Haphazardly Trying to Make the World a Better Place. Inspired by my time as a student at the University of Notre Dame.
My parents always told me I tend to focus on the negative. I had given over 30 blankets on the day this photo was taken (not the 30 I gave with Save the Children - that was another batch of blankets I had bought).
Some kids, like the one on the right, were lucky enough to get one. Others, like the other kid in the photo, were left shivering in the cold. Why is it that I can sometimes forget the faces of the kids that I’ve helped, but manage to never forget the ones I couldn’t?
I'm Shawn - a 27 year old Canadian from Toronto. Before starting this project, I was a graduate student on scholarship at Notre Dame University. My life took a turn after I met Dr. Jeffrey Sachs (author of the book "The End of Poverty") when he came to give a speech at Notre Dame. That speech inspired me to withdraw from grad school, liquidate my savings, and begin this journey to try and make the world a better place - one meaningful difference at a time.
This is Matt - a friend of mine from Notre Dame. Matt was able to bring a little bit of this project to Uganda as part of his two month summer internship with a Ugandan NGO. With the help of the online community that is supporting this project, he was able to help several grandmothers become sustainable self-employed farmers. Unfortunately, you won't find Matt on this blog as often as me because he's back at Notre Dame finishing his undergraduate degree.
Hi Shawn, thank you for such an inspiring project. I took the liberty to use your Creative Commons picture on an article on aid to victims of the Cyclone Sidr. You can find that article here: http://www.globalvoicesonline.org/2008/01/05/bangladesh-cyclone-sidr-relief-efforts/
thanks for making a difference in people´s lives.
Hi Juliana, that was a really great article you wrote. Thank you for mentioning me. I love sharing my work - so I’m really glad you took advantage of the CC license I use