Archive for the ‘Giving’ Category

A Family Thanksgiving Tradition That Gives Back

Wednesday, November 21st, 2012

One of our favorite (newer) traditions each Thanksgiving with our large, and usually ornery extended family is what we call the “Global Giving Game.”  I described it in this piece linked and pasted below, which was published – surprisingly! – on FoxNews.com soon after Growing Up Global’s publication.  I’m a little disappointed that all the comments have since been taken down, as they were as (more than?) entertaining as the article, but mostly for their negativity and misinformation.  Most comments went something like, “What a bunch of liberal sissies brainwashing your kids. … Don’t look at problems in other countries; we have our own here. … Don’t teach about being a global citizen, be proud to be an American citizen…”  Yeah – we’ve heard that  before…

Also, note the title of the piece, “A New Black Friday Tradition.”  When Global Giving learned about our activity, they really wanted it to dovetail with their terrific “Great American Sleep-In” campaign, encouraging the avoidance of the malls, big box stores and rampant consumerism.  The two (giving and shopping) don’t need to be mutually exclusive, and every family will make up their own priorities and values, but it’s a great idea, even for a dinner table discussion!

Here’s the link to the original piece: http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2009/11/25/homa-tavangar-black-friday-giving-global-giving/.

And here’s the text in it’s entirety, if that’s easier to access. 

A New Black Friday Tradition

By

Published November 25, 2009

FoxNews.com

My large extended family loves Thanksgiving. We make travel arrangements months in advance in anticipation of my mom’s delicious homemade feast. Recently we’ve added a new tradition that begins with an e-mail to everyone who plans to gather around the table Thursday. The e-mail makes no mention of recipes but instead offers instructions and a challenge. It’s tied into a new holiday tradition in our family called Global Giving’s “Great American Sleep In.” This resembles a game, but has real consequences.

While writing the book “Growing Up Global: Raising Children to Be At Home in the World” I discovered many ways families could engage with and explore the world – even if they couldn’t purchase plane tickets – and I developed a “toolbox” to help kids have fun and make sense of the world they are inheriting. At home, we decided to hold a “theme dinner” and watch a movie from India, Ireland or Iran, interspersed with our usual Disney classics; we adding dance tunes from Brazil, Sweden and Morocco to our favorite music playlists; we are now engaging in richer conversations at the dinner table and even keeping a globe handy in the kitchen. We’ve enjoyed these new traditions that not only have connected us with the larger world, but have brought us closer as a family.

Likewise, at Thanksgiving, when we usually play games like “Scattergories” or charades we considered an alternative. We asked, “what if we added a fun experience that also made a difference in the world?” It was then that we decided to make giving back a conscious component of our larger family gathering. I learned about so many great causes while writing “Growing Up Global,” the biggest challenge seemed: “which one to choose?” Luckily I found a solution to this conundrum at GlobalGiving (www.globalgiving.org). This terrific organization operates like an Amazon.com or an eBay for charitable giving in the U.S. and overseas. You can “shop” for the cause that most appeals to you and get involved as much or as little as you wish. So how does it work?

Between the main meal and dessert at our Thanksgiving feast last year we divided the family into teams. Each team had a laptop and navigated the GlobalGiving.org Web site (if you’re doing this with your family you can also play together around one computer). We allowed each group twenty minutes to come up with a team recommendation; then the entire group got to choose one charity from among these to support. Our family teams passionately debated the merits of providing lunches for students in Burkina Faso, or foster care for abandoned infants in the U.S. We were most challenged by having to decide on a single project — the needs of the world seemed too big to narrow our choices down in such a short time, or ever. Finally, we decided on a program supporting girls’ education in Afghanistan.

For foodie families like ours, proposing anything new at Thanksgiving took some getting used to. Responses ranged from skepticism to curiosity, and eventually, enthusiasm. The youngest ones came the most prepared. They proudly shared money saved from allowances and the tooth fairy, ranging from 78 cents to $3.00.

