The honorees of NetAid's inaugural Global Action Awards hail from a range of backgrounds, but they hold in common an unstoppable dedication and a sincere enthusiasm for helping the world's poor. Through their actions, they have shown exemplary leadership and been role models for their peers and adults. Social Edge and NetAid are proud to introduce to you the first Global Action Awards honorees:

Clotilde A. Dedecker

Clotilde A. Dedecker was a busy sophomore at the all-girls’ Nardin Academy in Buffalo, NY when an International Women’s Day presentation grabbed her attention. The leader of an Afghan women’s group recounted how the Taliban regime had deprived girls of an education, and how many children in her home country still did not have the resources to go to school. Clotilde resolved to help girls in Afghanistan get the education opportunities they deserve.

In September 2002, Clotilde went to local all-girls’ schools with a proposal to build and adopt a school for girls in Afghanistan. She recruited six of the schools to establish the “Western New York Girls Schools’ Coalition: Afghanistan Project.” Under her leadership, the coalition has created an array of educational and fundraising initiatives to reach students, their parents and educators.

Thanks to school drives, an annual dance event, awareness-raising campaigns, as well as presentations in religious and global studies classes, Clotilde and her coalition have raised over $18,000. In partnership with a local partner organization, the coalition has used the funds to help construct the Zarghona Middle School in Kandahar, one of the poorest and most dangerous parts of the country.

In describing the coalition’s work, Clotilde says: “It’s about girls helping girls so that we can, as up-and-coming leaders for the 21st century, create a sustainable, equitable global community.” Thanks to her efforts, hundreds of Kandahar girls now have the educational opportunities they had been denied. Equally important, young women in her own community have learned valuable lessons about Islam, Middle Eastern cultures and tolerance. Clotilde is now laying the groundwork for the coalition’s future by recruiting younger students to continue the work after she graduates this June.

Alex Hill

In the summer of 2001, a new and unlikely resident was introduced to the small town of Grand Blanc, Michigan. Over the course of a year, a life-size cardboard and foam figure of an East African priest attended a string of reunions, birthday parties, poker games, first communions, and even shared a laugh with on-duty police officers. The cardboard personality was the brainchild of Alex Hill, a dedicated Boy Scout who helped the Ugandan village of the real-life priest Father Joseph Birungi obtain an ambulance and life-saving medical supplies.

Alex, 17, conceived the idea to raise donations for the community’s medical needs after he met and befriended Father Birungi, who was visiting the Hills’ church in Michigan from his home parish of Bukuumi in Uganda. Alex’s initiative, dubbed “S.C.O.U.T.- B.A.N.A.N.A.,” rallied his home town of Grand Blanc, including his fellow students, parishioners, family and Boy Scouts, to host the cardboard cut-outs of Fr. Joseph. Each host group received a suitcase of informational materials about medical needs in Uganda and a yard sign reading “I hosted Father Joseph!” In a little over one year, Alex raised over $67,000 for the people of Bukuumi parish, and on June 24, 2002, he arrived in Uganda to personally deliver a different suitcase, this one with a check that would buy a much-needed ambulance.

Since his extraordinary visit, Alex continues to raise awareness about and support for the urgent health care needs in Uganda. His efforts have helped purchase an ultrasound machine–one of only a handful in the country. Now a graduating high school senior, Alex plans to pursue a career in international relations, and is firmly committed to helping people around the world have access to the everyday resources that many of us take for granted.

Chi Nguyen

It all started in October 1998, when 10-year-old Chi Nguyen held a sale of her personal collection of Beanie Babies and homemade almond toffee to help children in her parents’ home country of Viet Nam. Expecting to raise just $200 from her Bay Area neighbors, she ended the day with more than five times that amount.

The following summer, she made her first visit to Viet Nam and the rural village of Giai Xuan, where her donation helped build and furnish a library. She also traveled to nearby Can Tho, where she met with former street children living in an orphanage, and was touched by their resilience and strength. Chi returned home determined to do more. Emphasizing the power of education to transform lives, she focused on helping children learn and go to school.

Capitalizing on her talent as a pianist and the musical skills of her older sister and friends, Chi organized full-scale concerts that garnered support and attention, and raised funds to help the street children of Can Tho. Working with the organization Viet Nam Health Education and Literature Projects (VNHELP), her efforts have raised $31,000 to provide clothing, meals, literacy classes and basic medical needs for more than 100 orphans.

