Development Seed Blog

Reading the NYT this Sunday, I was moved by column about an Ethiopian woman who overcame a serious medical condition and is helping others to do the same. Nicholas D. Kristof wrote his column about obstetric fistula, a injury that happens during childbearing and leaves women with life altering effects.  This problem typically happens to poor women in developing countries who can't afford the inexpensive surgery to treat it.
Before reading the article, I had never heard of a fistula.  So after I finished I searched online to find out more about it and to see if there were any programs working to prevent and treat them.  Then I found one of the best campaign websites I've seen, particularly in international development.
The United Nations Population Fund runs the Campaign to End Fistula. The site doesn't stop at explaining the problem and asking for donations. They advocate that readers become more educated on the topic and more active.  The campaign utilizes many of the same techniques that political online campaigns do, like writing to local papers and organizing donations locally through bake sales. And they highlight an innovative spin off project - raising money through giving circles.  This, along with the well written content, really made me want to get involved, and I know how. I think a lot of organizations that have specific projects like this could benefit from a campaign website, and this is one example of how to do it well.