The challenge spurred a family discussion around the question “Why care?” Conversations with my kindergartner influenced even the most cynical members of our family. We talked about how all the people of the world function like a human body. Our liver might not be aware of our little toe, but if you hurt your little toe and the pain doesn’t go away, the whole body suffers. Likewise, we can be affected by someone far away. Their hunger or lack of schooling might not seem connected to us, but eventually it is –whether in the form of a global financial crisis or the spread of anger that turns into terrorism. Here’s another way of thinking about it: if we truly believe that all people are one family, God’s children, then we wouldn’t want our family to suffer.

Our goal wasn’t to raise big money, $10 dollars here, $5 dollars there would suffice but over the course of the game something else happened — wallets and checkbooks kept opening. For the rest of the evening and even into the New Year, our family’s conversations returned to the GlobalGiving experience and the girls’ school in Afghanistan. This year we’re taking things a step further with the “Great American Sleep-In.” Instead of braving the mall traffic on Black Friday to acquire one more gadget or tie for dad, we think we might help to transform a life in his name, with a gift that gives back through GlobalGiving.

Our little interlude between turkey and dessert helped open our eyes to tremendous and complex needs. At the same time, we felt optimistic and empowered that great things are being made possible by good people all over the planet. Their causes helped to unite us, from age 5 to 93, around a common vision of hope and giving. And for this, my family is truly grateful.

Homa S. Tavangar is the author of “Growing Up Global: Raising Children to Be At Home in the World,” released Fall 2009 by Ballantine Books, a division of Random House, and named a “Best New Parenting Book” from Scholastic Parent & Child. Visit her at www.growingupglobal.net. Join the “Great American Sleep In” at http://www.globalgiving.org/gifts-black-friday/

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2009/11/25/homa-tavangar-black-friday-giving-global-giving/#ixzz2CrsR4m3j

 

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Posted in Articles, Food, Giving, Global education, Global Giving, Golden Rule, Holidays, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »

Channel the Concern of a Sleepless Night

Wednesday, September 19th, 2012

“So many creative initiatives, like Free the Children, Ryan’s Well, and Wheels to Africa, began as a result of a caring child who was agitated after learning about an injustice perpetrated somewhere in the world. Their compassionate parents didn’t tell them to forget about those thoughts or that it’s “all okay.”  Instead, they helped the children develop a plan of action, find creative avenues for service, fundraise, and even engage in policy advocacy. This way, kids felt empowered to right a wrong and not stand helplessly or anxiously on the sidelines. These successful organizations all started because of a young child who was deeply affected by a situation they learned about in the world.”

This paragraph is excerpted from Growing Up Global, page 216.  I thought of it as I read about Hugh Evans, age 29.  Evans is the co-founder of the Global Poverty Project, which is organizing a massive concert on Central Park, September 29, 2012, to call attention to extreme poverty in developing countries.  According to a New York Times profile, his passion for this cause began at age 14, so he’s had fifteen years to hone his expertise in activism.  What a great example of impact that can be made when we start at an early age!

 

 

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Posted in Giving, Global education, Golden Rule | 3 Comments »

Spur the Global Economy – Stay Home and Make a Difference This Thanksgiving

Thursday, December 1st, 2011

(This piece has been featured on the Homepage of ABC’s Million Moms Challenge; with the full text on the blog here, on the Huffington Post, in Global Giving’s news and below.)

Feeling the pressure of tighter consumer spending, giant retailers catering to bargain hunters will open earlier than ever this Black Friday, on Thanksgiving Thursday.  Imagining the stampede of shoppers is enough to give me indigestion, even before I take a bite of turkey.  But it doesn’t have to be that way. My family has found a way to support the global economy by staying home and acquiring nothing – with a game that’s become a tradition.

Right after our Thanksgiving meal, we always play games like Scattergories or watch a classic movie, and now, whoever wishes from our big, opinionated extended family joins in for what has become known as our “Global Giving Game.”   As part of our day of abundant eating and giving thanks, giving back has become part of the routine everyone comes to expect.  Our giving game feels like a continuation of the prayer uttered before the meal – a conscious act uniting far-flung family members that come together for the holiday with each other and with those we’ve never met around the planet.

