Monday Book Nook: World Ark (bi-monthly magazine from Heifer.org)
World Ark (bi-montly magazine from Heifer.org; online or in print to donors)
http://heifer.org/media/world-ark
Anything from Heifer is inspiring to me. I have long supported them, and often make donations in other’s names as gifts. Quick reason why: Heifer’s mission statement is that hunger causes war, and they are devoted to creating self-sustainable families and communities that are able to feed and do for themselves. Part of their work is to give families an animal – bees for honey, milk cows, sheep for milk and wool, etc. – along with training in animal care, basic economic skills (e.g. how to price food for sale at a farmer’s market), and what they call their Cornerstones training which are social skills that include education in women’s rights. And here’s maybe the best part: each family that receives such a gift is then required to Pass on the Gift by way of a first born or new tree seedlings, etc., PLUS the education, to another member of their community (who will then pass on that gift). Like this, communities are knit together and the gift grows exponentially.
Heifer’s work alone inspires me. But World Ark takes that to another level by interviewing recipients of the gifts, and seeing what they’ve made of themselves after having the gift for several years. In some cases, women in a village have come together to create dairy co-ops, selling their extra milk as yogurt and other value-added products and pooling their money to build a school, or buy sewing machines to share, for example. World Ark also profiles Heifer workers in the field, sharing innovations they’ve learned in how to create integrated family farms, for example. Bottom line, it is a magazine filled with solutions, filled with stories about what IS working in the world today, and the absolute power of a few people to enact great changes when working together. I believe when we begin to see how the step from lack to abundance can be as short as helping others help themselves, our ability to re-dream and re-create our world infinitely expands.
