Author: Kelsey Lay

SEATTLE — While new policies have been made by the European Union to prevent unsustainable logging and corruption, illegal logging continues across Africa, especially in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The Congo’s milling industry employs about 25,000 people and produces more than 35 million cubic feet of wood each year, according to African news outlet, How We Made It In Africa. About 85 percent of this wood is sold domestically, with the remaining 15 percent being exported to nearby countries. This creates about a $100 million in profit per year from Congo’s milling industry. The Congolese government instated forestry management…

The United Nations Education Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) estimates that 90 percent of children with special needs in developing countries do not attend school. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has found that 10 percent of the world is living with special needs and 80 percent of the disabled live in developing countries. The World Bank estimates that, of the 58 million children who do not attend primary school, one-third have a disability. Monitoring disability rates of children in developing countries such as Africa is difficult due to a lack of study and inclusion of the group, says Shimelis…

Financial news outlet Barron’s defines impact investing as a means of generating portfolios that earn market-rate returns while contributing to a measurable social or environmental impact. Through impact investing, consumers are able to become social advocates for issues such as global poverty, social inequality and economic growth in the developing world. Impact investments provide capital to organizations, companies or funds to provide services like housing, healthcare and education to the global poor. Hyatt Hotel heiress, Liesel Pritzker Simmons, became a leading name in the impact investing movement after co-founding the Blue Haven Initiative with her husband. The Blue Haven Initiative…

Late last year, a report published by the National Insurance Institute found poverty in Israel affected 22 percent of the population. In 2013, Israel’s poverty rate grew more than any other nation belonging to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The OECD found that Israel is the most impoverished out of 34 economically developed countries. Why can an economically sound country end up with such high rates of poverty and inequality? According to Rabbi and social advocate Yechiel Eckstein, the government can better use its assets to help decrease the poverty in Israel. “The poor in Israel are…

ELDORET, Kenya – Shoe4Africa is a nonprofit organization with a mission to improve young lives and reduce poverty through public health and education awareness. The organization was founded in 1995 by runner and humanitarian Toby Tanser in Eldoret, Kenya. Shoe4Africa takes donations to provide African people with shoes that can be used for everyday wear and sporting events. The organization aims to educate young people about health and fitness through hosting “Run for Peace” marathons, allowing donors to sponsor runners, providing scholarships for promising athletes and teaching health education, particularly related to HIV/AIDS awareness. According to UNICEF, poverty reduction begins…

Technology jobs for women in Africa are rare. Even in the United States, women make up only 30 percent of the technology industry, based on reports filed by top technology companies including Google and Microsoft. With one of the most influential nations in the world struggling with gender equality in the tech sector, it’s not surprising that women from the developing world face similar struggles in their search for skilled employment. The problem of technology jobs for women in Africa was a topic of conversation at the 2015 meeting of the International Telecommunication Union in Geneva, where the goal was…

SEATTLE — Barley is the most common grain used to brew beer in the United States and Europe. In African countries, sorghum in beer is more popular because barley has a low drought tolerance in Sub-Saharan regions. Drought-resistant crops like sorghum, cassava, corn and rice are more successful in southern Africa and powerful companies are taking note. SAB-Miller, purchased by Anheuser-Busch for $106 billion this week, saw locally-made beer as a marketing opportunity for authentic African products in the United States. The company has invested $110 million in Nigeria in support of expanding the “local brew” sorghum in beer market.…

GLAZOUÈ, Benin — Globally, women have fewer opportunities for economic and social participation than men. In the small town of Glazouè in central Benin, things are no different. Women are the primary rice farmers in this region during the off-season, performing laborious tasks to farm rice crops in lowland swamps where the threat of pressurized heat burns inches from their faces. Difficult work for little pay may no longer hinder the women of Glazouè due to an enhanced rice parboiling system established by the Africa Rice Center, AfricaRice. The system protects female farmers from heat burns, raises rice quality standards…