 Community Development
DARFUR,
SUDAN- HISG is working on several different projects to help
the displaced people in the Jebbel Marra mountains of
Sudan.
One
project HISG is helping with is well-drilling to provide the
people with access to clean water. Water in the region is
scarce, and the growing population is exceeding the water
supply. A stable water source will meet many severe needs in
the community.
Secondly,
HISG is finding ways to help people who have been driven from
their homes and forced to live in Internally Displaced People
(IDP) camps. Living conditions in these camps are filthy, and
disease is rampant, but simple measures like mosquito nets to
stop the spread of malaria can make a big
difference. HISG is networking and
supporting health workers who can provide treatment in the
camps.
Finally,
HISG is providing adult education and AIDS education. The
literacy rate in Sudan is only about 60%, and in 2005 about
34,000 people died of AIDS. HISG aims help stabilize life in
Sudan by developing a more educated workforce and by helping
people better understand how HIV/AIDS is spread.
To
view a slide show from Darfur, please click
here.
|
 Disaster Relief
BOJONEGORO,
INDONESIA- A flood in the city of Bojonegoro, East Java,
Indonesia has left many people in the region homeless and
hungry. Heavy rains in the area have caused the Bengawan Solo
River to overflow, flooding houses, causing bridges to
collapse and drowning entire cities.
HISG
is partnering with an organization, Pondok Kasih, based in
nearby Surabaya that is providing clothing, food, and water to
flood victims. In one location, they set up
a mobile kitchen to cook meals for 800 people crowded into a
two-story building. In another location, Pondok Kasih
volunteers traveled by boat to deliver clothes and baby
clothes to families who had been wearing the same wet clothes
for four days. Unfortunately, there is very little government
coordination in the relief efforts.
Pondok
Kasih is providing 3,000 meals a day in the cities of
Bojonegoro and Ngawi. The next step is to provide medical care
for all the people suffering from malaria, skin diseases and
other illnesses that have multiplied since the flood. To
connect with HISG in helping the people in East Java, please
contact Tom Jennings (tjennings@hisg.org).
|
 HISG Operations
HISG's
Operations Team of Mark Sprenger, Norm Brinkley, and Tom and
Charlene Jennings have developed two separate models that will
lay the groundwork for all of HISG's future operations. The International Disaster
Response (IDR) model is the basis for our disaster relief
efforts, and the Holistic Integrated
Sustainable Transformation (HIST) model is the foundation
for community development projects.
The
IDR model is the product of extensive experience in connecting
private sector resources to disaster relief needs. HISG has
taken a leadership role in this arena since 2005 when we were
asked to coordinate a response for Hurricanes Katrina and
Rita. In addition, HISG has worked with government agencies in
response to the southern California wildfires in 2007, as well
as international agencies in countries such as Lebanon (2006),
the Philippines (2004), and Indonesia (2004-2006).
The
HIST model is the result of decades of international
development work. HISG directors Tom Jennings, Charlene
Jennings, and Norm Brinkley have all been working in or
managing international businesses and charities for more than
twenty years. These three poured their collective research,
knowledge and talents into the HIST Model to make certain HISG
is not just doing things right, but also doing the right
things. To
read more about these two models, and why they are so critical
to everything HISG does, please visit us online at www.HISG.org/models.php.
|
 Department Focus
As
part of our vision to provide sustainable solutions for people
around the world, HISG launched a new organization called
Global innovations For Fair Trade, or GIFFT.
GIFFT is an organization formed to "help advance the
fair trade movement and sustainable community development
around the world."
Fair
trade is important because it ensures that local growers and
producers receive a fair price for their goods. Most retailers
also pay a "social premium" for goods that are certified as
fair trade. HISG's launch of GIFFT is so strategic because
HISG's networks and vast experience in community development
will ensure that social premiums are fed directly back into
the community and used in projects that benefit everyone in
the community.
To
learn more about the fair trade movement, or HISG's
partnership with GIFFT, please contact Kyle Adams (kadams@hisg.org) or Steve Lencke (slencke@hisg.org). Read more about
GIFFT at www.gifft.org.
| |
