Microfinance – Steps Towards A Sustainable Future

Colleges and universities are a life stage the majority of teens and twenty-something’s in the U.S. go through. A recent study by TRU, a Chicago-based market-research firm, reports 80% of 18-19 year olds and 67% of 20-23 year olds are currently enrolled in a college or university. Given the time, knowledge, and influence higher education institutions provide teens and young adults, it makes them well-positioned to also teach this cohort about sustainable development. DePaul, a leading private university, recognizes this fact with its practices of sustainable development. DePaul’s efforts to educate on sustainability have ranged from environmental initiatives such as providing students a way to refill their water bottles, eliminating their use of plastic bottles, to building LEED certified green-buildings on its campuses.

An area that is of particular interest to me is DePaul’s investment in community development. According to the Green Report Card 2010, DePaul receives a ‘C’ for efforts focused on developing communities, which is below the average of “B+”. Once examining further, I found a particular community development initiative at DePaul in microfinance. This is a smaller partnership and was not mentioned in the Green Report Card of 2010, but should be taken into consideration as one of DePaul’s stronger leaps towards created a sustainable future.

In a partnership with Fonkoze, and The Haitian Hometown Associates Resource Group, DePaul has become a partner in a micro-loan program in Haiti called “Zafen”. “Zafen” is creole for “It’s our business” and allows ways for Haitian citizens to develop their communities through investment in their workforce and economy. One of DePaul’s role’s is marketing the organization, and an easy way to read more is through DePaul’s social-network sites. Here, those interested in “Zafen” can read up-to-date news on the organization. They are also able to read about DePaul’s efforts to promote “Zafen’s” mission, and can see photos of events being hosted, or even on-the-ground operations. Up top, you’ll see a photo of DePaul Day for Haiti which was hosted in April earlier this year (2010). The events proceeds were donated to Fonkoze, which would support “Zafen’s” projects.

DePaul’s involvement with Fonkoze and “Zafen” are a great way to promote sustainable development. Microlending is a means to promote community development, and in Haiti, invest in their workforce and economy. Helping the Haitian community sustain their businesses is a step toward securing a promising future. Being a higher education institution, it is important that DePaul not only continue to support such microfinance efforts, but also educate their students about their efforts. An initiative such as “Zafen” will not only inspire many students to become involved directly with the Haitian community, but it also educates the student body about workforce development, community development, developing nations aid, micro credit and micro finance, etc. DePaul’s partnership and involvement with Fonkoze and “Zafen” is also something that seems to differentiate them from neighboring Chicago-area colleges and universities. I wasn’t able to find much information on microfinance partnerships other universities have, and for many students and community members, it’s something to be proud of DePaul about. Please view a recent news release which covers DePaul's involvement with "Zafen". You can also check out these videos of efforts being taken in Haiti.

DePaul’s efforts in community development internationally make them a key player in creating steps to a sustainable and brighter future, especially for the Haitian community.

Posted by Nidhi Singhal
Photo Credit: DePaul Facebook Account - Woman Singing on DePaul Day for Haiti

Photo Credit: Zafen logo

DePaul’s Egan Urban Center Building Sustainable Communities through Local Partnerships

DePaul University is working through the John J. Egan Urban Center to partner with the local community to address critical problems within the surrounding urban area. The center was founded in 1994 through the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation and The Chicago Community Trust. The goal of the center according to their website is to “channel community and economic development assistance to minority and underprivileged neighborhoods in a direct and concentrated way drawing upon faculty, student, and neighborhood resources.” The center is named after Father Egan for his work in bringing focus to people in distressed circumstances and communities on the west side of the greater Chicago area.

The center has also taken an active role in the Black-Latino Working Groups Initiative. The Egan Center’s Office of Neighborhood and Community Partnerships helps to foster a dialogue between Black and Latino leaders in the Humboldt Park, Chicago Lawn, and North South Lawndale for collaborative community projects. The overall goal is to develop a joint undertaking to benefit these communities through development projects, affordable housing, food co-ops, and credit unions. The center participated in 2006 Conference of Urban Ministries’ panel discussion on realizing the use of church assets to identify commonalities. They also are partnering with the Center for Latino Research to produce five events focused on the existing dialogue that has been built through efforts of the Black-Latino working Group Initiative.Photo Sources:http://euc.depaul.edu/About/index.html

One of the programs that the Egan Urban Center worked on was the West Humboldt Park Community Technology Centers (WHPCTC) through the West Humboldt Park Development Project. This project worked on the issue of “digital divide” which is a common topic in the sustainable development community. The Egan Center was awarded a 1.4 million dollar US Department of Education grant for the WHPCTC. The project was able to expand the already existing technology to create opportunities for the community to share information and expand computer access. The program also offers training in computer applications, systems support, and maintenance to expand the job opportunities for those in the community to provide longer term assistance. By training those in the community the WHPCTC establishes a program that can be sustained by those it has trained who can then continue to train others.

