A Light in the Dark

By Adam Swartzbaugh, Founder and Executive Director of The GENESIS Network

To reach the recently built Baan Phai Du village school from the nearest town, you must travel two hours by road and then motocross your way on an all-terrain dirt-bike or snorkel-fed Land Rover for three hours and through endless miles of flooded trails and winding jungle paths. If you arrive at night, you’ll be surrounded by thick darkness and a cacophony of chatter from the jungle’s wildlife. Overhead, you’ll swear you can see far-flung galaxies in a sky that has turned a translucent gray by the sheer volume of stars now visible through a crystal-clear atmosphere. The feeling of isolation is so great you are forced to reconsider your own significance in the universe. Today, when you arrive, you will see and hear something more. From within the schoolhouse comes the laughter of villagers of all ages. They are huddled around the dim glow of solar-powered computers connected by satellite to the internet.

When I think of resource networking as the foundation of what makes GENESIS possible, I don’t picture bricks and mortar, computers and desks, or trucks and planes. I think of us. The greatest untapped resource cannot be found in the ground, the ocean or in outer space. It is not a mineral or a substance, a particle or a compound. It is people. It is the human mind.

Several years ago the internet made local networking and file-sharing possible. Now, it is the single largest depository of human knowledge. A couple days ago, after due haggling with a satellite dish, deciphering network keys and a whole lot of cave man-style banging on modems and routers, this world of knowledge was made open and available to over a hundred students and hundreds more villagers. Rarely can you multiply anything by near infinity – but, in this case, it is true when it comes to mental capacity and reach.

Within two hours of figuring out how to operate the keyboard and “ON” button of their new laptops, students are surfing the net at blistering speeds, Googling everything from instructions on how to fix a generator that has been broken for months, to videos by popular Thai singers. A student is reading news about Thailand’s King Adulyadej and asking his older sister what “monarchy” means. A parent just pinpointed her position on Google Earth. One of the younger girls is watching a Rihanna video.

This school has become more than a mere building. It is no longer a place in the middle of a remote jungle, isolated from the world. It is everywhere. Time and space is less of a physical obstruction as people are enabled to travel around the globe with the stroke of a key. The day after the internet became operable, a student who had never considered anything outside of agriculture and working the land was now immersed in web pages about religions of the world. He now states he wants to become like Buddha. Another student is claiming he will become a famous rapper – specifically, the next Eminem. I cannot imagine a more perfect balance.

In the computer light that now shines from the school, children are going to places they’ve never been, learning about things they’ve never seen, and dreaming of becoming more than anything they have ever imagined.

Adam’s development career ranges from disability rights policy development with USAID and the UNDP in Vietnam to tsunami disaster relief and reconstruction in Thailand. He also is an active duty officer in the United States Army and received both his BA in International Relations and MA in Social and Economic Development from Brown University.

Brown University Club of Miami Hosts GENESIS

The doors to collaboration were swung open as the Brown Alumni Group of Miami hosted the GE NESIS Network this past Saturday, July 17th in Miami Beach.

A diverse group of uniquely passionate individuals gathered to listen as GENESIS founder, Adam Swartzbaugh, shared the experiences, observations and insights that have collectively shaped the structure and mission of this organization.

With audience responses running the gamut of human emotion, it was quite the presentation! I’m familiar with the many ‘behind-the-scenes’ stories of children with broken souls and stolen innocence. However, it is the overwhelming sense of humanity and hope that prevails as you listen to the one about a boy and a beaten down little dog becoming a catalyst to a behavioral shift within a community…How the power of perception – a simple introduction to a better way – can ultimately change the course by which a life is lived…or even saved.

That little dog, a daily target of random kickings and errant rocks, reinforced a passionate belief that it does only take one to make a difference. A few minutes of guidance from Adam resulted in a group of children looking at this creature with new eyes – suddenly it was no longer ‘ugly and useless’ but ‘soft, fuzzy and lovable’.

