With nearly 3 billion people around the world living on less than $2 a day, and almost 1.4 billion living on less than $1.25 a day, the scale of extreme global poverty is daunting and harrowing. Eugene Cho and his wife Minhee knew the statistics by heart. As a pastor in Seattle, WA, Eugene had preached, taught and blogged about them. But, he says, “It came to the point where we were doing lots of talking and we wanted to take deeper steps.”

After traveling to impoverished areas around the world and “witnessing some courageous examples of people trying to uplift people,” the Chos decided to commit their entire 2009 salary to the cause of fighting global poverty. They were left asking themselves one question: “How do we mobilize others?” They sought encourage their family, friends, and the rest of the world in their efforts by starting One Day’s Wages, a grassroots movement dedicated to fighting extreme global poverty.

One day’s worth of wages is approximately .4 percent of annual income. The amount may seem trivial, but it can make a world of difference. Celebrities garner so much press and attention for their philanthropic efforts, and the scale of the issue is so massive, that it can be easy to lose sight of how powerful an impact average individuals can have. One Day’s Wages was formed to communicate this message.

“The stats are so overwhelming,” Eugene says. “What can one person do in the face of such things? Here’s what one person can do.” It is a straightforward, yet powerful concept. One Day’s Wages is using the relationship-building power of social media to communicate its story, as well as the stories of men and women worldwide who are doing great work to reduce poverty. One unique aspect of One Day’s Wages is that it is “an advocate of the smaller organizations,” Eugene says. “Money is not the only metric. We want to ensure that projects are sustainable and healthy.”

By building partnerships with smaller NGOs, churches, religious organizations, and schools, One Day’s Wages promotes organizations that have healthy relationships with local people. With a problem on the scale of global poverty, small organizations are vitally important. Ultimately, One Day’s Wages hopes to empower every individual to join the fight by showing that their donations can make a substantial impact. The manner in which all funds are used is traced and publicly available, so donors can know where their money is going. Donors can also choose to nominate an organization to receive funds, so long as the organization is aligned with the Millennium Development Goals set forth by the UN.

“The power of many,” as Eugene puts it, is an invaluable resource that One Day’s Wages is just beginning to tap into two months since its inception. So far it has raised more than $100,000 with a goal of reaching $1 million in the next 12 to 18 months. As illustrated by stories like the Harvard professor who asked that her engagement gifts be given to One Day’s Wages, and the young Seattle woman who sold her motorcycle to donate money, there is an incredible capacity for individuals to be creative in their efforts to make change.

One Day’s Wages

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 14th, 2010 at 8:50 am and is filed under Organizations. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.