The Egan Center has taken their community involvement to education through a certificate program. This program shares the Egan Center’s approach to “creating sustainable institutional community partnerships by working in close collaboration with community leaders and residents to design and implement programs and initiatives,” according to the Egan Urban Center’s website. It is a program for those working in the communities to gain valuable skills in sustainability and effective responses will understanding the responsibilities to the local community. The Egan Center through the certificate program hopes to develop community leaders who can mobilize assets and resources, develop meaningful relationships with important actors, while also understanding their full potential and position within the community.

If you would like to volunteer with the Egan Center Click Here

Through the Egan Center, DePaul has a great asset in moving forward with sustainable community projects. By fostering important community relationships and providing critical need through neighborhood involvement the Egan Center is creating long term community partnerships. It is also educating those within the community to pay it forward.

Posted by Kristina Vitali

Image: Egan Center

Sustainable Servant Leaders

While DePaul University takes great pride in its role as an urban university, providing a vital educational and social service to Chicago, more can and should be done by DePaul in creating a future cadre of servant leaders. One way that DePaul can be at the forefront of servant leadership is through creating a service requirement for all undergraduate and graduate students before they may earn their degree.

Currently DePaul undergraduates majoring in liberal studies are required to engage in at least four credit hours of “experiential learning,” whereby they combine classroom knowledge with a learning experience that exists outside the classroom. There are courses in many departments that fit this requirement. Some are internships or externships, while others are a hybrid between a classroom-based learning environment and selected learning experiences outside the classroom. While this is a good start, more must be done to create DePaul students that are tomorrow’s future servant leaders. The way to do this is to establish a servant leadership program, required of all undergraduates and graduate students before they may earn their appropriate degree. All students must become engaged members of the Chicago community to ensure Chicago remains a sustainable community. Requiring a service component to graduation takes experiential learning a step further, as students will no longer have the opportunity to be passive observers when completing an experience outside the classroom. There are other colleges and universities that currently lead the way in requiring a service component as a core component for obtaining an undergraduate degree. Students at Tulane University in New Orleans must fulfill one service requirement before they may graduate. Students at Wittenberg University in Ohio must complete a semester-long service requirement to obtain their university degree. At Wittenberg students must register for the service as course credit, meet with a university staff member to outline their service and determine whether their service plans meet university standards, and then discuss their service results in reflections with other students, faculty and staff. Other universities, such as the University of Cincinnati, provide financial assistance scholarships with stipulations that require those scholarship holders to complete some form of public service.

DePaul should be at the forefront of creating service leaders. By requiring students to complete some form of public service, DePaul will create an engaged university community, attune to the needs of those not only in Chicago but throughout the U.S. and the world. DePaul’s requirement might also attract those students that desire an academic community looking to create a sustainable future. Sustainability is not something merely ecological. Servant leaders can help build ecologically sustainable communities, or help correct social injustices and poverty issues to allow others to participate in a sustainable future. Creating a servant leadership requirement of all DePaul students would help the university be true to its mission and values. From the Office of Mission and Values : DePaul University emphasizes the development of a full range of human capabilities and appreciation of higher education as a means to engage cultural, social, religious, and ethical values in service to others. What better way for DePaul to help build the foundations for a sustainable community and sustainable future, while remaining true to the core values the university seeks to fulfill.

For information on public service requirements at other universities visit these links: http://www4.wittenberg.edu/witt_services/community_service/community_service_100.html

http://tulane.edu/cps/about/graduation-requirement.cfm

For information on the U.S. government’s call to public service visit:

http://www.serve.gov/

For more on DePaul's Mission and Values visit: http://mission.depaul.edu/Pages/default.aspx

Posted by Marshall Houserman

Photo Credit - www.serve.gov

Connecting Students and Chicago – DePaul’s Community Involvement

As a large, urban university DePaul University must consider the social and communal relationship that it has to Chicago and Chicago’s neighborhoods. In so doing, DePaul can have a significant role in building Chicago’s sustainable future. At this time DePaul is moving forward in building these partnerships. The Irwin W. Steans Center for Community-Based Service Learning and Community Service Studies is working hard to foster these relationships and putting DePaul at the forefront of helping students understand their relationship to Chicago.