The following day, one of these kids witnessed further injustice against the little puppy by yet another group of children. The boy fights through the crowd, swoops the dog up into his arms and fervently enlightens his peers of this little dog’s value on earth – the benefits to loving him and even respecting him as another living creature. Puppy’s days as a soccer ball are over and a community’s younger generation has experienced a shift in a collective view.

Of course, the beauty in all this goes beyond fighting for the liberation of subjugated canines in Thailand. It lies in the power to change or inspire a course of action by sharing an idea, a vision, no matter how-off-the-wall it may seem.

As I spoke with guests, I heard everything from urgent needs to participate in the decommissioning of international trafficking circles and educators hungry to work GENESIS programs into their own curriculums, to young students ready to board the next plane to wherever they could be of use or desiring to start their own local revolutions. Really, some great stuff!

These are the ideas and visions that plant seeds that transform people,strengthen communities and brighten futures. It’s the ‘putting them into action’ that makes them spread like wildfire. This is one of the most wonderful elements of the Network. Collectively, we have the tools to make unbelievably impressive changes in this world. By way of social collaboration, everyone in that room had (and has) the potential to make tangible the visions they shared that evening.

The GENESIS Network has presented us with the tools many have long searched for, complete with the opportunity to witness the results of our efforts. The peace of mind that should go along with the concept of working with and supporting such projects, is once again, with the people. What we’re doing is making a difference and we are seeing it first hand.

I attended this event as a member of an organization – the work and concepts of which I’ve long believed in and supported. Sharing an evening with these people – some of whom I believe will be sharing their own stories in the future, about a school they hammered the final nail into, or of the family enrolling their child into school thanks to a mango crop they helped to plant – seemed to bring it all full circle. It is a level of humanness rarely felt as we run through our days, linked in and tuned out, swerving through traffic and schedules and crashing, exhausted, at the end of the day.

Witnessing hearts and minds opening and ideas unfolding makes all else fade, if only for moment. We realize that the world can be changed in a lifetime and this great desire to be part of something ‘bigger’ keeps growing. And why in the world would we not start now?

The opportunity is here and it is ours in whatever way we decide to make it our own.

View the GENESIS Events Page for upcoming events in your area.

Lauren Swartzbaugh is the Outreach and Networking Director for the GENESIS Network. Having worked with non-profit organizations ranging from human rights advocacy to environmental awareness and protection , Lauren has been working for GENESIS since December 2008. Lauren brings the GENESIS cause to life using a unique combination of social networking and local empowerment

Five Days in Haiti: A Relief Effort

Just this past month, members of the GENESIS Network and I traveled from the Boston area to Haiti to deliver hundreds of water filtration systems, medical supplies, and emergency relief support to communities in Port au Prince, Carrefore and Leogane, Haiti. The trip was made possibly by AquaSafe of Australia and Olyset Net of Japan. These two communities and the Haitian community of Miami, FL donated supplies that the team and I delivered to Haiti.

To help document my thoughts and emotions, I kept a journal during the five days in Haiti to share upon my return. Here are some notes from my journal:

Day 1:
Bumping along the crippled roads outside Port au Prince, my eyes drifted from one sea of dilapidated refugee tents to another. But beneath the rubble of crumbled homes lay Haiti’s true disaster. It is not one caused by an earthquake, nor by any other natural occurrence.

Day 2:
How could such a country, swarming with NGOs long before the recent earthquake, have fallen into such a state of distress? There are more international organizations per capita in Haiti than in any other country. But what have they accomplished? The Haitian people remain repressed under a regime of corruption, left adrift in the pocket-lining clientelism of a squandered leadership supported by an aloof international community.

Day 3:
“We are slaves to our government,” our local liaison, and former government official, stated as we sat around dinner reflecting on our own relief work. “The cycle of corruption among our leaders cannot be stopped without drastic change or without a true representative of the people…someone who cares for the people.” The majority of aid programs presently in Haiti may just as well be making direct deposits into the accounts of those now in power.

Day 4:
Today I realize that, absent of any earthquake, Haiti would still be in dire need of relief – specifically, from the political disaster its leaders have brought upon their people.

