Ocean State Libraries

The poorest people in the world do not just survive--they thrive lavishly. They enjoy rich family relationships, build vibrant communities and exude deep faith. They have much to teach us about life and inspire us with their ingenuity, persistence, generosity and self-reliance. Mark Lutz has visited families living in cardboard huts, hiked dusty paths to isolated African villages, and tiptoed across putrid open sewers on makeshift bridges. UnPoverty...

Explains how global poverty began with military conquest, slavery, and colonization that resulted in the seizure of land, minerals, and forced labor. Today's financial crisis is a direct consequence of these unchallenged policies that have lasted centuries. Features expert insights from Nobel Prize winners, acclaimed authors, university professors, government ministers, and the leaders of social movements. Includes interviews, photo galleries, and...

"The Great Surge tells the remarkable story of this unprecedented economic, social, and political transformation. It shows how the end of the Cold War, the development of new technologies, globalization, courageous local leadership, and in some cases, good fortune, have combined to dramatically improve the fate of hundreds of millions of people in poor countries around the world. Most importantly, The Great Surge reveals how we can fight the changing...

"'I see multiple colonial governors,' says Ghanaian software entrepreneur Herman Chinery-Hesse of the international development establishment in Africa. 'We are held captive by the donor community.' The West has positioned itself as the protagonist of development, giving rise to a vast multi-billion dollar poverty industry - the business of doing good has never been better. Yet, the results have been mixed, in some cases even catastrophic, and leaders...