Population Council Research that makes a difference

George and Ann Fisher

George and Ann Fisher live in Phoenix, Arizona, and are the proud grandparents of Mimi and Myles Fisher (shown in photo). Mr. Fisher is the retired Chief Executive Officer of Motorola and Eastman Kodak.

For the last several years our family has focused our philanthropic efforts on educational projects throughout the developing world—scholarship programs for girls and young women in Vietnam and Senegal, libraries and schools in Ethiopia and Laos, and vocational training projects for women in Afghanistan. We believe that one of the best ways to address global poverty is to help educate young people, specifically girls, and give them a chance to create better lives for themselves and their families.

Recently, we have started to direct a large part of our giving toward the country of Ethiopia, because in 2006 our granddaughter, Mimi, was born in southwestern Ethiopia. Sadly, Mimi’s birth mother was unable to care for her and died of dysentery soon after dropping Mimi off at an orphanage. We feel truly blessed that Mimi has become a part of our family, and this blessing, we believe, carries with it a responsibility to give back to the people of Ethiopia. So, we do our best to find meaningful projects that are truly making a difference in the lives of Ethiopians.

We have followed the progress of the Population Council for many years, always impressed by the variety and depth of the Council’s programs. When we heard about the Council’s work with adolescent girls in Addis Ababa, we felt it was a perfect fit for our family giving. The Council’s "Biruh Tesfa" ("Bright Future") project gives the most vulnerable population—teenage girls in urban slums, most of whom have lost one or both of their parents—a chance to create meaningful relationships, learn valuable life and literacy skills, and receive education on HIV/reproductive health issues. Every girl who is touched by the Council’s work in Ethiopia has the opportunity to create a brighter future for herself. The simple, yet very powerful ingredients of support and education are changing lives for the better.

As a family we are convinced that the "Biruh Tesfa" project is making an immediate positive impact on the lives of thousands of Ethiopian girls, and we are so honored to be a small part of making it possible. For a relatively modest amount of money, by U.S. standards, donors like us can help the Population Council make dramatic, positive changes in the lives of young women around the world.