Newspapers / Philanthropy Journal of North … / Dec. 1, 1993, edition 1 / Page 3
Part of Philanthropy Journal of North Carolina (Raleigh, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
December 1993 Philanthropy Journal of North Carolina Connections Low-tech charity When your conscience calls, try conscience calling ByKayMcFadden I yi # hen we talk about \ /\ / getting technology I / I / to work for nonprof- » » its, the benefits usu ally fall in the cash-reduction colunm. Less time plus less labor equals fewer expenses. But how about shifting the bene fits to the ledger’s other side by using technology to make money? Don’t be scared; this doesn’t involve comput ers. It’s a low-tech method probably sitting at your elbow ri^t now — the telephone. TECHNOLOGY In the obvious sense, telephones are a basic fundraising tool for many nonprofits. Now, here’s something not so obvious: Thanks to advances in technology and some shrewd market ing by some long-distance companies, people can donate a percentage of their monthly hillings to nonprofits. Generally known as “affinity pro grams,” these services began in the late 1980s and have since split into several different approaches. Most commonly used is the program devel oped last year by Ralei^-based BTl, which provides long-distance service to small- and medium-sized business es. Here’s how the BTl Organization Contribution Program for nonprofits works: For every supporter of a non profit who signs up for BTl service, that nonprofit receives a monthly check equal to 5 percent of that mem- ber’s monthly long-distance bill. Participating members also get a long-distance discount. “It’s a triple-wia situation,” says Kim Chapman, vice president of mar keting at BTl. “The members get to lower their long-distance bills, BTl gets new customers and charitable Look for TECHNOLOGY, page 19 Philanthropy Journal of North Carolina A Publication Of The News and Observer Foundation 215 S. McDoweU St. Raleigh, NC 27601 (919) 829-8988 VoL. 1 No. 4 SUBSCRIPTION PRICES 1 year 2 years 3 years $57 $104 $143 Multiple-copy discounts avail able. Call (919) 829-8763 for rates. FOR SUBSCRIPTION INFORMATION, CALL (919) 829-4763 OR (919) 829-4807. Saving the Cape Fear Team effort studies state’s largest river The University of North Carolina at Wilmington, with help from N.C. State University’s broadcast services, is producing a televi sion documentary about the Cape Fear River Basin to be aired on UNC-TV. The video wiU be used to help raise money for university-based research on the river basin. By Katherine Noble / ts journey from Mermaid Point to the sea is nearly 200 miles. Its streams and tribu taries flow in 29 counties tor more than 6,000 miles, draining an area larger than Kuwait. It is home to fish, alligators, beavers and water fowl. It provides drinking water for thousands of peo ple and a source of recreation tor many more. And it is the lifeblood of industry along its shores. But despite its importance as North Carolina’s largest river, public knowledge of the Cape Fear River and its basin is shallow. The last state study of the river was complet ed in 1984, and there is no coordinat ed, ongoing effort to examine the liver’s environmental health. River experts agree that the Cape Fear River Basin seems to he in good shape. But they also agree that not much is known about the river, or the impact of recreation, industry and other potential pollutants on its water quality and life. The University of North Carolina at Wilmington hopes to change that. “The river isn’t like some rivers,” says Elaine Penn of the UNCW uni versity advancement office. “It’s rela tively clean. But we know very little about it.” The Cape Fear River Documentary Project, an hour-long video to be aired on public television this spring, is the first step in estab lishing a statewide, river study pro gram in the university’s marine sci ence division. The video will be used to raise public awareness of the river, and to raise $100,000 to $150,000 in public and private funds to launch the new program. The documentary will air several times on UNC-TV this spring, and may be shown nationally on PBS and The Discovery Channel. It also will be distributed free to the state’s pub lic school system and to local govern ments, community organizations and environmental groups. The first order of hustuess is fin ishing the fundraising to pay for the ■ ^ Airing this spmg on fMjblic t^/isi ■ avideoprodu> byUNC- Wifmington docu present and future !ar^ rim system. ^ Filming for the video began at Mermaid Point, where the Deep and Haw rivers combine to form North Carolina's largest river. AREA shown'' - ■ ■ 'T" .•.•■-I Cape Fear Facts '-X*- ft'/ n, After discovery by Europeans, it had several nannes: Rio Jordan (1526), Charles River (1664) and Clarendon River (1964-67). The Cape Fear River Basin covers almost 9,140 square miles. The average width of the flood plain of the Cape Fear River is about two miles. Fayetteville pumps more than 20 million gallons | i.,er day out of the river. | • Ninety percent of the degradation m of water quality in the entire basin comes from pollution m fit ADEN fertilizer runoff, topsoil erosion and household detergents. \ \ '■dob . j Every year, 700 ships and y'iJ barges deliver more than tw'o 51 million tons of cargo to the IPort of Wilmington. Research by Justin Scroggs documentary. “We are making an appeal for support because the river is precious to ^ of us in North Carolina,” says Penn. “It’s definitely a group prob lem, and it’s going to take a group effort to save the river.” The video itself is a collaboration between UNCW; N.C. State Philanthropy Journal of North Carolina University, whose broadcast services office is putting the video together; UNC-TV, and several North Carolina foundations and corporations that are lending financial support. The Grace Jones Richardson 'Trust and Florence Rogers Trust in North Carolina gave $15,000 and $6,000, respectively, to the documen tary project, and Applied Analytical, Wilmington Du Pont and Cape Industries each gave several thou sand dollars. So far, the university has raised about halt the $150,000 needed for the video, which should be completed Look for CAPE, page 19 Study in inequality N.C. Equity reports on women’s health The health of Tar Heel women is at greater risk than for women in other states, says a report by N.C. Equity, a statewide group that is an advocate for women and girls. A new report on the health status of women in North / 1 Carolina shows the patient is ailing and the prognosis is in doubt. While previous studies have found that the U.S. health-care sys tem ignores the needs of women, a report released Nov. 19 by N.C. Equity shows that Tar Heel women are at even greater risk than their counterparts throughout the U.S. “Women in North Carolina ranked fourth-highest in the nation on deaths from strokes,” N.C. Equity President Brenda Summers says in her preface to the report. “They are more likely to die from heart disease and from complications due to preg nancy and childbirth. They are more likely to contract a sexually trans mitted disease and are assaulted at higher rates than women in other states.” The report, entitled “In Sickness and in HeMth,” looked at topics rang ing from heart disease to reproduc tive heaith to access to health care. Among the other findings: • While North Carolina women experience more chronic diseases than do men, less research is direct ed toward illness that affects women or toward how disorders such as heart disease affect women. • Nonwhite women have less access to health-care services than do white women and, when it is avail able, often receive care too late. • Women have higher rates of ill ness, more disability days and greater use of health services than do men. • HIV infection and AIDS are increasing faster among women than among men, especially among black women, who are 17 times more likely to he infected with the AIDS virus than are white women. • Violence against women repre sents a growing public health-care problem in the state, which now has the fifth-highest rate of increase in violent crimes in the nation. “Current efforts at health-care reform must meet women’s particu lar needs and new health-care sys tems should provide universal hedth care for all North Carolinians,” the report says. “It is critical that the state’s leaders, male and female, begin a serious dialogue about the diagnoses and prescriptions made within these pages.” Copies are available from N.C. Equity, a nonprofit public policy and advocacy organization in Raleigh. Call (919) 833-4055.
Philanthropy Journal of North Carolina (Raleigh, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Dec. 1, 1993, edition 1
3
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75