The nation’s leaders have driven their country to shambles by using its people as a personal expense account while the good intentions of local and international efforts run around picking up the pieces, all the while creating and deepening dependencies on foreign aid. Haiti does not need any more quick-pitch answers but, rather, real solutions to what are now systemic issues of neglect. Every effort must be made to improve education, professional training, and lending and investment capital opportunities.

Day 5:
Back from Haiti. The Haitian people have been abandoned by their government, yet they remain united. As NGOs and foreign aid agencies move toward longer term programs that can educate, train and empower the nation back to power, this is a significant variable that bodes well for future prospects.

It’s been a few weeks since the team and I have returned from the trip. I must say that the experience was truly emotionally and personally rewarding. I’m eager to hear reader feedback about Haiti relief. How can we continue to help the Haitians? How would you like to be involved?

Please share your comments.

Adam Swartzbaugh
Founder
The GENESIS Network

Boston-area Non-profit Launches New Social Networking Website

GENESIS Network Hosts Website Launch Party

Boston, MA — March 3, 2010 — GENESIS Network, a nonprofit organization that develops humans rights projects to help at-risk children and communities around the world, announced this week that they will be celebrating the launch of their new cause oriented social network website with a party.

The website launch party will unveil social networking features. People from all over the world will be able to connect with projects online anytime and contribute in any way. The most recent project helped build a school in Thailand. The current project is The Center for Youth and Women Empowerment in Ghana.

“The entire GENESIS volunteer community is thrilled that the new site will finally be live, engaging and interactive. It’ll be an unprecedented experience in the philanthropic social media space.”, says Adam Swartzbaugh, GENESIS Network Founder.

The party is Thursday, March 4, 2010, 6-8:00PM at 28Degrees, in Boston’s South End. It is open to the public and cost free. Attendees will include GENESIS volunteers, project leaders, business professionals, social networks and members of the local community. Complimentary appetizers will be served.

Ja-Nae Duane, CEO of Wild Women Enterprises will also be autographing her new book, “How to Start Your Business with $100” at the event. 50% of book purchase proceeds will go to the GENESIS Network.

To sign up for the event click here: http://celebrateleaders.eventbrite.com

Tech Philanthropy Supports Many Organizations

Earlier this month I had the distinct opportunity to attend the Mass High Tech’s 2009 TechCitizenship awards in Boston. It was a pleasure to hear from the CEOs of local tech companies and why they continue to feel compelled to be philanthropic despite tough economic times.

The event’s conversation leaders included Martin Madaus (President of Millipore Corporate), Maura Banta (IBM/Mass. Board of Education) and Howard Kogan (President of Molecular). I also met Albert Calvo, chair of Social Capital, Inc. It was a pleasure discussing how the GENESIS Network and Social Capital, Inc. are using similar social media tools for philanthropic outreach. I was particularly impressed with their use of online communities to rally support for grassroots development projects. As you may already know, this will be a key component of the new GENESIS Network website set to launch in just a few months.

I left the event invigorated about the ways in which technology companies continue to support social development initiatives. I look forward to sharing the new site’s debut and its use of various social networking tools to engage more and more members of the technology community.

Adam Swartzbaugh
Founder
The GENESIS Network

p.s. Please share a news story about a company that’s using technology to support a philanthropic organization.

How giving to Genesis can benefit you!

Despite a continuing economic recession, philanthropy is as popular as ever. As Giving USA 2009 noted “U.S. charitable giving [was] estimated to be $307.65 billion in 2008…[exceeding] $300 billion for second year in a row.” Despite tremendous public interest in giving, the number of charities and projects active always means that organizations need to actively raise support for their initiatives and work in making a better world.

As we are currently in a major fundraising drive to construct a new school in Chiang Mai, Thailand, we are asking for your donation. But what are the benefits for you?

