.

Eco-tourism has changed everyone's life in Donsol. Alan tells us how he used to have to take on odd jobs -- driving a tricycle taxi, construction work, playing guitar at bars -- to make ends meet. Now he makes six times what he used to, enough money to put his two children through school, even university.

Like most people in these parts, Alan used to view whale sharks as pests, constantly getting caught up in fishing nets and overturning boats. He says they were also hunted by villagers from other areas.

"Before I am not thinking that we need to save the whale shark because we don't have an idea of the whale shark," he admits.

According to the World Wildlife Fund, whale sharks are coveted in many countries. Their meat can sell for up to $17 per kilo, their fins a staggering $800.

The attitude towards whale sharks here changed nearly overnight. Credited with helping to make that happen is Dave Duran, a charismatic, passionate cameraman turned diver. Twelve years ago he shot footage of the whale sharks and brought it to international spotlight, to the attention of the World Wildlife Fund, marine biologists and scientists.

Suddenly Donsol became a major research destination. Little is known about whale sharks, a major part of preserving the species is understanding their migratory routes and breeding habits. Within three months of Dave going public with his footage, the Philippine government issued a ban on fishing whale sharks.

"If we were just late for about a month or so the story would have been different," he tells us. "Maybe now we would be seeing whale sharks being slaughtered here, right on this beach."

Eco Solutions have covered many stories in the ongoing battle of preservation vs. destruction. Here the balance shifted in favor of nature. "It's just a matter of luck," Dave says. "We gave [the people of Donsol] some sort of hope that eco-tourism could work in Donsol and they believed it."