After about a 3-minute orientation on the GlobalGiving.org website we break into “teams” with about five people in each, depending on how many people have brought laptops.  Each team logs in to the GlobalGiving website and starts discussing various issue areas they might like to support – from democracy to disaster aid to education, maternal health and hunger.  The issues and possibilities can get overwhelming, and we need to accommodate ages ranging from six to ninety, so we deliberately wedge this “game” between dinner and dessert.  We give each team only about twenty minutes to come up with a recommendation that the entire group would then consider and vote on.

As the groups navigate the site, discussions around the computers get richer and more serious.  People were fascinated by the range of innovative programs and were drawn in by the desperate needs all over the world.  I heard the team of little girls talking with one of the grandmothers about what it’s like when there’s no clean water and the day must be spent walking to fetch water for the family instead of going to school, and another “team” discussing the merits of supporting computers in U.S. classrooms versus vaccines for kids in Africa.  Possibly the biggest challenge in the process was to get people to decide on a single project to recommend – they felt the needs were simply too big to narrow down their choices in such a short time.  This itself was a great learning experience.  The first year we were able to narrow it down to one choice between four teams: to support girls’ education in Afghanistan, as this satisfied interests for women’s empowerment, education, health, and U.S. and global security.  The second year we couldn’t narrow to just one, so we supported an education project in the United States , maternal health globally, and water wells at needy schools in Kenya.

Once we make the difficult choice of which project(s) to support, we put a wooden box in the middle of the coffee table for whoever wants to contribute an anonymous donation.  The youngest kids prepare in advance, so they bring their own money set aside from their savings.  It’s always exciting to count the total from our group effort.  We emphasize that this isn’t meant to replace personal philanthropic giving nor to put anyone on the spot, and we won’t pass around a collection box.  Our goal wasn’t to raise big money, but to give everyone a taste of this process.  The first year we raised $197, then, when we counted, my cousin’s 6-year old daughter ran to get her $3 and a brother-in-law gave his promised $0.27 worth to take us to a total of $200.27.

Each year the experience has far surpassed my expectations.  Amidst homemade pecan, pumpkin, key lime, and chocolate mousse pies and my mom’s amazing chocolate-swirled cheesecake, conversations about global issues inevitably continue across generations.  I noticed the next day so many of us had Facebook statuses that were inspired by our little Global Giving Game.

This year, with many of our family members signed on to the Million Moms Challenge, I’m looking forward to seeing what creative solutions we might find, and my now eight-year old and her cousins have already set aside allowance money to bring for the best bargain we might find on Black Friday – the “priceless” gifts of uniting as a family, learning, and making a difference in lives near or far.

The more we learned about the needs of families worldwide, the more we connected, taking to heart the simple fact: we all want to raise healthy babies and kids.

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Posted in Africa, Articles, Food, friends, Giving, Global education, Global Giving, Golden Rule, Holidays, Uncategorized, Women | No Comments »

ABC News/UN Foundation: Million Moms Challenge for World Food Day

Tuesday, October 25th, 2011

In honor of World Food Day, ABC News’ Million Moms Challenge asked me to write a piece that helps parents relate to the meaning of World Food Day and day-to-day concerns for their own families.  Here’s the link to the piece:  World Food Day and Beyond – 5 Steps to Raising an Adventurous and Healthy Eater!

As I try to raise my own adventurous eater, I hope that her journey toward experiencing the exciting palate of global flavors accompanies that of adequate food – and maybe even some choices – for ALL the world’s children, on World Food Day and beyond.

(Here’s the link to my first piece for ABC’s Million Moms Challenge:  Doing the Best I Can – Like the Hummingbird (A Tribute to Wangari Maathai and Heroic Mothers Everywhere)

 

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Posted in Africa, Food, Giving, Global education, Uncategorized, UNICEF, Women | No Comments »

5 Lessons I Learned Hosting An Exchange Student

Thursday, August 4th, 2011

(Originally posted on Huffington Post Education.)

