A recent NY Times article cited a Save The Children's report, which names Norway as the best place to be a mother and Afghanistan as the worst out of 160 countries, including 43 developed nations and 117 developing ones. Both the NY Times and Save The Children highlight the importance of trained healthcare professionals present during childbirth, and notes that in very poor countries, survival of both mother and child is contingent on whether or not there is a trained female healthcare worker present during the birth. In many of these countries, husbands prevent their wives from seeing male doctors, and without the presence of any trained healthcare worker, the probability of mortality for both mother and child increases significantly. Without the presence of a male doctor, trained female midwives, nurses and doctors can play a crucial role in decreasing maternal and infant mortality rates.

In order for women in developing countries to participate in fields such as healthcare, education is a necessary component. However, in many of these lower income countries, female education is just not a priority. Many communities do not see the value in education, especially if their communities are labor intensive and require the manual labor of all members of the family. But education, as seen from the above article, can be the key in significantly decreasing maternal mortality, which remains one of the most staggering collection of statistics in international health today.

Many people and organizations worldwide are beginning to recognize the importance of women as contributors to society:

-One NY Times blogger, Nicholas D. Kristof, has written several articles about the situation of women all over the world.
-Studies have been done that show how female education improves maternal health.
-Organizations such as Build A Nest worldwide, Rencontre et Action in Niger and others focus on involving women in economic activity separate from their husbands so that they too have a say in economic life for their families.

We can also support these women by recognizing the importance of female education in our own societies by looking at what is working and what we can improve. Supporting organizations such as the ones above that focus specifically on women is a great way to become involved in the lives of women all over the world. Women can and should be an important part of society and this realization is crucial if countries want to fully develop in all aspects of society. Once, when asked if Saudi Arabia would reach one of the top 10 countries in the world in technology by 2010, Bill Gates replied to an audience that was 4/5 men and 1/5 women: "Well, if you’re not fully utilizing half the talent in the country, you’re not going to get too close to the Top 10".

Earth Day 2010: 40 Years Later

Earth Day 2010 marks the 40th anniversary of the modern environmental movement. The idea behind Earth Day was conceived of by U.S. Senator Gaylord Nelson (a Democrat from Wisconsin). In 1969, Senator Nelson announced his plan to create a nationwide teach-in day on environmental issues. He hopes that creating a grassroots movement focusing on the environment would show Washington D.C. that Americans cared deeply about the vast harm being done to the planet.

The first Earth Day was observed on April 22, 1970. Approximately 20 million Americans participated. Protests and events were staged around the country and once unrelated groups lobbying against causes as varied as the extinction of animals and wildlife, oil spills, toxic materials and general deterioration of the environment came to realize they shared very similar goals.

Senator Nelson explained the power behind the movement:

“Earth Day worked because of the spontaneous response at the grassroots level. We had neither the time nor resources to organize 20 million demonstrators and the thousands of schools and local communities that participated. That was the remarkable thing about Earth Day. It organized itself.”

Earth Day participants have grown in huge numbers over the last 40 years and today more than one billion people in 190 countries are taking action for Earth Day. While it’s important for all of us to observe Earth Day each April 22, it’s even more important to make an effort the other 364 days of the year. Here are a few small things that you can do to help out the planet:

*Buy local- shop at a farmer’s market and purchase organic food.

*Pay bills online.

*Use a reusable water bottle.

*Buy environmentally friendly cleaning products.

*Use public transportation, walk, ride a bike or buy a hybrid car.

*Skip the plastic bag, use a reusable canvas one instead.

Here at Blue Kitabu we’re getting into the Earth Day spirit too! We received some beautiful fabric samples which were going to be thrown in the trash and we’re turning them into adorable handbags and clutches. It’s an example of one easy way to turn something that was headed to the dump into something that can be used for years to come. Do you have ideas about ways to re-use old fabrics or household goods? We’d be happy to hear from you if you do!

World Malaria Day

The third annual World Malaria Day falls on April 25 this year. A preventable and treatable disease, there are about 247 million cases of malaria each year, 212 million of which occur in Africa. About 881,000 people die every year from malaria, 91% (801,000) of those deaths occurring in Africa. Check out Roll Back Malaria's website for more stunning statistics on this easily preventable disease.

This year, hundreds of organizations are intensifying their efforts to educate and equip citizens of high risk nations with the information and tools they need to protect themselves from the deadly disease. The main way to protect oneself from malaria is investing in and using an insecticide-treated bed net, which costs about US $10. Malaria is not only a deadly disease, but the extent to which it affects the livelihoods of people of developing nations is serious - malaria keeps children from going to school and adults from being able to work and provide for their families. Malaria contributes to the ongoing cycle of poverty for the most impoverished countries and communities.


Word is spreading fast about World Malaria Day - Anderson Cooper's recent tweet (which was retweeted by thousands of people) cited the World Health Organization's statistic that every 30 seconds, a child dies of malaria.

