When was the last time you checked your cell phone or PDA? Or placed an important work-related phone call or email? Check for directions? If you are as guilty as I am, it’s probably been about 30 seconds since you’ve picked it up.  The impact the mobile communication industry has had on our personal and professional lives is significant, albeit difficult to quantify. But the revolutionary change it has made on developing economies worldwide dwarfs that of developed nations.  

 The CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) field has undergone significant change in the past decade as a growing number of companies integrate social impact and community giving into their key strategic initiatives.   Many more businesses are seeing it as an important part of their growth, and short and long-term goals.  Whether its financial support or in-kind donations, executives are choosing to align their brand-name or product, with a philanthropic cause.

It is amazing what a little cold weather and a whole lot of snow will do to warm the heart.  As I sat perched in front of my kitchen window, watching the blizzard descend upon the District throughout the week, I witnessed countless acts of compassion.  Neighbors were helping eachother cross the road, strangers were assisting stranded drivers, kids were walking up and down the street with shovels, and police were making rounds to check in.  At the peak of the blizzard there were only a few individuals outside, but as soon as conditions eased, curiosity was in abundance, driving people out of their home to see how others were coping with the storm.  One personal example - I was supposed to fly to Chicago early last week, but all public transportation was closed and taxies were largely unavailable.   My roommate offered to take me in the morning, so at midnight we began to dig out his car.  It wasn’t long until 3 or 4 strangers joined in to help us clear a path and dig out about 3 feet of snow.   In the days that followed, random acts of kindness and neighborly spirit were in full force.  I am relatively new to the area, but already feel that despite the tough stereotype that precedes it, there is more community here than anywhere else I’ve lived.

Last night, as my roommates and I made dinner, we discussed the controversial successes and long-term consequences of food aid.  Our planet is rich in resources, and yet, about 1/6 of the world’s population - approximately 1 billion people – are hungry.  Thanks to worldwide food programs, thousands of individuals receive nutrition they might not otherwise have access to. But the silver lining to that success story is the way food aid infrastructure is set up.  According to the Cato Institute, the US requires that food aid be purchased from US farmers, processed and bagged in the US and shipped on US vessels -- which cost 50% of the money allocated.  What is wrong with this picture?  Instead of utilizing local land, resources, and labor to locally produce food, teach people how to work the land, and create local economies, the recipient country is required to import what it could produce on its own turf.   Instead of teaching them to fish, we fish for them.   While this might help boost US agricultural exports, it weakens – and in some cases, substitutes – food production abroad, completely replacing local economies and further promoting the cycle of dependency on foreign food aid and assistance. 

Many of you have probably seen the social commentary on YouTube ¿En que momento se jodio el Peru?  which translates to “At what moment did Peru screw itself?” If you haven’t, I suggest you do so and then come back to this blog.