Richard Hubbard talks about the Basic Needs Program from Richmond Magazine on Vimeo.

The Basic Needs Program is a student-led charity dedicated to protecting the well being of desperately poor children.

Recognition!

Submitted by richardhubbard on Sun, 03/04/2012 - 20:40

dear friends, I first must apologize for my long absence from this blog. However, I have a great deal of news to share. First off, it is with great pleasure that I can say that, as of December, 2012, Basic Needs Program, Inc is an official, federally recognized charity! This has been a four year project for us, and I have to give the lions share of credit to our amazing business manager, Jen Hubbard, who really went above and beyond to make this a reality. Now both we, as an organization, and our donors can rest assured that Basic Needs is here to stay

New Orphanage

Submitted by richardhubbard on Sat, 10/29/2011 - 15:07

Dear friends, We have been working now for over a year to create our new orphanage for the village of Goichechia, Bangladesh. I can say now that we are officially open for business! Four adorable little children have joined the basic needs family, and will be cared for in the same building that contains the Susan Hubbard School. I will tell you the story of one little boy in order to elucidate the reasons why such an institution is necessary. In the neighboring market town of Raibazaar, there was a boy who worked for pennies serving tea at an outdoor restaurant.

Making Connections

Submitted by richardhubbard on Sat, 10/29/2011 - 15:01

Dear friends, when you work in the developing world, you quickly find that plans go out the window pretty quickly. You make plans for new programs, but once you get on the ground, those plans must be able to bend to what people actually need. So whereas we originally thought of creating a clinic for local kids, we found that the logistics and funding for such a stand-alone institution to be prohibitive. However, we did find opportunities to help in other, more organic ways.

What We Do

Submitted by richardhubbard on Wed, 07/20/2011 - 09:00

For those who don't know, there has recently been a scandal in which Greg Mortenson, who famously penned the book "Three Cups of Tea" about his efforts to bring schools to rural Pakistan and Afghanistan, was accused to fabricating much of the story on which his fame is based. This news has sent shock waves across the world of international charities, and has affected me personally as Mortenson was a personal hero of mine. His story also has forced me to reflect on my own work in Bangladesh and on how I portray it to potential contributors in the states.