My name is Shawn and on September 14 2006, I found my answer on how to make the world a be
My name is Shawn and on September 14 2006, I found my answer on how to make the world a better place. It's because of that answer that I am now in Bangladesh.
On September 14th, 2006, the University of Notre Dame (of which I was a student studying for my Masters in Sociology) canceled all of its classes so that students could learn about an important issue: the problem of global health and third world poverty. One of the people who came to speak to us was Dr. Jeffrey Sachs (author of the book "The End of Poverty").
Dr. Jeffrey Sachs believes that extreme poverty can be eliminated in our lifetime. The power of this message inspired me to put school on hold so that I could do my part and hopefully inspire others along the way. I have come to Bangladesh to try and help the poorest of the poor. I am sharing this experience with the world through the power of YouTube.
I know that my little "uncultured" project is a drop in the bucket. But hopefully, the more people that be inspired to believe we can end poverty in our lifetime - the closer we can get to that goal.
This is just a montage of what I did in my first five months. Please check the other videos for more of what I have been able to do.
Aid That I Gave In This Video Include:
- 1 Long-Lasting Insecticide Treated Mosquito Net Donated by Vestergaard-Frandsen
- 2 Cases of Bottled Water to Residents of a Flood Affected Region
- A nutritional meal (including beef as a source of protein) for a large group of poor school children
- 1 windup flashlight given to a young student in the rural village who cannot afford electricity
- 50 Locally Made and Locally Purchased Mosquito Nets
I plan on making more videos explaining each aid operation in more detail in the future.
Don't worry - I'm not here to ask for your money.
Although, I am asking you to consider rating the video and subscribing :-)
My Project's Blog: http://uncultured.com
My Project's Photos: http://flickr.com/photos/uncultured/
More YouTube Videos: http://youtube.com/UnculturedProject
The entire Notre Dame 2006 forum is available as a free download from:
http://forum2006.nd.edu
These short excerpts have been used with written permission from the University of Notre Dame's Office of Public Affairs and Communication.
Music used is from royalty free tracks.
Additional Details for The Davos Question:
- My Hometown and Country: Toronto, Canada
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Added: 9 months ago
Views: 25,306
Poor people aren't lazy. Especially in the third world, they are some of the hardest worki
Poor people aren't lazy. Especially in the third world, they are some of the hardest working people. But even working hard doesn't mean you can break out of the cycle of poverty.
Recently, I had the opportunity to meet this really inspiring 15 year old. He supports his mother on about $2 a day by running a recycling business in Dhaka, Bangladesh. He trades used bottles for vegetables and then sells the bottles at a profit.
As inspiring as this is - $2 a day isn't enough to break the cycle of poverty. It's barely enough to avoid falling back into extreme poverty. And, even though I am here in Bangladesh, I am still unsure what I can do to make a lasting difference in the lives of the poorest of the poor. Advice and inspiration from the YouTube community is definitely welcome.
Thanks for subscribing - those who subscribed up until now, watch until the end for a shoutout.
Outro music is "How Far" by Jamison Young from the album "Shifting Sands of a Blue Car". Download it for free at:
http://www.jamyoung.net/music.html
More information on "The Uncultured Project" check out,
My blog: http://uncultured.com
My flickr page: http://flickr.com/photos/uncultured/
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Added: 8 months ago
Views: 28,968
The poor aren't lazy.
In this video I meet 30 kids who were forced to choose between ei
The poor aren't lazy.
In this video I meet 30 kids who were forced to choose between either putting food on the table or getting an education. They are able to study part-time (for two hours each day) because local community members in this rural village pooled their money to form an informal school. The school teacher teaches these children English, Bengali, and Math all for a salary of $15 a month.
Part Two is Available Here:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=83edvBwXJKI
For more information about what I'm doing in Bangladesh, check out my blog at:
http://uncultured.com
In the video, one of the kids said he sells "paan". Here is some info on what that is:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paan
By request, I am including a link for more information on Bangladesh:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangladesh
Bangladesh is a small country with over 150 million people (half the population of the USA) in South Asia. It is not Mexico (!?).
About My Reaction to the Various Names: This video isn't scripted - those were my genuine reactions at the time. I still have problems pronouncing the various Muslim names in this country. The regional accent made it even harder to understand the names. One of the reasons I asked "You're Muslim and your name is Johnny?" is because Western/European names are usually common with the Christian community that lives in an adjacent town.
