Yes, there really is "free Rice"

Maybe your not into online Solitaire or even Tetris but you've gotta try FreeRice
CLICK and you are presented with a word and four choices as to its meaning.
That's simple...appalling means awful, only, pathetic, central!

Just as easy, 20 grains of rice are donated to feed the hungry by way of the United Nations.
Two minutes later, I was up to 400 grains, now that's a serious amount for a deskchair donor.

The UN also tells me that about 25,000 people die of hunger or related causes each day.
Maybe 20 grains sounds meaningless but 300,000 to 500,000 people now play FreeRice
daily and that's a load of clicks.

In fact, from October 7 to March 9, that amounts to 21.8 BILLION grains or over 400 metric tons of rice!

To view the first delivery to Bangladesh, click Free Rice in Bangladesh

So who pays for all this rice, grain by grain?

A variety of online marketeers that appear at the bottom of your screen after every click

and are responsible for donating over $250,000 to the World Food Programme since Oct 2007.

I guess I had better settle in to improving my vocabulary (I didn't know a zebu was an OX)
and brag about how

"fingers on my keyboard" can mean "boots on the ground"!

and, if you would like to read a bit more about world poverty, click Poverty.com
(excerpts from Lexicographical Beneficence, Rob Walker, New York Times Magazine, 3/9/2008)

RP in Durango

A long perilous road for Kosovo

On February 17, 2008, the Kosovars began an obviously long and perilous journey toward economic and religious independence. It appears that coming from the weakest of positions, Kosovo has made this bold declaration of statehood out of sheer will and a desire to know a better existence.

An economy that is highly dependent upon remittances from Kosovar's living abroad, faced with unemployment running close to 50 percent and with at least 20 percent of it's current trade with it's broken relation Serbia. Yet, a dim beckoning light of immediate financial support from a few democratic nations and the eventual prize of EU cooperation with a possible but distant membership appears to be enough economic hope for now.
In the same light, the acceptance of Muslim states in the western world is not at all a fait accompli as exemplified by the current resistance raised to Turkey's insistent knocking on the EU doors.

So where does Kosovo gain its strength to take such a bold move in wrenching away from the "homeland" of Serbia and the territorial bonds of Russia? I can only believe that it lies with their young men and women, fifty percent of whom are under the age of 25. In the words of one such young Kosavar, "Independence will just create more opportunities, things will change. Maybe not right away. But in five years, it will be a different Kosovo."
(quote from NYTimes, 2/18/08, Kosovo faces Huge Economic Hurdles)
RP in Durango

News from Shanta

Mike and Tricia have returned (safely) from a productive month in Myanmar during which they were joined by two doctors, and a nurse (two of which are from Durango) in providing mobile clinics in three mountain villages. Villagers, soon hearing via mountain village grapevine of their arrival queued up at the rate of 40 patients a day. Thirty of those too serious to be treated immediately were dispatched to the local city hospital with sufficient funds ($2.50/day) to insure that they were seen by the doctor. The Shanta crew saw some 200 patients in six days with illnesses including hernias, high fever, kidney disease, liver failure, infant dehydration, vomiting, hemorrhoids and developmental disorders. They all were immensly grateful for someone who cares enough to help.

Having completed another new primary school last year in the village of Tiloh, Shanta is now partnering with seven regional villages ranging in size from 300 to 1000 people. Each of these villages, with the help of Shanta, has established village leadership teams to guide the revitalization of their villages. Each are writting grant proposals and approving money for building two primary schools, five village-wide water systyems and three toilet houses. They are also developing renewable energy systems for pumping water and to supply lighting. The villagers are eager to show their guests how beautifully they have painted their new school or how well they have built the water tanks.

On this journey, Shanta has also been joined by such organizations as Patagonia, the Methodist Thrift Store, VitaminAngels, UNICEF, the Yinthway Foundation and local donors in providing jackets, pre-natal vitamins, mult-vitamins, anti-parasite medication and toothbrushes for many adults and children.

Last but not least, Shanta is now considered family in many of the villages they visit, spending their evenings in shared dinners and happy conversations, enjoying a truly one-world experience.

RP in Durango

FLC Common Reading Experience for 2008

Fort Lewis College has just announced

Greg Mortenson's Three Cups of Tea

as it's Common Reading Experience for 2008.

Events involving the students and the community will take place from September thru November. Don't forget to save these dates and make plans to join Greg Mortenson on September 18 in Durango for

Safer, More Compassionate World Act 2.

For more info on Three Cups of Tea, click 3 cups of tea

RP in Durango

Bush Promising Additional Aid to Africa

On Sunday, President Bush moved the "bully pulpit" to Tanzania for a six day plea to secure his aid programs to Africa beyond his presidency.

(reference: Durango Herald article, 2/17/08)

With a quick stop at the airport in Benin to praise their democratic progress, he was off to Dar Es Salaam to promote a five year, $15B AIDS relief package as the largest ever international health initiative devoted to one disease. This package should raise the number of people on anti-retroviral treatments from 50,000 to 1.3 million. A five year, $1.2B antimalaria initiative has reached 25 million Africans with insecticide-treated bed nets.

