tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-62220618793382883722009-07-20T10:22:09.026-04:00Alyssa Hermannoreply@blogger.comBlogger226125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-4639552133036280682009-07-13T17:30:00.000-04:002009-07-13T17:30:00.219-04:00

Parental involvement is an essential part of BRAC’s programs for adolescent girls. We want the important lessons that the girls learn in the clubs to be reinforced at home, and we also want parents to be aware of the issues that are important to their daughters.Every month, BRAC holds parents’ or mothers’ forums specifically for the parents of the girls in BRAC’s adolescent clubs. I had the

Michelle Chaplinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14747421701429492953noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-18560281445610168962009-07-06T17:00:00.001-04:002009-07-06T23:50:59.822-04:00

On a recent trip to Bangladesh, I met with a group of young people who had just successfully enrolled in university after completing a special college prep program run by BRAC. All 7 of these students had been able to attend high school because of BRAC scholarships. They are all meritorious students from economically disadvantaged homes in rural communities. All had lost their fathers when they

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-62432802315123492282009-07-01T14:48:00.007-04:002009-07-06T17:29:54.060-04:00

BRAC USA President Susan Davis visited Bangladesh in early June and met with staff in the head office of BRAC International. Along with Executive Director Aminul Alam, these are the people who support and oversee BRAC's work in a growing number of countries outside of Bangladesh. Having begun as a small relief organization in Bangladesh in 1972, BRAC spent the next 30 years organizing

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-28141065628753901662009-06-30T20:29:00.007-04:002009-07-01T07:21:43.105-04:00

The founders of Jolkona Foundation, a web-based organization that allows people to choose small philanthropic projects, were interviewed for an article in the Seattle Times on June 29, 2009. Adnan Mahmud, a Microsoft Program Manager, spoke on what is described as a 'democratization' of philanthropy thanks to the advent of new technology allowing ordinary people to become philanthropists.Featured

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-11242563019279294442009-06-26T16:11:00.025-04:002009-06-30T15:58:27.804-04:00

I recently visited Karachi, Lahore, Rajindrapur, Islamabad and the Peshawar region of Pakistan’s North-West Frontier Province to see BRAC’s microfinance and new education programs and to discuss the start up of a pilot program in health. Through discussions with staff and clients, I was able to get a first-hand impression of how people are coping with the current stressful period of conflict

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-53369112100896980422009-06-25T14:51:00.009-04:002009-06-30T15:55:41.952-04:00

2009 Oxford Encaenia honorands (from left to right): Fazle Hasan Abed, Dr. Santiago Calatrava-Valls, Professor Erwin L. Hahn, Dame Mitsuko Uchida, Professor Barry Marshall, Philip PullmanBRAC founder and Chairperson Fazle Hasan Abed was awarded a Doctor of Letters at Oxford's Encaenia, the most famous honorary degree ceremony in the UK, on June 24, 2009.Dr. Abed (far right) with the other

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-7237591612191648402009-06-22T12:40:00.005-04:002009-06-23T10:59:11.399-04:00

BRAC in Uganda currently runs one of the largest adolescent girls outreach programs in the country, whereby we are setting up 500 adolescent clubs, each with 25-30 adolescent girl members. By becoming a part of the club, adolescent girls are provided with safe spaces to interact and engage, life-skills training, livelihood training and eventually, access to microfinance loans. When new clubs are

Santhosh Ramdoss, BRAC USAhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10471556998584326590noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-13424793312578422752009-06-19T15:00:00.002-04:002009-06-19T16:52:28.049-04:00

These days it's hard to find rosy headlines about Pakistan, with some in the media even suggesting it is now the most dangerous country on earth – a dubious honor. The worst part is that such claims are less journalistic hyperbole than a reflection of dire circumstances. Pro-Taliban anarchists are encroaching on major cities, public spaces are under attack, the poor are stifled, women’s liberties

