Good Neighbors is an international, non-profit humanitarian organization committed to child education, community development, and emergency relief projects in 35 countries around the world. They have fundraising offices in the USA, Korea, and Japan, and an International Cooperation Office in Geneva.
Good Neighbors started in 1991 with the mission to support disadvantaged children in Seoul, Korea. The beginnings of their organization were rooted in projects such as handicapped children's programs, orphanages, finding homes for poverty-stricken widows, rural community development, and assisting families of tuberculosis patients.
In 1994, Good Neighbors became an international organization when they became deeply involved in the Rwandan refugee situation, providing medical relief teams and establishing two schools at the refugee camps. Good Neighbors International became a formal entity in 1996, and since then they've expanded their projects and field offices to 35 countries around the world.
Currently, more than 2,000 professional staff and 20,000 volunteers--ranging from doctors and nurses to engineers and professors--support approximately 16.8 million people, including 9.6 million children. Their projects include building clean water wells in Africa, providing new cookstoves for families in Guatemala, and sponsoring children in Chad, Guatemala, Malawi, and Nepal. They fundraise and network with other organizations through offices in the USA, Korea, Japan, and Switzerland. They also partner with local governments, international donor agencies, and local communities to raise public awareness about development problems and solutions, and advocate for change. In 1996, Good Neighbors received the prestigious General Consultative Status with the United Nations and in 2007, they were awarded the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) Award.
Good Neighbors USA opened its Los Angeles office in 2007, which currently handles fundraising, donor management, volunteer programs, and marketing campaigns for all major projects.
Mission
Good Neighbors USA is an international humanitarian and development organization committed to building a global community where people live together in health, harmony, and dignity.
Approach
They look at the world not in terms of classes or borders. They see people. When you come across the people they have, you'll discover the same thing: people are capable of anything. Their approach is simple but effective. They are enablers. They guide people in creating a new future for themselves. Their projects work to enact lasting change, and they are constantly challenging themselves to change the world. In the end, the effect of poverty is only as strong as we let it become.
They will work anywhere where need exists regardless of race, nationality, religion, ideology, and geographical constraints.
Good Neighbors has a presence in over 35 different countries allowing them to support over 17 million people and includes nearly 10 million children.
Child Development
They work to protect preschoolers and children who have been neglected due to poverty. Their projects encourage their physical and emotional development by providing them with fundamental education, medical care, and nutritious meals.
Community Development
They believe that self-sufficiency is the key to eliminating poverty. They provide vocational training, develop local agriculture, and establish infrastructure.
Health & Sanitation
They provide medical services and offer health-related education to prevent diseases such as malaria and AIDS. They make it a priority to develop access to clean water, and also have a number of projects focused on building public restrooms and shower stalls for communities.
Advocacy
They empower marginalized groups of women and children through their educational programs. Their projects aim to raise awareness and cooperate with local organizations in order to lift these groups from poverty.
Global Networking
They rely on active participation from community members of each each country they work in for the majority of projects. They expect leaders to take over their staff's work and continue to strengthen it. They build strong partnerships with volunteers, community leaders, local governments, and other organizations.
Emergency Relief
They dispatch emergency relief teams immediately in the event of natural disasters or civil conflicts. They were on the ground during the civil war in Rwanda; the earthquakes in Pakistan, India, and Turkey; the Afghanistan war; the tsunami in South Asia; and the earthquake in Haiti.
