Animals Asia Foundation

Animals Asia Foundation is a Hong Kong-based government-registered animal welfare charity founded by Jill Robinson MBE in 1998. It also has charitable status in UK, USA, Germany and Australia with donations being tax-deductible in these countries. It has additional offices in China.

The mission of the Animals Asia Foundation is to improve the lives of all animals in Asia, end cruelty and restore respect for animals Asia-wide. The Animals Asia Foundation, managed by professionals, resident in Asia, is committed to forging constructive solutions to the seemingly insurmountable problems which the animals face in today’s changing environment. Implementation is through a dynamic three-pronged approach:

Investigation: Using the latest veterinary techniques, animal care and conservation science, our network of field officers target countries in Asia, identifying local needs and finding solutions for the animals.

Negotiation: Cultivating sensitive communication and cooperation with governments to open the door to visionary win-win solutions.

Education: Creating inspired grass roots programmes within the community, which spark far reaching change in people’s attitudes, thus motivating them to co-exist peacefully with animals.

AAF Projects:

• China Bear Rescue
• Friends….or Food? Dog and Cat Eating
• Doctor Dog
• Professor Paws
• Project Asia

Official Animals Asia Foundation Website

Basel Action Network

BAN is the world’s only organization focused on confronting the global environmental injustice and economic inefficiency of toxic trade (toxic wastes, products and technologies) and its devastating impacts. Working at the nexus of human rights and environment, we confront the issues of environmental justice at a macro level, preventing disproportionate and unsustainable dumping of the world’s toxic waste and pollution on our global village’s poorest residents. At the same time we actively promote sustainable and just solutions to our consumption and waste crises — banning waste trade, while promoting green, toxic free and democratic design of consumer products.

BAN is named for the Basel Convention, a multilateral environmental agreement, which in 1994 passed a landmark decision to reverse this deadly trend and ban the export of hazardous waste for any reason from rich to poorer countries. The Basel Ban Amendment is a clear unabashed trade barrier erected for the environment, and for human rights, supported by developing countries in recognition of the present disparate economic playing fields that, if exploited, will shift pollution problems to those least able to deal with them, rather than solve them at their source. Part of BAN’s mission is to protect this groundbreaking, precedent-setting decision from attack by industry and free-trade zealots that now see the Ban Amendment as a threat to globalization-as-usual.

BAN Photo Gallery: See photos of workers in Guiyu, China and Lagos, Africa processing hazardous electronic waste, such as computers, monitors, and TV’s, which are often imported from the United States and other rich countries. Though not pictured, this is happening in other poor countries as well, such as India. Unfortunately much of the imported electronic equipment cannot be repaired and is instead dumped and often burned near rivers or canals or dumped into them. Electronics are full of hundreds of toxic and often carcinogenic chemicals and even more are created when they are burned. The workers work without any gloves, eye, or respiratory protection often with barefoot children nearby or even helping. The “recycling” or processing of e-waste in this manner is very harmful to both health and the environment. The groundwater in Guiyu is completely contaminated to the point where fresh water is trucked in constantly for drinking purposes.

BAN has produced two groundbreaking films. The first film was “Exporting Harm: The Hi-Tech Trashing of Asia”. The second film is The Digital Dump: Exporting Re-Use and Abuse to Africa. This is the trailer only. BAN was also featured in National Geographic Magazine in January 2008: High-Tech Trash: Will your discarded TV end up in a ditch in Ghana?

When recycling your electronics please make sure that the recycler recycles responsibly and does not ship overseas! And let others know about this issue. Here is a link from BAN to find a responsible e-cycler. Also you may want to find out how your country stands on international toxics.

Official Basel Action Network Website

Vitamin Angels

Vitamin Angels is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing vital nutrition in the form of supplements, to developing countries, communities and individuals in need. Vitamin Angels has set its sights on the issue of childhood blindness, with plans to eliminate childhood blindness by the year 2020 through the systematic distribution of vitamin A to at-risk children. Just $1 provides sufficient funding to preserve the sight of one child. In addition, Vitamin Angels sponsors programs to supply multivitamins to at-risk children and vital supplements to expecting mothers. Vitamin Angels programs and initiatives are funded through the support of generous monetary and in-kind donations from companies and individuals seeking to making a difference.

Vitamin A is critical for vision, bone growth and normal bodily development, and plays an active role in supporting a child’s immune system. Today, half of the children who go blind from Vitamin A Deficiency die each year from opportunistic infections and otherwise non-life-threatening illnesses. Vitamin Angels’ global initiative will focus specifically on providing basic vitamin A nutritional supplements to the tens of millions of children, living in extreme poverty, that are at risk of going blind or dying due to Vitamin A deficiency.

Vitamin Angels programs and initiatives are funded through the support of generous monetary and in-kind donations from companies and individuals seeking to making a difference. Your donation, of any amount large or small, will go a long way towards improving the health of our recipients. We guarantee that it will go right into one of our programs: Operation 20/20, Maternal Health, Children’s Nutrition Programs or Disaster Relief, where it is most needed.

The cost to prevent a single child from going blind due to Vitamin A deficiency for one year is .25 cents. Over the course of four years, when children are most vulnerable, our total expense is $1. This covers the cost of two high dose vitamin A and anti-parasitic supplements given each year to a child from the ages of 2 to 5. Last year Vitamin Angels donated more than 100 million supplements to people in need in 40 countries.

Official Vitamin Angels Website

Helen Keller International

Founded in 1915, Helen Keller International (HKI) is among the oldest international nonprofit organizations devoted to fighting and treating preventable blindness and malnutrition. HKI is headquartered in New York City, and has programs in 22 countries around the world. HKI builds local capacity by establishing sustainable programs, and provides scientific and technical assistance and data to governments and international, regional, national and local organizations around the world. HKI programs combat malnutrition, cataract, trachoma, onchocerciasis (river blindness) and refractive error. The goal of all HKI programs is to reduce suffering of those without access to needed health or vision care and ultimately, to help lift people from poverty.

Official Helen Keller International Website

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), with more than 1.8 million members and supporters, is the largest animal rights organization in the world. PETA focuses its attention on the four areas in which the largest numbers of animals suffer the most intensely for the longest periods of time: on factory farms, in laboratories, in the clothing trade, and in the entertainment industry. We also work on a variety of other issues, including the cruel killing of beavers, birds and other ‘pests,’ and the abuse of backyard dogs. PETA works through public education, cruelty investigations, research, animal rescue, legislation, special events, celebrity involvement, and protest campaigns.

Official People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals Website