Category Archives: Causes

Why I run…

Posted on June 24, 2011 by Michael Chitwood, national director, Team World Vision in Causes

Team World Vision runner Paul Martin with World Vision staff member Nano Ngwane during the Comrades ultra-marathon in South Africa. ©2010 Andrea Peer/World Vision

Maybe running’s not your thing. So marathons wouldn’t really be your thing. Five kilometers or 42.195 kilometers — definitely not your thing. Maybe your thing is music, or sporting events, or enjoying the beautiful scenery of the Pacific Northwest. Now that sounds a lot more like the Seattle Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon. That’s because this marathon isn’t really your average running venture. Local bands play live music, and cheer squads line the roads every mile. Lake Washington neighbors come out of their homes to join the “crowd” en route from Tukwila, Washington, to downtown Seattle. It’s a “running [and I would add, outdoor entertainment] nirvana,” as the marathon Facebook page says....

Food is an answer, but what’s the solution?

Posted on June 21, 2011 by Guest blogger in Causes

In Zambia, five-year-old Sharon harvests some vegetables for the day's relish. ©2008 Collins Kaumba/World Vision

What if there was one nutrient that would take away feelings of constant fatigue, keep hearts beating regularly, and help kids to get better grades in school and reach their potential? What if this “magical” nutrient would prevent dizziness, provide strength and energy, protect against other diseases, keep mothers from dying during delivery, and keep babies alive past their fifth birthday? If you had access to that food, would you buy it for yourself? If you had it, would you give it away — even to someone halfway across the globe? In the world of global nutrition, that nutrient does exist. It is called iron. Iron is all over the place in America — beef, pork, chicken, seafood, beans, breads,...

World Refugee Day: Highlighting a global crisis

Posted on June 20, 2011 by Peter Warski in Causes

Scenes from a camp for internally displaced peoples in Corail, Haiti. ©2010 Jon Warren/World Vision

Earlier this month, Collins Kaumba, a World Vision communicator in Zambia, shared his experience visiting a camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Sudan. His words were jarring: “Indelible memories of the suffering I saw in Darfur have followed me since the day I left Sudan…I have seen suffering and poverty in Zambia and other places in Africa — but not of the magnitude I saw when I visited Darfur’s camps…” A reader in Israel commented on the post and made note of the thousands of Sudanese refugees there who are watching the situation in their homeland as the South prepares for its independence in just a few weeks. Years of conflict in this African country have caused millions to...

What would you do…if you knew?

Posted on June 14, 2011 by Larry Short, World Vision media relations in Causes, Partnerships

If you knew, World Vision Blog, Karen James

One of the greatest blessings I’ve ever experienced was the opportunity to travel to Southern Africa with my daughter, Amanda, who was 20 at the time. I had worked with World Vision for almost 15 years in various capacities, mostly related to web and social media communications, and had traveled abroad several times. But this would be my first opportunity to meet our sponsored child, Gracia, in person. The day Amanda and I spent with Gracia — who lives in the southern part of the Congo and was 8 at the time — is forever burned into our memories. Gracia is sweet, funny, and very smart. She lives in the poorest of circumstances, but has great potential to break the...

Hard facts about labor trafficking

Posted on June 12, 2011 by Peter Warski in Advocacy, Causes

Workers cleaning old shoes so that they can resell them in the markets in Thailand and Cambodia. ©2007 Haidy Ear-Dupuy/World Vision

When I was 15 years old, I got my first job as a lifeguard. Before I started, I had to obtain a work permit with my parents’ consent and the consultation of my school. There were strict rules governing the hours between which I was allowed to work, as well as how many hours I was allowed to work per week while school was in session. All of these regulations were in place because I was a minor. I resented them at the time. As an adolescent who longed to be treated as an adult — and who wanted to earn my own money — I thought the state had no business telling me when, where, or for how long...