We had been bracing ourselves for the last day of our exchange student “daughter” Lucie’s stay with us.  Over the year the five members of our family had each developed inside jokes with her, had favorite things to do, from actually enjoying practicing piano with her, to predicting the outcome of each episode of Top Model, to watching for exotic birds out the window.  We also had experienced a range of emotions together that only comes from living under the same roof as family.

Our last hearty American breakfast everyone pitched in to make was filled with surprises.  Lucie and her parents had thoughtfully selected and packaged gifts for each of the five of us, and it turns out the rest of my family had each selected or made personal mementos for her, too.  That sunny, late-June morning felt more like Christmas, but punctuated by heavy hearts and lots of tears.  And that’s where the biggest surprise came.  Saying good-bye brought out heartfelt emotions, where the closeness we had grown to feel for our new daughter and even our greater appreciation for the rest of our family felt so palpable.  In the midst of our collective, emotional good-bye, I realized that our giving had given so much to us: the life-long bond of a new member of the family, and many lessons – or gifts – we’ll carry throughout our lives.  Here are a few lessons I take from my year as a host mom:

  1. It’s Never the Perfect Time – So Just Do It.  When a friend called to tell us about the need for hosting a nice girl from abroad who could attend our local high school, the last thing I expected given my own busy professional schedule and full plate of activities for everyone in the family was to add another child (my kids were in 12th, 10th, and 2nd grades this past academic year).  Yet somehow when my husband and I discussed it between ourselves and then with our children, we thought ‘why not’ – we have many gifts, let’s share some.  As long as the student knew that we couldn’t entertain her like a tourist, and she attended our local public school, we thought we’d be ok.  And we were!
  2. Global understanding grows best when it’s personal and ‘local’.  Just short of moving abroad ourselves, hosting proved to be an unparalleled cultural education.  So many of our assumptions about her food, habits, or attitudes weren’t quite right, yet so many of our values – especially among the parents – were similar.  Given the need for our children’s generation to gain global competence for the jobs of the 21st Century, these personal experiences right from home will give them confidence in socializing, working, solving problems, and finding new ways to communicate with diverse colleagues and friends.
  3. Kids in many countries think the English word for “smile” is “CHEESE”! During unexpected moments, like posing for a picture, Lucie shared casual insights that you can’t learn from a book or a movie.  Sharing our day-in, day-out lives opened windows for refreshing surprises – the kind that you have to experience for yourself.
  4. Hosting an exchange student helps kids cultivate more meaningful, life-long relationships Unlike hanging out with a friend only when they’re in the mood, living under the same roof means riding to school at 6:45 a.m. when no one wants to be cheerful, eating dinner together after an exhausting day, and everything in between – in stark contrast to today’s texting and IM’ing among ‘friends’ whose experiences often remain superficial.  Adapting to living with someone raised by different parents can teach our kids much about their tolerance for different habits, and become better communicators and more cooperative, assertive, flexible, resilient, patient, grateful, compassionate and forgiving adults (and college students!).
  5. Life can be seen with a new lens.  Lucie took 17,732 photos from our year together (I’m not kidding – she counted and posted the number on Facebook, and yes, we are Facebook friends!), often at angles that we wouldn’t have considered.  After hearing this astounding number of snapshots, it struck me that her active camera offered a lens on the value of our family and the way we live our lives.  And yes, it also caused my daughters to smile more, argue less (a bit less), and maybe even grow from that process of reflection that a new family member and a new “lens” brings.

Of course, there are so many more reasons, and each host family experience will bring different lessons, or gifts, but it certainly is a step worth considering, especially in these highly connected, globally-changing times we live in, where face-to-face still wins over virtual friendship. If you’d like to learn more about hosting, EF Foundation has a great support network and track record for matching up U.S. families with pre-screened youth from around the world.

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Homa S. Tavangar is the author of Growing Up Global and is a spokesperson for EF Foundation for Foreign Study.

