Hey world,
Over 100 women attended the forum, and I delivered my speech to a nearly-filled room as the last guest speaker of the day.
The speech was well-received, with a partially standing ovation (definition: people were not crouching and clapping, but maybe 1/3 of the room stood to clap)! Numerous individuals came up to thank me for the inspiring words, including the President of GW, keynote speaker Peggy Cooper Cafritz, and others.
It was such an honor to be asked to speak, and because I wasn't able to record my actual speech (though pictures are coming!), and I know there was a lot of interest in what I had to say, I decided to share my script online.
But first, HELLO.
This is the debut of my 'new' blog. As you will see, I've actually been using this blog for some time, but today is the first day I've shared the URL with others. I suggest you check out a few of the earlier posts after this one, including my
first post, as well as
this one and
this one to catch up.
This blog will be a reflection of my journey to live the life I desire; documenting the highs and the lows, the complexities and the simple joys. Walk the unpaved path with me.
Alright, back to business. Without further ado, here's the transcript of my speech!
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Insights on Philanthropy: The Next Generation
First of all, I would
like to say thank you to Dr. Mary Ellsberg for the warm introduction, a thank
you to the rest of the wonderful and inspiring speakers that have imparted
their wisdom and experiences with us today, thank you to Ms. Karen White and
Ms. Victoria Hartman for inviting me to be a part of this forum…I am deeply
humbled and excited to be here. And finally, a big thank you to everyone else
in attendance, I appreciate you sticking around to hear what I have to say
about The Next Generation: Insights to Philanthropy.
Like many others in
my generation, and the generations that came before, I was introduced to
philanthropy and giving at a young age. Because I was born and raised in
Southeast Asia, disparities between my life and the lives of others were
noticeably apparent. However, from a young age, I was also introduced to the
possibility, and necessity, of improvement and change; my parents incorporated
giving into my life from the very beginning – never discounting how meaningful
small gifts could be.
All of the clothes
and toys I outgrew were donated to our maid’s extended family in the
Philippines who were not able to afford as many clothes as I was. When I
misbehaved, my parents would have me collect money by completing extra chores
around the house to then donate it to the local SPCA. Holidays were one of my
favorite times of the year, not only because of my family’s celebrations, but
because I got to raid our cupboards for boxed and canned goods to donate to the
less fortunate. In sixth grade, I was part of a school trip that went to Bintan,
Indonesia to set up the computer lab we donated to a small government school. It
was my first exposure to classrooms that didn’t have desks or chairs, pretty
posters or technology. But despite their many lacks, we were encouraged by the
opportunity we had created – for students just like us to learn how to type and
use the internet, just like we were learning during our own computer lab
classes. We might not have been able to do everything, but we could do
something.
During this same part
of my childhood, I committed time and energy brainstorming how I might be able
to throw my name into the international ring so I could be elected Mother
Earth. I was oddly intimately familiar with the United Nations and all of its
work and missions around the world, (I once convinced the FAO to send posters
for my entire school about eating healthy), but I knew that we needed to go a
step further. And I wanted to take that step and lead the charge.
I was consumed with
sadness knowing that there were people dying of disease and dirty water, that
men, women and children were hungry, that sharks were being hunted for their
fins and left for dead, that the Amazon was being cut down at astonishing
rates; that smog and pollution from slash and burn farming methods
was causing asthma and illness in
others, that acid rain was a real thing and not just something you read about
in books, and that genocide was not a one-time event during World War II, but
an issue communities around the world continued to battle. I was also extremely
affected by the plight of endangered species. In fact, I started one of what
was probably the earliest chain emails from my AOL account –
doggiewuver@aol.com -- when I was 8 or 9 telling
everyone in my contacts all about the ‘lovable animals of Madagascar’, the
Aye-Aye, that were being murdered by local Malagasy because they supposedly
brought bad luck – and how devastated I was. After laying out all of the facts,
I ended my chain letter by saying “this isn’t one of those emails where you’ll
die if you don’t forward this…but an aye-aye will”. Talk about pulling at heart
strings!
