Asian Philanthropy Forum

Asian philanthropy news digest 03/19/10

* Taiwan charity has global reach. Wall Street Journal has a feature story on Tzu Chi Foundation. Tzu Chi has 10 million donors and two million volunteers. The organization extends across much of the developing world and offers a "view of how Asian philanthropy may evolve in an era of rising affluence." One third of Tzu Chi's regular donors live outside Taiwan. It has 399 offices in 47 countries running local projects and raising funds. The organization is the first Asia-based Buddhist organization to provide cross-border humanitarian relief.

* Global billionaires turn to philanthropy in India.  Article in Economic Times featuring Omidyar, Soros, Legatum and Google, investing in social development oriented investments in India. Omidyar has invested $40 million so far.

* Sankalp Social Enterprise Awards & Investment Forum will be held in Mumbai on May 4 & 5, 2010. The event is India's largest gathering of more than 400 social innovators, impact investors, policy leaders and change-makers. 

Aravind to receive $1.5 million Hilton Humanitarian Prize

Aravind Eye Care System, the world's largest eye care provider, will receive the Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize of $1.5 million this year at the Global Philanthropy Forum. 

The prize was established by the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation in 1996 and "honors a charitable or non-governmental organization that has made extraordinary contributions toward alleviating human suffering anywhere in the world." Previous award winners include PATH, BRAC, Tostan, Women for Women International, Partners in Health, and Heifer International.

Aravind performs 300,000 surgeries each year. 70% of these surgeries are free or subsidized. India has 12 million of the 45 million blind people in the world. Indians get cataracts in their 40s and 50s as compared to 60s and 70s in the United States. Extreme sun, genetics, and lack of medical access for early diagnosis are the main factors for the high rates. Without surgery, the patients become blind and lose productive years. The blindness also creates needless suffering for the patient and their families.

As of 2009, Aravind has handled over 29 million outpatient visits and performed over 3.6 million surgeries. The organization operates five hospitals and is supported by a network of clinics, research laboratories and manufacturing facilities producing high quality, low cost ophthalmic supplies. It has also expanded in the region, establishing seven eye hospitals in Bangladesh. 

The founder of Aravind was inspired by McDonald's capability to expand and replicate the same quality and efficiency of service anywhere in the world. He adapted the concept to eye-care by standardizing systems, equipment and training. By allowing nurses and other staff to handle routine tasks, the doctors could concentrate on diagnosis and surgeries. An Aravind doctor performs an average of 2,000 or more surgeries annually while a typical ophthalmologist might perform 250 to 400.

The organization depends on volume and efficiency to keep its cost structure low. In addition to providing services, the organization also set up Aurolab to manufacture lenses, costing about $2 each as compared to $200 elsewhere. Aurolab now provides the lenses and other supplies to 120 countries. What makes Aravind remarkable is that it has not assumed debt and has accomplished all this work with minimal charitable contributions.

I will be attending the Global Philanthropy Forum this year and look forward to the award presentation. If you are going to the event, please let me know!

Photo courtesy of fredericknoronha, Creative Commons

Ingenuity Fund Challenge: Win Trip Abroad to Witness Grameen Foundation's Work

by guest blogger, Seena Aras, Director of Online and Annual Giving at Grameen Foundation

Despite incredible economic progress over the past two decades, Asia remains home to the majority of the world’s poor people. 

Grameen Foundation creates economic opportunities that help the world’s poorest, especially women, improve their lives and escape poverty. We focus on five core countries in Asia—China, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, and the Philippines—where we have provided support for many years.   Together, these countries are home to more than 60 percent of the world’s poor people, living on just $2.50/day, and more than 70 percent of the world’s poorest people, living on just $1.25/day.

Now, you and a guest can have the chance to take part in our innovative delivery of microfinance and technology services to the world’s poorest people—all by joining The Ingenuity Fund Challenge and competing for the grand prize trip. 

The Ingenuity Fund Challenge is a way for you to tap into your own creativity and make an impact on ending the cycle of poverty endured by millions around the world. By joining the Challenge, you’ll have the opportunity to develop the most compelling ways to educate your friends, families, and networks about Grameen Foundation. Through March 31st, 2010, Challenge participants will develop compelling, creative personal Ingenuity Fund Challenge fundraising pages on Grameen Foundation’s website and raise awareness of and funds for Grameen Foundation’s work through personal networks, social media, and other offline activities. The participant with the most creative, ingenious web page and outreach effort will win the grand prize of an overseas field visit.

