American Express Members Project... Vote for LiNK or Five & Alive! Both!

A couple great causes I know of are participating in the American Express Members Project where the winning project will be awarded $1.5 million. Second and third place projects will win $500,000 and $300,000 respectively, and then two finalists will win $100,000 each. Very cool effort by American Express.

The first project to consider is Liberty House by LiNK (Liberty in North Korea):

Liberty House: a refugee resettlement center specifically for North Korean refugees seeking asylum in the U.S. In conjunction with the federal government, full financial support, basic necessities, and core services – such as case management, vocational/ educational training, job placement, counseling, mentorship, cultural orientation, and recreational/ youth activities – will be provided. The goal of Liberty House is to acculturate these unique refugees and help them become self-sufficient.

North Korea is home to some of today’s worst human rights violations. As such, up to 300,000 have fled to China risking torture/execution if captured and repatriated. A fraction escape and seek resettlement in nations willing to provide asylum. Once resettled, refugees face issues like discrimination, acclimating to a new culture/language, getting jobs, and starting new lives alone. Due to the unique background of these refugees, it’s critical there is a program to address their specific needs. (read more and vote here)


Mi Sun: A North Korean Refugee


Adrian Hong, LiNK's Co-founder and Executive Director, is a friend and asked me to be an advisor to their incredible nonprofit organization earlier this year.

The second project to consider is Five & Alive. It was founded by Kate Roberts, who I met during the Socrates Society Seminars of the Aspen Institute. Very cool and amazing person. Kate founded the Youth AIDS program and then founded Five & Alive. Both are initiatives under PSI. More on their project:

Five & Alive reaches children five and under to prevent and treat malaria, water-borne illness, pneumonia and malnutrition. Five & Alive, a program of Population Services International (PSI), provides children and their families with the education, products, services and care needed to improve health and save lives in more than 30 countries.

Every year, an estimated two million children under the age of five die from diarrhea. Children die in such shockingly high numbers because of loss of fluids during severe diarrhea. Approximately 95% of these deaths could be prevented. There is a solution that is simple to use, cost effective and could save millions of lives. That solution is oral rehydration salts (ORS) combined with zinc.

Five & Alive has such a treatment in one complete package called a Diarrhea Treatment Kit. This kit costs just 37¢ and is easy to distribute. This Five & Alive project can be eligible for the top Members Project prize of $1.5 million but we can’t do it alone - we need your help. (read more and vote here)


Reducing diarrhea risk for Cambodian children


The first round of VOTING ENDS AUGUST 31ST. Vote for one of these great causes! Vote for both!!

A Child Will Always Be A Child To A Parent

I haven't blogged in a long while since I've been occupied with preparations for my trip to the U.S. and a couple projects I've been working on. My colleagues and I will probably end our efforts to raise an investment fund in Asia since the market has kicked our ass and potential investors are still concerned about the situation in North Korea. We are looking at one more possible source in the U.S. and I am beginning to get ready to move back to the U.S. if things don't pan out.

During this time, I've also had the added pressure of my parents telling me what I should do and how I should live my life. Some of it is beneficial and insightful, but some of it is simply not applicable to my life or my interests. Even though I'm over 30 yrs. old, it's interesting how my parents still talk treat me as their little child. Since I've come to realize this over the past few years, I also recognize this same behavior in other families if not all. My cousins that are in their 40s still get treated or spoken to as if they are ten year old children. I guess many parents never lose that natural instinct and attitude, or they don't want to lose it.

This is not really so insightful for those thirty years or older, but this is more to vent my frustrations at this approach and perspective that my parents have. I guess it really depends upon the depth and width of a parent's treatment towards their adult-child that creates frustration and tension between the parties.

The level of motherly nagging is a key factor in my stress and frustration level. Most, if not all, mothers nag, but I truly believe my mother has brought it to it's purest form. She does not treat it as an art or has multiple methods. It's raw verbal spitfire and extreme repetition. Constant repetition. And to give her credit she does add some wit into the mix.

Last year, after weeks of daily nagging about how I should move back to the U.S. and work in public service again, I just lost it one morning.

"Dear, are you going to move to the U.S. soon?"

"Mom, to make you happy, I'm going to move to Pakistan!"

"Pakistan?! Why Pakistan? Why don't you move to Afghanistan and become a freedom fighter like Johnathan whatever! And you'll have your name on CNN. It will say 'Bernard Moon, freedom fighter' on the screen!"

"No. It's going to say 'Mrs. Moon's son'!"

Then I walked out for my morning meeting.