Ma Jun, China's Green Warrior

As one of China's first environmental reporters, Ma Jun spent years researching and writing about the environmental issues in his country. Eventually, however, he realized that just exposing the problems wasn't enough. “You can't stop there,” he says. “People are looking for answers.”

Hence, in 2006, Ma founded the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs (IPE), a non-profit organization that has since become China's leading green guardian. Ma, along with his nine full-time employees and a national community of volunteers, have created an online pollution database consisting of 97,000 records of factories that are violating Chinese environmental laws.

“The real barrier is not lack of technology or money,” says Ma about China's monolithic ecological problems. “It's lack of motivation. The motivation should come from regulatory enforcement, but enforcement is weak and environmental litigation is near to impossible. So there's an urgent need for extensive public participation to generate another kind of motivation.”

Compiled to increase transparency and accountability in the manufacturing industry, the IPE database lets ordinary citizens take a look at facts that would have otherwise been hidden from public view.

“What we've found is when people access this information, companies feel the public pressure,” Ma says. “We provide them opportunities to explain what went wrong and how they can fix their problems.” IPE has also started a third-party audit protocol that allows violating companies to undergo an independent audit to get their records removed from the organization's list.

Walmart was the first multinational to screen its facilities using IPE's database in 2008, prompting others to follow suit. To date, over 500 companies have signed on with IPE, including Nike, Unilever, Sony, H&M, and Coca Cola.

Last month, Ma received the Goldman Environmental Prize for his work, though it is far from done. He and his team plan to reach out to more people by making some user-friendly applications for the database. “I hope they can see that as a consumer, if they express themselves, they may make an impact and leverage their impact on the brands, and the brands can leverage their buying power on tens of thousands of polluters – and suppliers – in China.”

Worldreader Wants to Send 1 Million E-books to Africa With Your Help

Founded in 2010 by David Risher and Colin McElwee, Worldreader is a non-profit that aims to help improve the lives of people in developing nations by providing them with digital books. It all started when Risher, a book lover and former Amazon executive, volunteered at an orphanage in Ecuador and saw how the kids had lost interest in the books inside a padlocked library (the key to which had been lost).

“I thought that this was sad and in a weird way exciting,” he said.

To date, Worldreader has delivered 100,000 e-books to 1,000 students in Ghana, Kenya, and Uganda via e-readers. Moreover, the organization has launched an app for Africa's popular $50 feature phones, so anyone with a cellphone can access Worldreader's extensive selection of local and international books.

Last week, Worldreader announced its next goal, which is to send a million e-books to Sub-Saharan Africa by the end of the year. The organization has partnered with soccer team FC Barcelona and is asking people to join the movement by donating as little as $5.

TiE Boston: Bringing Entrepreneurs Together to Nurture Individual Success

As a speaker at symposiums hosted by TiE Boston, an affiliate of the global non-profit The Indus Entrepreneurs, Marco Bitran effectively leverages his knowledge towards a larger cause. The head of AI Exchange, Inc, he wields a background in engineering and financial services, and founded two successful businesses before embarking on his current pursuit. Marco Bitran joins other noted professionals to engage with an audience interested in learning and furthering their abilities.

TiE Boston offers members a host of benefits that encourage the exploration of skills and views to benefit their businesses. The non-profit regularly organizes programs that drive its participants to push themselves. In a current example, the TiE Challenge targets first-time entrepreneurs in an exciting competition to transform their plans into reality. The winning applicants receive the assistance of seasoned advisors, office space, showcase at a TiE gala, and connections to influential investors. TiE also recently presented an installment of My Story, an ongoing series in which accomplished entrepreneurs speak frankly about their path to success.

Outside of organizing these and other programs, TiE oversees a dynamic schedule of events that attract the area’s top venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, and executives. Online, members take advantage of a wealth of articles and other resources within Entrepreneur’s Corner, a platform for learning and sharing. Embodying the mission statement of “Building the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem,” TiE Boston offers the resources and connections that realize today’s brilliant ideas. Local sponsors of the group include Battery Ventures, Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, Latham & Watkins LLP, and EMC.