Our donors like Annie Chen and Raja Malkani have witnessed firsthand our work in Inner Mongolia, an autonomous region of China. During the trip, Annie visited Chifeng Zhaowuda Women’s Sustainable Development Association (CZWSDA), a microfinance institution, where she met microfinance clients and saw how their small enterprises improved their lives and those of their families.  Raja met microfinance borrowers stitching and selling clothing, operating seed shops, and growing and selling crops. “It’s amazing what microfinance can do for such people,” Raja said. “The borrowers I met didn’t just gain financially; they gained self-esteem and a sense of independence, too.”

“I like the fact that microfinance is built on a model that involves empowering individuals to explore and develop their own potentials and strengths, rather than on giving handouts,” Annie said. 

If you are up to the challenge, please check out our resource page to read the full details and eligibility requirements in the contest rules.

Dr. Sudhir M. Parikh, Indian American physician, philanthropist and publisher

Dr. Sudhir M. Parikh, Indian American physician, philanthropist and publisher is named as a recipient of the 2010 Padma Shri Award. The Indian government grants this award to distinguished Indians and people of Indian origin for their contribution in various spheres of activity including the arts, education, industry, literature, science, sports, medicine, social service and public life. The award will be presented b President Pratibha Patil at a ceremony in New Delhi in March.

Dr. Parikh is a 59 year old native of Gujarat. He set up his private medical practice in Hoboken, New Jersey in 1980. His practice flourished and he is now a noted allergist and an acclaimed authority in the field of allergy, asthma, and immunology. Dr. Parikh is also Chairman and Publisher of New York based Parikh Worldwide Media, which publishes the News India Times, Desi Talk and The Indian American.

Dr. Parikh had donated more than $2 million to various charities and causes in the India and the U.S. over the years. Fifteen years ago, he set up the Parikh Foundation.  He was part of the delegation that accompanied Former President Bill Clinton to the affected areas of the Gujarat earthquake. He has also helped tsunami victims in Tamil Nadu and supports the Art of Living Foundation in providing humanitarian relief. Dr. Parikh has helped raise funds towards AIDS awareness in India and healtcare-related programs in the country.  In the U.S., Dr. Parikh gives to the Share & Care Foundation, Nargis Dutt Memorial Foundation, and the American India Foundation.

We congratulate Dr. Parikh for his professional and philanthropic achievements!

In the Asian blogsphere 01/18/10

Highlights from philanthropy, NGOs, and social entrepreneurship blogs in the Asia Pacific region.

* New resource for aspiring entrepreneurs. FYSE launched the first online database in the Asia Pacific to provide young people with information on where to get support to start their own ventures.

* Half-truths, lies and poverty. Abraham George, founder of The George Foundation in India, shares how assertions and projections made by leaders that are incorrect or unrealistic hurts the credibility and confidence of all efforts to eradicate poverty.

* Classes in boxes. Sudhar Krishnamachary is Think Change India's new education correspondent. In his first post, he shares the Digital Study Hall story, a technical approach to education for rural and slum schools.

* Should China redraw its poverty line? Wokai points out that China might be facing a much grimmer plight of poverty than what the official numbers declare. There are 150 million or 10% of the Chinese population living on less than $1 a day.

* China's CSR Report: 40% of China's top corporations are bystanders. Chinese Academy of Sciences released the 2009 Corporate Social Responsibility Blue Book that contains the indexes and evaluation of China's top 100 corporation's CSR.

Photo courtesy of Kevin Kelly: Asia Grace

Sheela Murthy, philanthropist and entrepreneur

There is a perception that a majority of immigrants in the U.S. only give to organizations and causes in the country where they came from. While my experience disputes this perception, it is difficult to counter this belief except through examples and facts. My observation is that Asian Americans live in three worlds: the world in which they are from, the one in which they currently reside, and a new one that includes the best of the first two. This third world is the most interesting because globalization allowed for this convergence and depending on the circumstances, I believe it is the most important one to understand when working with immigrant donors. Their giving patterns are unique and the next generation will be deeply affected by their parent's experiences.

