Dear Friends:

I am delighted to announce that during our fall 2007 board meeting, our board of directors approved 220 grants, valued at more than $1.6 million, for 113 community-based organizations in 48 countries. This represents a 25 percent increase compared to fall 2006.

The hard work of our program officers has yielded 25 new grantee partners. Among them is Umut Isigi (Light of Hope), which provides early childhood education to 70 children in the Kurdish-dominated city of Diyarbakir in southeastern Turkey. In Afghanistan, our support will enable the Oruj Learning Center to educate 700 primary-school girls in remote Wardak Province.

Prior to the fall board meeting, I was privileged to be invited to the third annual meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative, organized by President Bill Clinton, in New York City. It was attended by 1,300 business, government, and NGO leaders from six continents. Several of our grantee partners were also invited, including the Afghan Institute of Learning and Ruchika Social Service Organization (Train Platform Schools).

We used this high-profile event to announce our new Under-8 Initiative, through which we commit to investing $10 million in early childhood development and education for children 8 years and under. We will fund 100 innovative community-based organizations in 20 impoverished countries over five years.

We are fortunate to have been included in Sharing the Spotlight, a new series of CNN Heroes. Our segment features Academy Award winner Mira Sorvino, who talks about why she considers our work important. It is being aired through CNN’s various broadcasting platforms and will be seen by 2 billion people all over the world. The segment is also available online.

I am pleased to report that our affiliate across the pond, The Global Fund for Children UK Trust, is now up and running as a registered charity in the United Kingdom. The Global Fund for Children and The Global Fund for Children UK Trust cooperate to raise funds in the United States and across Europe to further our joint mission of advancing the dignity of children and young people throughout the world.

Heather Brandon is the first director of The Global Fund for Children UK Trust. She has served as the chief executive of three organizations in the UK—the Nationwide Foundation, Volunteer Reading Help, and The Royal Society for the Promotion of Health. She is also an active volunteer, having chaired the board of the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts, and is currently a member of the Reaching All Communities Committee of the Big Lottery.

In Washington, DC, our team continues to grow. I am pleased to welcome three new staff: Michael Bush, controller; Jack Gordon, multimedia officer; and Shana Weinberg, grant writer.

Mike worked for more than 30 years for a variety of government agencies, private corporations, and nonprofit organizations in Washington, DC, handling accounting, finance, budgeting, and human resources. Jack comes to us by way of Madagascar, where he co-founded the media production firm Digital Development Communications and later founded Prism Community Arts, an organization supporting community-based art and media projects. Shana recently worked as a grant writer for a Burmese women’s NGO in northern Thailand.

The holiday season will soon be upon us, and as you make your shopping list, consider buying a T-shirt from the special Global Fund for Children line at Tea Collection or ordering our newest book, Global Babies, or any of our other children's books. The proceeds will benefit our work.

Finally, thank you for your abiding support in advancing the dignity of children and youth worldwide. I am grateful for your generosity.

My best,
Maya Ajmera

Fall 2007 Grants Benefit 120 Groups in 47 countries
The board approved a total of 220 grants, valued at more than $1.6 million, to benefit 113 community-based organizations in 48 countries. This represents a 25 percent increase compared to the same period last year.

GFC Launches Under-8 Initiative
Our Under-8, or U-8 Initiative will fund 100 innovative community-based organizations in 20 countries, touching the lives of at least 250,000 vulnerable children over the next five years. In addition, it will raise public awareness by developing and translating more children’s books and producing more films and documentary photography. The U-8 Initiative will cost $10 million over five years, and we ask for your support in reaching this goal.


CNN Heroes Features Maya Ajmera
Academy Award winner Mira Sorvino explains why Maya Ajmera is her hero and why the work of The Global Fund for Children is important. For the first time on television, Maya Ajmera tells the story of why she started GFC. You can view the segment online.

New GFC Film to be Released in Amsterdam
Journey of a Red Fridge will be officially released during the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA), Nov. 22–Dec. 2, 2007. IDFA is the most prestigious documentary film festival in the world. The film portrays the life of a young Nepali porter, Hari Rai, as he trudges in the Himalayan mountains, carrying a refrigerator to a nearby village for repair. Lucian Muntean and Natasa Stankovic, producers of the award-winning film Punam, wrote and directed Journey of a Red Fridge.


Children of War, Children of Hope
It is never too early to think about shopping for holiday gifts. Here are two suggestions:

  • Buy any of the specially designed T-shirts from the "Little Citizens of the World" line from Tea Collection
  • Buy our books, like our new board book Global Babies, for your children, your grandchildren, or the child in you.

Proceeds from the sales of these items will benefit The Global Fund for Children.

Children of War, Children of Hope
Child soldiers severely beat Bukeni Tete Waruzi Beck, but that did not stop him from helping to secure their release and reintegrating them into their villages in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. [read more]


 

© 2007 The Global Fund for Children