The music in this video (in order used) are:
"How Far" - Jamison Young
"Love" - The Umbrellas
"Goodbye to Spring" - Josh Woodward
"Thinking of You" - The Umbrellas
Music by Jamison Young and Josh Woodward are used under a Creative Commons license. You can download their music for free at:
Jamison Young:
http://jamyoung.net/music.html
Josh Woodward:
http://www.joshwoodward.com/music/
Music by The Umbrellas is copyright of The Militia Group. Used with written permission.
This video is free for you to use and share under a Creative Commons license (BY-NC-SA).
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Added: 4 months ago
Views: 470,981
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Before you can help - you have to listen.
Using a small portion of my money I had saved
Before you can help - you have to listen.
Using a small portion of my money I had saved up (as part of my "Xbox 360 Challenge") I help the 30 part-time rural school kids seen in my previous video. If you haven't seen that video already, check it out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9IS-3Z5EC4
To find out more about my project in Bangladesh, check out my blog:
http://uncultured.com
I'm not a charity or NGO, but if you want to donate to my work here, check out:
http://uncultured.com/donations
If you want to support a registered (tax-deductible) charity instead, check out:
http://uncultured.com/charities
To find out what I mean by my "Xbox 360 Challenge" take a look at this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12YBRoBvwUc
The music in this video (in order used) are:
"How Far" - Jamison Young
"Cien Volando - Instrumental" - Josh Woodward
Music by Jamison Young and Josh Woodward are used under a Creative Commons license. You can download their music for free at:
Jamison Young:
http://jamyoung.net/music.html
Josh Woodward:
http://www.joshwoodward.com/music/
This video uses a clip from the 2006 Notre Dame Forum. This short excerpt has been used with written permission from the University of Notre Dame's Office of Public Affairs and Communication.
This video is free for you to use and share under a Creative Commons license (BY-NC-SA).
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Added: 3 months ago
Views: 11,850
Here's an idea: let's talk about global poverty in a way that doesn't make us feel guilty
Here's an idea: let's talk about global poverty in a way that doesn't make us feel guilty for living in the developed world or makes us feel obligated to give money.
In this video I give thanks to all those who have subscribed to this channel (over 1,600!) and talk about how my approach to talking about important issues like global poverty is different from the YouTube channels run by big name NGOs and charities.
For more on my work check my blog:
http://uncultured.com
This video includes short excerpts of television commercials used by Canadian charities. Inclusion of these short clips are used under fair use.
This video is shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA) license.
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Added: 3 months ago
Views: 3,979
A year's worth of textbooks for a student in Grade Nine in rural Bangladesh cost about $13
A year's worth of textbooks for a student in Grade Nine in rural Bangladesh cost about $13 US Dollars. But many high school students drop out because they can't afford to buy them.
In this short video, I meet a Grade Nine student struggling to buy his textbooks for the year. I buy the books for him and - to show his thanks - he sings a song.
Here is some information in Bangladesh Rickshaw Drivers:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rickshaw#Bangladesh
I dedicate this video to all those watching my videos from High Schools back home.
The list was compiled based on those who joined the Uncultured Project Facebook Group at:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=18807049968
For More Information on My Work in Bangladesh, check out my Blog at:
http://uncultured.com
The music in this video (in order used) are:
"How Far" - Jamison Young
Music by Jamison Young is used under a Creative Commons license. You can download his music for free at:
http://jamyoung.net/music.html
I've recently setup a PayPal account because so many people have been asking if they can send me donations. More information here:
http://uncultured.com/donations
Donations to me aren't tax deductible as I am not a charity or NGO. If you'd like to donate to a registered charity, check out:
http://uncultured.com/charities
This video is shared under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA license.
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Added: 3 months ago
Views: 60,551
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Did you know that it would only take ONE DAY'S worth of Pentagon funding to provide protec
Did you know that it would only take ONE DAY'S worth of Pentagon funding to provide protection against malaria for every man, woman, and child in Africa for five years? Don't take my word for it - economist Dr. Jeffrey Sachs (author of "The End of Poverty") did the math.
April 25th is World Malaria Day. To help commemorate this day, I decided to share some of the work I have been doing here in Bangladesh that have focused on fighting malaria and other mosquito-borne diseases. Some of this might be a bit familiar (from previous videos) and the rest is either previously unseen or new footage.
For more information on my work in Bangladesh, check out my blog:
http://uncultured.com
For information on Vestergaard-Frandsen and their long-lasting, tear-resistant, dirt-resistant, insecticide treated mosquito net, check out:
http://www.permanet.com
http://www.vestergaard-frandsen.com
My sincerest thanks goes to the staff at Vestergaard-Frandsen (especially their Swiss and Indian branches) for making this possible.
