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November 1, 2012
by Randal Mason
#GivingTuesday

To paraphrase Joni Mitchell, we’ve looked at giving from both sides now. IREX gives as part of our programming, providing over $11 million dollars in grants this year alone to local institutions around the world and awarding nearly 1,000 fellowships annually to both American and international participants. In addition, each year IREX staff chooses a US-based nonprofit to receive the proceeds from our holiday charity drive, the total amount of which IREX matches.

As one of the 400 partner organizations, IREX looks forward to participating in the first #GivingTuesday on November 27.  From our experiences with both giving and receiving, we share five tips for donors big and small:

October 11, 2012
by Michelle Weisse

Nyaradzo Mashayamombe, Executive Director of Tag a Life International Trust (TaLI), is no stranger to the struggles girls around the world face: from early marriages, to limited access to education, to societal pressures and constraints on their futures. She is a fierce advocate for girls’ safety and empowerment. 

October 11, 2012
by Myahriban Karyagdyyeva (Mehri)
Tech Age Girls Bridging the Gender Digital Divide

Seven years ago, Anastasiya Buchok of Uzbekistan took the first step to learn about technology and participated in IREX’s Tech Age Girls (TAG) program. Today, thanks to that initial spark, she has a successful career working for a major software company.

While not all TAG alumni go into IT careers, all of them gain better skills and access to technology for everyday use at school and work. This project helps to close a “gender digital divide” that is sometimes attributed to girls’ reports of less positive attitudes and self-efficacy toward ICT than boys.

September 19, 2012

Are you currently engaged in community development work?  Do you have the potential to be a leader and change-maker in your community?  Are you looking for a career development opportunity to increase your professional skills, experience and networks?  If you answered yes to the above questions then you may be an excellent candidate for this year’s Community Solutions Program.

September 17, 2012
Community Solutions

IREX is seeking qualified experts to serve on the 2013-2014 Community Solutions Program selection committee. The Community Solutions Program is a professional development program for the best and brightest global community leaders working to make positive, lasting change in their local communities.

If you are interested in participating in this year’s selection committee for the Community Solutions Program, please e-mail communitysolutions@irex.org by October 1, 2012

September 5, 2012
by Maryam Jillani
Project Smile participants

On a cold winter morning, 300 female students at a low-income school in Rawalpindi gathered in the school courtyard for an unexpected surprise. Volunteers from the nearby Fatima Jinnah Women University had brought them a mountain of books, gifts and educational prizes they had gathered as part of an ambitious book drive that received donations from over 300 university students.

August 29, 2012
by Ari Katz
Girl reading in Burkina Faso

When you think of a library, what comes to mind? Row after row of books? The Dewey Decimal System? Kids but no adults? Those stereotypes are outdated. Around the world, libraries are on the front lines of innovative development.

August 10, 2012

There is much truth to the notion that genuine, effective development solutions come from within developing countries. The proof is evident in the 58 leaders from 28 countries of this year’s Community Solutions Program. Meet Moses Sanga, of Uganda, recently featured in a New York Times article about his organic fuel venture, Eco-Fuel Africa. Sanga, once an accountant, is now an innovator in alternative cooking fuels.

July 2, 2012
Ricky Anywar and Brookings Fellow Anne Kumau

There is optimism in African development despite often-gloomy headlines. That was the central message delivered recently by a panel of African experts, donors and policymakers at “Beyond Kony 2012: Championing African Leaders.” They discussed the important role Africans play in building stronger institutions in their own diverse countries.

June 29, 2012
IREX Photo Contest Grand Prize Winner, “Sustainable Development” by Arup Haldar

IREX is pleased to announce the winners of its Make a Better World Photo Contest. The contest received 2,400 submissions from over 120 countries in an effort to best capture IREX’s tagline, “Make a Better World.” A panel of expert judges selected winning photos based on both artistic merit and their demonstration of one or more of IREX’s seven focus areas; IREX’s friends and followers on social media also helped select the “People’s Choice” winner.