One exciting news expected to come out of the upcoming UN Climate Change conference in Copenhagen December 7-18 is the launch of Hope Plus, seen as a global online Peace Corps or a global “eBay for caring.” This is a global, multilingual web portal that allows people interested in social change projects to meet online, share ideas and resources and start planning projects such as helping disaster victims, building schools, campaigning for clean water. It will run independent of any government. The project, backed by Obama and Gates, is led …

Volunteer or service travel is thriving, and that is not surprising given the gratification it provides the traveler. The desire to give back however,  is not limited just for those with the greatest means. Farther Foundation is a not-for-profit scholarship organization that provides support for low income high school students to participate in educational travel programs that broaden their horizons and raise their aspirations for success. More and more, the programs their scholarship students choose contain opportunities to provide volunteer service to the communities where they travel. During 2009, the …

Over 100 programs on the major networks and cable will spotlight the idea of giving back in their story lines or public service announcements this week (beginning Oct. 19 and lasting for 7 days). This is the centerpiece of the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF)’s iParticipate initiative aimed to mobilize the entertainment community to inspire a new era of service and volunteerism. The iParticipate initiative, a multi-year campaign, hopes to make service a part of who we are as Americans and show what we can achieve when we all pull together. …

Some people feel philanthropy is only about foundations donating lots of money, but that’s only one part. Philanthropy is about people giving their time, help and care to causes they support, making the world a better place to live in. Philanthropic activities come in many forms, some people choose to contribute a huge sum of money to charity or create a park for the community. Others provide scholarships for needy students, while others simply travel to lend a hand.

“A lot of great things require money, but all great projects begin …

Over the last decade Hollywood has become obsessed by philanthropy and social activism. Has a day gone by when you did not see a celebrity promoting a cause in the media? It is very vogue, like a highly coveted accessory.  It is now all but socially unacceptable for Hollywood A-list stars and even B-list stars not to have a cause.
Hollywood’s obsession with philanthropy may also be a sign of deeper cultural shifts in the entertainment industry. Some cynics believe that having a cause is a way of self-validation or regaining …

We came across this great article on travel philanthropy in Architectural Digest (April 2009) — an indication of how charity and goodwill are playing a growing role in people’s lives when these stories get featured in a design magazine.

Architect Bernard Wharton and his family went on a two-week safari vacation in Kenya’s Masai Mara with Micato Safari, a luxury tour company known to include philanthropic visits in their tours. Wanting to get a balanced view of Africa, they opted to do a daylong philanthropic visit to Mukuru, …

We never know what may result from our volunteer travels. Sometimes the impressions made on us may lead to a return trip, other times it may spawn larger ambitions to give back which could lead to a career change or the creation of a business or a non-profit that would give back perpetually or meet a particular need in the world or both. Such is the case of Jan Hanson. We love her story because it embodies the promise and potential of every volunteer and every volunteer trip.
Jan Hanson …