At Echoing Green, we get book recommendations from our fellows all the time and we’d like to share the wealth! These two come from 2006 Echoing Green Fellow Andrew Youn and 1993 Echoing Green Fellow Maya Ajmera.

Out of Poverty by Paul Polak

Our first recommendation comes by way of Andrew Youn, who shares with us a book by his mentor, author and nonprofit leader Paul Polak. In Out of Poverty, Polak describes the work of his organization, International Development Enterprises (IDE), as they implement innovative solutions to help people in developing nations improve their lives. IDE has assisted 17 million people in their quest to escape poverty by teaching small farmers to increase their crop yield with the use of low cost agricultural methods. Out of Poverty discusses the solutions that must be further utilized in today’s world, while debunking popular myths about the poverty crisis.

Children of The U.S.A.

And for those younger blog readers out there, we recommend Children of the U.S.A., published by Maya Ajmera’s organization, The Global Fund for Children. Designed for 8 to 13 year olds, this book celebrates the diversity of children in the United States with stories and photographs from across the nation. Spanning 51 cities, this book captures the various customs and backgrounds of kids from various ethnicities, races and religions to show the importance of diversity in everyday life. Plus, all proceeds from the sale of Children of the U.S.A benefit The Global Fund for Children.