One Member of a Seven Person Family

By: Ryan Barrett
Ryan is co-founder of the Allowance for Good Associate Board. To learn more about Ryan, read his bio here. 

I was born March 10, 1988 with my two triplet sisters – Meghan and Kathleen. On March 2, 1989, our sister – Patti – was born. On March 9, 1990, our brother – T.J. – was born. In other words, I’m one of a five kids in a ridiculously compact family.

Ryan, center, with his four siblings.

My siblings and I were all very fortunate to grow up in a household that fostered each of our individual curiosities, strengths, weaknesses, passions, you name it! On any given Saturday, it wouldn’t be so out of the ordinary to be at my sister’s swimming meet in the morning, another sister’s track meet before lunch, my basketball game in the afternoon, my brother’s soccer practice after that, and my other sister’s piano recital after dinner. We did a lot, and we did a lot together. We were lucky.

Coming from a large family, I learned humility at a very early age. Regardless of what any of us had been doing or how we had been doing at it – whether good or bad – we were each just one member of a seven person family. Now, that’s not to say that victories weren’t applauded and losses weren’t consoled. It just means that my parents engrained in each of us that not one member of our family was any more (or less) important than any other member of our family. That same virtue rung true throughout all aspects of our lives – from the classroom to the locker room to the kitchen table – and with each person we interacted with.

As I grew up and began to get involved in volunteering and philanthropic activities, I developed an appreciation for how fortunate my siblings and I had been to have had the supporting environment that we grew up in and to have had garnered the experiences that ultimately led my triplet sisters and me to Northwestern University. I, again, was humbled and I wanted to give back.

Ryan on a Global Business Brigades trip, Panama.

Going into my junior year of undergrad, I came across an organization – Global Business Brigades (GBB) – that sought to ‘empower undergraduate students to develop sustainable micro enterprise in (at the time, only) Central America.’ I knew I had found my avenue to give back. Over the next two years, I co-founded a GBB chapter, recruited 30 fellow undergraduate students, and organized two trips to Puerto Lara, Panama. Over those two trips, our Northwestern team developed a sustainable eco-tourism business for the indigenous Wounaan Indians of Puerto Lara that will benefit the community for years to come.

GBB enabled me to realize the copious need in our world and the reality that I could actually do something about it. My involvement with GBB made tangible a world to me that had previously only been anecdotal. Once realizing my potential to improve those peoples’ lives less fortunate than me, I very much enjoyed acting on it. I will be acting on that creed the rest of my life.

Allowance for Good empowers youth by making them aware of the same realization I experienced my junior year in college. AfG, then, supplements that awareness by providing the framework for youth that suggests how they can go about actualizing their potential to influence such positive change. Armed with thoughtful programming and inspirational leadership, AfG will continue to educate the next generation of global citizens – providing the very roots of global awareness and philanthropy that will surely enable the future ripples that will leave our world a better place. I am excited to be a part of those ripples.

Building a Philanthropic Foundation for Future Endeavors

By: Nate
Nate was a participant in Allowance for Good's Autumn 2014 Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy: Explorers class. 

I have really enjoyed my classes at Allowance for Good.

Before my first class, I honestly did not know how to define philanthropy, so I looked it up. According to Webster’s dictionary, philanthropy is goodwill or the active effort to promote human welfare.  Again, I found another unfamiliar word – goodwill. I researched further because other than donating our closes and used items to Goodwill, I needed more explanation. According to Webster’s dictionary, goodwill is a feeling of support.  I was starting to catch on.  My family has consistently helped our community cooking at soup kitchens, donating money and items, and helping with other service projects.  I have grown about with the understanding that it is necessary to support to not only community but humankind especially those less fortunate then myself.  It is part of who I am as a student, an athlete, a brother and son and a member of my church to help others.  Although looking back, I see the ways I have helped (another student or my younger siblings with school work, a teammate with a drill, or a hungry person at a soup kitchen), I have a better understanding of what philanthropy is and how I want to continue with bigger projects to help a greater number of people, and not just random acts of kindness.

I would like to continue to be a philanthropist and young catalyst for good after ELP by exploring the issue of poor children’s basic right to adequate medical care.  I would like to go to college and study medicine and eventually become a doctor. My hope is to discover a cure for cancer.  I know that there are millions of children around the world that do not have access to basic medicine such as vaccines or prescription drugs when they get sick.  I know that many children die from diseases and viruses that are either preventable with vaccines or curable with medicine, but the children die because they are not treated.  It is important to me that all children are given adequate healthcare regardless of ability to pay.  I would like to be part of the process to make this a reality.

