On Wednesday, the Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases co-hosted a seminar at World Water Week in Stockholm, Sweden. We were joined by the Howard G. Buffet Foundation to discuss the current state of water and NTD programs within the Latin America and Caribbean region. In the blog post below, Ann Kelly, representative of the Howard G. Buffett Foundation’s Global Water Initiative and co-founder and Partner at Global Philanthropy Group provides an overview of the event, and her experience at Wednesday’s event at the 2011 World Water Week.

By Ann Kelly, representative of the Howard G. Buffett Foundation’s Global Water Initiative and co-founder of Partner at Global Philanthropy Group

As another World Water Week comes to an end here in Stockholm, we are reminded how central water is to so many of the world’s development issues. The other night I had the honor to sit on a panel entitled “Fighting Poverty in Latin America: Integrating Water and Health Initiatives” sponsored by FEMSA Foundation, the Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases  (Global Network) and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). My co-panelists Vidal Garza Cantú, Director of the FEMSA Foundation; Dr. Neeraj Mistry, Managing Director of the Global Network; and Carlos de Paco, Principal Partnerships Officer at the IDB are already collaborating with the Pan-American Health Organization, and the government of Chiapas to eliminate trachoma, the leading cause of preventable blindness in the world. This collaboration illustrates three things: (1) it is impossible to work on water without also working on health; (2) it takes creative partnerships to do things that are as transformational and sustainable like eliminating trachoma and other NTDs; (3) all of this is achievable relatively easily and inexpensively – it just requires focus and determination as illustrated by the efforts in Chiapas.

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If you aren’t paying attention yet, you should be.

Click here to read Global Philanthropy Group’s report on the situation – including ways you can help.

As a result of one of the worst droughts in 60 years caused by extremely poor rainfall in East Africa (also known as the Horn of Africa) an estimated 12.4 million people are in immediate need of humanitarian assistance, with the number at risk growing daily. The countries affected include Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia. Women and children are the most severely affected, with one U.S. source estimating that 29,000 children under the age of 5 have died in the last 90 days from the famine.

According to the UN, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya and Northern Somalia are currently experiencing a Level 4 humanitarian crisis due to the drought, including severe lack of food access, death due to hunger, malnutrition and irreversible livestock asset stripping.  In Southern and Central Somalia, 5 regions have been declared as experiencing a Level 5 catastrophic famine – the most severe possible rating…

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GPG Partner Trevor Neilson writes:

In the spring of 2006 I went to New Orleans to see what I could do to help rebuild following the nightmare of hurricane Katrina. With a group of partners including Global Green, we began the process of developing a multi-family housing project by announcing a design competition which drew 3,000 registrants.

I can remember very clearly a line of questioning at the press conference announcing the project. Multiple reporters questioned why people who had lost their homes should care about green building. The questions went something like this:

• Isn’t green building for rich people?
• Instead of building green, shouldn’t we just build the cheapest houses we can build?
• Don’t these people have bigger things to worry about than climate change?
• Green-building is way too expensive; there is no way these people can afford it? Continue reading →

Check out this video from April 2009 – GPG Partner Trevor Neilson moderates a panel with Carol C. Adelman, Director, Center for Global Prosperity, Hudson Institute and Jane M. Wales, President and Chief Executive Officer, World Affairs Council of Northern California; Cofounder and President, Global Philanthropy Forum; Vice President, Philanthropy and Society, Aspen Institute.

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“The relationship between a musician and their audience is far more powerful than the one between an actor and their audience,” says Trevor Neilson, co-founder of the Global Philanthropy Group, which assists artists (including Lavigne, Legend and Shakira) with their charitable efforts. “A musician with a large fan base has an opportunity to mobilize people that might be more powerful than their opportunity to write checks.”

GPG Partner Trevor Neilson writes:

I’m on the way to Arizona for a few days of learning about the challenges of immigration reform, and the harsh reality of the Mexican/US border. Before I leave on any trip, I try to tell my kids where I am going, and what I am trying to do. Today, that conversation left me wondering whether the wisdom of a six-year-old might help our policy makers reset the polemic and extreme rhetoric around immigration. Continue reading →

Global Philanthropy Group was retained by the board of directors of Raising Malawi in November of 2010 to help the organization design a new strategy and structure a new approach to the organizations work.

Since that time Global Philanthropy’s team has helped the board of Raising Malawi make major organizational and management changes, and has also filed the necessary paperwork with the IRS to allow Raising Malawi to be an independent 501c3 organization.  The new strategy of Raising Malawi will be announced in the coming weeks once discussions with experts in the field and partner organizations have been finalized.

For any questions about Global Philanthropy Group’s work with Raising Malawi please email contact@globalphilanthropy.com.

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Celebrity Activism: it good, bad, or perhaps just inevitable? Global Philanthropy Group Partner Maggie Neilson weighs in on the debate.

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Global Philanthropy Group Partner Trevor Neilson reflects on the life and career of Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, “We have lost America’s finest diplomat, but also one of its finest men.”

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Global Philanthropy Group Partner Trevor Neilson writes, “As someone who works closely with philanthropists every day, I can clearly say that the Giving Pledge is going to have a huge impact. Here are 10 reasons why.”