One personal impact of giving to the GENESIS Network is apparent; our projects help build schools and provide economic development in some of the world’s most impoverished areas. As examples of what we can currently do with our funding:

Send a child to school ($10/month)
Build a schoolhouse for 80-100 children ($14,500)
Provide a year’s supply of education materials to a school ($1,000)
Housing and protection from child trafficking for an orphan ($5/week)
Build and Develop vocational training center for 30 impoverished families ($23,000)

But can you receive tax benefits as well from a donation? Of course! As a federally registered 501c3 charity, giving to GENESIS allows you to claim these benefits on your return:

Cash: Donation of cash can be deducted up to 50% of gross income.
Property: Donation of property can be deducted up to 30% of gross income.
Capital gains assets: Capital gains assets can be deducted up to 20% of gross income. More information about stock transfer donations, as well as advantages they can have over cash, are found here.

Should you feel limited, then, in how much you can donate? Not really. As ehow.com notes, “if you have been particularly generous and exceeded these limits, you are allowed to roll over part of your charitable contribution to the following year for up to 5 years.”

As a general rule for all charitable donations: documentation is critically important. Specific standards are explained taxes.about.com and ehow.com. Overall, it is best to have extensive proof. Keep receipts for all donations, especially with those over $250. Keep cancelled checks or statements for cash contributions, as well as notebooks recording gifts.

Any contribution you can make is more than appreciated, and goes a long way towards making sure we can continue our work. Thank you.

Urgent: Give the gift of education this holiday season.

The Genesis Network is building its second primary school in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The new building, which will provide primary education to over 200 at-risk children in one of the country’s poorest areas, is the second being constructed under its Kid Launch project.

Currently in Thailand, almost one million children lack access to school, which leaves them vulnerable to the country’s extensive prostitution industry and human trafficking. Nearly 800,000 are employed as prostitutes. In response to the need for support, the Genesis Network initiated Kid Launch in the summer of 2008, with the goal of providing education and economic development in villages that ask for its assistance.

To complete this task, however, we need your support. Currently, there are two ways to give:

• We are currently accepting donations on our website. Make a donation.

• Thanksgiving/Holiday Cards: Businesses can purchase and send $50 gift cards as a way to donate. Give a card that helps.

Currently, we have raised 77 percent and making a huge push to achieve 100 percent funding this month, with the goal of completing construction by early December.

Please help us out in any way you can. Any contribution you can make is greatly appreciated and goes a long way towards guaranteeing a good quality education and stable future for children who are at risk of falling into prostitution and human trafficking. Feel free to email the Genesis team at info@gnetwork.org for any questions.

Thank you.

The story behind the GENESIS Network founder. A philanthropist, Army Lieutenant and Boldfacer.

BOLDFACERS
November 20009

Adam Swartzbaugh

Watch the interview

It’s been a year since Barack Obama won the Presidential election, and chances are, if he was going to hand pick the sort of guy he’d want to represent our country on and off the battlefield, he’d choose Lieutenant Adam Swartzbaugh.

Too bad Swartzbaugh can’t say the same. It’s not that he doesn’t pledge wholehearted allegiance to the flag–of course he does–but he doesn’t agree with all of President Obama’s international policies. He’s not crazy about the continued asymmetric treatment of the Middle East or the recent undermining of the Kyoto Protocol in Bangkok. While politicians can wave the international relations wand, Swartzbaugh says, it’s the military, he believes, that has the ability to change people’s lives day by day.

Swartzbaugh is no army brat. There are no family war stories or hand-me-down fatigues in his closet. He enlisted in the ROTC on his own. Which was after he won the nationals as a competitive cyclist; and after he dropped out of Hobart College; and after he learned Chinese; and after he traveled to Viet Nam and met Ngoc Toan, a double amputee with pitch black eyes and a ponytail who painted so beautifully that Swartzbaugh taught him to make a living off his art; and after he witnessed child prostitution firsthand; and after he jumped on a Russian Army motorcycle and roared through Cambodia to Thailand to help Tsunami victims. After, really, that he realized helping others felt good, and that one individual can make a difference.

Swartzbaugh returned to the States to finish college and then some. He enlisted in the ROTC and graduated from Brown University. He recently launched the Genesis Network, an online networking platform devoted to helping grassroots human rights and social development initiatives all over the world. He’s building schools in Thailand and Burma and crusading against human trafficking in China, India and Africa.