Sheela Murthy is a successful immigration lawyer and founder of the Murthy Law Firm. Sheela's story showcases the ability of philanthropists in the U.S. to live, give and do business in both worlds, India and the U.S. Sheela moved from India in the 80s and graduated from Harvard Law School. She started her own law firm in 1994 in Maryland with a liaison office in Chennai. The Murthy Law Firm was honored in 2008 with the Maryland International Global Award for contributing to international issues. Ernst & Young also honored Sheela asEntrepreneur of the Year in 2009. She is listed among the top 100 women in Maryland.

In addition to business success, Sheela was named 2009 Philanthropist of the Year by United Way Central Maryland for her $1 million gift. Sheela and her husband started the MurthyNayak Foundation to support projects in India and the U.S. The Foundation focuses their work on children and women's health and educational issues, programs that assist immigrants, educate and advocate for immigration, and disaster relief efforts. In India, the Foundation supports adult education and literacy, orphanages and old-age homes, and offers scholarships. 

Tsunami pushed philanthropy forward

Five years ago today, the devastation caused by the tsunami in India, Indonesia, Sir Lanka and Thailand was overwhelming.  230,000 people were killed, thousands injured and 10 million were homeless or displaced. But the response by individuals, companies and foundations was just as overwhelming. Many groups, like theAsian Chefs Association held a gala to raise funds for disaster relief and recovery. Children in grade schools found creative ways to raise money to help other children across the world.

It is during times of difficulty and suffering that people rise to overcome the challenges they face. These are also times when people become more aware of the power they have to influence the outcome of certain situations and when philanthropists are created.  The Chinese actor and philanthropist, Jet Li started to think about giving back when he was in Maldives when the tsunami hit and he saw the devastation. Supermodel, Petra Nemcova lost her boyfriend and suffered a shattered hip and internal injuries.  She started the Happy Hearts Fund to help children affected by natural disasters.

I was working as a consultant with Give2Asia in 2006 to help them with their fifth anniversary celebration. As part of the events, Petra Nemcova was the featured guest.  At that time, Give2Asia donors provided over $4 million in relief for devastated communities and supported 57 projects managed by local charitable organizations that worked to create new opportunities for survivors of the tsunami. Petra had just returned from a trip to Sir Lanka and Thailand, visiting several of the projects she had supported before her stop at Give2Asia's fifth anniversary celebrations.  The convergence of a powerful and tragic story, the stardom and access to media, and the desire to give back, created the perfect setting for the supermodel to be the champion for the Asian tsunami recovery.

Petra's philanthropy evolved from tsunami recovery to helping vulnerable children all over the world. Jet Li became the philanthropy champion for China.  Give2Asia's potential as an organization to help donors during disasters magnified.  Philanthropic experiments and organizations started in areas where they would never have worked before.  The tsunami created a wave of interest in international philanthropy and introduced countries and cultures to many people that had never heard of them before. While we hope another disaster like this never happens again, we are also amazed at how resilient people and organizations can be in times of disaster. From every story comes an opportunity to make the world just a little bit better.

About the picture: Give2Asia fifth anniversary celebration in San Francisco. Petra Nemcova with Give2Asia founding Chairman, Sandy Calhoun, Vice Chairman, Bill Fuller and founding CEO, Mike Rea.

International causes winners on America's Giving Challenge

The Case Foundation, Causes and PARADE Publications today announced the winners of the 2009 America's Giving Challenge. The Challenge encouraged more than 105,000 donations which helped raise $2.1 million for nonprofit causes. Many of the winners supported international causes. They include:

• Gan Liang, Houston, Texas: $50,000 prize for Overseas China Education Foundation, Houston, Texas (13,772 donations, $156,637 funds raised plus awards).
• Steve Kowarsky, Los Angeles, Calif.: $25,000 prize for The Prem Rawat Foundation, Los Angeles, Calif. (11,981 donations, $187,398 funds raised plus awards).
• Hua Xiao, Toledo, Ohio: $25,000 prize for Overseas Save Chinese Children Foundation, Toledo, Ohio (10,203 donations, $112,922 funds raised plus awards).
• Dushyant Sethi, Arlington, Va.: $10,000 prize for Association for India’s Development, College Park, Md. (2,229 donations, $31,439 funds raised plus awards).
• Chand Nirankari, New York, NY: $10,000 prize for Students for a Free Tibet, New York, NY (2,117 donations, $30,126 funds raised plus awards).
• $10,000 prize for GlobeMed, Evanston, Ill. (1,710 donations, $21,772 funds raised plus awards).