Full Disclosure: Although Vestergaard-Frandsen donated several items for me to distribute to the needy as part of my project, I was neither paid nor required to endorse their projects. I recommend their products without reservation and encourage others to look for charities that distribute products by Vestergaard-Frandsen (such as PermaNet).
For a list of a few charities that do distribute such products, check out this link:
http://uncultured.com/charities
Earth graphics were rendered using Google Earth Pro (trial version) and screen capture software. Why is it that the only version of Google Earth that exports video cost $400? They don't even offer student and/or non-profit discounts. :-(
The music used in this video is "Sad Robot" (non-vocal) by Pornophonique. Pornophonique shares their music under the Creative Commons and is available for a free download here:
http://www.pornophonique.de/music.php
This video uses a excerpts from Dr. Jeffrey Sachs's speech at the 2006 Notre Dame Forum. This short excerpt has been used with written permission from the University of Notre Dame's Office of Public Affairs and Communication.
This video is licensed under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA) license.
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Added: 2 months ago
Views: 7,489
In this episode, I talk about starting to accept donations, paying it forward, and what it
In this episode, I talk about starting to accept donations, paying it forward, and what it's like to talk to high school students at the American International School in Dhaka about The Uncultured Project.
For more information on my work in Bangladesh, check out my blog:
http://uncultured.com
After talking it over with a lot of friends, I've decided to start accepting donations for my work here. For more information as to how I will spend that money, or if you want to make a donation, check out:
http://uncultured.com/donations
Please don't feel obligated to make a donation.
I've been trying to change the conversation about global poverty with my work on YouTube. Let's start by using YouTube in a new way. if anyone who has made a donation - please consider posting a video response. Include your PayPal Confirmation Number in the Sidebar and maybe write (in the sidebar) and/or talk (in the video) a little bit about why you decided to donate to me instead of a charity or NGO. I'll try my best to watch as many as I can even though the internet connection in Bangladesh is worse than dialup.
If you prefer to donate to an established charity (which is also tax-deductible), check out:
http://uncultured.com/charities
Full Disclosure: Since uploading this video, I received an email from one of the teachers at this school who points out that the cost of tuition is around $20,000 - not $26,000. This is the base cost and does not include additional costs such as extra curricular activities. Either way, I still couldn't afford to go to this place...
This video uses a special instrumental version of "Never Get Out" by Brad Sucks. You can download the full song (licensed under Creative Commons) at:
http://www.bradsucks.net
Thanks to Brad for a custom version of this song.
This video is licensed under the Creative Commons (BY-NC-SA).
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Added: 2 months ago
Views: 6,537
This is what I mean when I say "YouTube with a Purpose".
It's thanks to YouTube that J
This is what I mean when I say "YouTube with a Purpose".
It's thanks to YouTube that John Green (in Indianapolis) and Hank Green (in Missoula, Montana) were able to connect to me here in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Using a donation from Hank, I was able to help a needy family in a remote (and military controlled) region of Bangladesh called the Chittagong Hill-Tracts. The journey was quite long and this video helps the highlight how remote this region is.
If this is the first time you've seen one of my videos, here are the basics: I'm not an NGO, charity, or someone looking to become a YouTube celebrity. This is just my way of inspiring others, paying it forward, and changing the conversation about global poverty. You can learn more about my work at my website:
http://uncultured.com
I can't thank Hank and John enough for all the support they've lent. Their channel, of course, is:
http://youtube.com/vlogbrothers
To keep this video short, I had to cut a lot out. Here are is the playlist of deleted scenes for this video:
http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=A1F0B49B1177351C
The internet connection here in Bangladesh is horrible for doing stuff like uploading videos to YouTube. It takes a lot of hard work and I couldn't do it without a lot of help from friends. This video was uploaded with the help of my friend Alan. Check his channel out here:
http://youtube.com/fallofautumndistro
For a list of recommended charities, check out:
http://uncultured.com/charities
If you'd like to make a donation to me, please read this first:
http://uncultured.com/donations
Thanks to Stefan D and Brad Sucks for lending their music to this video.
Stefan D
http://www.furaxe.qc.ca/stefand/
Brad Sucks
http://www.bradsucks.net
This video is licensed under the Creative Commons (BY-SA-NC).
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Added: 1 month ago
Views: 20,795
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