Significantly reducing poverty worldwide requires concerted, sustained, and coordinated action by agents from all sectors of society. Intergovernmental organizations, non-governmental organizations, governments, the private sector, and local communities all have a significant role to play.  Below is a brief outline of some of these organizations and their activities. There are tens of thousands of organizations involved in addressing poverty.  The organizations below represent a small sample.

Intergovernmental Organizations (IGOs): IGOs are organizations whose membership consists of multiple sovereign states.  These organizations are able to confront poverty on the macro-level by addressing issues involving international cooperation, governance, food and medical access, trade policies, conflict mediation, foreign-debt policy, and sustainability. Below are links to some IGOs and their respective programs.

• United Nations: United Nations Development Program; United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization: The Special Program for Food Security

• The World Bank: PovertyNet: provides an introduction to key issues as well as in-depth information on poverty measurement, monitoring, analysis, and on poverty reduction strategies for researchers and practitioners.

• The International Monetary Fund (IMF): The IMF is an international organization of 184 member countries. It was established to promote international monetary cooperation, exchange stability, and orderly exchange arrangements; to foster economic growth and high levels of employment; and to provide temporary financial assistance to countries to help ease balance of payments adjustment. The IMF confronts poverty through its Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility.

Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs): NGOs are private or nonprofit organizations. Many international NGOs play vital roles in the fight against poverty through political advocacy, resource distribution, and research.  The fact that many NGOs do not hold political allegiance to various governments make them invaluable when it comes to transcending disputes between different countries and attaining access to volatile regions.   

There are countless NGOs involved with the issue of poverty.  Some NGOs focus their resources on addressing the effects of poverty, such as hunger and sickness, while others attempt to address the root-causes of poverty by seeking to develop methods of sustainable development and economic empowerment. Below are links to some NGOs dedicated to confronting poverty.

• Oxfam International:  Oxfam International is a confederation of 13 organizations working together with over 3,000 partners in more than 100 countries to find lasting solutions to poverty, suffering and injustice.

• CARE: A leading international humanitarian organization fighting global poverty, CARE places a special focus on working alongside and empowering poor women.

• Grameen Bank: A pioneer in micro-finance and credit, the Grameen Bank offers the extension of small loans to entrepreneurs too poor to qualify for traditional bank loans. It has proven to be an effective and popular measure in the ongoing struggle against poverty.

• FINCA International: Like the Grameen Bank, FINCA International focuses on battling poverty through providing financial services to the world's lowest-income entrepreneurs so they can create jobs, build assets and improve their standard of living.

• United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB): Like humanitarian organizations and private entities, many religious organizations have programs dedicated to ending poverty. The USCCB's Catholic Campaign for Human Development is one such program.  

• Greenbelt: Founded by Dr. Wangari Maathi, the Greenbelt Movement is a  broad-based, grassroots organization whose main focus is helping women’s groups plant trees to conserve the environment and improve quality of life. Through the Green Belt Movement, women have planted more than 30 million trees on their farms, on schools, and on church compounds.

Governmental Organizations: National governments throughout the world have programs focusing on reducing poverty.  On a national level, governments address poverty through domestic policy.  To confront global poverty, governments will often distribute direct foreign aid and participate in intergovernmental organizations and their respective programs on poverty.

Click here to visit the Honors Institute website on Poverty in the U.S. in order to learn about some of the U.S. government's domestic policies aimed at reducing  poverty.

Private Corporations and Foundations: More and more, global corporations and wealthy individuals are becoming involved with the worldwide fight to end poverty. In a world facing rapid globalization, many corporations view their involvement with the issue of poverty to be smart business practice, and many corporations have found themselves to be in a unique position to fight poverty through the choices they make about employment, market expansion, and investment. In addition, many wealthy individuals have established private foundations to combat poverty and aid those in need.

Click here to read an article from Stanford University's conference on Global Business and Global Poverty about the increasing role corporations are playing in fighting global poverty.

• Starbucks Coffee: Starbucks Coffee partners with numerous environmental and humanitarian organizations to buy coffee from suppliers using sustainable agricultural methods at prices that allow the farmers to make reasonable profits.  The company also provides stable lines of credit, allowing farmers to invest in their farms and futures.

• Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation: Founded by Microsoft chairman and billionaire Bill Gates, the foundation's Global Development Program focuses on improving agricultural production and market access in the world's poorest areas.  The program also places a significant emphasis on providing stable financial services for those too poor to qualify for traditional banking assistance. Recently, the world's wealthiest investor, Warren Buffet, pledged to give his entire $40 billion fortune to philanthropic efforts, with much of it going to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

• Nike, Timberland, and Roebuck: these companies have changed their practices since the 1990s, now providing better conditions and wages for their workers. These stable jobs are essential for the elimination of poverty and regional economic growth.   

Communities and Local Organizations: While international organizations, governments, and businesses create policies concerning poverty, no policy can be successful without the participation and strength of communities. Although poverty throughout the world may have common characteristics, local communities, if given the tools, are in the best position to address poverty that is unique to their areas. Through civic organizations, religious communities, local business, schools, and families, the strength of a community is fundamental is addressing and ending poverty.

Click here to visit the Honors Institute website on Local Poverty to learn about poverty in the Dayton area.