Looking for the Perfect Holiday Gift?

An Ipsos-Reid survey last fall showed that 76% of Canadians would rather receive a “meaningful gift that would help someone else” than a traditional gift like “a pair of socks or a sweater.” Yet only about 15% of Canadians had received a gift of this sort.
 
Give your friends and family what they really want — give
a Gift That Matters.

CHF in the News

In light of Ethiopia’s recent call for aid, it is important to remember the progress that is taking place in the country. In this feature CBC article, Brian Stewart highlights some of CHF’s successes in Ethiopia.

Our Emissions, Their Problem?

Next month marks a watershed moment for global environment issues. During this year’s United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 15), to be held December 7 – 18 in Copenhagen, 192 countries will discuss and decide the world’s approach to protecting the environment.
 
The outcome of this conference will have an enormous impact on the global environment, especially in developing countries where climate change is already affecting small-scale farmers and their livelihoods.
 
While the wealthier countries have contributed two thirds of the world’s emissions, it is the developing world that feels its effects the most. Perhaps the most noticeable impact is the increase of severe droughts and floods that many regions are experiencing. This is the result of global warming’s disruption of the hydrologic cycle, diminishing land productivity and negatively affecting food security and incomes for rural households.

It is predicted that rising global temperatures will also facilitate the spread of diseases such as malaria, dengue fever and cholera.
 
The Global Humanitarian Forum estimates that each year there are 150,000 deaths caused by the effects of climate change. Of these deaths, 90% are individuals in developing countries.
 
CHF is currently helping rural communities mitigate the effects of climate change. For example, developing simple irrigation systems helps ensure food security in times of drought. Gifts of tree seedlings and planting tools through CHF’s Gifts that Matter campaign help prevent the soil erosion that has been caused by deforestation and desertification.
 
The global environment’s current situation is fragile. COP 15 provides world leaders with the opportunity to work together towards a healthier, environmentally sustainable future.
 
Watch and learn about COP 15
 
Visit COP 15’s YouTube channel
 

FACT: CHF’s Partner in Zimbabwe

Family AIDS Caring Trust (FACT) was created in 1987 as a response to the growing AIDS pandemic in Africa. It works with local and international organizations, such as CHF, to provide holistic care and AIDS prevention to communities affected by HIV/AIDS.
 
CHF began working with FACT in 2004 in Zimbabwe, one of the countries hardest hit by HIV/AIDS with infection rates as high as 40%. The resulting loss of labour has had a devastating impact on families’ ability to produce food crops, care for livestock and generate income.
 
To counteract the effects that HIV/AIDS has had on rural communities, CHF and FACT are helping households rebuild sustainable livelihoods. One of the project initiatives is to provide families caring for AIDS orphans with chickens, livestock and guinea fowl, a new source of nutrition and income.
 
“Working through local organizations makes projects much more successful and much more sustainable,” explains Matt Stenson, Program Officer for Africa. “Local partners such as FACT know the ins-and-outs of Zimbabwe. They know the people, they know the systems — so in that way it’s more effective than it otherwise might be.”
 
FACT is currently supporting CHF’s Mozambique project through its affiliate organization, Kubatsirana.