Charity Navigator’s Highest Rating Goes To…

The Hunger Project Receives Charity Navigator’s Highest Rating – Again!

The Hunger Project has received, for the second year in a row, Charity Navigator’s highest rating: four stars!

This is important news. Charity Navigator, which evaluates more than 5,000 of America’s best-known charities, is dubbed the “largest and most-utilized evaluator of charities” in the US. In 2007 alone, more than four million philanthropists of all levels visited CharityNavigator.org to learn about different charities and perform due diligence before making their philanthropic contributions.

We achieved the coveted four-star rating after Charity Navigator’s thorough evaluation of our organization’s fiscal management. Specifically, the rating is based on our efficiency and capacity: how responsibly we function on a daily basis and how well poised we are to sustain and grow our programs in the future.

Only 16 percent of charities that Charity Navigator has rated have received at least two consecutive four-star evaluations. Charity Navigator writes: “The Hunger Project outperforms most charities in America in its efforts to operate in the most fiscally responsible way possible. This ‘exceptional’ designation from Charity Navigator differentiates The Hunger Project from its peers and demonstrates to the public it is worthy of their trust.”

Share this recognition of us by Charity Navigator with your family, friends and colleagues to encourage them to invest in The Hunger Project, so that our programs can gain increased recognition and influence other development models to help create a world free from hunger and poverty.

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The Power of One!

What has happened for me since we changed the date of The Global Ball to 08-11-08 is that I have come back to the concept I originally had in my head of “One Ball, Eight Locations, One Cause”.

The ones in the date have a significance I hadn’t connected with until I actually looked at the number 08-11-08. It is one ball, we are all one and uniting people around that to give generously to the one cause is the most important thing.

By using this date, which has no other significance, we can imbue it with our own significance, that of us being all one, united around the one cause in balls across the world, giving to one cause, with one heart.

I genuinely believe that by changing the date we can connect to that significant fact and communicate it to other people.

If I had become disconnected from that, when it had been my own personal motivation and inspiration to be involved in this at all, how could I have hoped to inspire and connect people around the world?

United in this way for one cause I believe we can far exceed the money raising target we have set and raise the profile of THP in a way that allowing myself to be fixated by a date would have made impossible.

The Power of Effective Giving

The inspiration for the Global Ball came about during a trip to India by a group of people called The Pioneer Club.

The trip was organised in collaboration with The Hunger Project and included several days visiting some of the villages in northern India where they work.

In India it is law that in the local councils, the panchayat, at least 33% of the elected representatives are women.

The Hunger Project take advantage of this law and work with those elected women to empower and enable them.

In this way the women are able to make real and lasting changes within their villages which positively affect the lives of thousands.

Because The Hunger Project works with these representatives, any money donated to them actually increases its value. It does not simply help that woman create a better life for herself and her family. It helps all the people she can empower and help, it pays for any roads she campaigns for and any well she ensures are dug.
It continues to work for generations. Helping and enabling that woman’s children and all the children in her village for ever.

This is what effective Giving is all about.

This is why we are proud to support the work of The Hunger Project with these women.

Be The Change - Part 3 by Sylvia Baker

They are all in this together, for change is happening; and for things to change we must be the change too.

This village has not had water for 3 years their wells are dry and they walk miles for water. We walk in with a water bottle the value of which I learn today equates to a day’s wage for some.

I feel arrogant and incredibly grateful for the access I have to good clean water.

The signs of hunger initially were not obvious to me, the serious signs of malnourishment was.

I had to contemplate how I would feel living on 2 daily meals of just one chapatti with a little salt.

We met with the women leaders privately and heard stories of their lives;
“I was married at 5” said one, “I was married at 9” said another, at 10, 12, 16 said some others.

All arranged marriages where they are meant to go to the husband when they become a woman.
This has not always been the case. Some have been taken at a young age and treated more as slaves than wives.

A woman introduced her 14 year old daughter and said “I am too scared to allow my daughter to go out to relive herself in case of rape and verbal abuse”.

Now this is changing because the men are realising they cannot get away with it.

Before the Hunger Project came 18mths ago another woman said; “We were confined to our homes covered by our veils to now not wearing our veil and walking through the village with

Courage and Power!” To this statement they all raised their arms with solid fists and we woman visitors almost in unison joined them.