Founded in 2001 through a generous donation from Chicago banker Harrison Steans, the Steans Center’s mission is to develop mutually beneficial relationships with community-based organizations in order to develop a sense of social agency in DePaul students, faculty, staff and alumni. Using the ABCD model of community development, the Steans Center is committed to building a community where all community members have a voice, working to empower Chicago’s neighborhoods and foster a more satisfying community experience for all community members. Through this model the Steans Center not only focuses on community needs but seeks active participation from the community.

The Steans Center believes that if all community members are welcome to participate, a community is fostered and made more sustainable. For a greater understanding of the ABCD model for community development visit http://www.proveandimprove.org/new/tools/ABCD.php. The Steans Center provides a vital link between nonprofit and government organizations in Chicago and DePaul University. Among these organizations are ABC Youth Center, an after-school tutoring program on Chicago’s West Side, and Off the Streets, a youth development organization working to get Chicago youth off the streets.

The Steans Center website lists over 500 community and government organizations that collaborate with the Steans Center and DePaul University. Through the Steans Center website community-based organizations can apply to collaborate with DePaul and the extensive resources accessible through the DePaul University community. In fostering these relationships, the Steans Center organizes service learning classes for DePaul students, including a “Discover Chicago” course that combines seven weeks of course learning with a week-long immersion on a chosen topic outside the classroom and out in Chicago. Furthermore, the Steans Center organizes and facilitates student internships with numerous community organizations in Chicago. This vital link brings DePaul students face-to-face with Chicago’s problems, making them active participants in the communities they live in.

The Steans Center is creating tomorrow’s service leaders. As DePaul students graduate, there is a hope that because of the great work occurring through the Steans Center, DePaul alumni will lead the way toward creating a just and sustainable future for Chicago’s citizens.

For more on the Steans Center at DePaul University visit their website: http://steans.depaul.edu/

To watch a short video on DePaul’s vision to take students outside the classroom and into Chicago watch the video here: http://www.depaul.edu/multimedia/ExtendClassroomLearning.asp

You can also follow the Stean Center’s activities and development on facebook and twitter: http://twitter.com/DePaulSteans
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Chicago-IL/DePaul-University-Steans-Center

Posted by Marshall Houserman
Photo credit: Steans Center

Engagement of the Mind and Body

DePaul possesses an active and passionate student body and faculty; one that is focused on service and revolves around Vincentian values. DePaul has taken the initiative and engaged students on several levels to promote sustainable living practices. An area in which students have been consistently engaged is in the realm of campus recreation. In addition to making the actual campus recreation facilities greener, DePaul promotes healthy living with the goal of sustainability.

There are two campus recreation programs that really stand out in terms of sustainable practices. The first of these is the Green Steps walking program. This program, a part of the Wellness Center, encourages DePaul faculty to record their steps every day with a free pedometer. This program, currently only available to DePaul staff and faculty, encourages healthy living practices. It also builds a team spirit and connects the faculty on a higher level. The results of this program are multi-fold. On one level, the faculty is encouraged to use alternative forms of transportation. To reach their step goal every day, the simply must walk more. Because they are walking more they are encouraged to use a more sustainable mode of transportation. The program also engages the faculty to use healthy living practices in their own lives. This example is a very good one for the student body. If the faculty and staff are engaging their own health through sustainable practices, it can inspire the student body to do the same. It also shows DePaul’s commitment to engaging both the students and the faculty.

A program in Campus Recreation that engages students while promoting sustainability is the Spring Break Ozarks Volunteer Vacation. Because this program is with Campus Recreation, it engages students to practice healthy living at its core. Students travel to the Ozark Mountains, and help to construct the Buffalo National River Trail. This trip aligns with Vincentian values of service, and helps to make a sustainable trail that will be enjoyed for generations. Students have the chance to not only marvel at the beauty of the Ozark Mountains, but they have the chance to practice sustainable living. They are not only exercising their body, but they are also engaging their mind and making the world around them a better place.

DePaul, through the Wellness Center, also has a Bicycling Initiative. The website states, “Our valued mission is to enhance the quality of life within the DePaul community. The bicycling initiative is an extension to this mission, meant to create a balance between nature and humankind. Changing your transportation mode(s) is understandably difficult. But making small changes to your transportation routine can lead to a more active and healthy lifestyle that promotes the wellness of DePaul’s surrounding community and environment.” By promoting bicycling, and other healthy modes of transportation, DePaul is not only engaging its students and faculty to live healthy lives, but also to live sustainable lives.

While these three programs are just three examples of DePaul’s sustainable practices, they are three very important examples of what the university is doing to engage its students to live healthy, sustainable lives.

Posted by: Timothy Scheel

Photo courtesy of : DePaul University