At the age of 16, Chi is already a veteran of promoting children’s rights, but her drive to do more to help children in Viet Nam won’t let her rest. “I now have a dream of organizing a very large benefit gala event to raise (more money) for Viet Nam next year,” she explains. “I know that each of these children deserves an opportunity for a better life, and I firmly believe that education will broaden their possibilities.”

Maura Welch

Since 1999, 16-year-old Maura Welch has been raising awareness about child labor and the obstacles that keep millions of children from going to school. Maura’s work began when she attended the United Nations Student Conference on Human Rights. Shortly thereafter, she started a local chapter of Kids Can Free the Children, an international network of young people dedicated to helping children living in poor areas of the world. Working closely with others her age, she helped raise funds to build schools in Africa and Latin America.

In 2000, Maura journeyed to Mexico to meet with children as young as twelve working in sweatshops 14 hours a day, six days a week. Returning to New York, she served as the conduit for these children’s stories. After she told her peers about Consuela, a young girl she met who dreamed of attending college, they were inspired to raise money to send Consuela to school. She is today in her third year of college.

This is just one story among many which depict Maura’s unwavering commitment to inspiring young people to help children around the world, particularly child laborers. Her convictions have taken her to over 100 schools, churches, conferences and festivals, where she has spread the word about children’s rights, and in many cases, fanned the first flames of activism in others. She has championed the issue across the U.S., including Washington, D.C. where she joined Senator Hilary Clinton in calling for access to education for all children. Her commitment to helping children has also brought her to Peru and Ecuador, and today, she is working to raise awareness about child soldiers in Kenya.

Maura is a committed activist who believes it is never too early for young people to get involved in global issues. “I think as youth we have a very powerful voice and can change the world!” she says.

Michael Chertok - Jan 5, 2005 2:13 pm (#1 Total: 10)


Welcome Maura, Clotilde, Chi and Alex,

Congratulations on your award...and thanks for making time to participate in this conversation.

I thought it would be helpful if you might start off by giving any practical advice you have to other young people who might have ideas about how they can change the world. Any thoughts on that?

You might also want to use this forum as an opportunity to share any new ideas, plans or dreams you have...

Chi Nguyen - Jan 5, 2005 6:28 pm (#2 Total: 10)


Hello,

Thank you, Mr. Chertok, for the welcome. I'm Chi Nguyen, sixteen, and a senior in high school.

It's exciting to be here among other social entrepreneurs and young people who are interested in "changing the world." I've never actually considered myself a social entrepreneur. In fact, I wasn't even aware of the term until a month or two ago!

I got involved in my work because I felt I absolutely had to. I was pretty young when I started, and so all I understood then was that the world was unfair and unbalanced, and I had to try to help right it somehow. I've continued working to help children in Vietnam for the past seven years because these children, many of whom are orphans, still need support from someone (and it might as well be me!) and it's always extremely rewarding to be able to help someone else. I do love being useful.

In terms of advice for "changing the world" (I use quotations because the phrase has become so overused), the possibilities are infinite. I suggest discovering something you're really interested in or really good at and using that to help others.

For example, if I were a terrific basketball player (which I'm not), I might want to mentor younger kids who also play basketball. I would spend time with them, maybe helping to train them both in basketball and in their studies.

Or, if I loved drama/public speaking (which I do), I might get a bunch of my friends together to perform skits or monologues or a play to raise money for some cause I believe in. Or I might spread the word and inform people about some serious issues that many people ignore today (and there are millions, such as child labor, HIV/AIDS, global sustainability, etc). Maura can probably tell you a lot more about how to inform people--she's done it hundreds of times!

Anyway, I'm excited to be here this week. Feel free to ask me any questions you might have.

Cheers, Chi

Alex Hill - Jan 6, 2005 4:36 pm (#3 Total: 10)


Hello,

Thank you Mr. Chertok for allowing me this opportunity. My name is Alex Hill, I am 17 and Senior in Grand Blanc, Michigan. I am very excited about being able to work to change the world for the better and helping others to improve their standard of living.

There are three important things (to me) to keep in mind if you feel motivated and inspired about something and you want to get involved.

1. Get out and Go. Don't wait, get started as soon as possible.

2. First YOU have to believe in yourself before you can get others to believe in you and your cause.

3. You have to believe that anyone can make a difference in the world. Everyone has the potential, but not everyone chooses to use it.

Be a leader, take the first step, remember there is always someone behind you that needs to be led. Likewise you can make a difference, but you will need the support of other people, so create a network of helpers and supporters.

When I started my project I wrote down all the people I could contact for help. I then contacted my church parish, school, family, service organizations, veterans groups, etc. Basically anyone or group that has a large amount of members to spread the word quicker.