24 Hour Plays for Charity

On June 16, 2012, the second annual performance of The 24 Hour Plays: Los Angeles will take place at The Broad Stage in Santa Monica, California. Presented by international luxury brand Montblanc, the event will start at 10 pm on Friday, June 15th, with participating writers, directors, actors, a musical guest, and a production team meeting at the venue to brainstorm ideas. The entire creative process, from composing to rehearsing to performing six new plays in front of a live audience, will be completed in only 24 hours.

This year, The 24 Hour Plays: Los Angeles will feature stars such as Ashley Greene (Twilight), Alexander Ludwig (The Hunger Games), Jason Biggs (American Pie), Diane Neal (Law and Order: SVU), and Ramon Rodriguez (Transformers), among others.

Proceeds from the event will benefit Urban Arts Partnership, a non-profit organization that supports the social, intellectual, and artistic development of underserved public school students through arts-integrated education programs.

Super Bowl Champion Donald Driver Gives Back

Started by Green Bay Packers wide receiver Donald Driver and his wife Betina in 2001, the Donald Driver Foundation is dedicated to addressing two very serious issues in America today – homelessness and lack of education. Having experienced not having a roof over his head himself in the past, Driver has made the commitment to help eradicate homelessness, “one family at a time.”

With tackling homelessness as its main mission, the Donald Driver Foundation assists families in Wisconsin and Texas who have gone through a tough period and are working on improving their lives. The charity finds and selects its beneficiaries with the aid of shelters and counselors. In 2005, the Donald Driver Foundation took part in the Hurricane Katrina relief effort and directly helped five displaced families that had moved to Houston.

Education, though not originally part of its mission, is another important cause being supported by the Donald Driver Foundation. The organization has taken steps to reach as many underprivileged youth as possible by opening two computer labs in inner-city youth centers in Houston. Furthermore, the Donald Driver Foundation awards scholarships each year to students in Texas, Wisconsin, and Mississippi as well, and applications for 2012 are currently being accepted.

The foundation also hosts several annual events throughout the year to raise funds for its efforts in eliminating homelessness and promoting education. These include the Offense vs. Defense Softball Game, the Donald Driver Football Camp, a celebrity golf tournament, a 10-ball pool classic tournament, and An Evening of Elegance, a formal dinner where attendees participate in a charity auction.

Guided by its motto, “Strong Hands, Strong Minds, Loving Hearts,” the Donald Driver Foundation carries out its mission with “strong hands that build and strengthen instead of destroy and weaken,” “strong minds that invent new ideas to achieve these goals,” and “loving hearts that overflow with love and compassion.”

For Multi-State Lawyer, Golden Key International Honour Society Remains a Priority

Lawyer Steven Bangerter maintains a strong relationship with both academia and philanthropy. In addition to representing schools and non-profit organizations through his law firm, Bangerter Sheppard PC, he holds membership with the Golden Key International Honour Society, an invitation-only group that honors noteworthy students throughout the world.

Founded in 1977, Golden Key International Honour Society selects members based on their achievements in academics, leadership, and service and aims to afford life-long support in their goals and careers. The global network supervises 400 chapters in South Africa, the United States, India, Malaysia, The Bahamas, Canada, and Australia. Those selected sit amongst the top 15 percent of their class. Each year, Golden Key International Honour Society affords upwards of $1,000,000 in accolades, scholarships, and grants that help scholars further their reach. Outside of linking bright individuals with financial sponsorship, Golden Key provides valuable affiliations with top-ranking graduate programs, corporations in their field, and unique job listings. Tools available include the On-Demand Training Library, an opportunity for learning that features instructional videos and skill-building exercises and The Golden Key Job Board, which gives users a higher advantage in locating attractive appointments in their niche. Outside of expanding their capacities through these devices, those affiliated with the Golden Key International Honour Society benefit from numerous events in which they give back to their communities. Each chapter regularly organizes fundraisers that promote the health and happiness of various societal functions.

