Blog Action Day Poverty -- Do Something!

Now that we're thinking and talking about poverty, it's time to do something. I sometimes find myself trapped in a cycle of researching and discussing, unable or unwilling to break out of my comfort zone and take action. Since returning from the Equality Ride, I have been intentional about finding ways to take action--and then following through. Here are some ways that you can help address poverty in our world.

Learn.
In order to be an effective advocate and ally, I need to understand what I'm dealing with. I need faces, names, and experiences to ground what might otherwise become abstractions. While "poverty" is a macro-concern, there are families and children, parents and neighbors, who have stories. This is more than an issue to manage, it is lives to support. World Vision Australia put together an excellent resource, appropriately titled Learn About Poverty. In addition to information about poverty, there's also concrete ways that you can get involved:

• Video on child and slave labor
• What is ethical consumerism?
• And more!

Invest
It is easy for me to think of people living in poverty as victims who need to be rescued. When I understand them as potential partners, everything changes. I don't come alongside people living in poverty out of guilt, shame, or even pride; but rather to learn and grow. As you know, I've started investing in small-business owners by micro-lending through Kiva. That's one way!

You can also sponsor a child through World Vision. This program puts a name, a face, and an experience on global poverty and--I think--enriches the sponsor just as much as the sponsored.

Communicate
My friend Dave O'Brien (director of Equality U) works for an organization called Causecast which is a place to explore issues while connecting with others who want to make a difference. Surf their site to find life-changing causes which you can support, network with like-minded others, and sound off about what you care about. Charity:Water works to bring life-saving water wells to communities in developing nations.

Tell us what you care about and how you're making a difference. No seriously, leave a comment. Knowing that others are out there makes it easier for me to get motivated. Communication is crucial.

Collaborate
Blog Action Day is about bringing together a chorus of voices together in unison. Together, we are taking poverty awareness to a new level. But what about tomorrow? What will rush in to fill the void? I propose, action. Tomorrow is World Food Day, visit World Vision's World Food Day section to find out how you can get involved. From prayer, to one-time donations, and to child sponsorship, you can take what you've learned during Blog Action Day and put it into action on World Food Day. Come back tomorrow and share what you've done!

Imagine
"You can do no great things, only small things with great love." What am I leaving out? What will we do today--and tomorrow, and the next day!--to address poverty in our communities and in our world. How will we interrupt cycles which create and sustain poverty? How will we support those working to climb out of poverty? How will we learn from and collaborate with people in poverty? How will we bring the reality of poverty to the public consciousness? Let's start dreaming and see what takes shape!

Blog Action Day: What Is Poverty?

A week or so ago, I stumbled upon a video while surfing the web. It asks, "What is poverty?" Today is Blog Action Day, a day when bloggers around the world come together to raise their collective voices in unison. This year, we're talking about poverty. As I've been thinking about what it means to make a living wage, what community looks like, and what I live for, I have also been asking, what is poverty? Why is there homelessness? How am I part of the problem? And what am I missing out on? This video has given me much to think about. I'll have more posts coming, but first, share your reactions! Have you ever lived in or near poverty? Have you ever been friends with people in poverty? If not, what are some of your assumptions about poverty, people living in poverty, the causes and effects of poverty? Share share!

My MacBook Makes Me Rich

When I saw a video documenting a radical sharing of wealth outside of the New York Stock Exchange, I began to think and investigate wealth and income in America and the world.

A BBC article and study by the World Institute for Development Economics Research report that the wealthiest 2% of the world control over half of global wealth; in contrast, the poor half of the world has barely 1% of the world's wealth. In a discussion over at OmniNerd, one commenter said,

So if the top 2% own 50% of all household wealth and the poorer bottom half owe 1%, that only leaves 49% for teacher and government employees.

Another noticed,

That's actually an interesting way of looking at the numbers in this study. If 2% own 50%, and 50% own 1%, then it follows that the remaining 48% of the population owns 49% of the world's wealth. So, wealth distribution is actually pretty equitable for around 3.1 billion people, and that's not too bad, right?

Pointing out that numbers can often be spun for an agenda, this commenter is right in remarking that for just under half the population--the upper half of the population, excluding the elite rich--wealth distribution is "even." I got to wondering though, is this 48% of the world really "teachers and government employees" as the first commenter suggested?

Cue Global Rich List, a service developed by a company in the UK to assess your personal income in comparison to the rest of the world. I plugged in my entry-level salary (in television, granted) and found that I am in the richest 0.98% of the world. Some sleuthing found the calculations use data from 2003 & 1999 ... but still.

Am I an anomaly? According to the US Census Bureau, the median household income was $44,344... that would place you in the upper 1.98% of the world's wealthiest. The "average American" is, it seems, a part of the world's elite rich. AFT found that the average teacher salary was $47,602 in the 2004-05 school year. Teachers are among the world's uber-rich, not among the 48% of the world's population which has it's fair share of wealth. We are a part of the small group that controls 50% of the world's wealth. Wow.

When asked, "Why are you doing this?" the folks over at Global Rich List responded,

We are obsessed with wealth. But we gauge how rich we are by looking upwards at those who have more than us. This makes us feel poor.

We wanted to do something which would help people understand, in real terms, where they stand globally. And make us realise that in fact most of us (who are able to view this web page) are in the privileged minority.

We want people to feel rich. And give some of their extra money to a worthwhile charity.

MSN Money looks at the question of wealth a different way, assessing household wealth rather than income. Got $2,200? The computer you're reading this on is probably worth about that much. You're in the wealthiest half of the world. $61,000 worth of assets (cars, houses, possessions, savings, investments, etc) places you in the top 10% of the world. Phew.

What does this mean for me? I'm not really sure, but I know that I'm thankful.

Meet Patricia Amalia Lopez Ugalde

Patricia has been divorced from her husband for some time. She receives a pension, but, like many mothers in this country, she wants to give a better life to her 4 small ones. She believes that, if she is a strong and hard-working woman, her children will follow her example.

She started her business 2 years ago. First she helped another woman work, but, since a year ago, she has had her own business selling clothing and novelties.

I invested $25 in Patricia's business and 16 other investors contributed similar amounts. Together, we've invested $500 dollars so that Patricia can buy more display racks and lighting for her store. Over the next 6 months, she'll repay the loan and I can either get my money back or invest in someone else. Stay tuned for updates on Patricia's expanding business!

If you're inspired by Patricia's story and would like to help other business owners of the world's working poor, visit Kiva.org today.