Center for Pragmatic Buddhism

Awareness. Acceptance. Action.

GAIA Initiative
Global Awareness, Intelligence and Action

Regions of the World

Northern America

According to a major study at the University of Pennsylvania in 2001, around 73,000 US children are forced by family members or friends to engage in sex acts in exchange for money, food, or drugs. The same report indicated that about 293,000 American youth are at risk of becoming victims of sexual exploitation.

An October 2006 San Francisco Gate article stated that San Francisco is a major US hub for illicit sex trade activity. The CIA estimates between 14,500 and 17,500 people (mostly women and children) are brought into the US each year for the sex trade, and around 600,000 to 800,000 people are trafficked globally each year.

Latin America

A large majority of the poorest in Latin America live in rural areas of the country. Rural Poverty Portal a website powered by International Fund for Agricultural Development Organization reported in March 2007 that in Brazil some estimates show 50% of the population are living considerably under $2.00 per person per day and almost 30 million of rural Brazilians live in conditions of poverty. In Honduras about 86% of the extremely poor, live in rural areas.

In June 30, 2008 an article posted on catholic.org reported the current rising of food makes a difference between eating once a day, every other day, and not eating at all. To survive some resort by making patties out of mud and cooking oil, and for some people like the elderly, little children and the sick is a matter of life and death.

Europe

coming soon...

Africa

According to Cozay.com an internet organization that reports on crisis in Africa, stated that 800 million people a day go to bed hungry, 300 million are kids that suffer from malnutrition and micronutrient deficiency. The same article also reported recently that an international relief agency encountered 18,000 people on the brink of starvation in a village of West Africa where they saw fresh graves along a hillside that belong to children who had recently died of starvation.

Asia

In December 2007, The World Health Organization reported that 77.5% of India’s population lives below the poverty line and most are laborers and street vendors. According to the Voluntary Health Association of India, 2000 people sell their organ on a yearly basis to pay off their debts. These unfortunate donors are often exploited by unscrupulous brokers and doctors and are only paid 25% of what they were promised.

An article published by VOA.com in February 2008, stated that Indian authorities investigating an illegal transplant ring discover at least 500 poor migrants had their kidney remove by a group of doctors performing illegal transplant over the last decade and were sold to wealthy clients.

Oceania

coming soon...


Did You Know:
According to the US State Department, the child sex trade industry has become the third most lucrative illicit business in the world, after arms and drug trafficking.

Facts from around the globe according to Library.thinkquest.org: In countries outside the US, well over 500 million people are living in what the World Bank has called “absolute poverty” In the U.S. 1 out of every 8 children under the age of 12 goes to bed hungry every night. Every 3.6 seconds someone dies of hunger.

One of many problems that contribute to poverty in other countries is the distribution of the world’s food. A large amount of food produce in the world is done by economically more developed countries such as the USA. This means that countries that are facing poverty can not compete with other richer countries that purchase products from farmers that charge high prices. You could do your part to help alleviate poverty by encouraging national governments and state department to regulate food distribution by subsidizing the purchase made from less economically countries.