Global Philanthropy with CARE

A special thanks to CARE for sponsoring today's post while fighting poverty and empowering others.

Last month, I celebrated my first anniversary with an amazing organization. I work for a global health non-profit whose sole mission is to prevent the needless deaths of women and their families. I'm super proud to say I'm a part of their team.

a mother with her child in Chad. Credit: CARE

I'm also thrilled to know that we aren't the only organization with such a mission. When lives are on the line, we shouldn't be thinking competition. And I certainly don't. I don't work for CARE, but  I fully support this global humanitarian organization and their philanthropy.

I love reading over the many amazing success stories on the CARE Knows How page, but one particularly cracked me up. Feminism is a hot topic in the US and this story would probably appall women fighting for that cause, but overseas....women and families are fighting for their lives:

"An intercultural approach to fighting poverty is complex. When dealing with indigenous people, it often goes beyond language to include a respect for local customs and traditions.

In western cultures, white is associated with cleanliness, but in rural Ayachucho, Peru, white is the color of death.

With a maternal mortality rate of 240 per 100,000 mothers, CARE was desperate to find ways to encourage indigenous mothers to seek care at local health clinics.

So we stripped white sheets off of the beds in the clinics and replaced them with pink ones.

The result?

More women visit the health centers, and combined with other health-related efforts, Ayachucho's maternal mortality rate has been cut in half!"

I can agree completely that getting mothers to seek care in health facilities is a difficult task in and of itself. I don't think the pink sheets idea would fly in the US, but I love how the simple swap (and cultural understanding—note what white means in Peru) has saved lives!

Girls in school in India. Credit: CARE

Empowering women with CARE is only one facet of the CARE philanthropy—other areas of empowerment include education, world hunger, health, disaster relief, and economic development. Take a look at their inspiring stories and be sure to check out the ways you can also CARE for others!