A perfect example of a filter that drives the long tail of development is GlobalGiving.com, which lets us contribute to projects in the developing world. As explained in "White Man's Burden", this site is one way of empowering homegrown development. Instead of an aid agency taking a topdown approach and pushing for what they think are the best policies, projects and structural changes in a country, GlobalGiving.com lets local development workers, who indeed have better knowledge and experience on the ground, discover what works for the particular societies in which they operate. Furthermore, they support these local projects by feeding aid, not from the most wealthy governments or the biggest international aid agencies or the most newsworthy corporate foundations where fund allocations can sometimes be politically motivated, but from almost anyone who has a heart for fighting global poverty and can access any of their modes of payment.
GlobalGiving should be of special interest to overseas Filipinos because it is one way that we can show our love for the Philippines wherever we may be in the world. Moreover, as part of living and working abroad, we are perhaps even more capable of giving in this form. The minimum donation at GlobalGiving is US$10 or around Php510 (at least as of this posting). That's a considerable amount in Philippine peso terms, yet for someone in the US earning minimum wage, that can be covered in just two hours of work. Many overseas Filipinos, who might not have made enough to support their personal needs when working back home, are now capable of providing some support for, say, environmental preservation or relief operations.
I've provided links to four Philippine-based projects in the sidebar. GlobalGiving provides a model that Filipino social entrpreneurs should examine considering the sheer size of the global Filipino populace. There are so many development projects in the Philippines that could use some help. There are also so many overseas Filipinos who are now capable, more than ever, of giving.
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GlobalGiving FilmFest
Watch. Vote. Change.
GlobalGiving is now hosting a Filmfest through June 29th. You can cast your vote for the video that makes you feel the most connected to an incredible grassroots development project. GlobalGiving gathered raw footage (photos and video) from more than twenty high-impact projects around the world. Film makers used this footage to create compelling and interesting videos that tell the stories of these projects and the people who are helped by the work they do. Each video tells the story of a project from globalgiving.com and will help to connect these amazing projects with the support they need.
Your vote will determine which videos do the best job of telling the project’s story. Check out all of the finalists’ videos at http://www.karmatube.org/ff and decide for yourself. Even better, get all of your friends and family to vote too! The more people who get to know these projects, the more positive change we can create around the world.
Vote Today! www.karmatube.org/ff
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