Golden Key oversees a host of regional and international summits that invite attendants to interact, share, and collaborate with other leaders. Member Steven Bangerter enjoys these symposiums and draws from them in the advancement of his firm. 

Education and Music for a Greener Hawaii

Co-founded by singer-songwriter Jack Johnson, the Kokua Hawaii Foundation is a non-profit organization that champions environmental education in Hawaii's schools and communities. With its various school programs, the foundation helps kids better understand and appreciate their environment so that they will grow up to be lifelong protectors of the planet.

The Kokua Hawaii Foundation believes that providing hands-on learning experiences is the best way to make a permanent impression on young minds. One of the organization's programs is 'AINA in Schools, which educates students about agriculture and nutrition. This is carried out through healthy school lunches made with local produce, agricultural field trips, nutrition education in classrooms, and garden-based learning, among other activities.

Another program managed by the Kokua Hawaii Foundation is 3R's School Recycling, which encourages students to reduce, reuse, and recycle. Via this initiative, the foundation provides participating schools with recycling bins, educational resources, and program support. It partners with local recycling centers to help raise funds and reduce waste in schools as well.

Last year, the organization launched Plastic Free Schools to teach children, parents, and faculty about the benefits of reducing plastic consumption and decrease the amount of single-use plastics on school campuses. The Kokua Hawaii Foundation encourages people to go plastic-free by using reusable bags and containers and delivering educational resources.

In addition to its school programs, the Kokua Hawaii Foundation also organizes the Kokua Festival, its major fundraiser. Eco-friendly companies, environmental groups, artists, community leaders, and more come together at the festival to show their support for environmental education in Hawaii. Artists that have performed at the Kokua Festival include Eddie Vedder, Willie Nelson and the Planetary Bandits, Ben Harper, Ziggy Marley, and Ozomatli.

Recently, co-founder Jack Johnson, along with Paula Fuga and John Cruz, completed the Hawaiian Islands Tour to further the mission of the Kokua Hawaii Foundation.

Team VRC Races for MS Charity

Founded by Mike Novitch, Eddie Monnier, and Ken Yamakoshi, Team VRC is a non-profit, under 23 (U23) cycling club that seeks to assist emerging athletes as well as raise awareness about multiple sclerosis. Racing under the name Get Crackin' – MS Society, the California-based group has made a commitment to help nurture the country's top cycling talents. Team members have competed in both local and international races, and some VRC alumni have moved on to join the US National Team or professional units.

Since 2006, Team VRC has supported its official charity, the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, by helping increase awareness about the disease and conducting fundraisers on behalf of the organization. Team VRC also backs Madisons Foundation, which educates parents of children with rare illnesses, and the Kit Karzen Foundation, which connects kids and teens with ADHD to cycling.

Currently led by club president Lawrence Novitch, Team VRC has previously accepted the 2010 USA Cycling Center of Excellence recognition.

A Teenager's Dream to End Hunger

One day in 2008, Katie Stagliano of Summerville, South Carolina received a cabbage seedling as part of the Bonnie Plants Third Grade Cabbage Program. The student who grows the best crop wins a $1,000 scholarship award. Katie planted her seedling in her family's backyard garden. Under her care, the cabbage grew... and kept growing... until it reached an astonishing weight of 40 pounds.

Katie says she treated it like all the other plants in their garden, but somehow it got so much bigger. After winning the contest, the young gardener wondered what to do with the cabbage. It was too large for her own family of four or third grade class, and would only go to waste if they attempted to eat it themselves.

Then, Katie remembered what her father always told her – don't waste food because there are people out there who aren't fortunate enough to have any. Therefore, she decided to donate her cabbage to the hungry. After consulting anti-hunger non-profit organization Fields to Families, Katie and her mom, Stacy, handed the hefty harvest over to the soup kitchen at Tricounty Family Ministries.