Why all the good behavior? Swartzbaugh cares about being a leader. He’s learned the fundamentals: biking taught him discipline and commitment (He was chosen as one of Sports Illustrated’s “faces to watch” during high school), and the military educated him on how to observe, react and execute. He’s waiting to be deployed to Afghanistan, where he’d like to empower the local people to take control of their country. A model American soldier, you might say. Happy Anniversary, Mr. President.

Watch the interview

Boldfacers

What role should youth serve in youth philanthropy initiatives?

Service_Learning The role of youth in charities vary from almost non-existent to limited roles where they can merely serve as a prop to communicate adults’ messages, to models where they have an equal role with adults or even run the organization entirely. The Jewish Teen Funders’ Network lists nine “degrees of participation” going down from maximum to minimum involvement.

9. Youth Initiated and Directed
8. Youth Initiated, Shared Decisions with Adults
7. Youth and Adult Initiated and Directed
6. Adult Initiated, Shared Decisions with Youth
5. Consulted and Informed
4. Assigned but Informed
3. Tokenism
2. Decoration
1. Manipulation

Though a strong adult-controlled model may be favored by those unsure about giving youth a decision-making stake, not acknowledging the skills and ideas of young participants can damage a program. As was noted in a 2001 University of Wisconsin-Madison study “the mutual contributions of youth and adults can result in a synergy, a new power and energy that propels decision-making groups to greater innovation and productivity…youth and adults become more committed to attending meetings and create a climate that is grounded in honest appraisal, reflection, and ongoing learning.” Through taking an active role as contributors and leaders, youth naturally feel more of a stake in the program and desire to involve themselves in it.

Many “best practice” guides recommend the creation of youth boards where teens take a direct role in program administration alongside adult members. The James Irvine Foundation notes that “creating youth boards linked to adult-driven institutions exposes youth to the process of making important decisions, while also demonstrating to adults how youth can be a part of critical community decisions.”

The W.K. Kellogg Foundation recommends diversity as critical in forming a successful youth board, with members of all “age, gender, race, religion, socio-economical, and geographical [groups]…leadership ability is distributed across the youth population; dropouts have just as much potential to lead as members of the National Honor Society.” The Kellogg Foundation, among its recommendations, suggests that “youth participants should range in age from 14 to 18 with attendance optional until the age of 21” and that youth members recruit replacements.

community_service_146235651_std For school-centered programs, though, initiation and implementation can be by default adult (teacher/faculty) led. Pennies for Peace is one example of this type of program. Established in 1994 as a program of the Central Asia Institute, Pennies encourages classrooms to fundraise for school-building and education in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Pennies expands by asking schools that want to start a campaign to register online, and provides them with a “toolkit” and other supplies such as videos and sample letters to parents and others. The campaign emphasizes that students should donate only pennies, as it believes this allows students of all economic backgrounds to be active contributors. One novel avenue Pennies for Peace emphasizes is direct implementation into class curriculum, such as teaching about Afghan and Pakistani history and culture.

The Genesis Network’s Change for Hope Youth Empowerment Program hopes to improve on the Pennies model through creating a platform where students can move into leadership roles. Concentrated on fundraising for school construction along the Burmese/Thai border, Change for Hope describes itself as “[giving] students an opportunity to apply themselves to real issues and develop real projects that make real differences…[and] the unique opportunity to build direct relationships with Burmese children.” Change for Hope’s goals include eventually establishing itself as a student-run group, as well as providing participants with opportunities including internships and volunteering abroad.

As concluding questions: If your organization runs a youth philanthropy program, what opportunities do you provide or wish to provide for young participants? More specifically, what are the different roles youth and adults have and how do they interact? What approaches work best for you and what additional points do you think charities can learn from? All answers, as well as other questions and comments are more than appreciated.

Can social media help nonprofits fundraise?

We live in an age where opportunities for communication are increasing faster than ever. With the rise of Web 2.0 media such as social networking sites and blogs, it has become all the easier for philanthropic organizations to build new connections, as well as publicize their activities and needs.

