Artwork stating 'Education Destroys Barriers', 'We Demand Treatment', and 'I Need A Chance'

Search Results

You searched for: -

There are 929 results  for your search.  View and Refine Your Search Terms

  • Turning Rural Indians Into Water Entrepreneurs

    In rural communities throughout India, having access to clean water does not always come easy. Sarvajal, originally a non-profit experiment, believes that water insecurity is a solvable issue, however. By helping those living in the rural communities take ownership through entrepreneurship, common sense, and the patience to reinvent old systems with more efficient technology, the group has achieved the ability to distribute small reverse-osmosis filtration plants and Water ATMs throughout the northwestern Indian states.

    Read More

  • The ‘Avon Ladies' of Africa

    A successful program in Uganda trains village women to sell medicines, fortified foods and other important goods using the Avon model, aiming to create a self-sustaining system for delivering essential health products.

    Read More

  • Innovative funding model allows urban poor to determine their own future

    Though well-meaning, many poverty alleviation and development efforts treat the receivers of aid as subjects rather than capable people. Urban Poor Fund International, the first global fund to give poor people direct control over urban development spending, is having more than just a local impact.

    Read More

  • There IS a Bicycle Economy, Two Cities Find

    Conventional merchants are afraid to lose parking spaces to bike parking or bike lanes. New York and Portland are finding cyclists increase local economies, and spend more money too.

    Read More

  • For Ambitious Nonprofits, Capital to Grow

    Funding with too many strings attached makes it hard for non-profits to grow and be impactful. An American organization, Nonprofit Finance Fund (N.F.F.) Capital Partners division, is finding ways to finance non-profits likes companies and has already shown great success in pilot situations.

    Read More

  • The Promise of Social Impact Bonds

    When a government needs to invest in an expensive capital project — a new sewer system, bridge or highway — it issues bonds. The hot new idea in social programs – finance prevention programs to cut recidivism, reduce homelessness or keep kids in school by selling bonds, to be paid only if the program is a success.

    Read More

  • The Microinsurance Revolution

    If rich people need life insurance, poor people need it more. Here’s how millions of poor people are getting it – including people with AIDS.

    Read More

  • Green Roofs in Big Cities Bring Relief From Above

    New York City black tar roofs cause a number of environmental problems, including air pollution, heat absorption that raises energy consumption, and storm water runoff in the sewer system. Efforts to turn these old roofs into green spaces cool the buildings, enable the containment of more rainfall, reduce sewer discharge, generate energy, and absorb carbon emissions. New York City has a pilot program offering financial help for green roofs.

    Read More

  • The Multiplier Effect: Driving Haiti's recovery by spending aid dollars locally

    Building Markets, an NGO, has connected Haitian businesses with foreign NGOs who can funnel humanitarian aid through the local suppliers and manufacturers in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake of 2010. Typically, the majority of contracts are granted to international contractors which are easier for foreign NGOs to vet but when contracts are granted to local vendors, the "multiplier effect" allows more money to flow through the local economy and employ Haitians. A directory built by Building Markets allows foreign investors to easily find trustworthy local businesses.

    Read More

  • One Acre Fund: a Nonprofit's Business Approach to Helping Small Farmers

    International development organization One Acre Fund opts to set up shop in rural locations like Bungoma, Kenya rather than major cities like New York and Nairobi and treat its stakeholders as customers instead of beneficiaries. This non-profit's business-like approach has helped it grow from 5,000 farm families in 2006 to 125,000 in 2012, and around 99 percent of families repay their farm loans. As One Acre Fund farmers sell their excess produce, they can invest in basic necessities like education for their children.

    Read More