The hope with these new programs is that they are perceived as a shift from the past in that they are more widely available (read less restricitive) and are, as such, quicker to rollout. The US Millenium Challenge is more threatened due to the slow pace of funding and inherent limits that restrict distribution only to nations that embrace democracy and free markets, fight corruption and invest in education and health. The debate also continues on the emphasis on abstinence and anti-prostitution pledges.

The good news- programs such as these have kept the United States relatively popular in Africa. Billions of dollars are now available for health spending particularly in tackling the world's developing diseases, HIV, TB, malaria and avian influenza.

The bad news- aid can easily be tied to short term numerical targets such as increasing the number of people receiving specific drugs or increasing the number of bed nets handed to children. Not only is more money needed but a realization that at least a full generation may be needed to substantially improve public health. For more on this subject, reference The Challenge of Global Health, Laurie Garrett, Foreign Affairs, Jan-Feb 2007.

RP in Durango

FLC Engineers Without Borders Fundraiser

I, along with about 99 others, attended the Fort Lewis Engineers Without Borders fundraiser last Tuesday night (2/12/08).
(For more info about the program, click flc-ewb
Once again, I was very impressed with the energy and devotion of a few to influence the lives of our students. Yes, Fort Lewis is a liberal arts college but by combining the interests and talents of a variety of students and professors (anthropology, sociology and, yes, some engineers) the mix is both appealing to the students as well as effective in the field.

Speaking of the field, what started in 2004 with a trip to the rural areas of Thailand has progressed to continued yearly experiences in Thailand as well a trip to Ecuador and, in 2008, work in Laos. The focus has been on water projects in these areas including building water lines from a reliable source, crafting permanent water storage facilities to help with the dry seasons and education concerning why clean water and personal hygiene are so important for healthy families.

After an hour of listening and viewing the results, not to mention being pretty proud of a grass roots Durango humanitarian effort, lots of hands started to pull out checkbooks and pens. A $75,000 budget with almost every gifted dollar being spent to change the lives of folks in real need. What's wrong with this picture!

Last but not least the students involved gave the best testimonials concerning their experiences working with EWB to not only change the lives of others but of theirs, as well. A few of the quotes that I heard that night...

"the questions that I face at Fort Lewis: why college? why FLC?,
why engineering?, why EWB? ...why not!"

"working in the field is the perfect complement to an FLC education"

"EWB is a way to see that there is something else to be done."

You just might consider sponsoring a student for this summer's experience!
RP in Durango

US Freedom Corps 2008

In the 2008 State of the Union Address, the President again urged Americans to join the USA Freedom Corps. So what is it and what has been the progress of this organization since its inception in 2002?

First, what is it? According to whitehouse.gov, As a Coordinating Council housed at the White House and chaired by the President, the USA Freedom Corps is working to strengthen our culture of service and help find opportunities for every American to start volunteering. To accomplish this, they are bringing together the resources of the federal government with the non-profit, business, educational, faith-based and other sectors to begin that process and to measure our results.

So it appears to provide a matchup for individuals, organizations, businesses and communities to get involved as volunteers both in domestic and international activities. Again according to the

above link,

...the USA Freedom Corps Volunteer Network is the most comprehensive clearinghouse of volunteer opportunities ever offered. For the first time in history, Americans can enter geographic information about where they want to get involved, such as state or zip code, and areas of interest ranging from education to the environment, to access volunteer opportunities offered by more than 50,000 organizations across the country and around the world. Lastly, the Freedom Corps keeps a database of volunteer accomplishments with appropriate incentives.

The challenge, reiterated in the 2008 SOU speech, was for every American to commit at least two years (4000 hours) over the rest of your lifetime, to the service of your neighbors and your nation. The President has requested funding to support 75,000 members in 2008.

So, how is it doing? The official numbers, according to usafreedomcorps/ are:

...the Corporation for National and Community Service has seen AmeriCorps grow by 50 percent to support 75,000 AmeriCorps members each year, Senior Corps has supported more than 500,000 older volunteers annually, and Learn and Serve America has supported more than one million students in service each year. Peace Corps has reached their 30-year high in the number of volunteers in the field. And, nearly 2,000 communities in all 56 states and territories have established Citizen Corps Councils to help inform and train citizens in emergency preparedness.

But, was it effective in situations such as the New Orleans disaster?

An example from freedomcorp

5/17/2007, New Orleans, LA - With the school year drawing to a close, Federal officials today are launching a new initiative to keep young people engaged and challenged over the summer months. The initiative will bring up to 200 AmeriCorps VISTA members to serve with local agencies. The members will provide enrichment programs, academic tutoring, and recreational activities for 4,000 children and youth in New Orleans.

So what does the Freedom Corps offer in my area (81301)?

From .usafreedomcorps I punched in 81301 and, voila, I found 27 opportunities ranging from the Red Cross to the CO Dept of Peace to Music 4Kidz...

Guess I was pretty surprised!

What about international volunteers?

Again, from the SOU .whitehouse.gov

...and America needs citizens to extend the compassion of our country to every part of the world. So we will renew the promise of the Peace Corps, double its volunteers over the next five years and ask it to join a new effort to encourage development and education and opportunity in the Islamic world.

Can't disagree with that statement!

RP in Durango