Then I gave a speech and presentation to ask for support and to see if those people had any ideas. Some people did have other ideas such as: walk-a-thons, resturant benefit, or other small scale project. When I visited and gave presentations I took along my life-size cutout of a priest, Fr. Joseph, whose community benefitted from my project. I had asked people to "host" Fr. Joe at their home, business, classroom or any other special event. I also used the internet. Some organizations have posting sites, like this one, and it helps to contact even more people.

These ideas must have worked because I came in touch with thousands of people from 8 differnet states.

Again thank you for this opportunity and feel free to contact me. My website is www.scoutbanana.catholicweb.com

Alex Hill -Challenge yourself everyday, if you don't then it is a wasted day "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed it is the only thing that ever has." -Margaret Meade

Maura Welch - Jan 6, 2005 8:17 pm (#4 Total: 10)


First off, I would just like to thank Mr. Chertok.

My name is Maura Welch. I am 16 years old and a sophomore in high school. I live in Syracuse, NY. My introduction is kind of boring so some more interesting information is I play lacrosse, basketball, and soccer, and I am going to live in India for my junior year of high school through the Rotary Exchange Program.

I guess I really began to realize that I could make a difference in the world 6 years ago when I was in fifth grade. I attended a conference on human rights for students at the United Nations in New York City. I met over 100 kids from around the country who were already taking action to improve the world in which they were living in. My eyes were opened and I realized that I had to take action.

When I came back to Syracuse, I went to my school and church and spoke to them about the injustices occurring in the world, focusing on the issue of child labor. From there, we formed a group dedicated to fighting child labor and promoting education for all children. A support group is definitely key in changing the world. Whenever you feel like giving up you can always fall back on your support group for help and encouragement.

I have also learned that we can change the world through our everyday actions. Smiling at all times, even when you are having a bad day could brighten someone’s day, (which could also help to make your day better). Give hugs instead of handshakes or pick up some trash from the ground.

Through our small actions and our large-scale actions, we can change the world, no matter how old we are.

Live it up!

Peace and love, Maura

“I do not smile because I am happy, I am happy because I smile.”

“When you arise in the morning, think of what a privilege it is to be alive: to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love.”

Michael Chertok - Jan 7, 2005 5:03 pm (#5 Total: 10)


Hey Maura, Alex and Chi...and Clotilde too,

First of all, please call me Michael.

One of the things that's most impressive about what you've all done is how much money you were able to raise for the global causes you believe in. While it's been great to see so many people give for tsunami relief recently, it's usually really hard to raise money for international causes.

I liked Alex's idea of bringing the cardboard cutout of Fr. Joseph to events, because it brought a tangible reminder of the people and needs that are out there.

Are there other things you have done in asking for support that have been really effective? How do you psych yourself up to ask someone for money? What things have you talked about with people that have opened up their hearts to give?

Clotilde Dedecker - Jan 8, 2005 10:21 am (#6 Total: 10)


Hi all!! First of all, Happy, happy New Year! I apologize for taking so long to submit my first message, but our Internet has been acting rather bizarrely this past week. A bit about myself- My name is Clotilde Dedecker, and I am a senior at Nardin Academy, an all girls high school in Buffalo, NY. I come from a multicultural family of Cuban and German decent. My main passions concern international public policy, particularly as it pertains to women, fashion design, and world music. I have no definite plans for the future except that next year I will be starting my freshman year of college at Harvard College.

Now a bit about my efforts on behalf of Afghan girls.....For the past three years I have been working with an absolutely outstanding group of female peers through the Western New York Girls Schools' Coalition: Afghanistan Project, an organization I founded and direct, in order to raise funds on behalf of the education of Afghan girls. The coalition has also over these past three years dedicated itself to raising awareness amongst the Western New York community concerning the plight of Afghan girls as well as on the true beauty of Islam and Afghan culture. The members of tehthealition are comprised of students at five of the all-girls schools in the Western New York area.

Our efforts have had tremendous success since we began our work. Over the past three years we have raised over $20,000.00 and hosted dozens of awareness campaigns across Western New York. Some of our funds were to build the Zarghona Middle School, an all-girls middle school in Kandahar, one of the most conservative cities in Afghanistan. To this day we continue to host monthly meetings and are continuing our fund raising efforts at full-force. Our fund raising efforts have included all-county dances, jeans days, bottle drives, car washes, and countless donation drives.

What exactly makes this project so meaningful? Well in essence, it was founded as a reaction to my disappointment with many of our nation's policy makers (I won't name any names). While indeed after 9/11, a fight against terrorism is a noble proposition, I failed to see how using force as the primary combatant would help target the minds and hearts of Afghan citizens in order to gradually destroy terrorism, a disease of the mind, at least partially.

