A Focus on Saving Lives
Camping in a sand storm
By Jackie Jennings-Bates The most fearful night of my life was spent on the border of Morocco and Algeria. My husband, Mark, was in an off-road motorbike tour,...
ESG principle flawed
There has been lots of talk recently (and YouTube videos) about ESG investment principles. The talk says that Environment/Social/Governance (ESG) is very...
How to save the world
Like me, you may not have had a chance to read the new book by Bill Gates, How to Avoid a Climate Disaster. However I have read his interview with Wired...
Would you save the world?
By Jackie Jennings-Bates How would you make the world a better place If you had all the resources you needed? It is a worthwhile experiment. I encourage...
Let's all play our part
I met with a few overseas business colleagues this week and we wandered down a rabbit hole discussing the merits of getting tax benefits for investing in...
Days of uncertainty
By Jackie Jennings-Bates We are certainly living through days of uncertainty, the most profound in my memory. I’m sure my grandparents raising young...
A crystal ball would help
When it comes to reducing poverty, the Wayne Gretzky method could be invaluable — skate to where the puck will be; don’t wait for it. But how do we...
Do what you can to help
By Jackie Jennings-Bates I had an interesting observation over the Christmas holiday. Since I am interested in charity, I subscribe to quite a few websites,...
10x return on investment
Can you get a 10x return on your donation? This is exactly what a global group is proposing with a new project called the Decasphere. Their goal is to engage...
Giving its own reward
By Jackie Jennings-Bates Is it truly better to give than to receive? I am not going to argue with this claim because the origin of the phrase is from Paul,...
Choosing a project to help
How do I choose a project To support? This was a significant question for Jackie and me back in 1995 when we decided we would do something to help others in...
From humble beginnings
By Jackie Jennings-Bates On our travels, we have been most impressed by the people we meet helping in their local communities. Obviously, the most effective...
From water to fire
By Jackie Jennings-Bates We made it safely home from Kenya and after tackling water, we tackled fire. Our friends in Guatemala were developing a program of...
Business can fight poverty
Often, we only look at governments and individuals as donors to humanitarian causes. Occasionally, businesses will also contribute to their favourite cause. But...
Into the wild
By Jackie Jennings-Bates I was well into middle age in 2010 before I took my next trip to Kenya. We had founded our charity and were invited on a trip with a...
Look beyond the Band-Aid
I am researching how extremely successful people approach charity and problem solving. I have been reading books and watching documentaries about people who...
Safari rally and the Samburu
By Jackie Jennings-Bates Funny how things happen as a child that set the stage for later in life. Last time, I described how my childhood influenced our later...
Let's start at the beginning
I would like to introduce myself as a guest writer to this column. My name is Jackie and, next Monday, I will have been married to Mark for 35 years. I know if...
Don't get too distracted
It is easy in the current environment to become insular. Human nature kicks in and we start protecting ourselves and our families. However, for many around the...
Nanotech to the rescue?
Cleaning up the mess with nanotechnology Several years ago, I was in Perth, Australia talking to an engineer about a problem his company had. He had to solve a...