One of my favorite parts about about ELP was meeting so many new people and hearing all of their great ideas about building support in the community and the world.

Nate writes, "I am a Catalyst for Good because all humans should have the same rights so they live in happiness."

Philanthropy in the World: More Than One Meaning

By: Abby
Abby is a participant in Allowance for Good's Autumn 2014 Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy: Explorers class. 

Although my time is limited in Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy (ELP), I have learned that philanthropy has more than one meaning. The literal meaning of philanthropy is "the desire to promote the welfare of others". The etymological meaning of philanthropy is "the love of humanity". Yet, as I sit here on a Tuesday night in Evanston, IL, writing this blog post, it has finally hit me: philanthropy is not restricted to the definition of a dusty dictionary sitting on my desk.

Last session, we continued studying the types of philanthropy in depth. We discussed two "main" types of philanthropy: corporate and venture. Venture philanthropy is focused on the willingness to take risks and experiment, having a long-term structure set up, and focus on direct engagement from the donors with their grantees. Corporate philanthropy is focused on the belief that a company needs to be responsible for its actions-ethically, socially, or environmentally. Also, corporate philanthropy is a huge supporter of corporate giving, which is a grant making program established in a profit-making company. it is from these programs that gifts or grants are distributed to charitable organizations. Learning about these two different types of philanthropy interested me a lot because it made me think about myself when I get older. I want to become involved in a company that are corporate philanthropists and give back to the community.

For the second half of the session, we had Allowance for Good Associate Board members Tife and Ryan talk with us about what we have learned so far. Tife grew up in Nigeria and then moved to Chicago later in life. The first company he worked for were "terrible philanthropists" (as he put it), meaning that they did not give back to the community and really did not involve themselves in it. However, when he received a new job at a real estate company, that completely changed. Tife informed us that at his job now, he receives an email once a month that asks what charity/organization he would like to donate to. His company matches tries their best to match his donation request and donates it to that company. Ryan, born and raised in Hinsdale, IL, is a credit analyst at Northern Trust. He told us a lot about his occupation and what he enjoys about work, but what really stuck with me were what he calls his "3 Pillars". They were:
1) Always, always, always stay curious.
2) Know your environment.
3) Know your limits & defy them...but also know your job/responsibility and do not become suffocated.

I know for a fact that these 3 pillars will help me grow as a young woman, student, philanthropist, and overall a human being. Staying curious is the beginning of a question, which leads to an interest, which leads to a passion. ELP has really been the beginning "question" phase for me. I have never been that passionate about any specific world problem; of course, I wanted to change them all. Coming to ELP has helped me realize that even though I may not have a certain passion now, there is always something I can do to help people in the world who are not as privileged as me.

I know this is going to sound very cliche, but there is only one world humans live in (unless we magically find Earth's twin in the universe). Humans are not the only beings on Earth, but we are the most powerful beings. It is our duty to help each other while protecting the ground we step on, the air we breath, and the grass we mow. So, to end the post the same way as Ryan ended our session, "We are rich through only what we give. We are poor through only what we refuse."

Abby stands in front of her favorite leadership quote during an activity in ELP: Explorers.

Using Philanthropy for Gender Equality

By: Hannah
Hannah is a participant in Allowance for Good's Autumn 2014 Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy: Explorers class. 

Recently, I have become quite a feminist. Not the stereotypical, angry, hairy-legged feminist, but the person who genuinely believes that the world needs to see men and women as equals. Nothing makes me more disappointed than hearing about the injustices women suffer of a daily basis just by being female. Don’t get me wrong, I have always been in support of gender equality, but only in the past few months have I become so attuned to extent of the problem both local and worldwide.

If I were to be fortunate enough to have a family foundation, I would dedicate it to making the woman’s voice heard through education. I choose education because the only way to make lasting change is by inspiring the next generation. School teaches young girls more than just academics—it teaches them they have a future. It teaches them they have power to do anything they set their mind to and will create the spark needed to for us to obtain true gender equality.

Most of my family foundation’s money would go to help international organizations dedicated to ending the gender gap in places like the Middle East where sexism is most prominent. This is because the money would make the most dramatic difference there, and I would want each penny to be used as efficiently as possible. I would also give to organizations that support women’s health because it is equally important for women to be educated in body and mind. After all, happiness and success are only possible in good health.

