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Blog Posts by Garrett Bradford

Nonprofits: Are the Numbers Stacked Against Us?
April 10, 2012 Garrett Bradford About RI

Every day is a busy one here at RI. It seems like there are always meetings to run to, little tasks to perform, and endless emails to answer.

So it’s a welcome change to be able to step back from the desk and really think about the big picture: Are we being as efficient as we can be? Are our messages getting to the people who need to hear them? And are we really capitalizing on the energy of our supporters – people like you!

Will Americas Summit Tackle Displacement?
March 08, 2012 Garrett Bradford Climate Displacement, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Haiti, Panama, Venezuela, Americas, Humanitarian Response, Statelessness

A "complex security and humanitarian crisis.” That’s how Congressman Sam Farr (D-CA) described the situation for Latin America's refugees and displaced people at Tuesday’s panel discussion, Refugees, Displacement, and Hemispheric Stability in Latin America, on Capitol Hill.

'¡Buenos Días!' from Colombia
February 10, 2012 Garrett Bradford Climate Displacement, Colombia, Americas

You're easily fooled upon arrival in Bogotá. You think, "This is it. This is Colombia." At over 9,000 feet above sea level and average temperatures of 68 degrees Fahrenheit, Colombia's capital enjoys an "eternal spring" year round. After a few days in the hospitable climate of Bogotá, I couldn't help but think: "I hope the rest of the country is like this."

The next day I found that such is not the case. For two years now, record-breaking rains have produced the worst flooding in 80 years throughout much of the country.

Horn of Africa: Without food, without water, without options
July 06, 2011 Garrett Bradford Africa, Climate Displacement, Djibouti, Ethiopia - Eritrea, Kenya, Somalia
The Horn of Africa is experiencing the worst drought in almost sixty years affecting ten million people. Somalia is one of the nations in the region hit hardest by the extreme lack of rain. It is also one of the poorest and most crisis-prone countries on the planet. Somalia is experiencing the driest season on record since the mid-20th century, resulting in widespread famine.

“When there is no water and hence no food, people must move or they will die,” says Alice Thomas, RI’s Climate Displacement Program Manager. “And moving they are – and in great numbers.”
Learning from Natural Disasters
June 02, 2011 Garrett Bradford Climate Displacement

In the last few years, countries across the globe have seen a sharp increase in devastating weather-related events. Parts of Colombia are experiencing heavy rains that have lasted for a year now. In the United States, the Midwest experienced the region's wettest April, while Texas had the state's driest April in a century. It is clear that we are seeing increasingly frequent and severe climate-related disasters, such as drought, floods, and catastrophic storms.