With this in mind, I firmly felt and still feel that education needed to be implemented as a part of America's efforts in Afghanistan in order to make our war on terror truly successful. In the most basic sense, the coalition uses the education of women, who had been previously denied any semblance of an education, as a tool of foreign policy to combat terrorism and to empower the future generation of women in Afghanistan with the tools they need to succeed.

In response to Mr. Chertok's question on how young people can change the world...I have one response...in absolutely any way they desire. There are only two things you need: 1 - dedication 2 - the ability to be innovative (which I believe everyone, being an individual, has) I guess if I were to look at the long-term dreams of my life - I would have to say it would primarily be to somehow combine my main passions into what will probably be a rather unique career, to champion education as a primary tool of foreign policy, and, well, to laugh and smile as much as possible. I greatly look forward to continuing this dialogue. Hope everyone has a great day! Best, Clotilde

Alex Hill - Jan 9, 2005 9:09 pm (#7 Total: 10)


Hello Again Everyone,

Other ways that were very effective in raising funds were as I stated before the walk-a-thons, really anyway that you can reach a large network of people. I have never thought about how I psych myself up, but I guess I do. I think of all the people I saw in pictures or those I met when I traveled to Africa and I remember it's all about them and getting them what they need. I use them to inspire me, inspiration is very powerful. You need inspiration and a cause that you are passionate about to ask for donations.

The things that I talk about to open peoples hearts and eyes is to talk about the lives of the people in Uganda and I talk about my experience in Uganda. I talk about eating, sleeping and living with those people and I talk about the people who I met that I know are no longer there.

- Alex Hill "An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind." - Ghandi

Chi Nguyen - Jan 10, 2005 12:38 am (#8 Total: 10)


I have to say, everyone I talked to in my hometown (San Ramon, CA) agreed that they loved Alex's idea of the cardboard cutout. Creativity always wins!

When I was really little (about 10), it was extremely useful to play up on my age when I asked people for money. Most people found it extraordinary that young kids like me were even thinking about someone else, and so my age inherently made me more memorable than the 298792384 other organizations/people asking them for money.

Two key things: 1. Tell your story. (Be passionate!) 2. Just ask for the support.

To elaborate: 1. People can easily sense passion and they are often drawn to it. Tell your story with the passion you feel and people will respond. If you have some, tell stories of the people you're helping. Explain their need, and how you have already fulfilled the needs of certain people who used to be in the same situation. Show pictures of one or two people you're helping and attach names, ages, their life stories. Let potential donors know what their money will do for the people you're helping.

2. I've found that people will often donate if they're asked to. Many potential donors are floating out there, just waiting to be asked. They'll listen to your story with the feeling that they want to contribute, but may not be kicked into action until you tell them exactly how they can support you.

Also remember that sometimes monetary donations aren't the only thing people can contribute. People in your community, your state, your world can also help spread the word or simply donate their time and talents. Some may find they don't have the means to help out financially, but they might be a talented public speaker who can help share your story or a website designer who can help you with your project website or a good writer who can help you sell your cause.

Chi www.worldinterchange.net

P.S. Apologies for the late reply. My internet is so moody sometimes and weaves in and out of connection.

The young do not know enough to be prudent, and therefore they attempt the impossible, and achieve it, generation after generation. -- Pearl S. Buck

Vaserius - Jan 11, 2005 3:27 pm (#9 Total: 10)


Greetings!

Thank you for taking the time to inspire us!

Before we end this event, I wanted to pose a final question: What are your next steps? How do you plan on continuing your work?

Once again, thank you! Everyone here at Social Edge wishes you the best in all your endeavors.

- Vaz

Chi Nguyen - Jan 11, 2005 11:48 pm (#10 Total: 10)


Hello everyone,

I'm currently planning my Sixth Annual Children's Benefit Concert, which is set for March 6, 2005.

I'd love to expand my projects some time in the next year or so and plan a benefit gala event, but right now I'm seeking some guidance from professionals who know how to plan these sorts of things.

I will also continue speaking to Rotary, Kiwanis, and Lions clubs about my work and about the great need in other countries outside of the US.

And naturally, I'll continue making and selling my lovely homemade almond toffee which is ever-so-irresistible to all of my toffee-loving customers!

Best of luck to you all in your future endeavors.

Thanks for having me. It's been a pleasure!

Cheers, Chi

Action may not always bring happiness; but there is no happiness without action. -- Benjamin Disraeli