What would you say if I gave your donations to someone whom (until recently) I never met, who used it on a country I've never been, and helped people I've never seen?
What you would get is this video:
First, it must be said that this is far less sketchy than it seems. Rohan was a friend of mine long before I sent him a dime. I trusted him enough as a friend before I entrusted him with part of this project. That, of course, does limit how often I can do things like this.
Second, there is a specific reason I wanted ...
Why I Went to VidCon
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VidCon. In a word? WOW. As one friend put it, "it's like the internet exploded into real life". It was surreal, amazing, & awesome to meet people that I've only been able to see through my computer screen.
Even though there wasn't nearly enough time, I'm in awe at how seamlessly online friends turned into "real life" friends. In most cases it's like you've known someone for ages and are just hanging out.
[caption id="attachment_2488" align="aligncenter" width="482" caption="This photo makes me look more ...
My 5 Fact Pitch to Save the Children
It's the first of April, and I'm standing in a dimly lit room with a bright projector light blinding me. In front of me, some high ranking officials who came to hear me speak. This is no April's Fools joke: this was my presentation to Save the Children USA's Global HQ.
[caption id="attachment_2423" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Save the Children's USA HQ (pic by Madge Canning)"][/caption]
After an hour of Keynote slides, graphs, and videos I was pleased to see that my presentation was well received. Lots of nodding heads. But I needed one more thing. I need to drive the message home. It ...
Does Steve Jobs Care about Global Poverty?
Less than 24 hours ago, Apple surpassed Microsoft to become the world's biggest tech company. As someone who used to spell Microsoft with a dollar sign, I can't believe what I'm about to say: this is a bad thing for the world.
The only thing I love more than Apple is what I use my Mac gear for: fighting poverty in developing countries. In this regard, unlike Microsoft & Bill Gates, Apple & Steve Jobs don't seem to care much about poverty and global development.
[caption id="attachment_2235" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="One runs the biggest tech company in the world, the other is a global ...
“What about the taxes?” asked one of the students. It was my last day of talks at the American International School in Dhaka. I was in the middle of recounting my experience doing Cyclone Sidr Disaster Relief. Everything seemed to be going well – but this question kind of threw me off.
“Uhh… taxes?” I asked. Before the student replied, I quickly gave him one good look and realized that he – unlike most of the students in the classroom – wasn’t an expatriate. Rather, he was among the small percentage of Bangladeshis that were actually rich enough to be able to send their children to this school. Judging by the expensive and fashionable Western clothing, perfectly matching accessories, and perfectly styled hair – he was from a rather well-to-do family.
“Yeah, you see,” he started to explain, “if local families wanted to give aid to the Cyclone victims using their own name – they weren’t allowed to do so. They had to give it to the military to distribute instead. And, anything we gave could be taxed. Don’t you think that’s a problem? A lot of people didn’t give aid because of that,”
I made a slight groan underneath my breath. Find out why after the jump…
What great disapointment [sic] Mr Shawn .. All talk and no action
This was actually the fourth message I received from this person (not counting emails). At first it was just a few form letters and forwarded messages. But, eventually, the messages became more and more frequent and less and less professional. I eventually decided to block this person. Who was this person? Believe it or not, this was a founder and chairperson of a small but internationally renowned charity here in Dhaka.
I’d like to say that I got off on the wrong foot with this person… but the fact is I didn’t even have a chance to properly correspond with this person. It’s been increasingly hard to keep up with all the messages and comments people send me via YouTube, email, and Facebook. I try my best to reply to as many as I can. But, what often goes on the backburner are messages that are soliciting me to collaborate on a business (or social business) venture and/or requests to give some of the money that I have recently raised.
I know it’s important to team up with larger organization and like-minded individuals. I try and do so as often as I can. It’s just that with so many new people trying to contact me, it’s hard to keep up. Even my speaking event at the American International School in Dhaka took three months to arrange. I’m just one guy – it’s often hard to juggle everything that’s been going on as this project gains more and more interest. It’s for this reason – and my desire to avoid more messages like those I’ve recently received – that I’d like to mention a few things to any potential solicitor:
Please realize I can’t possibly reply to every email that I receive.
Please do not take my lack of response as a rebuke of your work or your idea.
Please understand that, even if I pursue some options with others and not you, it doesn’t mean your idea/request is not equally as valid or good.