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-9158344663599379582009-06-18T10:00:00.007-04:002009-06-22T12:28:49.276-04:00

June 4th: I am in Gabura, Bangladesh, visiting the communities devastated by Cyclone Aila. Standing near a broken embankment, surrounded by children, I am distracted by their faces – full of anxiety, uncertainty and unchildlike seriousness. It is as if the cyclone swept away their smiles. From their worried eyes, they seem to have lost their childhood overnight. No more carefree playing in the

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-38350476986226632402009-06-17T15:00:00.001-04:002009-06-17T15:00:09.171-04:00

The James P. Grant School of Public Health (JPGSPH), BRAC University, is now accepting applications for admission to the 2010 session of its Master in Public Health (MPH) program. Designed to be innovative, embracing international standards, utilizing state-of-the-art methods and techniques of teaching, learning, and providing opportunities for hands-on field experience, the School offers a

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-2037920468388465932009-06-14T09:00:00.006-04:002009-06-16T12:00:52.144-04:00

That is the question asked by Rod Schwarz in a recent discussion he hosted on Social Edge, a global online community for social entrepreneurs run by the Skoll Foundation.Rod raises the issue because of a lecture he attended where a notable professor on social enterprise and business claimed that 'without a doubt the UK and the US lead the world in terms of thinking in this area'. By Anglo-Saxon,

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-46739639393228701272009-06-12T14:31:00.014-04:002009-06-12T16:32:08.987-04:00

For many children summer holidays are a wonderful period to forget about classes and textbooks and spend the day playing and relaxing. Unfortunately, 2 weeks after the Cyclone Aila, that's the last thing the children can do here.A boy from Gabura (Satkhira district)was drying the flooded school textbooks of he and his siblings on June 3rd when Susan Davis, President and CEO of BRAC USA was

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-67913799441342484052009-06-11T15:00:00.002-04:002009-06-12T16:36:01.818-04:00

Faridah Nalunkuuma’s story is a true reflection of determination and hard work. She is 32 years old, married, has 6 children and lives in rural Uganda. Her childhood experience was rather unfortunate: she lost her father in 1992 and was brought up by her mother together with 14 other children. With her meager income, their mother could not afford to adequately take her of all their needs. Faridah

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-77269281877631362722009-06-05T16:08:00.015-04:002009-06-05T17:14:38.755-04:00

10 days have passed since the disastrous Cyclone Aila swept over the coast of Bangladesh. People saw their homes and the property that they had accumulated through hard work of a lifetime destroyed by the ferocious storm and tidal waves in a matter of minutes. Aila left, taking with her the lives of 168 people and leaving hundreds of thousands of families without food, water or shelter. The

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-34526230320032926692009-06-04T13:09:00.010-04:002009-06-05T13:34:04.854-04:00

Music For Relief, a charitable organization founded by the band Linkin Park, is raising funds for BRAC’s relief effort in the areas affected by Cyclone Aila in Bangladesh. 100% of the donations will go directly to aid the families that are in dire need of food, water and shelter.A story about the cyclone and a request for donations have been posted on the front page of the organization's

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-85714324961491041092009-06-04T11:59:00.017-04:002009-06-05T12:59:05.229-04:00

By Stephanie Fisher, BRAC intern in BangladeshAs part of my Masters course in Global Health at Trinity College, Dublin, I have spent the last two months as an intern at BRAC, collecting primary data for my thesis on drinking water storage and treatment in rural Bangladesh. Having completed my data collection I thought that I would make the most of my time here, and left Dhaka to spend two weeks

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-11650266856945575332009-06-03T12:11:00.046-04:002009-06-04T11:35:21.960-04:00

CEO and President of BRAC USA, this week visits Bangladeshi regions hit by Cyclone Aila. Susan Davis, CEO and President of BRAC USA is currently on a visit to Bangladesh, where she is witnessing the wake of the devastation left by Cyclone Aila.On a trip to a new local government office building called Union Parishad in Shahosh (an area in Dumuria Upazilla in the Khulna District) yesterday, Susan