By the time I was 12, I was so overwhelmed by causes that
mattered, and things that needed to be done to improve the lives of people,
animals and our planet, that I no longer knew where to allocate my time or
efforts.
Unfortunately, right
before 8th grade, I unexpectedly moved back to the United States to
become a caregiver alongside my mother for my grandfather, who came out of
remission in 2003 and was diagnosed with terminal cancer. For the next two
years, I thought of little else. After he passed, I was too overcome with
emotion to devote myself to any cause that made me sad (which was all of them)
– and my giving took a long hiatus. I pivoted into mentoring and leadership
roles, and in that, I was able to allow a different part of myself to grow.
It wasn’t until I got
to GW that I felt ready to start giving again. I was first introduced to GW students’ passion for
philanthropy while I was going through formal recruitment, and I ultimately
chose a sorority who’s philanthropic focus was something I was also passionate
about. And I started seeking my definition of philanthropy: I found that giving
time and talent became as important, if not more
important, than giving money.
I spent the Saturdays
during my freshman year working with children who were behind in math and
reading. I interned on Capitol Hill; and provided a listening ear to those
frustrated with their representatives. I stayed up all night and Relayed for
Life; dedicating 12 hours to remembrance of battle, and celebration of years
lived. My sophomore year, I organized the largest team GW had ever seen for
Relay, with over 100 of my sorority sisters coming together in support. I gave
campus tours and information sessions to prospective students; I went to
pancake breakfasts and bake sales and signed petitions.
I was asked to be
part of the Senior Class Gift committee, and joined a team of dedicated
soon-to-be-graduates that convinced a record-breaking 50% of our peers to give
back to GW, raising a grand total of over $92,000 that year. It was a rewarding
experience – for someone who truly bleeds ‘buff and blue’, it was always
interesting to chat with fellow Colonials about their passions, and show them
how GW was an integral part of facilitating them, or allowing them to grow.
One of the best
things about going to GW was that the university really pushed you to start
thinking about the things that mattered to you during your four years on
campus. It didn’t matter if it was politics
or biology; saving killer whales or growing organic vegetables; running
marathons to raise funds for HIV/AIDS, sending thank you cards to the troops, or
sharing a photo on Facebook that donated $1. What mattered was that you began
to narrow down the things you were willing to donate time, money and talent to
– and that you began to actively take part in initiatives that would allow you
to give. GW pushed you to seek, and find, your passion – and to live and embody
it. They supported student groups and campus events; they encouraged study
abroad trips and thoughtful theses; they connected you with internships and job
opportunities; they engrained that service, and volunteering, could be easily
incorporated to anyone’s life.
By the end of my
college experience, I narrowed down my passions to the following: literacy and
access to books and education, cancer research, East Africa, and organizations
and institutions that been an important part of my learning journey, such as
GWU and my sorority Pi Beta Phi. It didn’t mean that I cared any less about the
aye ayes or acid rain or dirty water, I just felt that I was better positioned
to do more about other pressing topics.
Upon graduation, I
moved to Tanzania as a volunteer secondary school English teacher with the
non-profit WorldTeach. I brought with me over 50 pounds of school supplies to
donate to my school, and I spent the year helping 270 students improve their
English, imagine success, and encourage them to defy the odds. While I
was in Tanzania, I started The Nyota Fund after being inspired by my students' dedication to come to school even when they couldn't afford school fees, hiding in the bushes and enduring daily beatings just to extend their time in the classroom before they had to admit defeat. And that's even with a annual cost of $50 USD to send a student to school. That's right. $50 a year. After consulting with community elders, school leaders, and elected officials within the district, I started a scholarship fund, The Nyota Fund, to
assist talented students in my school district to stay in school. In Kagera region, less than 7% of elementary school graduates make it to secondary school. Around the same percentage are even able to graduate secondary school and move on to higher education. It is the mission of The Nyota Fund to remove the financial barriers, and allow students who can succeed the chance to. It was during this process of starting my own organization that I came
to realize what being philanthropic was all about.
