Photo taken from The Borgen Project | Infographics by Amelia Beuscher
The Borgen Project is a nonprofit organization that encourages ending poverty through advocacy, which can be as simple as a phone call or an email.
There are so many large, dooming issues that face our world today. From climate change to social injustice to extreme poverty, it seems almost impossible to face these challenges, especially as young individuals. However, the Borgen Project offers a fresh perspective that gives everyone a chance to genuinely have an impact on others.
What is the Borgen Project?
The Borgen Project is a non-profit organization that fights world poverty. They take a unique approach where they focus on solving the cause of poverty, not the effect.
Senior Program Manager Kelly Hall has been working for the Borgen Project for eight and a half years.
“We target the advocacy side of it, in terms of pieces of legislation, which obviously will help a broader and wider community,” Hall said.
Instead of directly offering aid to those struggling, the Borgen Project focuses their efforts on the U.S. government. This involves working together with congresspeople to pass legislation that helps end world poverty.
How Can You Get Involved?
The Borgen Project makes it incredibly easy for everyone to get involved in their fight against poverty. Their website offers quick links and tutorials encouraging people to contact their congresspeople and senators in support of poverty-reducing legislation.
For example, there is a page dedicated to getting people to email their representatives. There is a list of legislation for people to read through and learn about. Then all visitors have to do is click the legislation they want to support, put in their address and an email is automatically sent to all their representatives. There are also a variety of pages informing people how to call and lobby congress.
These helpful pages not only make it simple for people to get involved in the Borgen Project’s mission, but it also encourages people to get involved in democracy and make their opinion heard by congress.
“I think for the youth of today,” Hall said, “it's that building a better future for yourself, for your children, for your children’s children.”
What are some Legislations They Are Currently Supporting?
The Borgen Project always has a page with recent legislation they are supporting, with short descriptions of them. Some of these bills include the End Tuberculosis Now Act, the Reinforcing Education Accountability in Development (READ) Act and the Mental Health in International Development and Humanitarian Settings (MINDS) Act.
The End Tuberculosis Now Act
Though Covid-19 seems long over, the overall effects of the pandemic are still in full force. There is a concern on Covid-19’s impact on tuberculosis (TB) programs and the effects that Covid-19 had on people with TB.
Lynsey Alexander, the Chief of Staff for the Borgen Project, advocated for the passing of this bill.
“You're looking at the concerns around pandemic,” she said, “And eradicating diseases that don’t need to be out there as such. You know, there's medicines, there's vaccinations.”
The End Tuberculosis Now Act helps focus U.S. aid on diagnosing, treating and researching TB. The Borgen Project believes that this act will help significantly reduce world poverty and help people escape life and death situations.
The READ Reauthorization Act
Around the world, millions of school aged children do not have access to education. Gender discrimination in schools makes this issue particularly impactful on young girls, which often leads to illiteracy.
“There's still 58 million primary school aged children who don't attend school, and 260 million children who don’t have access to good quality education,” Alexander said.
The READ Act was passed into law in 2017 and has shown the value of education in economic growth. The READ Act is currently up for reauthorization, and the Borgen Project is strongly supporting it.
The MINDS Act
A billion people around the world suffer from mental health conditions, and most people who live in low-income countries do not receive any treatment for mental health disorders.
“In the U.S. and the U.K., we do have a better understanding of mental health, I think, and the resources for it. In those third world countries, or impoverished countries, not so much,” Hall said.
Especially since Covid-19, mental health issues have only increased. The MINDS Act is the first bill to address mental health support in the U.S. International Aid. This bill includes assistance in mental health programs and helps break the cycle of poverty around the world.
To Conclude
Not only is the Borgen Project making groundbreaking successes in ending world poverty, but they take a unique approach to doing so. By directly involving the government, they unite the United States in the fight against poverty and ultimately save millions and lives.
They also make it easier for people to get involved in this fight, with easy links to email and call congress members. This encourages people to not only get involved in ending extreme poverty, but also to actively participate in democracy.
So, the Borgen Project not only saves lives by helping end poverty, but it also helps young Americans take control of their government.
“As the youth of today getting together, making that difference, is obviously gonna make the world a better place,” Hall said.