It was our offer of unity, our moment of connection and their receipt of hope.

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Be The Change - Part 2 by Sylvia Baker

Be The Change - Part 1 by Sylvia Baker

Be The Change - Part 2 by Sylvia Baker

Rounding a mud-cast building we came to an open area where a long table had been dressed in a white table cloth awaiting our arrival. I likened it to being a star at a press conference.

Reluctantly my little friend let go and I moved past the arena outskirts lined by men to take a seat.

The sun was making an appearance today and I was a little hot sitting without any shade.

Our translator and Hunger Project supporter Sandeep made an introduction to the villagers. He then explained to us that although they knew we were coming, it was only the women leaders who knew why.

I learned later that it was a remarkable feat for the village to be so prepared as not only are they isolated they have never had such a large group of visitors let alone foreign visitors before.

Looking around the sea of Indian faces I noticed some women with veils draped over their faces peeking through careful not to expose their face while others were faces exposed with veils draped over their shoulders. Then I noticed my wee friend sitting just down in front of me with a delightfully innocent expression I captured on film. I pondered how I could quite easily entertain thoughts of taking her home with me.

Scanning the perimeter of men I wondered what they may be making of all this. They must be fearful of the changes taking place with the women becoming empowered.

It is currently mandatory for 33% of the local governing body to be women and they are now campaigning for 50%. I observed my judgemental thoughts of who among these men may be the dominant oppressive ones and quickly checked myself to keep an open mind & heart.

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Be The Change - Part 3 by Sylvia Baker

Be The Change - Part 1 by Sylvia Baker

Be The Change - Part 1 by Sylvia Baker

Arriving at the village I was wowed by the big Welcome banner strung across two poles that marked the entrance for us. Stepping off the bus I felt an excitement of what lay ahead.

The local equivalent of a western brass band was playing and a proud old man was parading himself in a rhythmic dance. His missing teeth added to his vivid expression.

I don’t fully know why but I started to shed tears. I was somewhat relieved to have hidden them behind my sunglasses.

I walked along entering through the crowd of villagers to receive my necklace of marigold flowers and the imprint of yellow spice powder onto my third eye.

Once we were all welcomed we were then led along a path into the village centre.

There was such a wonderful contagious atmosphere and we were drawn in by some women to dance among them. Off I went mingling and feeling the spirit of joy these people possessed and sensing that they were so appreciative and happy for us to be there.

I thought to myself, ‘I hope to meet their expectations’.

While walking a small hand slipped into mine and I looked down into the eyes of a very pretty young girl.

As we walked hand in hand I could feel her at first experiencing the touch, then connecting as she realised I was there to hold her hand. She moved past the initial fear of possible rejection and from then on there was no way she was letting go. If someone happened to be in our way she sided up to me or lifted our hands over people to avoid detachment.

Read

Be The Change - Part 3 by Sylvia Baker

Be The Change - Part 2 by Sylvia Baker

Extraordinary Balls working with The Hunger Project

Extraordinary Balls believe in effective giving. We recognise the value of the way The Hunger Project (THP) works and that whatever we give to THP to use in developing countries around the world will have a positive effect for generations to come.

THP don’t give money or food, they don’t give “aid” in those ways. Nor do they “teach a man to fish”.

THP work highly strategically, they realise that people in developing countries don’t need new skills. Learning to be more like us in the “developed” world is not what is needed.

THP addresses the deeper issues that keep millions of people in poverty by working with them to change attitudes of deep resignation through empowerment workshops enabling the participants to recognise that it is social conditions not God that have held them back.

By empowering women, whole communities have been demonstrated to gain access to the human potential that is being trapped and wasted.

In workshops lead by volunteer animators participants break through their resignation. They awaken to new possibilities. They discover that they are able to create a vision of their village free from hunger, commit to it, and take self-reliant actions to achieve it. Continued confidence work ensures that people succeed in their first actions, gaining greater confidence rather than initial failures enforcing their old resignation.

Through the work that thp does in villages around the world real change is happening from the attitude up. It spreads like ripples in a pond affecting everyone around the women who’ve attended the workshops. Those women go on to inspire and train more women and men and in generations to come the children born will not face those generational barriers.