Think a career track means only one destination? Well… you’re wrong. Listen to how Maryann Fernandez arrived at Philanthropy Indaba:
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Maryann Fernandez is the founder of Philanthropy Indaba – an organization that makes giving an unforgettable experience for philanthropists of all ages. She sat down and told us a little bit about an awesome documentary film trip to Ghana that Indaba has put together for the next generation of philanthropists.
>> TILE brings you exclusive opinions, explanations, and interviews from experts in every industry. Have a burning question or an expert you’d like to see interviewed? Just Ask TILE!
(photo credit: Kei!)
When something really bad happens in the world, we all feel hurt. And helping each other out is one of the best ways to alleviate that pain. But that common sense advice about not shopping when you’re hungry and not investing when you’re anxious also applies to giving.
Saundra Schimmelpfennig at the Chronicle of Philanthropy shared some advice on how to give smart in an urgent time of need. She encourages “disaster philanthropists” to think carefully before pledging their money to an emotionally compelling cause.
Here are some of her points that we think are especially important:
Ready to make an impact? Text a friend and ask them to donate with you. With two researchers on the job, you can probably find a perfect organization – and double your donation in the process!
“CARACAS, Venezuela — A judge in a tiny courtroom in the Ecuadorean Amazon ruled Monday that the oil giant Chevron was responsible for polluting remote tracts of Ecuadorean jungle and ordered the company to pay more than $9 billion in damages, one of the largest environmental awards ever.”
Is $9 billion enough to cover large-scale destruction of the environment and irreparable damage to human health? Is it too much?
And would knowing that BP has already pledged $20 billion to pay for damages related to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill change your mind?
(photo by Thomas Euler)
Did you see this? NYTimes foodman Mark Bittman is the kind of guy you want thinking about the food supply.
Says Mark:
“For decades, Americans believed that we had the world’s healthiest and safest diet. We worried little about this diet’s effect on the environment or on the lives of the animals (or even the workers) it relies upon. Nor did we worry about its ability to endure — that is, its sustainability.
That didn’t mean all was well. And we’ve come to recognize that our diet is unhealthful and unsafe. Many food production workers labor in difficult, even deplorable, conditions, and animals are produced as if they were widgets. It would be hard to devise a more wasteful, damaging, unsustainable system.”
Everyone needs food, so it’s funny (and okay, scary) that we have so little control over how our food gets to our plates. And like everything, food production has an economic story behind it.
Read Mark’s suggestions for shaking up the system, reclaiming our diets, and ensuring clean, nutritious food that’s good for us and the planet.
credit: keithusc
Under 50? Then you’re not likely to be donating to your alma mater in 2011.
“I can think of no less needy charity than Harvard. I have to struggle to think of anyone in my age group who has given big money to a traditional charity.” – Philanthropist Whitney Tilson on the new generation of philanthropy
Do you support the same causes as your parents? Do you give to the same organizations as your friends?
Welcome to our new series, showing you how the changes you want to see in the world actually happen.
Check out our other SfC shorts:
Strategies for Change: Introduction
Strategies for Change, Part 2: Advocacy
Strategies for Change, Part 3: Direct Service
Strategies for Change, Part 4: Education
“Anytime I hear that somebody’s really rich, the first question is ‘Do you do anything with it? Or do you, like, chill? You just sit on it?’” She is thinking carefully, strategically, about how best to put her own contribution to use, and has a plan—inspired by her researches for the role of a runaway in the sex trade—to set up a network of halfway houses to help those who want to recover and get back on their feet. “That would be amazing,” she says. “Right now it’s the thing I feel most connected to.”
Does this impact your view of Stewart? Do you agree that having money obligates you to “do something with it?”
In Pakistan, women are beginning to leave the confines of their homes to enter the labor force for the first time. You can meet some of them and hear their stories by clicking play.
Unfortunately, it’s not all progress and economic prosperity – Pakistan has an entrenched culture of male dominance that says women shouldn’t be seen OR heard. Women who work in public are routinely harassed and even beaten up by their male family members and strangers.
But how awesome would it be if Pakistan opened up its economy to the other half of the population? Talk about doubling your productivity and improving millions of lives.
How can you help? Try donating to organizations that promote education for girls, or get involved in microfinance projects that focus on giving female entrepreneurs a chance.