Blog
Navigating Uncharted Waters: Successes and Lessons Learned in 2020
It seems as if the whole world is taking one deep, collective breath as the end of 2020 approaches. Although we are looking forward to what the new year will bring, the lessons we have learned in 2020 are crucial for the future of our global community. This year brought much uncertainty, yet one thing…
Read MorePartner Spotlight: Anne Lasimbang of PACOS Trust
Even as a young child, Anne Lasimbang spent time collecting funds from neighbors to support families in need as well as distributed information related to pertinent community matters in support of her mother’s community organizing. Growing up in the village of Nampasan in the Malaysian Borneo state of Sabah, Anne never envisioned she would eventually…
Read MoreSolar Powered Health Clinics in Peru Strengthen Community Resilience
Prior to having electricity at their rural health clinics in the Andean mountains, health care workers in Contumazá, Cajamarca, Peru had to travel three hours one way to obtain and deliver vaccinations, among many other critical setbacks. Peru also now has the fifth highest coronavirus caseload in the world at around 740,000 infected patients, and…
Read MoreThe Silver Lining of the Pandemic: Virtual Capacity Building
When COVID-19 shut down Green Empowerment projects across Latin America, our staff and local partners were initially devastated. The renewable energy and clean water projects we were looking forward to supporting were put on an indefinite hold at a time when communities most needed those resources. However, we quickly pivoted by brainstorming and then executing…
Read MoreThree Principles of Community-Owned Renewable Energy
Global Challenges, Local Solutions: Series #3 By Mohammad Pakravan, Green Empowerment Technical Program Manager In my last article on renewable energy, I mentioned that the public utility provider for the Malaysian state of Sarawak, known as SEB, has set up an initiative to provide reliable electricity access to every household in the state by 2025. …
Read MoreAdvocating for Renewable Energy in the Land of Free Diesel
Global Challenges, Local Solutions: Series #2 By Mohammad Pakravan, Green Empowerment Technical Program Manager Without a doubt electricity is one of the most vital infrastructures for any development initiative. However, not any type of electricity source is appropriate or sustainable for development, especially in remote areas. While many of the community members in the rainforests…
Read MoreBacteria, Boiling & the Body’s Resistance: Dispelling Myths About Access to Clean Drinking Water
Global Challenges, Local Solutions: Series #1 By Mohammad Pakravan, Green Empowerment Technical Program Manager In January of this year I traveled to Malaysian Borneo to learn about development and capacity building in Malaysian Borneo. During my month-long visit in Sabah and Sarawak and Indonesia, I had a chance to visit some of the most remote…
Read MoreWhat Flows from a Protected Watershed?
In honor of Earth Day we are thrilled to share that earlier this month the government of Nicaragua officially recognized the “Reserva Silvestre, El Cua,” established by our local partner organization the Association of Rural Development Workers- Ben Linder (ATDER-BL), as one unified forest reserve. The reserve was built piece by piece over the last…
Read MoreA Mobilized Community, Río Abajo
By Steve Gretzinger, Green Empowerment Board Member It had been many years since I had last put on dusty boots to visit a remote, rural village in Central America. On Friday, February 21st I was blessed to have the chance to see Green Empowerment’s water project in Northern Nicaragua far from the beaches frequented by…
Read MoreInvesting in Resiliency in Amaguaya, Bolivia
Perched on the banks of a small river in the vast, rugged landscape of the Andes Mountains sits the community of Amaguaya. The Aymara people who call Amaguaya home have made their living for generations through raising llamas and farming potatoes. Though small by some standards, this community of 56 families is a hub in…
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