Please also understand that, even though I am currently in Bangladesh, I fully intend to adhere to both US and Canadian law. This means that I have to be extra cautious when deciding who to team up with and who gets any of the money I’ve raised.
Finally, please keep your correspondence professional. As much as I’ve disappointed some people due to my lack of replies, the greater disappointment is finding out that many people believe that they are the gate-keepers for action and making a difference. Respectfully, even if I don’t pursue anything with you, it doesn’t mean I’m not making a difference.
In this episode, I talk about starting to accept donations, paying it forward, and what it’s like to talk to high school students at the American International School in Dhaka about The Uncultured Project.
What does Christmas, Islam, America, and Bangladesh have in common? I talk about these topics and more in this episode. This is mostly just a blog where I talk about what it’s like spending Christmas for the first time in my life away from my parents. I also give thanks to people who have helped spread the word about the Uncultured Project.
I also make reference to America’s help in saving lives after Cyclone Sidr. Normally, when you hear about American troops in the news – it’s in the context of the Iraq, Afghanistan, and the War on Terror. You probably didn’t know that some of the most amazing work done by American forces is in the area of disaster relief. I make reference to operation Sea Angel II in this video. You can see the work of the United States Marine Corps in this video:
Myth #1: Extreme poverty has always existed in human history and will always exist.
Myth #2: Anyone claiming global poverty can be eliminated is asking for “communist” or “socialist”-style massive economic redistribution.
Myth #3: People living in Muslim-countries hate America.
Hopefully this new episode I uploaded to YouTube will provide some hope that these beliefs are just myths. At the very least, watching the video you can find out what happens when you show off an American flag near a Mosque while the call to prayer is being broadcast (Spoiler alert: I don’t get shot).
I actually started my first blog over eight years ago. I had stopped when I came to a realization: I’m boring. Writing about my life isn’t at all interesting. So, when it came to making a blog for this project – I tried my best to avoid blogging about personal issues. In hindsight, that was a bad idea. There are a lot of good stories that I haven’t talked about simply because they didn’t connect with any issues directly relating to the project.
For example, there was this time when I had to fight with Arab security at an airport in the Middle East. They had confiscated my Notre Dame branded Nalgene bottle because they said it was too big of a water bottle to take onto the plane (even though I had been permitted to bring it on board my connecting flight by airport security in North America). I refused to leave the security checkpoint without it. This was admittedly a very bad move – my passport was confiscated and I was surrounded by security forces. A female family member who had traveled along with me tried to plea with them. This only angered them because apparently, in that country, women are forbidden to talk to men who aren’t family. How we were able to leave in one piece – with my Notre Dame bottle returned to me no less – is quite the story.
Fear, uncertainty, and doubt are key elements to any successful military curfew. The goal is to not to intimidate the population with what they know you are doing, but rather make worry about what they are not sure you are doing. With a military imposed media blackout, those tuning into BBC World news for foreign news find that when the story about Dhaka and the Bangladesh military curfew airs – the broadcast suddenly becomes filled with static. Coincidence or intentional? The BBC correspondent – filing his report via cellphone – cuts off in mid-report. Bad connection or was he cut off on purpose? If there is uncertainty and doubt – there is fear. And thus, there is control.
With my previous post, I had hoped that the military had yet to catch up to the internet age. Despite a media blackout and blocking of cellphone calls, I was still able to upload photos to flickr and use gmail and MSN messenger. Today, the internet has slowed to a crawl. The gateway connecting Bangladesh to the internet via transatlantic cables have been shut down. Even with V-Sat backup connections, websites like BBC World News and services such as Gmail, and MSN Messenger fail to load at all. Even Facebook, which has always been reliable, suddenly displays a message reading “Hey, your account is temporarily unavailable due to site maintenance”. Coincidence? Or intentional?
It’s times like this that the freedom enjoyed by Americans and other Western nations is put in perspective. Even with cameras on street corners, warrant-less wiretapping, or other Big Brother-esque infringements – Americans and much of the Western World have much to be grateful for.
About this Project
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. It’s about inspiring others to believe that we can be the generation that ends extreme poverty. Hopefully, this project can also show the big multinational organizations that there is a better way to engage people on the issue of global poverty.
About Me
I'm Shawn - a 29 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.
