Across the world, children are suffering from the pains of a prison called poverty. Children are crying out in hunger and desperation because they happened to be born into an unfortunate situation.
On their own, they have no hope of escaping the cycle of poverty. They cannot get the nutrition they hunger for; they cannot get the water they thirst for; they cannot get the education they long for. And orphans fare even worse since they are completely at the mercy of the people that surround them.
Here in the modernized Western world, we’ve insulated ourselves fairly well from poverty. We haven’t stamped it out, but we have eliminated all but the smallest pockets of poverty. The plight of hundreds of millions of people in another continent can seem so small and far away. But the impact of widespread poverty still affects us.
Imagine for a moment if everyone had easy and open access to at least a decent grade school education. Knowledge of basic math and science would give people a footing by which to understand how the world works; health education would teach how to prevent many common, but debilitating diseases and afflictions like AIDS, malaria, tuberculosis, and the Guinea worm disease; and language education would erase illiteracy and enable communication on a much larger scale.
By educating just one child, he now has the chance to rise above the pack and be more than another hungry beggar. That child grows up and is able to be more productive than his parents. He may have picked up a skill such as agriculture and now he’s not only able to feed himself, but his family and some of his neighbors as well. Now, when that child eventually has children of his own, he will pass his knowledge on to them and immediately they will have a better start than he did.
By educating one child, you set off a chain reaction that begins to change everything around him for the better. Soon, poverty is being stamped out from within. And all it took was a relatively small investment in education. It all boils down to the proverbial phrase,
“Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime.”
How To Help
- Ask a church – My church has partnered with a number of ministries to help feed and educate children in Honduras, the Philippines, and Liberia. For less than 50 cents a day, a child can go to school for a year.  I’m sure a church in your area is working to sponsor children in third-world countries.
- Go and Teach – By joining up with the Peace Corps, you can go into the heart of the poverty-stricken area and effect change yourself. While this isn’t for everyone, it’s a great way to ensure that your efforts go directly to the children who need you the most.
- You Tell Me – What other reputable ministries and organizations are out there that strive to teach children so they can lift themselves out of poverty? Please tell me in the comments and hopefully we can get a huge list together that everyone can use!
Others from my blogroll taking part in Blog Action Day 08 include:
- Blog Action Day: Bloggers Unite Against Poverty and How You Can Help
- blog action day – poverty
- Blog Action Day 2008 – Talking About Poverty.
- War On Poverty (Blog Action Day)
- Fighting Poverty in America and Abroad
- Poverty – It’s our responsibility to help
- Learning to Give: What *I* Can Do to Fight Poverty
- Reflections on Poverty – Blog Action Day 2008
- Fight Poverty: Donate to Food Banks
- My Poverty-Fighting Superheroes
- Causes Of Poverty – Blog Action Day 2008
- Poverty: How You Can Help
- Blog Action Day: The Little We Do
- Blog Action Day 2008: Poverty
- I Want A Kid
Photo by: carf
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“Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime.”
Very true and effective. There only other element that needs to be added is opportunity/availablility.
We shouldn’t look at people in poverty and say ” they are impoverished. ” We shouldn’t simply give them food, clothes, money and other aide. “Give the man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach a man to fish and he will eat for a lifetime!” If we look at poverty and see poverty there will only be more poverty. However, if we look at poverty and see someone who is on their way to wealth (in more ways than theone) then we can end poverty.
you’re doing a good thing here.
for my part, i turn to sites like freerice, kiva, and goodsearch, as ways to help alleviate poverty online.
saw this post via the front page of blog action day. it’s great that you’re participating. :)
Those who suffer from poverty are an opportunity for the rest of the world. There’s a market out there in teaching these people and developing them. I agree with the above that these aren’t people to be looked down on. They are like us and just need opportunity.
Blog action day is about awareness and taking action. A lot of people think that they can’t help because they don’t have the money. Don’t forget that you can always take extra blankets or warm clothes to your local donation center. While this type of donation won’t solve poverty it will keep someone warm.
I work for a company that is doing its part in “teaching the man to fish”. We provide computers, resources, training, and community outreach to those in poverty with the goal of helping them get into the workforce and end the cycle of poverty. I believe that every little bit counts, today we should take the opportunity to be grateful for what we have and give to those who don’t have anything.
Der Blog action day ist eine sehr gute Sache. Viele haben teilgenommen und ich denke, im nächsten Jahr werden es noch viel mehr werden.
Blog Action Day is a very good thing. Many have participated and I think next year will be much more.
Lothar
I agree with the provision of access to better education on children, but children need support to the surrounding environment, not just taught in doctrine or to become something.