We can all help out by spreading the word about malaria and raising awareness for this preventable killer. Organizations like Malaria No More, The Global Fund, Against Malaria Foundation, Nothing But Nets, and Surfaid International are great resources for finding out more information or making a donation that could save a life.

Updates from Asebu!

Blue Kitabu's first school building project in the community of Asebu, Ghana is moving right along! The foundation of the school is finished, and the walls are going up this month. The project manager, Elvis, sent us some recent pictures that show the progress. We are very excited that the building is continuing after some minor set backs. The school will be ready to welcome students in August, and will also be the site of our teacher training sessions this summer.


To continue to support our school for orphans and vulnerable children, visit our website and make a donation, or join us on Friday, April 23, 2010 at our Second Annual UnWINEd Wine Tasting event!

A little bird told me...

If you're not already on Twitter, maybe you should think about jumping on the bandwagon. Here at BK, we have been doing our best to utilize the fastest growing networking tool out there. We tweet, we retweet, we follow trends, and we at-reply. But the coolest thing about Twitter is the simple ability to find out about people, places, things, organizations, events, and opportunities without having to navigate through the mess of Google or the blog-o-sphere.

Our interns scour Twitter for like-minded organizations and interesting information. Recently, we have been very intrigued by one 'tweeter' (twitterer?) that we follow, called charity: water, a non-profit organization bringing clean and safe drinking water to people in developing nations. If their super fantastic website isn't enough to draw you in, check out founder Scott Harrison's story, or look closer for their newest project, called Unshaken. Aiming to provide about 40,000 Haitian people affected by the earthquake with safe, clean drinking water, charity:water is teaming up with other philanthropic organizations to fund 11 large-scale water projects.

Charity:water is the kind of organization Blue Kitabu aspires to be. With a few more years and a lot more experience under our belt, we hope that our mission will reach into the hearts and minds of more and more people, enabling us to grow our organization and our projects. Your support of Blue Kitabu, and of other organizations such as charity:water, makes a difference where it really matters. If you haven't done something to support those in need lately, right now is as good a time as any.

Helping our Neighbors

If you haven't looked at a map of West Africa lately, maybe now is the time to refresh your memory. Right smack in the middle of the Sahel and Sahara deserts is a country called Niger. The UN Human Development Index lists Niger as the least developed country in the world, an honor that brings less attention than one would expect. The CIA World Factbook describes Niger's geography as landlocked; one of the hottest countries in the world; northern four-fifths is desert, southern one-fifth is savanna, suitable for livestock and limited agriculture.

Recent political conflict plagues the capital, Niamey, where a coup d'etat in March took the president and his supporters from power. President Tandja, although elected to office democratically, had single-handedly abolished his own term limits and was attempting to unconstitutionally stay in power. The coup leaders claim to be re-instituting a democratic government, although only time will tell how truthful and successful this claim will be.

In the midst of this conflict, Niger faces another potentially dire situation: a food shortage estimated to affect about 7.8 million people, which is about 60% of Niger's population. International aid organizations are asking for millions of dollars in order to help the already struggling rural populations, many of which have been forced to leave their homes and villages because of the complete depletion of food supplies. The UN is predicting there will be approximately 1.5 million cases of malnutrition in children under the age of 5, and another 35,000 cases among pregnant and lactating women.

Niger is a country composed of many vibrant cultural groups, including those of the Tuaregs, the Fulani, the Hausa and the Zarma. Our intern, Emily, spent four months in Niamey last semester studying international development and immersing herself in the culture and society of Niger. More than anything else, it is the people she met there that have left an incredible impression on her.

In this awful time of widespread famine for a country already so stricken with the problems of under-development, we ask that you take some time to learn more about Niger and the ways in which you can help out the millions of people facing starvation and death.

Some organizations currently working in Niger to prevent the spread of the food shortage are Action Against Hunger, Catholic Relief Services, and the International Committee of the Red Cross.

A month of reflection

It recently came to my attention that April has been named Genocide Prevention Month by many human rights and genocide prevention groups around the world. They are working together to plan events and create greater awareness for the ongoing conflicts in many areas of the world. I thought it would be relevant to take a minute and help spread some information about this cause.

April is a month of anniversaries for some of the worst human rights atrocities in Armenia, Bosnia, Cambodia, Darfur and Rwanda, as well as events in the Holocaust. James Boyce's blog has a great description of the month, highlighting some of the events and suggesting other websites to check out. Find out more information about the on-going conflict in Darfur, as well as in Armenia. One organization working to change the way the world sees genocide is Stop Genocide Now, whose name says it all. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum is also taking action in memory of millions already lost.

It is difficult to be far removed from these conflicts and to be able to conjure a sense of empathy that allows us to connect with the people suffering at the hands of awful oppressors. We often forget that much of the world is not only suffering from lack of water, food, or education, but from oppression and genocide as well. April may be a time to reflect on the events that have shaped our understanding of human rights. The spread of information and discussion is one powerful tool in fighting human rights violations. Maybe taking some time to share with your friends the history of genocide in the month of April will contribute to global awareness and concern for the lives of many forgotten people.