The rest of the money would go to organizations that focus on women’s rights in the US because American women experience sexism on a daily basis. We have come a long way, but the end of gender-based discrimination is still far off. One staggering statistic is the fact that females make up fifty percent of college graduates, but only five percent of CEOs. That resonates with me because it points out exactly what we have accomplished and what still needs to be done. It shows we have given girls dreams, but we have not turned them into reality just yet. I think that if women’s rights organizations get the support they need, we have a real chance of creating a tomorrow where no woman is disadvantaged just because of her sex.

Hannah works with her ELP classmates to create their theoretical family foundation.

Teen Explores Individual Philanthropy, Passions

By: Sadie
Sadie is a participant in Allowance for Good's Autumn 2014 Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy: Explorers class. 

Philanthropy is the desire to promote the welfare of others. Helping others is a key component of human nature and can benefit the giver and the receiver. Thus far, ELP has taught me what it means to be a catalyst for good and how you can bring the concept of philanthropy into your everyday life as well as the future. Being a young catalyst for good means that you will do everything in your power to help those near and far and to raise awareness for issues you are passionate about. Personally, I am a catalyst for good because everyone around the globe deserves to be safe, happy, and healthy and deserves to have the basic needs of life that I and many others are so lucky to have.

I have realized that I, as part of my family and various communities, have been a philanthropist most of my life. My family has given holiday gifts to families in need for years, donated to various organizations, and I have volunteered at soup kitchens and other community events and have been involved in community service club at school. I have always envisioned being a philanthropist in the future. I am not yet sure if this entails setting aside parts of my income or something bigger, like something that has to do with my career.

This past week in Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy: Explorers, we learned about human rights. We began by reading and analyzing the Universal Declaration of Rights (created by the United Nations). These rights included some as simple as “don’t discriminate” and others such as “the right to education.” After reading these thirty items, we decided that they all should be basic human rights but the majority of them are not followed globally. We also looked at the UN Millenium Development Goals, the goal is for these to be completed by 2015. After studying different opinions of human rights, I have decided that one cause I am particularly passionate about is education.

I believe that education is a necessity for all because it is the starting block for every other human right. Unfortunately, education is not universally available. If a community is educated, those in that community could use their skills to create a solution to poverty in their own community, for example. This would spread like wildfire because once one group of children are educated, others will be inspired and/or the educated are able to help their community in ways that they otherwise wouldn’t have. The fact that so many children around the world are not getting an education is one of the main reasons I am a catalyst for good. In the future, I would love to be involved in this cause whether it is doing something hands-on abroad or from the United States. For now, the best I can do is to raise awareness of this global issue and encourage myself and others to be grateful for the education that we do have. I believe that one day this can change, and I would love to help in some way towards this cause because all deserve to be educated.

Sadie writes, "I am a Catalyst for Good because everyone deserves to be safe, happy, and healthy.

Multigenerational, International, Experiential Journey

By: Jeanne
Jeanne was a traveler on the Allowance for Good / Spark Ventures trip to Nicaragua this August. 

During one of our trip participant dinners in Leon, Nicaragua, Jeanne, a 43 year-old, mother of two shares, “I have done some reading and studying about Nicaragua since my last visit.” The unexpected reply, “I love to read about history. I read about Nicaragua too! It was a wonderful book, called The Jaguar Smile: A Nicaraguan Journey by Salman Rushdie,” says Nina, 14 year-old member of Allowance for Good. I, Jeanne, sat back, amazed that this young woman has read this book. Amazed that she has chosen to take the time to prepare herself for her first experience with global philanthropy.  This was just one piece of the tapestry of conversations that I would have, as we traveled with the youth group, Allowance for Good.

My husband, Jeff, and I have been Spark Ventures investors for many years.  In 2013, we travelled to León, Nicaragua to see and participate in the work that Spark has been doing at a grassroots level.  What we saw stunned and changed us in so many ways during that trip and for the months to come. Soon after our return, we decided that we would bring our boys, Luc (12) and Ben (9), back with us some day.

We were committed to the idea that we must raise global citizens. That we had to challenge our children to step away from their day to day lives, look up from the screens and frankly, out of their comfort zone.  How can we make the world better if don’t truly experience many of the cultures, people and perspectives that make up our mosaic called Earth? 