Photo courtesy of Sukanto Debnath

In Silicon Valley: N.R. Narayana Murthy on corporate philanthropy

N. R. Narayana Murthy is the Chairman of the Board and Chief Mentor of Infosys and is now known as for his work on corporate philanthropy in India. He was recently in Silicon Valley, speaking at a fundraising event for Akshaya Patra Foundation.  The Foundation provides meals to poor children in 5,700 schools in India.  You can find the full story by Mercury News reporter, John Boudreau here.  Mr. Murthy's lengthy accomplishments can be found here. An excerpt from the Mercury News interview on corporate philanthropy is below:

Q You now speak out on the importance of corporate philanthropy:

This has also been spoken of by several chief ministers at the statelevel because they realize there is a section of India that is progressing rapidly, that's making lots of profits, that's creating lots of jobs. And they are saying, If you want goodwill from society, you need to do something. I always believed that no corporation can indeed sustain its growth, sustain its vibrancy, without making a difference to society. Society contributes customers. Society contributes employees. Society contributes investors. Society contributes politicians and bureaucrats, who together frame the policies for the industry and corporations to grow and succeed.

So unless corporations are seen as living in harmony with society, unless corporations are seen as making a difference to the society, they will not exhibit longevity, especially in countries like India, where there are serious gaps. So today you see more and more entrepreneurs, more and more corporate leaders involving themselves in corporate philanthropy.

Photo courtesy of The Pick

Asian philanthropy news digest 11/10/09

This month's digest is focused on donors in the media.  An interesting pattern can be seen with three of these donors - they are immigrants and support both domestic and international causes.  The other two donors live abroad but are supporting programs in the U.S.  Predicting donor behavior is becoming more and more complex.  The lines between domestic and international giving are blurring.  There are patterns emerging though and we hope to document some of them in the future.

* Kai-Fu Lee introduced his new venture in China, Innovation Works, at the annual conference of the Asian American MultiTechnology Association (AAMA) in Silicon Valley.  Lee spoke about the Chinese internet market and explained why he left Google China to create Innovation Works.  Kai Fu Lee gives to the community by fostering the professional growth of Chinese technology students in China. He supports an online resource and virtual community for young people to support their career and personal development.  The site, called Wo Xue Wang (I learn) includes contributions and advice from Mr. Lee.

* Shiv Nadar, Chairman and Chief Strategy Officer of HCL Technology, was interviewed by Forbes India.  He speaks about involving his family in philanthropy.  The SSN Trust has a $30 million endowment and supports affordable higher education, offering $1 million in scholarships each year.  Mr. Nadar recently started the Shiv Nadar Foundation to build the Shiv Nadar University in North India and to set up eight public secondary schools for rural children in Uttar Pradesh.  He was recently featured in the 48 Heroes of Philanthropy.

* Indian American brothers recognized for their philanthropy and commitment to the community by local community foundation and member of Congress.  The Northern Virgina Community Foundation presented its Community Leadership Award for outstanding service and commitment to the Northern Virginia community to Sudhakar Shenoy (Founder, Chairman and CEO of IMC) and his brother Suresh Shenoy (EVP of IMC) last month.  In addition, they were recognized on the floor of the House by Democratic member Gerald E. Connolly.  The brothers were born in India and are both graduates of IIT Bombay (Indian Institute of Technology).

* Indian and Chinese donors abroad give a total of $3 million to Simon School of Business at the University of Rochester.  The $1.5 million gift from the Wadhawan family will support the Rajesh Wadhawan Professorship Fund.  The Fund will be used to support a full-time faculty member who plays a leading role in advancing the standing of the Simon School and management education through service and teaching contributions with a preference for a professor making an impact in India.  Another $1.5 million gift came from Evans Lam, a native of Hong Kong. It will be used to attract global business scholars from around the world to the University.

Photo courtesy of autan