Heifer International
To Jo Luck, President and CEO of Heifer International:
As Heifer International is an organization that promotes sustainable living, and self-sufficiency, Heifer should have a new board member whose life and career similarly promotes and embodies such objectives. Professor Peter Singer of Princeton University is the author, with Jim Mason, of the scholarly work the Way We Eat (2007), which criticizes American abundance and stresses the need for all persons to have a greater awareness of the social and environmental costs of what they consume. Sustainability and buying local, in Singer's view, should be the ideal of all communities (Singer & Mason, 2007). Singer's philosophy would fit in perfectly with Heifer International, as would his belief that all people should give a proportion of their income to charity.
Peter Singer, an advocate of vegetarianism, might seem a controversial choice. Should the board seek a more mainstream figure, but a figure still committed to teaching the community about 'how to' sustain one's life in a more hands-on and meaningful fashion, Martha Stewart would be another ideal member of the board. Stewart is a famed cooking guru, stresses the need to 'do-it-yourself' to her viewers and readers, and has sought to rehabilitate her tarnished image with charitable works -- and largely succeeded. She has committed herself to helping people in difficult circumstances help themselves. While in prison Stewart volunteered at the Women's Venture Fund, teaching poor women how to start their own businesses, and has continued to show an interest in empowering former female inmates since her release ("Stewart aims to lighten sentence with charity," 2004, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel).
Since she is barred from serving as the CEO of her own company, Stewart does not formally have an organization to run, thus adding the stewardship of Heifer to her portfolio might be an attractive offer for the successful businesswoman. She would bring added publicity to the cause's mission. It would draw a larger donor base for Heifer, as Stewart's traditional Macy and Kmart shopping audience would hear about the organization through Stewart's website and media broadcasts.
Works Cited
Leadership Team." (2007). Heifer International. Retrieved 14 Feb 2007 at http://www.heifer.org/site/c.edJRKQNiFiG/b.201524/
Singer, Peter and Jim Mason. (2007) the Way We Eat. New York: Rodale.
Stewart aims to lighten sentence with charity/." (2004). Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved 14 Feb 2007 at http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4196/is_20040601/ai_n10965437