Early in 2014, we heard that Spark would be partnering with another philanthropy on the next trip to Nicaragua, a group that worked with teenagers in the areas of leadership and philanthropy. While 10 months was a bit faster than we had planned, we decided this was our opportunity and the group to share our family experience with, down in León. 

Being in a completely different country, with a different socioeconomic environment, speaking a different language, eating different food, hearing different music and doing it all in a very different climate, can be unsettling.  The closer it drew the more we went through our concerns.  We didn’t know how our children would react.  We weren’t sure how the other group would either.  Would we and/or our children be welcomed or simple tolerated?  Will they befriend our boys or think them too young to bother with on this trip?  As it turns out, everyone exceeded even our highest expectations.

You see, these are not your normal teenagers, enamored with Disney, Xbox and the multitude of burgeoning social media tools.  Remember that Rushdie novel Nina mentioned? It was just the first of many pleasant and impressive surprises they had up their sleeves. Spending time with Allowance for Good and the five youths that we had the honor to accompany on this trip was, frankly, an inspiration to us as parents with children just a few short years behind the AfG youths. 

There was Turner, age 15, he came with an open mind and heart to everything that was happening around him.  When matched up with children who couldn’t speak English, he kept smiling, made up a game and in no time had a shy little child at Las Tias laughing and happy.  And Turner, well, he has a plan.  A sophomore in high school already thinking about what he wants to be, where to go to college, what that means to his family and maybe win a few more diving medals in the process.  Turner participates, he is present, he wants to learn about everything and everyone.  And how was he with our boys?  Well let’s just say that our son Luc is begging us to let him head out to Africa with Turner next summer, so that they can continue their journey of friendship and immersing themselves in global philanthropy.  And there are so many other moments, memories and stories of how each of the teens made an impression that will stay with us for the rest of our lives.

It was very clear to Jeff and I how lucky we were to have our children spending time with and learning from our AfG companions.  They are not the teenagers who move quickly away from something new and uncomfortable, or find their friends to avoid being part of the community.  They engage, they learn, they teach and they are infinitely interested in growing.

Isn’t this what it’s all about?  Our world is getting smaller, true. But it can also be more isolating. Social media gives young people windows to the world in ways that were never before possible.  Yet, Nina, Turner, Nicky, Orleana and Sylvana, that just isn’t enough for them. They are not content watching from the sidelines, or watching a video of someone else creating an experience. They wanted to a part of every moment we had with the women and children of Las Tías. To learn and grow EVERY single day. It wouldn’t have been the same trip without them.  We are blessed for having spent that time with them, they were a part of OUR learning and growth experiences, as well as our children’s.

It’s a tradition on these trips to share your experience with the other participants at the final group dinner.  Well, AfG was already doing that in their daily Reflection sessions.  We were just blown away how deeply these teens were thinking about the experience, how to build on it, how to integrate these thoughts and feelings into their development.  And at that final dinner, their thoughtfulness, maturity and character was on full display.  We’d heard from our peers during the other trip and spoken with many that had visited Spark partners in Zambia and Nicaragua.  And these teens were just as self-aware, had grown just much, and were developing plans on how to continue on their philanthropic life journey.

Keep your eye on these kids, help them if you can and they will ‘help’ you in ways you hadn’t thought possible.  These are the youths that will help us evolve as a global community.  The kind that will lead their generation and others, into the future and do it for the betterment of ALL of us. 

Jeanne, right, presents Las Tías with educational materials for their students.

Reflections on Reciprocity

By: Karin Scott

Karin Scott is the Program Manager at Allowance for Good. She recently returned from traveling with Spark Ventures and Allowance for Good youth to Nicaragua. Karin wrote these reflections on day 3 of the trip, and agreed to share them here on our blog.

Together we can connect on a common human level by sharing simple words, smiles, high fives, and laughter.

As our Spark Ventures and Allowance for Good travelers reflected on their second day at Las Tías we were asked to finish the phrase “Together we…” My chosen phrase stems from my connection with my partner, Muriel. Muriel is a bright, big-hearted, eight-year-old girl who I have spent my mornings with at Las Tías.

My two mornings with Muriel have involved simple words, smiles, hugs, and lots of high fives. Through the exchange of “hola”, “que linda”, and “muy bien” we learned our ages, favorite school subject, preferred colors, and future aspirations. We drew pictures, played math flashcards, and tossed a frisbee countless times. In our few hours of interaction we have probably exchanged the same short phrases dozens of times. I point and say a word in English, and ask “en español?” She responds with the Spanish equivalent, and so it goes. But with each repeated phrase comes another smile, another high five, increased trust, and reciprocity.

