“The first time I donated money, after my bar mitzvah, it was for someone who needed a heart transplant,” said Daniel Fogel, 18, a founder of his Waltham, Mass., high school’s juggling club, which raised $2,353 for nets last year. “But I had the feeling: Am I really helping? But if you can say $10 saves a life, that makes students feel they can help a lot. And every student has $10.”
That from a Times article today, which opens with the observation that “Donating $10 to buy a mosquito net to save an African child from malaria has become a hip way to show you care, especially for teenagers.”
I actually thought he was being cynical. Or maybe ironic. But no.
Unfortunately, I can’t write a response that doesn’t make me sound like a haughty and smug know-it-all. But I’d like to think the question asks itself: aid as teen fashion accessory?
Of related interest: some questions surrounding the effectiveness of donated nets.
My pet theory: Coca Cola should sell branded nets with their soda. There is nowhere those cola trucks (and cola donkeys) can’t reach. Distribution problem solved! Should Coke be reading this blog, I eagerly await the randomized control trial.
I’m also waiting for the impact study on the African small businesspeople who sell nets for a living. Is it raising overall awareness and demand? A disaster for their business?
3 Responses
I have no problem with aid as a fashion accessory for teens. This is far better than the excessive overconsumption of cell phones and iPods….and if it makes teens feel good, all the better. In my neighborhood, teens and even younger kids, are collecting shoes, clothing, and other items to send to Africa and elsewhere. They have websites, and are on listservs, trying to get something done. Over the last few years, there has been a sea change in attitudes in the U.S. and elsewhere towards solving poverty globally–this is a hopeful thing!
Chris, yes they work. Consider this Kenya’s example
Chris,
You should ask Mead about the Solomon Islands where they have nets with Western celebrity pics on the top of the nets…