Be The Change 180

Tag: UN Volunteer

  • In Need of Aid 05: The Seed of An Idea

    —

    by

    Glenn Lawrence
    in

    In August of this past year my oldest daughter and her husband went on a vacation trip out to the West Coast to celebrate their 10th wedding anniversary. They love hiking and spent much of that time visiting and hiking various trails in California, Oregon, and Washington. One of their first stops was at the…

  • Notes Along the Journey 07: Time, Not Distance

    —

    by

    Glenn Lawrence
    in

    I’ll be honest. I was a bit torn tonight when it came time to provide a title for this particular blog. On the one hand, this specific thought came about because of my current research emphasis on development aid and poverty alleviation. So, to that end, I thought it should be a part of my…

  • In Need of Aid 04: Perspective

    —

    by

    Glenn Lawrence
    in

    [NOTE: This blog is actually from a personal Facebook post that I originally shared on Saturday, Dec. 27th, 2025. I am (re)posting this here for my own future reference. For those who are reading this, the first half of the blog is from the original social media posting on my personal Facebook page. I have…

  • Simple, But Useful

    —

    by

    Glenn Lawrence
    in

    I’ll begin by providing the starting point for my own thoughts tonight. I say that because I’m not feeling particularly “clever” or creative at the moment. No catchy opening. No interesting analogy to use as a base for a profound lesson. Just a straightforward thought, but also a crucially personal one that grabbed me by…

  • In Need of Aid 03: Agency and Responsibility

    —

    by

    Glenn Lawrence
    in

    Some very personal musings regarding development aid and poverty alleviation on the “white board” called WordPress… (concluded with an equally personal reflection at the end of the blog) I am currently reading the book “Interventions” by Kofi Annan, a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the UN (1997-2006). I’ll be completely transparent…

  • In Need of Aid 02: My Own Indifference and Apathy

    —

    by

    Glenn Lawrence
    in

    Notes to myself while reading (specifically from p. 130 of the book “Enough: Why the World’s Poorest Starve in an Age of Plenty” by Thurow and Kilman)… 𝑨𝑾𝑨𝑹𝑬𝑵𝑬𝑺𝑺 𝒊𝒔 𝑪𝑹𝑼𝑪𝑰𝑨𝑳… most people, myself included, really have no clue as to how much of the world lives out their existence on a daily basis. I know…

  • One Seed and One Life: How Change Happens

    —

    by

    Glenn Lawrence
    in

    One seed at a time. One life at a time. That is how most change happens. I recently helped a young man in Cameroon get set up on the United Nations Volunteers portal. I walked him through the entire process while offering some “advice” based on my own personal experiences during the past 3 years.…

  • We Are Where We Are

    —

    by

    Glenn Lawrence
    in

    “We are where we are.” ~ Michael J. Fox, from his book “Always Looking Up: The Adventures of an Incurable Optimist” I am an avid reader. Always have been. Probably always will be. I inherited my love of reading from my mother. She was a voracious reader. She seemingly always had a book in her…