Our interactions have been short and simple. But on the second day when Muriel greeted me with a hug, a smile, and a loud “Hola!” I felt like in some small way, we had reached reciprocity. We have exchanged languages, games, and laughs for our mutual benefit. My hope is that we have benefitted in equal ways, that Muriel week was brighter because I was a part of it, as I know my short time with her has opened my eyes and shifted my perspectives in new, challenging, and hopeful ways.

My connection with Muriel opened my eyes to the ways in which we can connect on a common human level, beyond the use of language. I was amazed by the way we were able to communicate with each other by only sharing a few words. During my second day with Muriel, I was pleasantly surprised by how much she wanted to spend time to me. The shyness of yesterday melted away into a budding friendship. As a fellow trip participant so accurately stated, “You are only a stranger once.” Muriel, and the other children of Las Tías, will forever remain in my heart.

Karin and Muriel at Las Tías.

Expanding Philanthropic Outlook and Contribution

By: Nina
Nina participated in Allowance for Good's 2014 Global Philanthropy Summit program. 

How is it possible to continue to give back to society as we pursue different paths in life? On Tuesday, we had the opportunity to explore the answer to this question: social enterprise. We kicked the day off with an informative and engaging presentation by Elizabeth Coston of the Kellogg School of Management, where she introduced us to the 5 categories on the Social Enterprise Spectrum-we then proceeded to categorize a variety of for-profit and non-profit businesses and organizations into each of the 5 sections as follows:

Traditional Non-Profit: NPR, Smithsonian

Income-Generating Non-Profit: The Girl Scouts

For-profit Social Venture: Jail Education Systems

Socially Responsible Business: TOMS

For-profit Business: Home Depot

This presentation exposed me to the different ways in which you can incorporate social impact into a business model, something that is often overlooked, as we tend to classify businesses as either traditional nonprofits or businesses in a very black-and-white view.

In the afternoon, we went to Design for America, where we were given a variety of problems centered around sunscreen to creatively solve, using Design for America’s problem-solving processes. Such issues included a teenage surfer not applying sunscreen, a professional not being heard on the benefits of using sunscreen, and to help an overprotective mother let her children enjoy the summer. One of the exciting parts of this process especially was to see a number of people working collaboratively together even though we were from different schools, had different interests, and brought different ideas and experiences to the table. We completed the day with an art project based on the classic picture book The Giving Tree-we created our own giving trees in which the roots signified people and things that have guided and inspired us, the trunk represented our passion and goal, the branches represented our own values, and the fruit represented our own talents and assets.

Throughout the day, we were exposed to the idea of using what we have been given in life and how we are able to put it to use in order to make the world a better place. We learned that it is possible no matter what we decide to do in life, whether it be an entrepreneur or a computer scientist, an artist or a musician. These GPS experiences have taught me to expand my own views and look at philanthropy in a different light-one that is not limited to simply volunteering time or donating money, but which includes creating a new generation of smart, successful citizens who incorporate philanthropic acts into their daily lives and work.

A Generation of Dreamers and Catalysts for Good

By: Madison
Madison participated in Allowance for Good's 2014 Global Philanthropy Summit program. 

As students, we are often told to remain in our place of academia.  Students are supposed to learn, to study, to absorb and interpret the knowledge of our elders and our teachers and our society without much thought to the impact each of these characters in our lives has on the world.  And, this has worked for hundreds of years.  Society progressed, mostly as a whole, to as it appears to us today.  In some ways, this system is functional. But, quite cliche, we live in a collective of billions of people, more connected than we ever were before in history.  Social media allows us to interact with people we may not have ever known existed, and mass media allows us to get a narrative of what happens in our world; it is for better or for worse the actual accuracy and detail of these accounts. And most importantly, I believe, we are posed with the ability to choose our impact with which we will leave the world.  Maybe this is morbid and depressing, but we, as a society and a species, are allowed the privilege to make the changes we wish to see in our world.  And as we expose the genius of our young leaders such as Malala Yousafzai, Ann Makosinski, and even the early Steve Jobs, a shift in power and insight begins to take place.  No longer is the political, scientific, or social spectrum simply a battleground of greying, ivy league men, but a fairground of unpassable opportunity.  

