Alleviating Poverty/Advancing Prosperity An Essential Guide for Helping the Poor

Poverty is stubborn. Since World War II an estimated 2.3 trillion dollars has been spent on international aid, yet half of the population of the world survives on less than on ten dollars a day. In fact, one billion people, eek out a living on less than one dollar a day and 22,000 children die everyday from the effects of poverty. Despite the best efforts of governments, the U.N., NGO’s, nonprofits, and private enterprise, the numbers of poor are growing rather than shrinking. Sustainability is a buzzword in the world of international development, but far too many aid initiatives fail to create lasting change on a broad scale. Too many of our poverty fighting efforts focus on the symptoms of poverty and not its root causes. The mindsets and attitudes that keep people in poverty often remain unchanged. Alleviating Poverty/Advancing Prosperity explores the current state of our fight against world poverty in an effort to rethink our strategies and the nature of poverty itself. The principles explored in this book will increase the effectiveness of overseas antipoverty programs. They will help improve sustainability, and help take development projects to a scale sufficient to address this worldwide challenge. Topics addressed include: Perceptions about poverty and prosperity and their implications Challenges and importance of of sustainability, scale, and paternalism in working with the poor Current state of the international development sector Roles of government, nonprofits, and private enterprise in tackling poverty New ways of working together to alleviate poverty and advance prosperity

Steven Downey received a Master’s Degree in Crop Science from California State University in 1995. Since then he has been working with the poor worldwide. Through his involvement in projects ranging from short-term missions to USAID projects and other nonprofit development  and training programs, he has developed a keen sense of what works and what does not. His website www.cleanwaterforlaymen.com has equipped thousands of individuals to understand the issues of water, sanitation, and hygiene and to make improvements in their own communities and around the world.