To me, being a leader
and being philanthropic are almost synonymous. To me, they both mean to be a
catalyst and a facilitator; to be the person who draws out from others what is
already there. Being a leader is not one who seeks to take credit; being a
philanthropist is not one who is interested in the title. It is simply someone
who has something to offer; to help ensure the aspirations, dreams and wishes
of others are able to come into fruition.
In today’s world, and
for my generation, philanthropy and giving can seem quite overwhelming. The
internet berates us with uplifting or depressing statistics constantly and
inundates us with campaigns and fundraisers, each doing something as wonderful
as the next. It’s hard to decide, in a split moment, whether you want to buy a
blanket that will then donate 4 blankets to cold Nepalese widowers or donate a
soccer ball and protein bars to children in Ecuador or purchase a solar light
for a family of 10 in Tanzania. And because you’re inundated constantly and
can’t participate 99% of the time, it’s almost just as easy not to participate
at all.
People ask me all the
time how I do it. How I donate to other people’s campaigns. How I run my own.
How I lived without water or a toilet or electricity or a stove. How I
disrupted the “usual growing up timeline” to devote a year of my life to
teaching others. “I’m so impressed by you” they say, “I could never be you, I
could never do it”.
I’m here today to
share my story, because I believe that anyone can do it.
I am able to donate
to a wide number of campaigns, because I deliberately chose to stop buying
juices, sodas, and iced teas when I’m at restaurants. The only coffees or teas
I consume are now made at home. If I purchase something, most of the time I try
to support small business, and I only eat out twice a week max. I live on less
than $100 a week in NYC, and with the money I would have spent on one-time
consumptions, I re-appropriate to giving to more meaningful efforts. I have
found satisfaction in having less, and giving more.
I also am able to
consistently give because I almost never donate more than $15 to any one
campaign. Small gifts are just as important as large gifts – just as I never
pass a penny on the sidewalk without picking it up, I never discredit the power
of a small donation. In fact, this March, I encouraged the 1st-6th
grade students from my hometown to bring in coins and dollar bills for school
fees. Together, they raised over $1,100 in less than one week and sent half of
my Nyota scholars to school for an entire year. There’s a Tanzanian proverb
that says, “Little by little, a little becomes a lot”. So I give, little by
little.
My insights to
philanthropy are still young. But if I had to impart my knowledge to you
succinctly, as a 24-year old woman, this is what I would share:
-
Find what you are passionate about. Allow your
passions to be subject to your change. Allow yourself to be changed by your
passions.
-
Put yourself in a position to give, and give
selflessly. It’s never too late to make a difference – to cut out Diet Coke and
donate $30 a month to a cause you love instead. In order to give selflessly,
you must also be content to live selflessly – do not be afraid to open yourself
up to change.
- $10
is just as important as $10,000. Never belittle what you can offer. In the
United States, the people who give the most are actually those who have the
least. Humility is a blessing.
- As
I said earlier, time and talent are as important, if not more important, than
money. Know what your gifts are, and extend them to those in need of assistance.
- Always
remember why you’re passionate in the first place. It should never be about
being a “leader” or a “philanthropist”. You should never give, just to check a
box off your list. Commit yourself to be a facilitator; to be a catalyst for
difference. Be in tune with what people and communities desire. Mobilize your
passions to ignite the fire of giving in others.
-
If you are a founder like me, do not be afraid
to stay small. Today, pressure is on to run a nonprofit like a start-up, to
expand and grow at the speed of light, to affect millions and revolutionize the
planet. Instead, I urge you to think small, to stay local, and remain rooted in
your vision and your mission. Change can come just as quickly and effectively
if everyone set to task on small corners of the globe, and worked meaningfully
to bring improvements. Change is
change – at any scale.
-
Finally, remain inspired. Believe, with your
whole heart, in the power of possibility – and donate your time, talent and
money, to turn possibility into reality.
Thank you.
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Well, there you have it.
To be considered a representative of millennial givers by my alma mater is truly amazing. To be able to speak in front of a large, caring audience of women (and some men!) was a great experience, and I hope my words resonated with many.
Hopefully, this is the beginning of a continued engagement with forums and speeches, as well as an blog audience of more than one!
xoxo,
M