CEO Sue Hanshaw insisted that Katie took part in cooking and serving her donation, which she did. The cabbage helped feed over 275 people, and that experience inspired Katie to do more.

Stacy says Katie said to her, “Mommy, if one cabbage could do this, imagine what an entire garden could do.”

Hence, Katie's Krops was born. Now 13, Katie oversees six vegetable gardens in South Carolina, including one donate by her school and tended by the whole student body. Additionally, Katie's Krops operates 11 grant-funded plots in other states. So far, the organization has delivered over a ton of fresh crops to those in need. Katie plans to have at least one garden in every US state in the future.

UK ATMs to Double as Donation Stations

Starting this summer, residents of the UK will be able to make charitable donations at ATMs. Donations can be made after a transaction or separately, but the choice and number of charities will vary depending on the ATM operator. Participating in the initial phase are 12,000 machines owned by the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and independent operator Bank Machine.

According to Bank Machine, the initiative has drawn a strong response from charities, with the company having received 550 applications.

The concept is nothing new, though, as HSBC has already been doing this for seven years. In 2010, more than £300,000 were donated by HSBC's customers through its ATMs.

Bank Machine managing director Ron Delnevo says that this development “demonstrates the ability of ATMs to do more than simply deliver cash.”

More ATM operators are set to follow the lead of the aforementioned financial institutions and will soon be rolling out donation options on their machines as well.

Increasing Breast Cancer Awareness With Art

Started by Shaney Jo Darden and Mona Mukherjea-Gehrig in 2000, The Keep A Breast Foundation is dedicated to ending breast cancer by increasing awareness among young people. The non-profit organization takes an unconventional path in spreading its message, doing so through art events, educational programs, and fundraisers.

Darden and Gehrig's first campaign was a series of art exhibits that showcased unique plaster forms of the female torso that had been customized by artists. These forms were then auctioned off to raise funds for breast cancer programs around the world, an undertaking that Keep A Breast continues to carry out more than a decade later.

Since its inception, Keep A Breast has held fundraising events for other charities such as The Lavender Trust (UK), the National Breast Cancer Foundation (Australia), and Young Survival Coalition (US). Over the years, Keep A Breast's efforts have received much support from artists, celebrities, and athletes, including Dita Von Teese, Katy Perry, and Sarah Hughen.

Giving Children With Clefts a Reason to Smile

Described as “one of the most productive charities – dollar for deed – in the world” by The New York Times, Smile Train is the world's largest cleft charity. Founded by Brian Mullaney and Charles Wang in 1999, the organization provides free cleft surgery to underprivileged children in developing nations. To date, Smile Train has carried out more than 725,000 operations in 84 countries.

In poor countries, millions of children suffer from unrepaired clefts because their families cannot afford treatment. Worse, some newborn babies are killed or abandoned right after birth as their parents don't understand that a cleft is a simple birth defect that can be fixed. Most kids who live with this condition cannot speak or eat properly, are not allowed to attend school, and are teased – all of which leads to a life filled with pain and isolation.

Smile Train's sole mission is to give children with clefts a second chance at life. Aside from correcting cleft lips and cleft palates for free, Smile Train also funds ancillary treatments such as dental care, orthodontics, and speech therapy. Additionally, the charity provides free scholarships, training, and resources to local cleft surgeons and related medical professionals. Partner health care establishments are given financial support for new medical equipment and infrastructure as well.

According to its website, Smile Train has done more than any other organization in the world to raise public awareness about clefts in the United States and developing countries. The charity's public awareness campaign, which has reached more than a billion people over the past three years, is accomplished via websites, TV, radio, newspapers, and other channels. In 2008, Smile Train released Smile Pinki, a film about a poor Indian girl whose life was changed when she received free cleft surgery. Smile Pinki won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Short.