I had heard about the city and university months before I finally got a chance to visit. Several colleges merged together eight years ago forming what is now the university. It is a public university and proudly boasts two campuses and various different colleges, among them the English language center and the College of Nursing.

My husband and I had been invited to go and meet with leadership in the university to find ways that we could come alongside them as they grow and expand.  I quickly fell in love with an area and a group of people who are making a difference in their corner of the world, despite incredible challenges. Media portrayals of Iraq paint a dangerous picture of a war torn area. In fact, the Kurdish region is a beautiful area that has worked hard to rebuild infrastructure and the health care system in the face of these obstacles.

As a nurse, I was honored to sit with faculty of nursing and learn more about their plans and dreams. Despite limited equipment and financial setbacks, they have a passion to build the field of nursing and strengthen the entire health care system.  In this process they long for people to come alongside them. The resilience and hope among faculty is remarkable.

Strong nursing programs are foundational for both public health and primary care. Building this program is critical for the health care system, both now and in the future.

This campaign is designed to raise money for three separate projects.

Building Student Capacity:Three students (two female and one male) from the nursing program have had a paper selected to be presented in Johannesburg, South Africa on gender equality in the region. This is an incredible honor, but they need funds to go. The first $5000 dollars of this campaign will provide airfare, hotel accommodations, and money for meals for the students to attend the conference.

Timeframe: If these funds are not raised, the students will not be able to go.

Equipment for Simulation Lab:Any nursing program relies heavily on up to date equipment and simulation models. Equipment is expensive and needs regular upkeep. The second $5000 will be used to create simulation labs with state of the art simulation models.

Timeframe: 3 Months. Classes begin in mid-September.

Continuing Education for Faculty:The Faculty of Nursing at University of Raparin are passionate and dynamic. They function like a supportive family. But they need help! They want to improve their skills, they want to attend continuing education in other places to learn best practices, they want to have visiting scholars come and teach them, and they want to bridge barriers and create ongoing collaborations with nursing programs in the United States, Canada, and Europe. $5000 will be spent creating three programs: First for visiting scholars; second for a first ever March conference inviting nursing faculty from all over Kurdistan to network and learn together; third – for faculty to attend educational programs outside of Iraq.

Timeframe: 1-6 months. Classes begin in mid-September and faculty must plan for time away. Also, scholars in Europe and the United States need time to prepare and get permission from their institutions. Conference planning is beginning now with a tentative date of late March.

YES! I WILL HELP!

CLICK TO DONATE

Why should you help?

Millions of dollars are raised every day by people in Western Countries. Some of those projects are valuable and create lasting programs; others benefit individuals. This small project has the ability to make a significant and lasting impact in the region. Walking alongside these student nurses and the faculty is an amazing opportunity to partner in the region. The Kurdish region of Iraq has gone through untold tragedy at the hands of others, yet, the hope and resilience is evident throughout this College of Nursing. Every single summer, thousands of western high school and college students send out requests for funds so that they can go on 10-day to two week service projects. While a wonderful way to watch students expand their world view, it doesn’t create sustainable programs. Investing is this project is a way to walk beside people in the Kurdish region of Iraq. It’s a unique project for a unique group of people.

How do I know my funds will be used appropriately?

First and foremost, this fundraiser via Go Fund Me went through many levels of vetting (more than the typical Go Fund Me campaign). Many checks and balances have been put in place and the exploratory process was intense.

You can rest assured that the funds will be used appropriately because you will get updates that the students went to Johannesburg. You will see copies of receipts for plane tickets; you will see pictures at the conference they attend. You will see a document and stories of visiting scholars. You will see pictures of equipment and receipts of items purchased for the simulation lab.

Would you think of donating today? As shared in our introduction article about the Triangle Impact Initiative, if you feel led to donate, please join together with other Triangles around the world in giving no more than $25 (and then share the news with others!).

YES! I WILL HELP!

CLICK TO DONATE

The post Support Nursing Education in Kurdistan appeared first on I am a Triangle.