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Posted in Flexibility, Food, friends, Giving, Global education | No Comments »

Amidst US Heatwave, a Lesson on Drought and Famine in the Horn of Africa

Thursday, August 4th, 2011

(Originally posted on the Huffington Post’s “World” page)

In the midst of this intense heat wave I was looking forward to picking up my 8-year old from her day camp and getting our favorite treat – Philly water ice.  Over the course of the work day I strategized: passion fruit and mango with vanilla custard, or lemon peel and pear.  Facebook prowls accompanied my water ice distractions and that’s how I stumbled on UNICEF’s posting.

My Newsfeed is dotted with causes I care about.  Global Giving’s post encouraged a baby shower for the birth of a new nation, South Sudan, Momsrising discussed how to protect children and families in the US budget battle, and UNICEF’s update, accompanied by a graphic dust storm photo said:

“Somali refugees walk through a dust storm at a camp near the town of Dadaab. A worsening drought crisis threatens 10 million people in the Horn of Africa. The drought has resulted in famine in parts of southern Somalia and widespread malnutrition in Djibouti, Ethiopia and Kenya. UNICEF and partners are working to treat acute malnutrition and provide other critical assistance.”

I had heard bits about the worsening famine, but sweating from our high temperatures at home, this news struck me hard.  I could escape the heat and humidity with air conditioning, high speed internet, and cool treats.  But for families in the Horn of Africa, their suffering seemed to be heaped on more suffering – violence, lawlessness, growing fundamentalism and terrorism on top of drought, all fueling the intense famine.  In my work life, I help schools, families and diverse organizations gain a global perspective and make connections with the larger world – and our connections with that troubled region seemed closer this record-breaking summer.

When I picked up my youngest daughter, I told her about my concerns that day.

Me:  “Today I read about the famine and drought in the Horn of Africa – do you know what a famine is? A drought?  Let’s look up Horn of Africa on the globe and computer when we get home. … I want to do something to help those children.  Do you think we should skip the water ice?”

Daughter #3:  “Yes, I heard about the famine and drought in the car yesterday on NPR.  Weren’t you paying attention? No, let’s not skip our treat; how would that help them?”

She had a point, and we proceeded to a nearby shop.  When we got there we found police directing traffic and the strip mall closed, due to a heat-induced power outage.  So we continued to another neighborhood, where the line for water ice snaked around the building and by the time it was our turn, our favorite flavors were sold out.  We compromised with other choices and took about an hour longer than the simple errand should have, but it struck me that these little inconveniences contained lessons worth exploring.

Our car-ride conversation went something like this: While we live in comparatively great comfort, look at the disruption in our lives when it’s so hot, even just by a few degrees.  Places we want to go are closed.  More police are on the street.  Things become inconvenient.  Some of the things we like are not available.  It’s uncomfortable to be outside. This makes me think about what those families are going through in Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia, where there might be no reprieve from drought and heat until October.  What can we do to help?

Together we came up with a few action steps:

  • We wanted to make an immediate contribution to food for kids, so we texted “FOOD” to UNICEF (864233) where $10 will be added to my mobile phone bill.  The link here lists many others that offer reliable relief.
  • For that initial $10 donation we decided to buy one large water ice and split it, so that saved about $4, Sophia donated $2 from her own money and I’ll pay the rest.
  • We looked up some of the photos from the crisis to envision what is actually going on.  Then we watched National Geographic: Africa Desert Odyssey episode on Netflix instant stream.  This shows a different region, but it gives a glimpse into pastoral life with extremely limited water supplies – without the violence and intense misery, so I feel more comfortable showing an 8-year old.
  • We turned the air conditioner down in the house, to save energy and to feel a bit warmer, in solidarity with the families we had just learned about.
  • My daughter started planning a lemonade stand with friends. Instead of charging per cup sold, they ask for a donation to the famine relief effort.  Like Alex’s Lemonade Stand, neighborhood efforts can benefit favorite causes.
  • We also talked about the larger issue – our connection with the family of humanity.  In Growing Up Global I describe a metaphor that I grew up with, how humanity is like a single human body. Children get it: Even if a tiny splinter enters the tip of your pinky, the pain can disrupt playing or learning for the whole person.  Likewise, difficulties experienced by others even in places we’ve never heard of can disrupt peace and prosperity for everyone.  Metaphors from the familiar help build understanding about abstract or distant concepts.