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-3729355226092388052009-06-02T15:00:00.000-04:002009-06-02T15:00:06.172-04:00

This week The Daily Star did a feature article on two Bangladeshi women who were victims of Cyclone Sidr in November, 2007 and have since rebuilt their lives and livelihoods with support from BRAC. Excerpts of one of the women's stories is below:DOLEYA (40) of Ghatak Char Village was married at 16. Not surprising, since early marriage in rural areas is a regular phenomenon. Doleya's husband is

Michelle Chaplinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14747421701429492953noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-73067912119704916012009-06-01T17:49:00.004-04:002009-06-04T16:30:37.623-04:00

As of May 30th, BRAC has provided emergency relief in 16 upazilas (subdistricts) of Barisal, Bagerhat, Khulna and Satkhira districts that were heavily affected by Cyclone Aila. BRAC has distributed food to more than 13,000 families. In Shyamnagar upazila (Satkhira district) BRAC is continuing to distribute water directly to the isolated villages by boats. 1,841 families have received water in

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-90145102599598416732009-05-28T15:58:00.008-04:002009-06-04T16:32:19.855-04:00

Over 10,800 people found refuge in BRAC cyclone shelters as the Cyclone Aila hit the coasts of Bangladesh, taking the lives of over 150 people and devastating the homes and livelihoods of hundreds of thousands.Since water has inundated people’s homes and land and caused a loss of their household assets and livestock, the families cannot resume any activities now to earn money and are in desperate

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-87848103705765472572009-05-27T15:00:00.003-04:002009-05-27T15:00:03.889-04:00

Like many developing countries, Pakistan has made significant progress towards increasing enrollment in primary education; however, studies show that basic problems such as low retention rates for both girls and boys in primary schools persist and stand in the way of achieving universal primary education. Recognizing this issue, BRAC USA has riased nearly $50,000 to implement a pilot pre-primary

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-35480974778861625242009-05-26T17:00:00.003-04:002009-05-27T13:36:43.637-04:00

Cyclone Aila tore into the southwestern coast of Bangladesh on Monday, wreaking havoc in ten coastal districts and killing more than 150 people. BRAC staff have been working around the clock since before the cyclone hit to evacuate people and immediately launched relief efforts. The storm, with tidal waves caused by winds of up to 100 kilometers per hour (Reuters), has rendered hundreds of

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-85099265109319201202009-05-24T17:40:00.000-04:002009-05-24T17:40:01.312-04:00

BRAC University and the International Center for Diarrheal Disease Research, Bangladesh (ICDDR,B) co-sponsored a seminar on the H1N1 virus (popularly known as the swine flu) this Thursday. Scholars and health professionals gathered at Swine Flu: Global and Local Perspective to emphasize the importance of preventative measures and education to curb the potential for H1N1 outbreaks. The

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-61878352324844918832009-05-22T10:20:00.001-04:002009-05-24T17:35:23.217-04:00

Mr. Aminul Alam, Executive Director of BRAC International, stopped by the office on Thursday to meet the BRAC USA staff. With nearly 35 years of experience with the organization, Mr. Alam had many stories to share spanning his time working in the field as a program organizer up through his most recent endeavor, managing and expanding BRAC's international programs in Asia and Africa.One of our

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6222061879338288372.post-35676446560839432272009-05-20T17:50:00.000-04:002009-05-20T17:46:37.335-04:00

So says Professor Gilbert Bukenya, the Vice President of Uganda. As we blogged last week, His Excellency Vice President Bukenya was visiting Bangladesh to witness first-hand the work of BRAC in its country of origin. According to BDNews24's article reporting a news conference at the BRAC Centre Inn in Dhaka, Professor Bukenya said he was 'highly impressed by BRAC's initiatives to mobilise local

BRAC Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09038999590027980761noreply@blogger.com0