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Video Guide-Poverty Inc.Machiavelli said "The reason there will be no change is because the people who stand to lose from change, have all of the power. And the people who stand to gain from change, have none of the power." Global aid system today--as we talk about development: Who has the power?? Who should have it?Paradigm in which we try to help the poor: Rich resent the poor, the poor resent the rich. Every 10 or 20 years we try something new and it doesn't work. We end up looking at the same broken system. Paternalism doesn't work.Reflection on Africa: (People are not stupid; they are just disconnected from global trade)Reflection on Haiti's rice subsidy (Lost capacity, Timothy Schwartz, local interests want to protect their market, tariffs and import duties)The social effects of the plan:Haiti's Earthquake (January 12, 2010)Problem: The short term natural disaster turned into a long term unnatural disasterThe Republic of NGOsThe unofficial number of NGOs still in Haiti: Enersa: Solar Panel Powered Street Lights? What was the effect of NGOs on the solar power business?NGO--Partners Worldwide: how are they helping?The Big PictureThe current model of development began:What organizations were created to help?The Marshall Plan: What was the effect?What is foreign aid? How does it work?The New ColonistsLink rural entrepreneurs to world markets. The donor communities are not interested in seeing improvement.How does the colonization continue?Africa: Cheetah generation vs. the Hippo generationOnly 16 of 54 countries are democraticHumanitarian aid has become a way of life, instead of being used appropriately. Disaster relief cannot be the model. Countries need to develop on trade, not on aid. People need to be able to stand on their own. Complex System: A Global Poverty Industry? Durkheim—A Social Fact: a broad tapestry of norms, assumptions and social and economic institutions that transcend any one individual or organization. The social fact puts constraints on how we think and act, leading us to take many things for granted. It becomes simply "the way things are done".This does not mean there is never innovation; the trouble is that most of the innovation take place within the social fact.? The social fact situates the poor as "the other”. They are the objects--rather than the—subjects, or the active protagonists, in their own story of development.People have the internal capacity to rise out of poverty, but they need certain key things many of us take for granted: legal protection from theft and violence, justice in the courts, legal title to one's land, freedom to start/register a business and links to wider circles of exchange (The Ladder to Prosperity)Poor people have become the clients of the poverty industry.? A question we need to ask ourselves: Who benefits the most from the way things are currently set up? The people we are trying to help? Or the people in the poverty industry?Charity That HurtsKenya: textile industry example (the negative impact of apparel imports)Rwanda: after the genocide, the egg distribution example (the desire to help can have a long term negative impact)The Rich Get HipperSocial entrepreneurship: applies business models to pressing social problemsExample: Toms Shoes (unintended consequences--the donations have an unpredictable impact on the local economy). Can make a harmful system more effectively harmful by the way we react.Another question: What makes these people uniquely unable to get out of their poverty?Power to Parents Haiti--adoption example: 80% of 30,000 children have one living parent (poverty orphans)Orphans, they are symptomatic of a larger belief: “These are issues that must be addressed” vs. “These are people that must be addressed”. Issues are addressed institutionally or programmatically; while people are addressed in their story, in reflexive dialogue, through questions and answers. ? ?The Apparent Project: example of moms and dads working to supportConcern about interview: don't want to be critical to those who have helped or have tried to help. There is a better way to help. Give power to the parents. There is a way to fix it.ExcludedMohammad Yunus—the Bonsai tree example. The problem is the flower pot. Poor people are the Bonsai people.??? Kibera example: businessman can't register his businessToday's poor need all the connections they can get. Those who are poor are excluded from a network of productivity and exchange.? Ghana Example—juice company, no landed property and no collateral, so he can't get a loan at a reasonable rate. Small microfinancing businesses vs. large-scale banks. The gap is with the SMEs. Growth is difficult: "the missing middle". There is not enough access.? Justice in the courts, the rule of law, is often missing.?Rules are crucial.?The problem is the absence of rules. Two-thirds of world there is no rule of law. The absence of property rights is a problem.? The poor lack justice in the courts, too. Only the rich and connected can navigate the complex laws that are in existence.?Experiment in Peru: The Shirt Factory: four sewing machines, four students and supervisor. How long did it take to make the business legal?Plausibility Structure:A matrix of ideas, images, narratives and social arrangements that makes plausible certain beliefs and attitudes.Celebrity Culture: They learn the old model, which they sell to the next generation. Celebrities have big hearts, but they create the impression that the poor are helpless people. Reinforcing--The rich person: you are not my partner; the poor person: you are better than me. Bono—The One Campaign.?TED global. Bono has changed his opinion on aid, but flip flops.Bono states that paternalism is no match for partnership; yet he comes back to say that we still need aid. Africa needs to no longer be excluded.?If we really want to help the poor, the poverty industry as we know it has to go.? The paternalism model does not work.?A better model is to form partnerships with the poor and help the poor achieve their own dreams. People need a door in. What we need is to create capability in the citizens to become creators of wealth. Having a heart for the poor isn't hard. We all have that. But having a mind for the poor, that's the challenge. Can we treat them as equals, as partners, as colleagues? Can we allow them to put the locus of responsibility for their own future on themselves and then be willing to be guided by their vision?It's time to rethink poverty. Reflection/Discussion QuestionsWhat is your personal reaction to the documentary Poverty, Inc.?2. How would you characterize the point-of-view of those who created the documentary? What is the strength of their perspective?3.Do you believe it is feasible to find a solution to the global poverty problem by eliminating foreign aid? If so, how? If not, how can foreign aid be better channeled?4. In what ways are the topics of global poverty and international development relevant to your major? How does this change the way you envision future challenges and opportunities? ................
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