 

Our small steps alone will not solve the crisis, but actions like these help build compassion, connection, greater understanding of the world’s challenges from a young age, and even cultivate creative problem solvers.  Collective action builds momentum and benefits the U.S., too.  When we support humanitarian efforts in places like Somalia, the allure of terrorist groups like Al-Shabaab, an Al-Qaeda affiliate might be diminished, and when we hear of elderly nearby that don’t have air conditioning or a newly unemployed or homeless American family we will be more willing and ready to think of ways to help, have empathy for their plight, and perhaps be a champion of justice – this is good for the whole human family.

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Posted in Africa, Giving, Global education, Global Giving, Golden Rule, Natural Events, UNICEF, War and Peace, Women | 2 Comments »

Action Alert – End Violence Against Women and Girls Internationally with I-VAWA

Tuesday, July 27th, 2010

I received an email today from the Tahirih Justice Center, an outstanding non-profit organization dedicated to protecting immigrant women and girls fleeing violence, about critical upcoming legislation that every mom will care about.  The International Violence Against Women Act (I-VAWA), groundbreaking bipartisan legislation that will dedicate US resources and leadership to fight violence against women worldwide,  is likely be taken up by the Senate in the next few weeks.  (For detailed information about I-VAWA, click here.)

Photograph by Sergio Pessolano for Tahirih Justice Center

With the August recess, upcoming elections, and a packed legislative agenda, it’s crucial that we press Congress to vote on I-VAWA before year-end, so that protection of vulnerable women and girls not fall by the wayside.

Support from members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee—including Senator Jim Webb (D-VA), Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN), Senator Johnny Isakson (R-GA), and Senator Bob Corker (R-TN)—is key for I-VAWA to move forward. By reaching out to these Senators, particularly if you are a constituent, you can make a game-changing difference.

In less than 3 minutes, you can a) call-in; b) send a Facebook appeal; c) build the movement by telling your friends; d) transform the lives of women and girls facing horrific violence worldwide. Please see below for instructions and sample scripts.

Phone Numbers for Key Senators:

Senator Webb (D-VA): (202) 224-4024
Senator Lugar (R-IN): (202) 224-4814
Senator Isakson (R-GA): (202) 224-3643
Senator Corker (R-TN): (202) 224-3344

When you call: ask to speak with the staffer who handles women’s issues or foreign affairs. If you are a constituent, remember to mention that (and give your address).

SAMPLE SCRIPT:

“I’m calling to urge Senator _____ to support the International Violence Against Women Act.”

“I support this bill because:

  • Violence against women and girls is a human rights violation occurring globally;
  • At least one in every three women worldwide has been beaten, coerced into sex, or otherwise abused in her lifetime; and
  • The International Violence Against Women Act supports measures to prevent violence, protect survivors and bring perpetrators to justice.”

Feel free to add additional reasons you care about ending violence against women. Also, if you can’t call Monday—still call! Anytime next week will still be within the critical window of opportunity we have to move the Senate to action on I-VAWA.
POSTING MESSAGES ON FACEBOOK: ALL WEEK (July 26-30)

Facebook page links for key Senators:

Senator Webb: http://www.facebook.com/jimwebb
Senator Lugar: http://www.facebook.com/senatorlugar
Senator Corker: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Bob-Corker/20966472424

SAMPLE MESSAGE:

One out of every three women worldwide will be physically, sexually, or otherwise abused during her lifetime.  We can take a stand right now to help end violence against women globally. Support and vote for the International Violence Against Women Act (I-VAWA) this month!

Please share this action alert with your friends so they can help impact the lives of millions of women and girls at risk of violence.

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Posted in Giving, Global education, Women | No Comments »

Tell Me Your Story – and Win a Global Giving Gift Card!

