The purpose of this article is to show you that no matter what you’re doing or where you are in the world, there’s an opportunity to use your foundation. There are limitless possibilities and creative ways for you and your family to create unforgettable memories while making a difference.
Our honeymoon adventure was further proof that once you really dive into the wonderful world of foundations you start to see them everywhere. It’s always neat to see the different impact initiatives being made all across the world. An added layer of joy is when you have a foundation and begin to think about how you could help boost those impacts.
We embarked on an epic journey to the Maldives to stay in the popular overwater villas you see in all of the travel blogs. Our first flight was 16 hours from San Francisco to Dubai. Then a four hour flight to Male, the capital city of the Maldives. And finally, a 45 minute seaplane flight to the resort. The first two flights were on Emirates, and each time something caught my attention.
That’s right, The Emirates Airline Foundation. The foundation aims to improve the quality of life for children, regardless of geographical, political, or religious boundaries, and to help them maintain or improve their human dignity. They focus on health, housing, food and education. One of their most successful projects, the Emirates Friendship Hospital, helped over 650,000 patients over 14 years. Pretty clever, calling it a friend-ship if you ask me!
Once we arrived at the resort, we were immediately blown away by the vibrant turquoise water and abundant marine life. One of the main reasons we came to the Maldives was for the world-class snorkeling experience. We were fortunate enough to have some incredible coral beds just off the back deck of our villa. We saw every color and size of fish you can imagine. There were also reef sharks, sea turtles and various types of rays.
Unfortunately, all of that beauty was starkly contrasted nearby where large sections of coral were dead. One of the locals told us that a recent storm had wreaked havoc on a lot of the reefs. Another difficult to ignore aspect is the sheer volume of tourism in the islands. Which of course we were contributing to. However, while we were snorkeling I noticed that there were a few man made reef structures. A quick Google search later and I learned about a great organization called Reefscapers.
According to their website, “Reefscapers is a marine consultancy company, working to restore coral reefs in the Maldives since 2005. Using a pioneering coral frame technique, we increase coral cover and enhance the biodiversity of coral reefs; ranking among the most successful marine conservation programs of its type in the world!”
They give you the opportunity to sponsor a coral frame or adopt a single coral. If you sponsor an entire frame, you’ll receive biannual photos of the coral growth. Either way you are supporting one of the most diverse ecosystems in the world! So where does the foundation come into play? If your foundation sponsored some coral frames it would be possible for you and your family, as part of the board of directors, to conduct a site visit. The purpose of a site visit is to ensure that your grant dollars are being used in the way that you intended. This opens up the possibility of going snorkeling to see the impact of your giving.
