Young philanthropists can effect real change - The Denver Post

Young philanthropists can effect real change - The Denver Post: "An excellent example is 24-year-old Denver native Jessica Posner. While studying abroad in Nairobi, Kenya, Jessica learned that 66 percent of girls in Kibera — the largest slum in Africa — trade sex for food as early as age 6 and that only 8 percent of girls in Kibera ever attend school. Jessica found this situation to be intolerable and co-founded Shining Hope for Communities (shininghopeforcommunities.org) to combat gender inequity and poverty in Kibera. With limited resources, the organization opened the area's first free school for girls and, in just a few years, has created a gardening program; a library; an Internet-ready computer center; ecologically friendly latrines that convert waste to methane gas, which can be used for cooking and electricity; income-generating projects for women living with HIV/AIDS; and Kibera's first accessible community health center, staffed by a full-time nurse. In recognition of her work, Jessica received the 2010 VH-1 Do Something Award, including a $100,000 stipend that she's investing in more programs for girls and women in Kenya."