Upcoming trips and income inequality

A WORD FROM OUR FOUNDER

Burkina Faso

A great thing about working in Burkina Faso, since we’ve been there before, is the familiarity with the landscape. Normally some of your brain is working towards getting the lay of the land, trying to figure out what the local customs are (in some places you can’t put your feet up with the bottom facing people, in other places you can’t refer to a certain period of time because it was marked by a violent revolution), so it’s always nice to be someplace where your brain power can be focused on building relationships.

Malawi

Malawi is unique in that it’s below the equator. So one of the things I’m most excited about is, if I drain a sink, will the water go down the sink counter-clockwise? I’ve been below the equator once, in Mozambique, and I forgot to do that. So, this time, it will be one of the first things I do when I get to the hotel room.

Wealth inequality

It’s amazing that 1% of the world’s population has such an immense percentage of global worth. We’re approaching levels similar to the era just before the Great Depression. So there is something about the lower class in the poorest countries that is out of balance right now and we get a chance to participate--not by taking from the rich and giving to the poor but by innovating and collaborating with the impoverished to improve their lives. So it’s really a great joy that we can participate in applying technology for those who have the least.

Matt York, Founder and Executive Director of illuminAid