Working with a non-profit organization like Allowance for Good is exactly that kind of opportunity. For me, as well as many of my mates from this year’s Global Philanthropy Summit, each day felt only like a minute.  We were immersed in the intricacies of social policy, of business and enterprise, of innovation, but most importantly (and sometimes I feel like most revelled by my peers) the prospect of dreaming. Only a minority of this week was spent on our dreams, but each minute of preparation was exciting and helpful.  They tell us in school to remain realistic, to maintain short term goals that we can accomplish and satisfy.  While this is helpful, it is not always fun. Understandably, when they told us to create a project for one of our Allowance for Good Affiliates, we were ecstatic.

It was with this idea that our dreams began.  Ideas for how to support worthy causes were thrown each and every way possible until we could not think of any more that would be governed by the laws of physics. Finally, we made a decision.  Our ideas were scattered with a bookmark sale, to a simple donation request (With a bookmark as reward), and an art supply drive for students in Nicaragua.  We were creative and quick in our thinking, and even though it was fairly improvised and small scaled, for my peers and I this opened doors to our own philanthropic potential.  It was no longer simply about these bookmarks now, or these school supplies, but about our own ability to decide where the funds were delivered and our independence in our efforts.  While we collaborated, it was by our own will and talents that we were able to raise over two hundred dollars (over the course of only a few hours) and a hefty art supply.  We are the change who will sit in the desks previously occupied by stuffy, bureaucratic, businessmen, creating progressive policies that utilize our world’s resources, create peaceful international policy, guarantee the education of every child, and learn what the world wants before we try to give it to them.  For the time being we are students, making our way into the world, but we will all be catalysts for change in our own ways, obstructed by no barriers that we cannot surpass.

Different Perspectives = Broader Philanthropic Lens

By: Rebecca
Rebecca participated in Allowance for Good's 2014 Global Philanthropy Summit program. 

We all came into GPS with different expectations of what the experience would be like and different ideas about what philanthropy means to us. On the first day of the summit we were able to bring those different perspectives together to better understand philanthropy through a broader lens. 

After discussing these topics as a whole, our first major activity involve making a video in small groups about what philanthropy means to us and how we engage in philanthropy. The videos ranged from slam poems to skits, all discussing the various definitions and aspects of philanthropy.

Later on we learned about GlobeMed from Alyssa Smaldino. GlobeMed is an organization that runs through universities across the country. Each college forms a partnership with their chapter and a community health organization, supporting them through training, research, fundraising, and volunteering. The Northwestern chapter is paired with one of our global affiliates, Adonai child development centre. Learning about GlobeMed was interesting to me because I became aware of how my involvement with programs like AFG could continue through college. 

Another activity we participated in was creating our own business plans for social enterprises or nonprofits in small groups. This project allowed us to choose social issue that we cared about and think about ways that we could either solve those problems at the source or provide funding to solve them. Ideas included Cows for Care, a restaurant chain that used its proceeds to provide livestock to impoverished communities as a source of food and income, and Dogs for Jobs, a hotdog cart chain that gave jobs to at-risk people (Like felony franks).

These activities were a great introduction to the king of things that we would be doing and learning about for the remainder of the summit, they also allowed us to create our own definition of philanthropy based off of our own talents and experiences. 

Inspiration and Fresh Perspective at Google Chicago

By: Riley
Riley participated in Allowance for Good's summer 2014 Global Philanthropy Summit program. 

I was lucky enough to take part in the Global Philanthropy Summit last week.  It was a riveting and insightful experience, and I now feel like a more engaged citizen!

Thursday was definitely the most exciting day of our week, with several important activities in downtown Chicago.  After taking the train in from Evanston, we trekked downtown and settled in our destination.  Soon after we arrived, so did our presenters: representatives from A Better Chicago, a venture philanthropy group, and one of its funded programs.  They told us all about the great projects they were involved in currently, and where they hope their programs will be in the future.  The impact that these programs had made on the community of Chicago and its young people was obvious.  It was inspiring for us to be presented with some of the greatest philanthropic work going on in Chicago!