Wednesday, November 18th, 2009

Last night I met Connie Duckworth, founder of Arzu Rugs. In the Appendix of Growing Up Global I suggest Arzu among the beautiful ways to adorn your home and support gender equality, so it was very special to meet Connie passing through Philly. Arzu (meaning “hope” in Dari, and Farsi speakers will recognize this word too) creates sustainable means of income to break the cycle of poverty, utilizing beautiful hand-crafted rugs made by women in Afghanistan. Connie was inspired by the women’s story and founded the organization after 9/11/01 – yet another example of mobilization and hope after that tragedy. (See www.arzurugs.org.)

As we were talking, she mentioned good friends of hers that are Persian, like me. Turns out their cousins in Peru (!) are dear friends of mine, from my year living in Peru while I was in college. What a small world!

Win a Global Giving gift card!

Win a Global Giving gift card!

So, I ask you dear friends of Growing Up Global to share either:
1) an example of hope in the world that has inspired you – particularly an example of mobilizing in a positive direction following a particularly difficult experience, or
2) an example of a “small world” connection that you have experienced recently, particularly involving places and people that you didn’t expect to go together.

I have an actual prize – a Global Giving gift card! – for the top five entries. You can post directly on the Fan Page for Growing Up Global or email me your entry: homa@growingupglobal.net. These stories can be as short as a sentence or two – nothing fancy is needed, or as long as you wish. It’s just a way to start sharing more stories across this community.

And if you’ve never used a Global Giving gift card, you’re in for a treat! This is a way to learn, share, make a difference in the world (see www.globalgiving.com). Please re-post this note and share with more friends. My GlobalGiving friends are generous with the gift cards, so we would love to hear of many stories!

Hand detail an Arzu rug in Afghanistan - changing lives

Hand detail an Arzu rug in Afghanistan - changing lives

thanks and can’t wait to hear from you!!
-homa

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Posted in Events for Growing Up Global, Giving, Global education, Global Giving, Small World, Women | No Comments »

I Love Jane Goodall

Friday, October 30th, 2009
Dr. Jane + Mr. H - I met both on the train

Dr. Jane + Mr. H - I met both on the train

If you’ve seen the cover of Growing Up Global, you’ll notice the sunburst with the quote from Dr. Jane Goodall says: “fascinating ideas for giving young people opportunities to become truly global citizens.”  I was over the moon when Dr. Jane offered her feedback from reading a galley copy of the book.  Amidst her grueling schedule, travelling over 300 days a year, we managed to get a book to her while she waited for a flight at Heathrow airport, and she couldn’t have been more gracious and positive about it. This wasn’t the first time she’d heard of my project.  Our initial meeting took place on the Amtrak from Philadelphia to New York, four years ago.

We were on a full train, where the only open seats were the very last ones in the car.  These are the ones that look like a restaurant booth, with a table in between.  I thought I recognized the woman already in the seat across from mine.  I definitely knew it was her when, upon settling in, she took out a plush toy chimp from her bag (I think he’s “Mr. H”?) and placed it right on the table between us, just as I would place a magazine there.  At that time our eldest daughter was in seventh grade, concluding a Biography project – on Dr. Jane Goodall.  (I remember this because about half way into the ride I went into the ladies’ room to call Layla with the news: I excitedly whispered it and she screamed in return.)

A highlight of that fateful ride with the esteemed activist, scientist and trailblazer (who turned 75 earlier this year) and her capable right-hand person was the conversation we had around raising children to be at home in the world – to take responsibility, not live in fear, engage in making sincere connections, and embrace its beauty and possibilities.  She encouraged my dedication to the book.  She shared that indeed, the prime motivation of her work, including the work with wildlife, stems from her desire for peace in our world.  A society that respects its environment is much more likely to have peace.  Brutality to animals quickly spreads to fellow humans.  Take a look at her newest, heart-felt book, Hope for Animals and Their World.

