Saturday, September 19, 2009

Poverty Revisited

In my last post I left you with a question. What can we do to eradicate poverty in the third world? I think about this a lot. To be honest, I don't know. And I'm not sure anyone knows.

However, my thinking almost always circles back to the same solution. Education. Erasing poverty begins with quality education. Education gives people the tools they need to succeed in every area of life. If we want children to live better lives, we need to teach them how to do so. Some situations seem impossible to change, but education is bigger than circumstances. Education is bigger than crushing poverty.

Humanitarian aid, government programs, economic policy, international relief funds, and other oft cited "ways to reduce poverty" are all chipping away at the problem, but only education can internalize the results. Education empowers.

Do you agree? How do we solve the problem of poverty in third world nations? Is education the answer?

And however you answer, what does it imply for those of us who want to be part of the solution?

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