Battery Powered Org Night: Ending Extreme Poverty
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The speakers at Battery Powered Organization Night reminded us that the most vital solutions in the efforts to end global poverty are the poor themselves. Over the course of the evening, they spoke to the capability and prowess—rather than the traditional narrative of destitution—of families in extreme poverty. You can experience the evening here:
From illiterate grandmothers-turned-solar-engineers to gardening groups that help girls realize their land rights as women, here are the top solutions lived, learned, and leveraged by 6 inspiring organization leaders:
1. Build Strong Livelihoods - the dignity of paid work and land ownership is irreplaceable
Labor is often the only asset that someone living in extreme poverty has to improve his or her wellbeing. Strengthening skills and creating greater, more varied employment opportunities empowers people to lift themselves from poverty.
“Land rights create an opportunity to gain a stake in society, to gain hope.”
— Tim Handstad (Landesa)
“The knowledge, skills and wisdom of the poor are extremely valuable. … [Given] the dignity of labor, they have the capacity and confidence to be extraordinary.”
— Bunker Roy (Barefoot College)
2. Expand Access - put tools in the hands of the poor and they will lift themselves out of poverty
Poverty is human-made, and can be undone by the very people who are in the harshest and most destitute situations. Interventions that expand access to such vital services as medical care, financial services, clean water or affordable energy, enable people to build and maintain healthy, productive lives.
“If you take the time to listen to the people you are trying to reach, you will become a better public servant.”
— Cristiana Velloso (Saúde Criança)
“Girls are conspired against by poverty and custom. They inherit poverty, not prosperity. … But an educated girl is twice as likely to educate her own children.”
— Melany Grout (Landesa)
3. Promote Social Inclusion - the surest way to a brighter future is to integrate families back into their communities
Social exclusion is not only a symptom of extreme poverty but also a root cause. Through strategies that promote inclusion, people are empowered to move out of poverty with expanded rights and the ability to take part in society.
“My family did not want to be defined by our vulnerability. … Dignity holds us together.”
— Abraham Leno (American Refugee Committee)
“It’s not just material deprivation, it’s exclusion. … The real thing we’re scaling is consciousness and human connection.”
— Susan Davis (BRAC)
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
BAREFOOT COLLEGE
Bunker Roy, Founder & CEO
Longtime social activist and educator, receiver of the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship and the Clinton Global Initiative Global Citizen Award, named one of the 100 most influential people by Time Magazine
BRAC USA
Susan Davis, Founder, President & CEO
Author, speaker and thought leader in international development and civil society innovation; Founding Board Member, Grameen Foundation
IDEO.ORG + AMERICAN REFUGEE COMMITTEE
Jocelyn Wyatt, Co-Lead and Executive Director
Advisory board member to Clinton Global Initiative, Fenix International, and Hattery; Aspen Institute First Movers Fellow
Abraham Leno, American Refugee Committee Country Director, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Humanitarian and Development Aid Professional; Global experience in crisis & disaster assistance
LANDESA
Tim Hanstad, President and CEO
Skoll Social Entrepreneur, Schwab Outstanding Social Entrepreneur, Co-author of One Billion Rising
Melany Grout, Attorney and Land Tenure Specialist
Attorney and land tenure specialist in the Landesa Center for Women’s Land Rights, leads Landesa’s global advocacy on the development of “post-2015” sustainable development goals
ROOT CAPITAL
Willy Foote, Founder & CEO
Skoll Fellow, Ashoka Global Fellow, named Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum and one of Forbes’ “Impact 30”
SAÚDE CRIANÇA
Cristiana Velloso, CEO
Renowned Brazilian social entrepreneur, lifetime leader of Saúde Criança; Skoll World Forum and Sundance contributor
About The Extreme Poverty Theme
We are at a key moment in time in which to take action and support global efforts to end extreme poverty in this lifetime. 2015 marks the starting point for a new surge of coordinated action spurred by the UN to eliminate extreme poverty by 2030. Though projections to 2030 are optimistic, the number of people who remain in extreme poverty—an estimated 1.2 billion —are some of the hardest to reach. The Issue Brief explores three different settings where people in extreme poverty face a distinct set of challenges: rural poverty, urban poverty and displacement poverty. This theme runs March through June 2015.
