Which overseas charity should we use?

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duckDecoy

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#288284 18-Jun-2021 10:50

We've been meaning to start donating to an overseas charity for a while now. A recent forum post triggered me to thinking about it again, but the specific point of the comment was that they no longer support that charity because it isn't doing great work.

Which charity organisations are good, and which should be avoided?

Ideally we are looking for something that specifically targets a single child or perhaps family

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Awrrr
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#2730588 18-Jun-2021 11:56

Doctors Without Borders (Médecins sans Frontières) used to have a pretty good reputation and I supported them until I decided to redirect resources closer to home.

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jamesrt

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#2730592 18-Jun-2021 12:09

TearFund's Child Sponsorship.

We've sponsored various children oversears for coming up to 30 years now; highly worth it.

Also, payments are made to NZ TearFund, you'll get a tax receipt, but the true work happens overseas.

We actually met a former sponsor child (from Africa) a few years ago - our sponsorship paid for her schooling; she's now married, has a professional job, and is also paying for her siblings schooling AND supporting her mother back in their tiny village in the middle of nowhere, Kenya. Our sponsorship has literally changed their entirely family AND impacted their community - pretty amazing.

mulac

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#2730593 18-Jun-2021 12:11

I'd recommend looking into Effective Altruism before you make any decisions. Made me rethink a lot of my charitable donations.
https://www.effectivealtruism.org/articles/introduction-to-effective-altruism/

Came across it via a good podcast that I'd recommend

afe66

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#2730625 18-Jun-2021 13:11

Fred Hollows for me over last 5 years.

Going blind is the disability I fear the most and thought trying to survive financially in a 3rd world country would be nesr impossibility.

So fred hollows it is.

Rikkitic

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#2730677 18-Jun-2021 14:45

jamesrt:

TearFund's Child Sponsorship.

We've sponsored various children oversears for coming up to 30 years now; highly worth it.

Also, payments are made to NZ TearFund, you'll get a tax receipt, but the true work happens overseas.

--

We actually met a former sponsor child (from Africa) a few years ago - our sponsorship paid for her schooling; she's now married, has a professional job, and is also paying for her siblings schooling AND supporting her mother back in their tiny village in the middle of nowhere, Kenya. Our sponsorship has literally changed their entirely family AND impacted their community - pretty amazing.

Good on you for walking the talk. An inspiring example. +1 many times over.

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old3eyes

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#2730710 18-Jun-2021 15:55

Why an overseas charity why not a NZ one?? We sponsored some kid in Africa for yours until he was about 16 but did not renew for another one as we felt charity begins at home. Decided to sponsor NZ Guide Dogs instead.

Regards,

Old3eyes

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afe66

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#2731099 19-Jun-2021 15:43

I sponsor overseas because having lived in third world countries, life in nz is good/easy.

I get more life changing worrh for my dollar overseas.

Rikkitic

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#2731105 19-Jun-2021 16:10

I thought about this long and hard but there is plenty of need everywhere, also in New Zealand.

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Batman

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#2731107 19-Jun-2021 16:26

world vision for me

Fred99

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#2731358 20-Jun-2021 10:44

Batman:

world vision for me

Yeah - nah.

Institutional bigotry and "charity" are polar opposites.

https://www.foxnews.com/us/world-vision-reverses-decision-to-hire-christians-in-same-sex-marriages

Geektastic

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#2731765 20-Jun-2021 21:32

The world is a big old place.

Probably millions of charities throughout the world. You probably need to narrow it down..

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MadEngineer

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#2731781 20-Jun-2021 23:47

Caritas

You're not on Atlantis anymore, Duncan Idaho.

Sockpuppets69

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#2731940 21-Jun-2021 11:08

If you can get past the whole pre-conceived notion of Rotarians being “Stale, male & pale”, The Rotary Foundation is my charity of choice. Good coverage of programs both national & international causes and proven track record– Areas of focus include Peace and conflict prevention/resolution, Disease prevention and treatment, Water and sanitation, Maternal and child health, Basic education and literacy, Economic and community development.
Added benefit (reassurance) of 4 star rating ( and constantly in top 10) of Charity Navigator
https://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=4553

You don’t need to be a member of a local Rotary club to contribute and make a difference (No funny handshakes to remember or costumes to wear…or even any questionable acts with a goat :-D )

elpenguino

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#2732003 21-Jun-2021 12:01

afe66: Fred Hollows for me over last 5 years.

Going blind is the disability I fear the most and thought trying to survive financially in a 3rd world country would be nesr impossibility.

So fred hollows it is.

Mrs Penguino is a fan of Fred Hollows (as am I) and she made a donation the other day.

She cr*PPed herself (as did I) when she realised she'd donated $2900 instead of $29.00.

The Fred Hollows people were very good at reversing the donation so the appropriate amount could be donated.

Most of the posters in this thread are just like chimpanzees on MDMA, full of feelings of bonhomie, joy, and optimism. Fred99 8/4/21

Rikkitic

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#2732010 21-Jun-2021 12:26

One of the things I look at when considering a charity is their marketing techniques. Do they employ professional fund-raisers and aggressive telephone tactics? Those get immediately crossed off the list. Do they have fancy brochures and glossy printed materials? If so, they must have money so they don't need mine. This is the one thing that put me off Fred Hollows. Their printed materials were just a bit too slick for my taste.

I also check annual reports for expenditures. If half the income goes on fund-raising, an awful lot of people must be getting paid for what should be an altruistic endeavour. Lengthy videos of emaciated children covered in flies don't do it for me either. I distrust emotive appeals.

Actions speak louder than words. The louder the words, the less I listen. I read somewhere (don't know if it is true) that the executive director of Save the Children (rather melodramatic name) is the most highly paid of all the recognised charities. I don't care if that is true, because I wouldn't support them anyway, for all kinds of other reasons.

The charities I like are modest local affairs doing what they can to make a real difference to people in need, without shouting from the rooftops or pretending to be saving the world. Those with the smallest overheads likely do the greatest good.

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