Helping Others Help Themselves
A huge thank you from Asia Initiatives to all our supporters for partnering with us to help the many men, women, and children who are working hard to pull themselves out of poverty. Here is what you & we accomplished in 2011:
We put on weight!
A good indicator of a South Asian rural family's food security is the girth of the upper arm of the young girls in the family. Once the family has enough money, even the daughters begin to get nourishing meals and start going to school. The proceeds from the Asia Initiatives Tokyo fall fundraiser went to support MSSRF in training “community hunger fighters” under the auspices of Operation 2015. Hunger fighters ensure that relevant government programs reach the ultrapoor; that children get the micronutrients they need to prevent physical and mental stunting; and that pregnant and nursing mothers are not anemic. AI Tokyo and AI New York’s goal for 2012 is to support the training of another 500 community hunger fighters, at a cost of $55 per fighter. Click here to read more.
Got Hooked… to Computers!
At Asia Initiatives New York’s fall event, you helped us raise $14,400 to support the operation, for one year, of nine community learning centers in the Kannivadi region of South India in collaboration with MSSRF. You also donated $2,000 toward scholarships for women to improve job skills. Over the past ten years, Asia Initiatives has worked with MSSRF to establish a total of 15 community learning centers and 14 village knowledge centers. The staff and volunteers at these centers use computers for literacy training and as a tool for providing demand-driven information on farm prices, jobs, government programs, and healthcare in remote villages. Children use the computers after school.
Ramped Up Debt!
With over 215 of our microcredit banks providing interest-free loans to 520 self-help groups, we have positively impacted the lives of over 55,000 people over the past 10 years. Please consider celebrating this holiday season by starting a new microcredit bank in the name of a loved one with a donation of $1,500. 100% of all donations toward microcredit funding go to the field. You can monitor the activity of “your” bank via our website. In August, Geeta visited several self-help groups to observe the impressive progress being made, and we invite you to do the same when your travels take you to South India.
And raised eyebrows!
You donated $3,000 to support the formation and operation of youth clubs (kishor mandals) run in the villages of Pune to support education and health and gender awareness. One of the girls clubs from Pune participated in the virtual International Girls Day rally on September 22. Asia Initiatives was a partner with Columbia University’s Millennium Cities Initiative and for the event. The work of URBZ (urbz.org), another project supported by AI, received recognition in a book published by the Smithsonian Cooper Hewitt Museum to mark the exhibition “Design with the Other 90%”. Geeta moderated a panel at the UN held in conjunction with this exhibition.
In closing, we would like to take this opportunity to extend our sincere thanks to you and to our many dedicated volunteers whose resourcefulness and hard work help us keep our operating costs below 3% of all funds raised, among the lowest for NGOs. 100% of all funds donated for specific causes go to the field.
Our New Year’s resolutions for 2012 remain simple: to get fatter, ramp up more debt, spend more time in front of the computer, and raise more eyebrows as girls and boys, women and men, learn the strategies they need to help themselves. We hope your goals for 2012 are more ambitious—but will include partnering with us.
We would love to hear from you, whether in the form of feedback, contributions, talent, or time—in New York, Tokyo, or at one of our field sites in India. Asia Initiatives New York is a 501(c)(3) organization. All donations made in the U.S.A. are tax deductible.
Wishing you a glorious holiday season,
Geeta Mehta and Anne Papantonio (on behalf of the AI New York team)
Jagmohan Chandrani (on behalf of the AI Tokyo team)