About Battery Powered
Battery Powered launched in Fall of 2014, a member-founded, member-funded program made possible by Michael and Xochi Birch and the philanthropy team at Amplifier Strategies. The program is designed around themes and helps members discover and combine personal passions with collective influence for social impact. If you have a passion for philanthropy or you want to learn more about how the program works, send us a note and share your story: [email protected]
From illiterate grandmothers-turned-solar-engineers to gardening groups that help girls realize their land rights as women, here are the top solutions lived, learned, and leveraged by 6 inspiring organization leaders:
1. Build Strong Livelihoods - the dignity of paid work and land ownership is irreplaceable
Labor is often the only asset that someone living in extreme poverty has to improve his or her wellbeing. Strengthening skills and creating greater, more varied employment opportunities empowers people to lift themselves from poverty.
“Land rights create an opportunity to gain a stake in society, to gain hope.”
— Tim Handstad (Landesa)
“The knowledge, skills and wisdom of the poor are extremely valuable. … [Given] the dignity of labor, they have the capacity and confidence to be extraordinary.”
— Bunker Roy (Barefoot College)
2. Expand Access - put tools in the hands of the poor and they will lift themselves out of poverty
Poverty is human-made, and can be undone by the very people who are in the harshest and most destitute situations. Interventions that expand access to such vital services as medical care, financial services, clean water or affordable energy, enable people to build and maintain healthy, productive lives.
“If you take the time to listen to the people you are trying to reach, you will become a better public servant.”
— Cristiana Velloso (Saúde Criança)
“Girls are conspired against by poverty and custom. They inherit poverty, not prosperity. … But an educated girl is twice as likely to educate her own children.”
— Melany Grout (Landesa)
3. Promote Social Inclusion - the surest way to a brighter future is to integrate families back into their communities
Social exclusion is not only a symptom of extreme poverty but also a root cause. Through strategies that promote inclusion, people are empowered to move out of poverty with expanded rights and the ability to take part in society.
“My family did not want to be defined by our vulnerability. … Dignity holds us together.”
— Abraham Leno (American Refugee Committee)
“It’s not just material deprivation, it’s exclusion. … The real thing we’re scaling is consciousness and human connection.”
— Susan Davis (BRAC)
ABOUT THE SPEAKERS
BAREFOOT COLLEGE
Bunker Roy, Founder & CEO
Longtime social activist and educator, receiver of the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship and the Clinton Global Initiative Global Citizen Award, named one of the 100 most influential people by Time Magazine
BRAC USA
Susan Davis, Founder, President & CEO
Author, speaker and thought leader in international development and civil society innovation; Founding Board Member, Grameen Foundation
IDEO.ORG + AMERICAN REFUGEE COMMITTEE
Jocelyn Wyatt, Co-Lead and Executive Director
Advisory board member to Clinton Global Initiative, Fenix International, and Hattery; Aspen Institute First Movers Fellow
Abraham Leno, American Refugee Committee Country Director, Democratic Republic of the Congo
Humanitarian and Development Aid Professional; Global experience in crisis & disaster assistance
LANDESA
Tim Hanstad, President and CEO
Skoll Social Entrepreneur, Schwab Outstanding Social Entrepreneur, Co-author of One Billion Rising
Melany Grout, Attorney and Land Tenure Specialist
Attorney and land tenure specialist in the Landesa Center for Women’s Land Rights, leads Landesa’s global advocacy on the development of “post-2015” sustainable development goals
ROOT CAPITAL
Willy Foote, Founder & CEO
Skoll Fellow, Ashoka Global Fellow, named Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum and one of Forbes’ “Impact 30”
SAÚDE CRIANÇA
Cristiana Velloso, CEO
Renowned Brazilian social entrepreneur, lifetime leader of Saúde Criança; Skoll World Forum and Sundance contributor
About The Extreme Poverty Theme
We are at a key moment in time in which to take action and support global efforts to end extreme poverty in this lifetime. 2015 marks the starting point for a new surge of coordinated action spurred by the UN to eliminate extreme poverty by 2030. Though projections to 2030 are optimistic, the number of people who remain in extreme poverty—an estimated 1.2 billion —are some of the hardest to reach. The Issue Brief explores three different settings where people in extreme poverty face a distinct set of challenges: rural poverty, urban poverty and displacement poverty. This theme runs March through June 2015.
About Battery Powered
Battery Powered launched in Fall of 2014, a member-founded, member-funded program made possible by Michael and Xochi Birch and the philanthropy team at Amplifier Strategies. The program is designed around themes and helps members discover and combine personal passions with collective influence for social impact. If you have a passion for philanthropy or you want to learn more about how the program works, send us a note and share your story: [email protected]