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Funded Projects: 2012
The Foundation made ten grants in November 2012, totaling $60,000.00. Awards were given to:
- Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), in the amount of $10,000.00. MSF is an international humanitarian organization that delivers emergency medical assistance to people caught in the world's most desperate crises, focusing on the most vulnerable people among them. MSF recruits doctors, nurses, water and sanitation experts, administrators, epidemiologists, laboratory technicians, and other professionals from around the world to work under extremely difficult conditions. Aid workers who choose to work with MSF may find themselves responding to an outbreak of meningitis, tending to the wounds of people caught in the crossfire of war, or treating people under tents in the aftermath of an earthquake. The men and women who make up their teams are keenly aware of the challenges they face when delivering medical care in areas with poorly-equipped hospitals--or no hospitals at all--and limited resources. They also know that MSF is committed to providing the support they need to offer the highest quality care possible.
In 2012, MSF will work to reduce infant mortality, stem disease and malnutrition, and assist people trapped in armed conflicts.
Engineers Without Borders - USA, in the amount of $10,000.00. EWB-USA is a nonprofit humanitarian organization established to support community-driven development programs worldwide through partnerships that design and implement sustainable engineering projects. EWB-USA members, comprised of professional and student engineers or other disciplines, work with local communities and NGOs in over 45 developing countries around the world on projects such as water, renewable energy, sanitation and more.
EWB will be working to increase school attendance rates in their program area in the rural Eastern Region of Ghana, and to improve public health and provide rainwater storage capacity and filtration for the community of La Chiripa, El Salvador.
Planned Parenthood, in the amount of $8,000.00. Planned Parenthood is both a trusted provider of quality, affordable care to millions of women and men and a powerful advocate for women's health and rights at the state and national levels. With an emphasis on prevention, Planned Parenthood strives to ensure that all women have access to the services they need to protect their health, prevent unplanned pregnancy, and make informed, responsible sexual and reproductive health decisions.
In 2013 the Planned Parenthood Federation of America (PPFA) is focused on two broad goals: Defend access to reproductive health services through advocacy and organizing, and expand access to care by applying new technologies to deliver services and education. PPFA will wage multi-layered organizing campaigns to build public pressure against restrictive legislation, work to block defunding laws in five states (Arizona, Indiana, Kansas, North Carolina, and Texas), challenge a number of other state laws restricting choice, build and diversify their base, and expand access to care and education.
St. Croix Environmental Association (SEA), in the amount of $8,000.00. SEA was formed as a grass roots organization in 1986. By creating innovative environmental education programs for children and adults, sponsoring engaging activities and remaining vigilant in seeking compliance with local and federal environmental regulations, SEA provides leadership for a healthy and sustainable environment. SEA's mission is "To promote conservation of environmental resources, provide education, and advocate for environmentally responsible actions." They accomplish these goals through independent initiatives and partnerships with local and federal agencies. Funding from the GPK Foundation will support the Coral Conservation Corps (CCC) Program, a semester long after-school program for high school students.
The Peggy and Charles Stephenson Cancer Center (formerly the Oklahoma University Cancer Institute), in the amount of $7,000.00. As Oklahoma's only comprehensive academic cancer center, it is charged by the Oklahoma Legislature with taking "statewide leadership" in cancer prevention, research, clinical care and education. It has approximately 135 PhD-level scientists working on cancer research programs, including several in gynecologic cancers. Their medical teams attend to patients during approximately 60,000 patient visits annually. The grant from the GPK Foundation will go to support the Gynecologic Cancer Research Fund, for research activities, equipment purchases, scientific conference registrations and support for graduate students.
The American Civil Liberties Union Foundation, in the amount of $5,000.00. The ACLU is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, public interest organization devoted to protecting the basic civil liberties of everyone in the United States. Since its founding in 1920, the ACLU has been at the forefront of virtually every battle for civil liberties and equal justice in this country. Starting out as just a room full of visionary activists, today they have almost 100 full-time litigators on the national staff, and over 160 more at ACLU affiliates, located in every state, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.
The ACLU currently has four overarching organizational goals: Fighting intolerance and discrimination in the law; keeping America safe and free, especially limiting government surveillance of innocent Americans and challenging the notion of "targeted killings" by the executive branch; protecting civil liberties in the Digital Age, particularly focused on preserving rights to privacy; and transforming the criminal justice system, with its discriminatory practices and bloated prison populations.
Families of Spinal Muscular Atrophy, in the amount of $5,000.00. Families of SMA is devoted to creating a treatment and cure for this debilitating disease. Since 1984, Families of SMA has funded over $50 million in SMA research, including five multi-center clinical trials for existing drugs, and five new drug development programs for therapies specially designed to treat SMA. Along with funding and directing leading SMA research, Families of SMA provides core resources and assistance that help families navigate life with SMA. Families of SMA gives a stable, unbiased platform for families to live active, engaged and hopeful lives.
With help from the GPK Foundation, nine new projects are to be funded that will represent the most progressive research being conducted in the quest for a treatment and cure for Spinal Muscular Atrophy. Projects are being conducted at respected institutions such as Scripps Research Institute, University of Southern California, and University of Massachusetts.
The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), in the amount of $3,000.00. UCS is the leading science-based nonprofit working for a healthy environment and a safer world. UCS combines independent scientific research and citizen action to develop innovative, practical solutions and to secure responsible changes in government policy, corporate practices, and consumer choices. What began as a collaboration between students and faculty members at MIT in 1969 is now an alliance of more than 400,000 citizens and scientists. Their achievements over the decades show that thoughtful action based on the best available science can help safeguard our future and the future of our planet.
In the coming year, their Center for Science and Democracy (CSD) will examine the role of corporations in influencing public understanding of science; address the use and misuse of science in the federal government; and highlight the treatment of science in the media.
WhyHunger, in the amount of $3,000.00. WhyHunger builds the movement to end hunger and poverty by connecting people to nutritious, affordable food and by supporting grassroots solutions that inspire self-reliance and community empowerment. Founded in 1975, WhyHunger works to put an end to hunger suffered by nearly 50 million Americans and 1 billion people worldwide. Their National Hunger Hotline refers people in need of emergency food assistance to government nutrition programs, food pantries, and other organizations that improve access to healthy, nutritious food. To get more eligible children enrolled in the Summer Food Service Program (a federal program), WhyHunger's National Hunger Clearinghouse registers SFSP sites in its database, provides information to community-based organizations about how to set up a site, and connects families in need to those sites. WhyHunger's Community Learning Project for Food Justice (CLP) advances the food justice movement by matching mentoring partners for a year of relationship building, knowledge and skill sharing, problem-solving and networking.
The Central Asia Institute, in the amount of $1,000.00. CAI supports and promotes community-based education and literacy, especially for girls, in remote regions of Central Asia. Its current goals: Establish schools annually, in regions where girl's education opportunities are nonexistent or limited. Focus on community-based participation, to initiate, implement and manage the education process in its entirety. Provide education opportunities and scholarships to students who have matriculated from their schools, and aspire to be teachers, rural health care workers, engineers or other endeavors. Support health education through enrichment materials for their schools, scholarships and trainings for maternal health care providers, and scholarships for future nurses and doctors for the remote regions of Pakistan and Afghanistan. Develop and implement intensive teacher training programs to enhance teachers' professional development opportunities, qualifications and overall betterment of the quality of education in their schools. Support and empower communities with school and community libraries, women's vocational centers, and water treatment projects.