Looking back …

The I Am A Triangle (IAAT) community has been in existence since September of 2013. We have lived on a new platform (Mighty Networks) since August 8, 2017 and in the past five years we have seen a plethora of outstanding support, undying commitment to each other, and – as we like to boast – answers that you can’t even find on Google!

We have seen life changing decisions being made because of the love and friendship among Triangle members, hundreds of in-person gatherings across the world, and businesses being born. We have shown up for our members when they have suffered unimaginable pain and loss when loved ones have died. We have celebrated with members during adoptions, engagements, and in some cases, the end of marriages.  We have stood by each other during repatriation blues and the sadness of being a Stayer. We have encouraged – on repeat – and we have *always* operated from a culture of kindness first.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve learned an awful lot about the human race, the communities and countries we borrow as global nomads and Triangles, and I’ve been richly blessed and my life expanded because of the IAAT community.

What is the Triangle Impact Initiative?

I’ve felt for the better part of two years that our community was meant for something greater. Sure, the support, networking and friendships are powerful and important. Absolutely, the wisdom gained from each other is palpable. As a leader though, I have forecasted since 2016 that we needed to step up as a community. We needed to UPLEVEL as Triangles.

Beginning TODAY (I’m giddy with excitement!) we are launching the Triangle Impact Initiative. What this means – in quite simple terms – is that we will:

1. Choose FOUR initiatives and fundraising opportunities to align with between now and Summer of 2019.
2. We will show up and open our wallets to support these initiatives AS A COMMUNITY.
3. Our impact will be shown and felt globally as we seek to honor the communities we borrow around the world.

There are a few things we’d like you to keep in mind.

We have over 15,000 people still hanging around in our archived Facebook Group and 4,000 members in our new community home. If we all gave $1.00, four times per year, we would see MASSIVE impact happening on a global level when partnering with organizations that are committed to (and proven!) providing sustainable and long-term impact.

Moving forward, every time we introduce a new Triangle Impact Initiative Partner (TIIP), if you feel led to contribute, we ask that you give NO MORE than $25.00.  You read that right. We aren’t asking you to give hundreds of dollars or dig deep into your pocketbook. Just $25 as a max, per Triangle member PER TIIP that we introduce to you.

*** Small print.

• The I Am A Triangle community does not profit or benefit from this initiative. I – as the IAAT founder – do not profit or benefit from this initiative. 100% of your donated funds goes STRAIGHT to the organization.
• EACH and every TIIP is absolutely vetted, and in a hard core way, before they are introduced to you This will mean that the funding platform (i.e. kickstarter, go fund me, indiegogo, etc.) has already approved the fundraiser, and in many cases the organization has already gone through extreme vetting to ensure the project is legitimate. In addition, the IAAT Advisory Board will (in some cases) conduct additional vetting.
• We are not taking suggestions for future TIIP opportunities at this time. We have already chosen the four partners and we will introduce you to them in August of 2018, November of 2018, February of 2019 and May of 2019.
• Why $25? The Together Rising movement has been a fab example of the power of micro-giving. They have raised MILLIONS of dollars, $25 at a time, and we believe the model is one that the IAAT community can get behind!
• Please research whether your gift is tax deductible in your home country by reading the fine print of each fundraiser.

We will link up each article HERE as we introduce each TIIP and we hope you are AS excited as we are to participate in this amazing opportunity.

TL:DR

If this was all too long (TL:DR stands for Too Long : Didn’t Read) and you didn’t want to read the long article, the I Am A Triangle community is upleveling and in addition to being an outstanding resource and support hub for humans on the go – around the world – we are now expanding our reach and impact by aligning with FOUR amazing fundraising opportunities.

Each fundraising opportunity will present an option for you to get involved, open your wallet and impact the world on a global scale … $25 at a time.

I’m so excited to introduce this opportunity, and stand beside ALL of our I Am A Triangle community to see what kind of impact we can really and truly have on the world! It’s time to rally together, and uplevel!

TIIP #1: Nursing Students in Kurdish Region of Iraq

TIIP #2: <coming November 2018>

TIIP #3: <coming February 2019 >

TIIP #4: <coming June 2019>

The post I Am A Triangle Impact Initiative appeared first on I am a Triangle.