Do you ever feel like the connections we make in life sometimes seems like fate? The more I work in this tiny niche of social good travel bloggers, the more amazed I am by the incredible friendships and network I’ve made online. I’ve met countless inspiring bloggers and humanitarians online through blogging and social media. One such person is Maria Russo, founder of the award-wining online media platform for travel and social good, The Culture-ist and the non-profit Humanity Unified International. It all happened because I follow her on Instagram where I noticed the amazing photographs her organization was posting on women and girls in Rwanda.
A young girl in Rwanda. Photo by Arielle Lozada
I commented on the photos and began a relationship online that resulted in an interview and a post on her and her husband Anthony’s work as the founders of Humanity Unified and Humanity Unified International. I was instantly drawn to Maria and Anthony’s passion for making the world a better place by starting at the grassroots level by improving the lives of women and girls in Rwanda.
The more I work in social good and advocacy, the more I understand how these kinds of programs work. It is a proven that investing in women makes a tremendous amount of sense and investing wisely in programs that provide training, education, health and sustainable agricultural practices is even better. Women invest 90% of their income back into their families while men invest approximately 30 percent (UNAC).
On a personal level, like everyone I am bombarded with requests for donations every day thus I choose my charities wisely. It is a arduous task since I would love to donate to every single cause I write about or hear but obviously I have to pick and choose which causes are most important to me. I donate locally to help our schools and families living in poverty, and I also donate quite a bit abroad.
The more I travel and witness the impact of poverty on women and girls and the additional barriers they face in creating a better life, the more I desire to give them opportunities to create a better one. I also prefer to create sustainable change, not just a band-aid approach that won’t fix the problem. This is why I love the work that Humanity Unified is doing so much. 100% of my investment will go towards empowering women and creating sustainable change.
I will never meet the woman who I am supporting but in my heart I will know that far away, in Rwanda my donation has helped change her life. That is an incredible feeling! Whether it be vaccines for a child in Nigeria, a clean birth kit for $20 for an expectant mom in Laos or $100 to provide training for a woman in Rwanda, I’ve made a difference.
Even using my words to spread awareness by writing this post has helped and that is free.
Photo by Arnelle Lozada
This week, Humanity Unified International launched their first fundraiser on Generosity by Indiegogo to develop funding for their project in Rwanda. Here are some details on the campaign and how you can help.