After the presentation, we walked to Google's Chicago headquarters, probably the highlight of our week at the GPS.  This was definitely my personal favorite place we visited in our two days downtown.  Besides taking a tour of Google's progressively-designed workplace and its fascinating employees, we participated in a Google+ Hangout with an AFG affiliate at Liger Learning Centre.  We also learned about all of Google's philanthropic work, which was simply amazing.  Google already has a reputation as a very socially responsible business, and its philanthropy was no exception to this principle.  The company has helped get thousands of people out of slavery, donated technology, and otherwise helped people in ways big and small.

I cannot describe how personally inspiring the visit to Google was for me.  The trip taught me that philanthropy can truly be on any scale and that even helping a few people is great philanthropic work.  Google's work with spreading technology and knowledge about it showed great promise for the future of the world and technological progress in it.  Google has encouraged me to be more aware of the world around me and to use my skills to help the people that I can.

I'd like to thank everyone who worked to make the GPS happen and my classmates for making the entire week a great experience for us all!

Months of Change: An Update from Adonai

Co-Authored by: Pastor Aloysious Luswata and Bruce Karmazin.
Pastor Aloysious Luswata is the Director of Adonai Family Uganda and Bruce Karmazin is the President of US Friends of Adonai.

These are exciting times at the Adonai Child Development Center! And our US friends are the reason. We'd like to share just some of the important happenings over the past few months.

A New Strategic Plan Gives Us Direction for the Future 

They say that when you fail to plan, you plan to fail! That's why after nine years in operation, we are delighted to be coming to the end of our first strategic planning process. A strategic plan looks at an organization's goals and develops specific strategies and actions, and a budget, to accomplish those goals over several years.

It's been tough work over the last few months. With the help of a management consultant, paid for with a donation from a US donor, we talked with many people in the community – our friends and supporters, our faculty and staff, the parents of children in our care, and even the children! We looked at our strengths as an organization and our challenges and how to make the most of our situation. But we now have a roadmap for the future.

Kids Health and Community Health a Top Priority

Of course, one of the most important parts of our plan is making sure our kids – over 300 on campus – are healthy. It's amazing to people in the US that some of our children come to Adonai never having seen a toothbrush, or having had an eye test! We've done our best with modest donations over the years but we need to do more. And this year we're taking a very big step.

We’re equipping a small infirmary. And we’re hiring a village health worker whose job will be to make sure our children get what they need.

But more than that, our new village health worker will be doing outreach in the surrounding village. We'll distribute mosquito nets to protect people from malaria, and provide HIV/AIDS education.

Another priority will be making sure that girls who can't afford them have access to sanitary pads. Without sanitary pads, girls stop coming to school when they get their periods. They fall behind and eventually more than a third of girls in Uganda drop out of school. They give up their future and Uganda wastes an important resource in the country's development. That's not acceptable.

An important part of our plan to ensure the health of our children is to make sure each has safe drinking water. This year we will complete the water system with the purchase of two water tanks. We will lay the pipes that will allow us to pump water from our borehole to our tanks for storage and purification. We're very excited about that.

Our Friends in Illinois Are Key to Our Success! 

Like any nonprofit organization in the US, Adonai depends on the good will and support of our friends. None of our progress would be possible without your financial support. 

We have a growing number of people and organizations around the world but our friends in Illinois are leading the way – and are responsible for much of our progress.

The Northwestern University chapter of GlobeMed sent their first student mission last year. They did a health survey and identified the need for community health support. In August, a new group will return and participate in outreach on reproductive health in the village.

A faith-based organization called Fit2Serve, from Concordia University in River Forest, Illinois just got back from a school training program, spending two weeks working with the children and teachers of Adonai.

Finally, we are grateful to the kids of Allowance for Good, for your solidarity, and for making the commitment to our water system and helping us bolster our solar power capability.

Thank you!

Learn more about AfG's relationship with Adonai on our website.

Big Questions, Bright Future

By: Ellie
Ellie participated in Allowance for Good's spring 2014 Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy: Explorers program. 

My favorite part of the Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy program was without a doubt what we learned on the last day of class. We read online about the United Nations Millennium Development Goals. The goals were implemented at the turn of the millennium, with an end date of 2015. They were very ambitious; they included everything from eradicating extreme poverty (sadly, this probably won’t happen in the next year) to improving maternal health (the goal didn’t specify by how much, so this was almost a foregone conclusion).  They have also come up with some new ideas for their next set of goals. The plans aren’t set in stone, but they involve energy sustainability, food and water, a growing economy, good governance, and conflict resolution. Overall, the UN still has a long way to go. They have taken some important steps, however, which is a big deal.

