smiles 0 #1 January 6, 2005 http://www.thetyee.ca/Views/current/ATsunamiKindness.html Quote We are already writing cheques, and clicking the electronic button to send money to the agencies which are racing to get supplies to the people who need it. But quietly in the sidelines, waiting to become properly organized, lies a whole new movement which could radically affect the way we respond to disasters of this kind. It's called "adopt a village". By focusing on one particular village, our communities can focus our resources to make a viable contribution. There are five million people who need help, as they struggle to rebuild their lives and their villages. Can we respond to the cruelty of the tsunami with a tsunami of kindness? By putting down roots at the village level, where individuals feel they can make a difference, we could stabilize the flow of aid, while building long-term relationships which would enrich people's lives for years. The agencies could guide the movement by setting up partnerships with the sponsoring communities, and the personal connections which would make it come alive. If the agencies can help the fledgling 'adopt a village' movement to find its legs, using the Internet to its fullest capacity, they may be surprised how fast it can run. Cnd. city of Squamish, B.C. is working to adopt a village hit by tsunami- What do you think about this long term approach to respond to this disaster?? Do you think that communities focusing their resources on adopting a village can make a viable contribution?? SMiles Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
miked10270 0 #2 January 7, 2005 Hmmm... It's both a great idea, and a crap idea. It's a great idea since a small "First World" community can see it's aid making a difference and knows where its aid is going rather than contributions being swallowed into the multi-billion dollar "pool" without trace. In that way it'll encourage fundraising in FW communities with less opportunity for the aid being allegedly sidetracked. It's a crap idea since individual "Third World" communities will be dependent on the wealth & generosity of the sponsoring community. To be properly administered it'll require aid workers in each community dedicated to that community. With this, a lesser cproportion of the aid will go to the community itself since professional aid workers don't come free. Mike. Taking the piss out of the FrenchAmericans since before it was fashionable. Prenait la pisse hors du FrançaisCanadiens méridionaux puisqu'avant lui à la mode. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