Since that day I discovered a number of overlapping friends with the Jane Goodall Institute board and staff, particularly a graduate school mentor, Dr. David Shear, who recently stepped down as JGI’s Board Chair.  I’m honored to have a Growing Up Global gift basket included among the silent auction items at The 2009 Jane Goodall Institute Global Leadership Awards Celebration taking place at the Beverly Wilshire hotel near L.A. tonight.  I was told that only “items Jane loves” will be included in the auction.  Here’s a link to the invitation, with a Hollywood Who’s Who on the host committee, ranging from Barbra Streisand and Mary Tyler-Moore to Julia Louis Dreyfus, Ellen DeGenerus, and Ted Turner.

Included in the Growing Up Global basket, valued at $700, are:

  • A gift certificate to the lovely, globally-inspired children’s clothing from Tea Collection (www.teacollection.com).
  • An assortment of 7 family friendly foreign film DVDs PLUS a 3-month and a 6-month subscription to Film Movement (www.filmmovement.com).
  • Ten CDs from Putumayo World Music – five Putumayo Kids favorites and five top Putumayo World Music titles (www.putumayo.com).
  • Global Giving gift cards, to choose from causes and projects all over the world to invest in (www.globalgiving.com).
  • Two signed copies of Growing Up Global: Raising Children to Be At Home in the World – one to keep and one to give.

Thanks so much to these outstanding organizations – all striving to making the world a better place, and hoping to make a fraction of the dent that Dr. Jane so elegantly and courageously has dedicated her life to.

Tea Collection - For Little Citizens of the World

Tea Collection - For Little Citizens of the World

World Playground from Putumayo

World Playground from Putumayo

Film Movement - foreign and independents, for all ages

Film Movement - foreign and independents, for all ages

A Global Giving Gift Card

A Global Giving Gift Card

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Posted in Africa, Events for Growing Up Global, Giving, Global education, Jane Goodall, War and Peace, Women | No Comments »

Hurricane Katrina – Giving Knows No Bounds

Monday, August 31st, 2009
Acholi Women building a new future for themselves. See www.acholibeads.com

Acholi Women building a new future for themselves. See www.acholibeads.com

 Since the weekend, I have been remembering the toll on lives and a community, caused by Hurricane Katrina, exactly four years ago.  The following story shows incredible generosity, from an unlikely place; it also demonstrates how connected others around the world feel to us in America, and to fellow citizens of humanity.  Their giving knows no bounds.   (Excerpt from Growing Up Global: Raising Children to Be At Home in the World):

 “I have nothing and what I give is just a drop.

But added to the others will fill a cup.”

(Betty, of Acholi quarters slum in Kampala, Uganda, cited in a report from the Association for Volunteers in International Service.1)

 Betty is one of the hundreds of thousands of refugees from the gruesome, nineteen year civil war in northern Uganda. She and her fellow Acholi tribeswomen committed themselves to earning funds to send to the victims of Hurricane Katrina for their basic necessities, which resulted in over $1,000 being sent to Gulf Coast families.

This act of generosity is mind-boggling when you consider that the women’s income is less than $1 per day, and it is earned by pounding stones from the nearby quarry—by hand—that will be used in smaller pieces for road and housing construction.

The income barely supports their families, but these young and old women knew what it was like to lose their homes and were reaching out to help others who had lost theirs. They didn’t doubt this was something they needed to do, and they didn’t question if their contribution would make a difference.  Their astonishing generosity embodies the idea that one doesn’t need to be wealthy in order to help others. When Americans have experienced true need and crises, the world community has pitched in to help us, just as Americans give abundantly to benefit countless causes around the world. It’s important to share these lessons with our children—everyone can find some way to give, and people around the world have cared for Americans in need, just as Americans have reached out to the world.

(Note:  The women in the photo with this blog are not the same ones who earned the $1,000 to send to Katrina victims, but they are fellow Acholi’s, coming from similar circumstances.  They are involved in an income generation-empowerment model making beautiful jewellry from recycled materials that are sold around the world:  www.acholibeads.com.  Programs like this help re-build their community after a devastating tragedy.)

 

 

  

1.  “Giving beyond limits: Women of Acholi Quarters Breaking Stones for Katrina Victims,”

October 17, 2005; from http://www.avsi-usa.org/news

Posted in Africa, Giving, Global education, War and Peace, Women | No Comments »