So today I’m taking a wee break from my typical frivolous posts on crafty stuff to talk about the issue of poverty, as a participant of Blog Action Day.

{image credit: United Nations Millennium Development Goals Report 2008}

Now I know that some of you may click through to another blog just about now because you are sick of hearing about “poverty“. It’s an issue that has been all over the media - it seems that every few minutes politicians are raving on about it and celebrities are flogging it in your face. Somehow, somewhere along the line the message has been lost and instead, it seems to have become the new “hip issue” to be involved in. But I do hope you will stick with me through this post as it is a real issue - one that has existed for centuries and rather than disappearing, is actually getting worse.

If we strip away the rhetoric and the celebrity-induced hype, you will find some cold hard facts about poverty in our world today, such as: (Source: Globalissues.org)

1. At least 80% of humanity lives on less than $10 a day.
2. Number of children in the world: 2.2 billion . . . Number in poverty: 1 billion (every second child) . . . Children out of education worldwide: 121 million
3. The world’s low income countries (2.4 billion people) account for just 2.4% of world exports.
4. For every $1 in aid a developing country receives, over $25 is spent on debt repayment. The poorer the country, the more likely it is that debt repayments are being extracted directly from people who neither contracted the loans nor received any of the money.
5. A mere 12 percent of the world’s population uses 85 percent of its water, and these 12 percent do not live in the Third World.
6. Rural areas account for three in every four people living on less than US$1 a day and a similar share of the world population suffering from malnutrition. However, urbanization is not synonymous with human progress. Urban slum growth is outpacing urban growth by a wide margin.
7. The wealthiest nation on Earth has the widest gap between rich and poor of any industrialized nation.

(More facts here)

And the effects of poverty? Well, the list is long and includes: high infant mortality rates, decreased life expectancy, poor health, poor education, death from causes that could have easily been prevented had the resources been available.

After reading the facts, now consider that behind all those numbers and statistics are actual, living, human beings. Mums, Dads, Daughters, Sons, Families. People.

It’s easy to become overwhelmed and start thinking that really, what, as one person, can I do to help? This is an issue where the adage of “every bit counts” is true. Hundreds/thousands/millions of people doing their own little bit can bring about change. And if everyone who visits this blog today committed to support one person who lives in poverty - that would be more than 1000 people helped in just one day! Can you imagine the impact? It’s exciting stuff when you think about it! This is why there are approximately 9000 bloggers from all over the world blogging about poverty today - so that not only are more people aware of the issue but that more people realise that their little bit actually does count.

Okay, so if you’ve read this far - thank you for sticking with me! Now what can you do, as one person, to help? Well, you can go over here to see a whole list of resources and links to help get you more educated about the issue and find organisations you can join. There are two that I would like to focus on in this post as I am a big believer in one-on-one assistance, and in education and supporting entrepreneurship as a means to fight poverty.

The first is KIVA. If haven’t yet heard of KIVA, it is an organisation that supports “person-to-person micro-lending, empowering individuals (you) to lend directly to unique entrepreneurs in the developing world.” You can loan as little as $25 to an entrepreneur who needs financial assistance to support their business (and therefore feed and support their own families) and you will receive updates on their progress and repayments of the amount you have loaned. Once you have been fully repaid, you can re-invest that same amount into the business of another entrepreneur if you wish.

As someone who runs a little indie craft business myself, I am very excited about KIVA and the way it is changing the lives of those who live in poverty by providing the means for them to grow and develop their business, and become self-sufficient*.

The other program is one that helps children in our own backyard, so to speak, and is the Learning for Life sponsorship program by the Smith Famiy. This program enables you provide financial assistance to a child in Australia through a phase in their school life (primary, secondary, post-secondary), who otherwise would be limited in their opportunities for education due their family’s financial situation. As the Smith Family states, “In the long term, poor educational achievements limit employment opportunities and may sentence those who suffered child poverty, to a lifelong struggle just to survive.” This program is a means to break the cycle of poverty. Go here for more details.

Thanks so much if you’ve read this far. There is actually more I’d like to write about this issue but I will leave it here for now and encourage you that your bit helps/will help. Other organisations you may want to consider if you want are interested in one-on-one assistance: World Vision, Care, Compassion, Fred Hollows Foundation, and Oxfam.

Related posts: My hubby’s take on Blog Action Day 2008

*A proportion of the funds received from all One Red Robin sales currently supports such entrepreneurs through KIVA.