193 nations (most of the world’s population) working together to solve all their problems and improve our futures? It may seem a bit unattainable, but the idealist part of me is really excited about all this. This sort of global problem-solving interests me. These issues are a lot more complicated than they may sound; solving them will rely on the cooperation of far more people than have ever cooperated before.  I will follow this progression closely.

For me, I know, I will probably be a scientist—and there is so much that science can do! There is water to be purified, disease to be combatted, and systems of agriculture could always use improvement. Every new piece of knowledge, even something as unrelated as space or esoteric as string theory, could help others.

In the short term, of course, I still have a lot to contribute. ETHS has a wonderful community service system—as do lots of other schools, I’m sure. And I’ve been dying to study abroad ever since I started high school, so maybe I could combine that with philanthropy. Many colleges have programs where you can travel to another country to help out with community projects (e.g. building a school in Guatemala). Even tiny actions, like recommending Half the Sky, can’t hurt. Seriously, watch that movie.

I would like to learn more about how all this selfless philanthropy is changing the world. Individual and group efforts are themselves inspiring, but that’s their ultimate goal: global change. The UN has achieved overwhelming success (by any reasonable definition). Two billion people gained access to clean water—see http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/pdf/report-2013/mdg-report-2013-english.pdf. How does that affect everyone? What effects do these organizations have even beyond the intended ones? How will the world evolve in the rest of the century?

"I am a catalyst for good because good is waiting to happen." -- Ellie, 9th grade, ETHS

Expanding Definitions of Philanthropy

By: Lily
Lily participated in Allowance for Good's spring 2014 Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy: Explorers program. 

In our Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy class, we have learned about Corporate Philanthropy, Venture Philanthropy, and Personal Philanthropy. I learned that Venture Philanthropy has a higher risk propensity than Corporate Philanthropy, and that it can be more affective in terms of building long-term relationships and skills for future philanthropic acts. I personally believe that Venture Philanthropy is the most affective type of Philanthropy, because I think that the best efforts for change are made by a group with different view points, and a wide variety of skills and opinions put forth when making a change in the world.

I discovered Venture Philanthropy during this class, and I am glad that I did, as I didn't think that such a type of philanthropy existed, and I was glad to discover that it does. I have heard of Personal and Corporate Philanthropy before-my grandfather's business gives money every year with part of their profits, and has a matching donations program. My family also gives our own money to charity through our foundation, the Weatherlow Foundation. Next year I will have a section of our grants to control, and I am happy to have responsibility for the change our family makes in the world. I am glad to have participated in this class, I have learned much about the different ways I can make a difference in the world, and my views on philanthropy have been impacted greatly by the amazing lessons I have learned in this class.

Lily (center) works with her ELP classmates to develop their own venture philanthropy fund.

Engaging in Philanthropy for Clean Water

By: Moira
Moira is participating in Allowance for Good's spring 2014 Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy: Explorers program. 

Helping people out is one of the simple pleasures of life. There are many foundations and organizations that help make other people’s lives better, one of those being a family foundation. If I had a family foundation, it would be difficult to choose which causes to support but the main cause I would choose to support would to be providing clean water globally. Clean water is an important cause to support because water is the basis for life. Without water, it is hard for people to live a healthy and happy life. When you are thirsty, it makes it harder to concentrate and dehydration is a serious health issue.

In class 2 weeks ago, we learned about the Adonai School in Uganda, and our guest speaker told us about the struggle that the children faced when they retrieved the water. The nearest water is a long way away from the school so on the walk home it is tempting for the children to drink some of this water although it has not yet been purified and could cause health issues if it is drunk. Even if the children make it all the way back to the school, in order to purify the water they must boil it first to rid it of bacteria. After all this time had passed it is then okay to drink the water and some of the children might have already drunk it. 

If I was running my family foundation, I would want to make sure that I was engaging in philanthropy instead of charity. If I were to engage in charity for the cause of clean water, I might donate 50 gallons of purified water to a place that needed it. Instead of doing this, I would want to be involved in a more philanthropic aspect of giving. For example, maybe my family foundation could invest in water purifiers for those who need them. The difference between these two would be that the water purifiers could help for a long period of time and maybe help end the problem of water deprivation or unclean water, whereas giving water would only be a temporary solution. I know that everyone is able to help out people and need and they should because it will make them feel good.

Moira stands next to her favorite leadership quote during an Emerging Leaders in Philanthropy class.