Dear Supporters of Invisible Children,
A lot of you may be confused at all the criticism that Invisible Children (IC) has faced as of late. Perhaps you feel that this criticism is coming from people who fail to understand the mission and nature of IC. Alternatively, perhaps, you may feel that this criticism - while having some merit - has been unfairly blown out of proportion.
What I think needs to be understood is that there is no such thing as black and white. Invisible Children, as an organization, isn't some nefarious evil group robbing people of their money. But, at the ...
We Speak For Ourselves
When it comes to international aid and development, we are all biased. It doesn't matter if you're a donor reading pamphlets, a celebrity or YouTuber endorsing your favorite NGO, a journalist interviewing villagers, an academic outside of the ivory tower, an experienced aid professional talking about "good aid", or even a free agent trying to be a bridge-maker.
There is nothing nefarious about this fact. We as human beings, while capable of untold capacities for empathy, will never have a complete verstehen and fully imagine the complexity of others. This is important because the arbiters of what is and is not ...
5 Steps for NGOs to Move from Guilt to Empowerment
My thoughts on how charities need to drop the guilt is getting tons of views. But the question remains: how does a charity drop the guilt? Can they do it overnight? Cold turkey?
As I mentioned some charities, like the US-branch of Save the Children, have already stopped using "poverty porn". I'd like to share something I've talked to them about behind closed doors.
I guess you can call it a 5 Step Program for NGOs using guilt:
3 Reasons Charities Need to Drop the Guilt
[caption id="attachment_3629" align="aligncenter" width="473" caption="A Charity Guilt-Ad Currently Airing in Canada"][/caption]
It's 2011 and we still live in a world where many charities think that the best way to raise funds to help those in need is by using guilt.
This needs to stop and here are three reasons why:
$18 Billion Dollars is twice the amount allotted for the mass transit stimulus package. That money would be used to shore up America’s roads and bridges – and help make sure that tragedies like the bridge that collapsed in Minnesota never happens again.
$18 billion dollars is also 12 times the amount needed to provide every man, woman, and child in Africa a long-lasting insecticide treated mosquito net that would protect them from malaria for 5 years or more.
Whether or not you think this is a convenient time to be worried about fighting global poverty, let’s never again say there isn’t enough money.
The World Economic Forum wanted to tap into the power of YouTube in an attempt to become more transparent, more open, and more democratic. Unfortunately, the more things change, the more they stay the same.
The World Economic Forum – a gathering of influential people and world leaders in Davos, Switzerland – has garnered the reputation of being a bit of a closed door venue. It’s an invitation only event and isn’t open to the public. That is, until the World Economic Forum turned to YouTube.
Starting last year, the World Economic Forum opened it’s (virtual) doors by allowing anyone to submit their thoughts to Davos. It was a good idea, but their first start had a lot to be improved upon. I had written about it on this blog when it happened – I was really excited at the idea, but was disappointed with the original execution.
This year, it seemed that the World Economic Forum had learned from its first run and was coming back stronger than ever. Instead of just submitting videos that were to be spliced into a clip show, one lucky person was to be flown to Davos to interact with those attending. And best of all? The YouTube community would help pick the winner.
Unfortunately, I was left with an overwhelming sense of déjà vu and disappointment. Click the jump to find out why.
YouTube is more than a website to host your videos. The problem is that, especially when it comes to non-profit organizations and charities, most don’t realize that. When I first started this project, most of what I could find on YouTube on the issue of global poverty (coming from charities and non-profits) were generic TV spots, fundraising videos, and mini-documentaries that were uploaded to YouTube as an afterthought.
That’s not how you build interest in your cause….
I’ve been trying my best to change the conversation about global poverty – that is making things less guilt-inducing, less donation-obsessed, more personal, and trying to use the power of the internet in a way formal organizations aren’t. Thanks to you guys, you’ve turned this informal project (with no next to no budget) into the most popular anti-poverty related channel on YouTube. It’s good to see that a lot of formal organizations are now following suit. Since starting this project, The ONE Campaign has started a vlog (of sorts), charities like Save the Children are really stepping up, and I’m now there are gems from organizations I never knew even existed.