And charities have responded, emerging as the surprising leader in the social media landscape. A UMass Dartmouth study released in June stated

“new research shows that charitable organizations are still outpacing the business world and academia in their use of social media. In the latest study (2008) a remarkable eighty-nine percent of charitable organizations are using some form of social media including blogs, podcasts, message boards, social networking, video blogging, and wikis.”

These figures are an increase from 2007, in which “seventy-five percent of the respondents…reported they use at least one form of social media.” However, one area where charities can improve is in leveraging these tools to raise funds. In 2008, the study notes, only forty-five percent called social media “very important” to their fundraising strategy, versus forty-six in 2007. “Somewhat important” answers received a small decrease as well, with thirty-six percent in 2008 versus thirty-eight in 2007.

These figures are an interesting anomaly in what is overall a strong push among charities to adapt to and take advantage of social media. As these new forms of communication take hold and break boundaries, it is important to explore what they can bring to fundraising.

Case Study: Facebook Causes

“Causes” is one of Facebook’s most popular applications, boasting almost 34 million active users and over 174,000 fans. Active since 2007, Facebook Causes is “founded on the belief that in a healthy society, anyone can participate in change by informing and inspiring others…We strive to build tools for people to mobilize their friends for collective action…eventually [launching] movements that span local communities or even the globe.”

The application enables users to create an advocacy group, or “Cause” on Facebook, on which members can “discuss the issues, share their experience, post media, and sign petitions” as well as solicit donations to be delivered monthly to an agency of the cause’s choice, processed by partner Network for Good. It emphasizes equal access and touts itself as a way for smaller charities as well as larger ones to build an audience. It links to a page with “success stories” of organizations that have maximized Causes’ potential to grow a support base and often raise thousands of dollars in funds.

Causes is not without its detractors or controversy, however. An April 22 Washington Post article (“To Nonprofits Seeking Cash, Facebook App Isn’t So Green”) states

“Causes…has been largely ineffective in its first two years, trailing direct mail, fundraising events and other more traditional methods of soliciting contributions. Only a tiny fraction of the 179,000 nonprofits that have turned to Causes as an inexpensive and green way to seek donations have brought in even $1,000, according to data available on the Causes developers’ site…fewer than 1 percent of those who have joined a cause have actually donated money through that application.”

Among its findings, the article noted that $25 is a median donation on Causes, vs. $50 through traditional methods, and that just 185,000 members have ever contributed via the application.

The Washington Post article has been criticized by nonprofit-related blogs, as advocates emphasize that building relationships with prospective donors takes time and effort by an organization, and that the raised awareness makes the effort worthwhile. Nonprofit developer Betsy Harman of Harman Interactive is quoted as stating:

“Any nonprofit who thinks they can simply put a donate now button on their website or simply create a “Causes” page on Facebook and wait for the money to roll in, doesn’t understand online fundraising. It’s still about building relationships, telling your story, and taking potential donors through the process of cultivation, stewardship and solicitation…Causes…is just a tool for peer to peer fundraising but in order to raise money that tool has to be used by someone who is passionate about the organization and proactive about telling the organization’s story.”

Joe Green, Causes co-founder, was quoted in the Post article as saying that “Causes raises almost $40,000 a day across its groups, up from $3,000 a day a year ago” and that “the biggest successes have been tiny nonprofits who don’t have the name recognition of the big guys.”

Lastly, the Post noted that online fundraising is still in its infancy, and that less than three percent of total nonprofit fundraising is done online.

Last thoughts

The case study of Facebook Causes reveals some interesting points about fundraising through the use of social media. The takeaway for this is that, though it has much potential, it a very new field and not the instant, automatic money maker charities often hope for. But nonprofits should not discount the immense opportunites it can bring now and in the future.

The best route for charities is broaden goals long-term, talking advantage of new media in increasing awareness and building advocacy. Through convincing the global audience social networking sites can provide of the necessity of their work, organizations can help grow a support base for the future.

As final questions: How has your organization used or considered using social media to expand its audience? What have the results been? Is there any advice you would give to charities considering online fundraising?