What Took Me So Long To Discover Nicholas Kristof?

What took me so long to discover Nichoas Kristof?  I guess it's that I don't read the New York Times regularly, but I have been reading it recently.  I just read one of his articles, and now follow his blog.  He is a Harvard graduate (Phi Beta Kappa), a Rhodes Scholar, and a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist.  He and his wife Sheryl have travelled the world, investigating regions of the world that are often overlooked.  He currently works for the New York Times, writing articles of interest about everything from Darfur to Afghanistan.  He's interested in improving the lives of people in underdeveloped nations, and his article called "Gift With Meaning,"  caught my eye

In thinking about the upcoming holiday, he suggests giving gifts that are more meaningful than a sweater or a gift card.  He has a number of ideas, which I will share with you, that will really make a difference.  I have decided that this year I am going to give a "meaningful" gift to all my adult friends and family, and toys for the children.  Here are some of his suggestions:

1.  For $20, through Heifer International (heifer.org) you can buy a flock of ducks and halep a family work its way to a better life.  Several years ago my mother donated a cow to a family in Africa from Heifer International for me as a Christmas present.  What a great present for an impoverished family.  Hard to believe, but owning a cow may keep them from starving.

2.  For $74 through CARE (care.org) you can pay for a schoolgirl's books and supplies for a year, so she can attend school.  This may be the highest-return investment available in the world today.

3.  You can contribute $15 a month per child to Communities in Schools.  This organization supports disadvantage kids, mostly black and Latino, in elementary, middle and high schools.  The monthly donation will offer mentoring, pregnancy prevention, college counseling and more.  It is effective.  91% of the students it helps end up graduating from high school.

4. Trickle Up (trickleup.org) is an organization that lifts people out of extreme poverty.  The gift of a cow or other animal, training, a savings account and other support, seems to work by giving people hope.

5.  HeroRats is another amazing program.  In Angola, rats have been trained to sniff out land mines.  In a day, they can clear 20 times as much of a minefield as a human.  You can adopt a rat for $7 a month through Apopo.org.

6.  CureBlindness.org is an organization fighting blindness in Asia and Africa.  Dr. Sanduk Ruit and Dr. Geoffrey Tabin head this organization .  For just $25, the cost per cataract surgery, you can give someone the gift of sight.

There are many other worthwhile organizations doing amazing work throughout the world.  These got my attention, and I have decided that I will donate to CureBlindness this year, in the name of my adult friends and family.  Knowing you are giving someone the gift of sight is worth more to me than another gift.

Nicholas Kristof  is also conducting a a win-a-trip contest for 2016.  Unfortunately I'm too old to qualify, but it's just the kind of experience I would have loved to have had.  He is seeking a university student to travel with him to the developing world, writing posts for his blog.  What an opportunity.  If you know anyone who might like this opportunity, tell them to check out Kristof's website.  In the meantime, think about making this holiday season a really "meaningful" one.