But that’s just the start. There is so much more to convey about what charities and orgs should be doing that just following this blog or my YouTube channel isn’t going to convey it all. Fortunately, a good friend of mine has recently come out with a book which I hope will become the definitive guide for every charity, organization, and non-profit out there seeking to advance their cause on YouTube. It’s called “YouTube: An Insider’s Guide to Climbing the Charts” and it’s available from Amazon right now.
The book devotes a chapter to charitable causes on YouTube, talks about the Project for Awesome, and talks about the importance of the YouTube community. It also includes an exclusive interview with me If you see my approach as something your organization or charity should be emulating – I highly recommend you check this book out. [Full Disclosure: I wasn't paid for my interview in this book, I don't make a dime off of any of the sales of this book, and even the Amazon referral link I'm using isn't mine but gives referral money to one of the authors]
One of the many reasons I came back home for a break was that my LaCie harddrive (the one with all my important footage on it) had died in Bangladesh just three months after being purchased. It was quite an ordeal getting that harddrive to Bangladesh in the first place. I had heard of a professor from the states who was flying into Bangladesh and was wiling to bring some equipment for me. I ordered this drive from Amazon.com and sent it to him and he brought it to Bangladesh for me. Three months later, I was flying back home with it because it died. Epic fail.
You’d think that I’d have that drive fixed or replaced by now. Although I was able to pick up a cheap replacement (a Western Digital MyBook) from Costco – I still haven’t been able to fix my LaCie harddrive. That’s because, even though I’m just a short subway ride from LaCie’s main office in Canada, they won’t just let me drop the unit off for warranty repair. And, as I just found out today, they won’t accept this harddrive for repair at all. The reason? Because even though I’m a Canadian and registered the product with my home address in Canada, since it was purchased outside of Canada, they won’t touch it.
I have a total of four LaCie harddrives and I’m glad to say that this is the only drive of mine that has ever failed. But, after this experience, I wouldn’t recommend LaCie to anyone. If anyone has any contacts or ability to help me with this issue with LaCie – please don’t hesitate to contact me.
I plan to make a new video in the next few days – which will be more of a vlog. In it I’ll be mentioning that, unless I can find a way to make my project financially sustainable, by this time next year I will (most likely) have to end this project.
With the exception of Vestergaard-Frandsen‘s help getting me to Kenya for a couple of weeks, all the expenses of this project (airfare, living expenses, equipment, etc) have been paid by my life savings and by borrowing from my family. I ran my life savings dry halfway through last year and, to keep going, I’ve been borrowing from family to do this project. My dad has been the biggest source of financial support but it looks like he’s planning to retire in about a year’s time.
It was two years ago – almost to the day – that I filed my withdrawal papers at Notre Dame. Back then, I never thought this project would for go on for so long. Now, I don’t want it to end. There are so many exciting ideas rolling around in my head. I’d need more than a year just to do even half the stuff I’m dreaming of. But honestly? Not many people have parents as supportive as mine. Even if I can only do this for another twelve months, I should still consider myself a lucky guy.
Over the next twelve months, I’m going to go ahead full-steam and I’m still accepting donations (which continue to be for the poor – not for my living expenses, equipment, or airfare). But, on top of it all, I’m going to be keeping my eyes out for ways to keep this project going into next year. So far, YouTube partnership money has been ridiculously small – not even enough to cover a single month’s expenses. But, I’m hoping if there is a will there will be a way. I mean, Matt Harding was able to get the support of a gum company to help him dance around the world – twice! Surely, there is a way for me to keep this journey of fighting global poverty going
This is not a charity, organization, or anything formal. It’s my journey to try and make the world a better place - one meaningful difference at a time. To learn more click here.
YouTube is more than a website to host your videos. The problem is that, especially when it comes to non-profit organizations and charities, most don’t realize that. When I first started this project, most of what I could find on YouTube on the issue of global poverty (coming from charities and non-profits) were generic TV spots, fundraising videos, and mini-documentaries that were uploaded to YouTube as an afterthought.
If you see my approach as something your organization or charity should be emulating – I highly recommend you check this book out.
