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Category Archives: International

In The News …

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Welcome to Wednesday, folks! Sending non-profit and local news items your way …

Japan: “Cutting Through the Noise” — At the Center for High Impact Philanthropy at UPenn, yesterday’s post outlines “the questions donors should ask, the capabilities to look for in a nonprofit, and an example of an organization well-positioned to deliver help in Japan now.” While rightly focused on the crisis in Japan, the questions posed (and the answers offered) also provide a good basis?for considering any philanthropic effort in the aftermath of a profound disaster. Key questions to consider include: “What are the most critical needs on the ground?” “What are the gaps in local capacity for meeting these needs?” and “What capabilities are needed to address these gaps effectively?”

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In The News …

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Good morning, Washington. We’re going to focus on the (still-developing) news from Japan today — and we would very much like to hear your thoughts:

What are you doing to follow the news? How can we, as individuals, take action and do some good when we are so far from the crisis? On the whole, what forms of international philanthropy are most effective?

Japan Earthquake: Radiation Leak Halts Work at Damaged Reactors — Early this morning, ABC News International and the BBC (among other outlets) revealed that “a rise in radiation levels at Japan’s stricken Fukushima nuclear plant has forced workers to suspend operations.” According to ABC, “a Japanese government official also indicated for the first time that the containment vessels of all three of the reactors at the plant that exploded may be leaking, raising worries of dangerous radiation leaks.” 140,000 people live within a 12 mile radius of the planet and all have been evacuated from the area.

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Picture for the Day

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Courtesy of DCist:

As much as we like to maintain an exclusive focus on the business of Washington, DC, there’s no denying that our city is inexorably intertwined in international affairs. So when unthinkable bloodshed breaks out across the world, our purview often widens … Take, for example, the current state of affairs in Libya, which drew a group of protesters to the White House on Saturday. Just one example of the local response to events currently transpiring in Tripoli, DCist contributor Kevin Carroll was able to capture some powerful images during Saturday’s gathering.

While we are most aware of happenings on our street and around our homes, those of us in Greater Washington are often profoundly conscience of and connected to the broader world by virtue of where we live.

Similarly, our focus here at Catalogue is certainly local — yet we also are committed to non-profits who are enacting specific and localized change around the world, in the communities that are most in need. Do check them out. No matter how far away we are, we definitely can still reach out.

7 Questions – Nancy Kelly (Health Volunteers Overseas)

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Good morning-after-the-hailstorm, Greater Washington! Today on “7 Questions,” we’re psyched to introduce you to … Nancy Kelly, Executive Director of Health Volunteers Overseas since its founding in 1986. Now in 25 developing countries, HVO’s healthcare professionals offer medical education to their counterparts, improving the quality and quantity of healthcare where it’s most needed. Want to learn more? Read on!

1. What was your most interesting recent project, initiative, partnership, or event?

We are working with the American Dental Association on an initiative to rebuild 35 dental practices in Haiti. The goal is to raise $350,000 since we estimate the cost to rebuild is $10,000 per practice. We are working with the ADA and the Haitian Dental Association to develop an application process that will serve as a means of identifying the best prospects for support. Those dentists that receive support must commit to paying back to the community by providing free dental care to those in need but unable to pay. This is a new type of project for HVO, one that will be quite challenging as we move into the implementation phase — but I hope that it will be the start for similar initiatives elsewhere.

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Question for the Day

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Over at the Nonprofit Quarterly yesterday, editor Ruth McCambridge offers a note on “Jumping Off the Cliff of Social Change:”

“Over the years I have been involved in a number of movements for social change and each of them has taught me something about the patterns and rhythms of such efforts. But there was always a point at which I felt I was throwing myself off the cliff of the accepted into some cauldron of unknown forces and outcomes.”

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In The News …

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Welcome to Wednesday, folks! We have a good bundle of local and non-profit news items coming your way …

CSG’s 2011 State of the Washington Region — Following the State of the Union, Greater Greater Washington has an excellent post this week from Coalition for Smarter Growth’s Laura DeSantis on the state of our community, focusing on “our top five opportunities and challenges.” She summarizes that “adopting a range of smart growth policies — from transit-oriented development to a range of housing options — will set us firmly on a course to become the most energy efficient, and environmentally and fiscally sustainable region in the nation.” I would only add that CSG’s call for more mixed-use corridors and broader housing options are particularly apt: “We must ensure every community throughout the region has a full range of affordable housing choices through mixed-use revitalization, housing trust funds, affordable housing preservation strategies, and inclusionary zoning policies.”

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In The News …

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Welcome to Wednesday, DMV folks! Just passing along some mid-week news …

Student Test Scores Show US Science-Education Deficiency — The results from the 2009 National Assessment of Educational Progress were released this week and, according to the Wall Street Journal, may well “reinvigorate the national debate over America’s future competitiveness in science and technology.” Possible reasons for the science deficiency “included shortages of qualified science educators and of advanced science classes in low-income and rural schools” and many teachers “blamed the lackluster showing on No Child Left Behind.” While the results are a cause for concern, do they clearly indicate that science education is lacking? Or rather, could they suggest that standardized tests are the wrong medium for assessing that education — or fairly assessing ability for students of all backgrounds?

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In The News…

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In focusing on world-wide philanthropy news this week, I both wanted to share the following items and give a shout-out to Catalogue’s international non-profits. Definitely check them out to learn more about making a difference all around the world.

Haiti, one year later — For the 1-year anniversary of the 7.0Mw earthquake in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, the Big Picture on boston.com paid tribute last week to the “12 months of struggle and heartache photos of (and by) Haitians as they continue to cope with the aftermath of such a massive disaster.” These images certainly transcend words, so do look for yourself.

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Around the World

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Good morning, Greater Washington! I hope that you all enjoyed the rainy-yet-somewhat-warm weekend in DC — and I thought that I’d start the week with a more global news item.

For an interesting evaluation of our charitable habits compared to those of other large countries around the globe, check out this article from today’s Wall Street Journal. How much does the US give away and, moreover, what prompts our citizens to give in the amount or precise manner that they do?

The urge to do good through philanthropy varies across the globe. Differing cultures breed differing motivations and some countries appear vastly more generous than others.

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