The Humanitarian Blog was started by Ali Wyne '08, who wished to launch a corner of mitadmissions.org devoted to the many people at MIT who are working to change the plight of the world's impoverished - whether by war or famine or disease or any of the other myriad ills that afflict so many. Ali will serve as this year's host, and he hopes that The Humanitarian Blog will continue to tell these stories long after he has graduated.

In the words of Ali, "the true humanitarian is one who cares not that his or her efforts may never reach fruition or elicit attention."

Ali once wondered whether there were any "true humanitarians" in the world. He had come to believe that most people who professed an interest in others' welfare were truly interested in self-aggrandizement. But, he notes, "the people who I've met at MIT have compelled me to dispense with this cynicism."

This blog is about them - each post will profile someone who's doing amazing humanitarian work. (If you'd like to share your story with Ali, write to him at awyne at mit dot edu.)

I'm in Round 2! Can You Help Me Make the Top 10?
January 02, 2009 | Change.org is running a competition that'll propel 10 ideas to the fore of the next administration's agenda. In Round 1, people came up with 7,783 ideas. Only 87 (about 1%) made it to Round 2, and the idea to "Establish a 'Global Challenges Wikipedia' to Empower Problem Solvers" was among them! I owe that victory to you, and now I'm counting on you to get this idea into the Top 10.
Posted in MIT's Mission: Who We Are | 13 Responses Please Vote for My Idea for the Obama Administration!
December 19, 2008 | Change.org is sponsoring a competition whereby anyone can post an idea for making America better. The ten ideas that receive the most votes will be presented to Barack Obama on Inauguration Day.
Posted in MIT's Mission: Who We Are | 14 Responses My Last Blog: Introducing My Successor
September 02, 2008 | I started "The Humanitarian Blog" to spotlight the amazing work that MIT students are doing on behalf of developing countries. I thought about continuing it as an alum, but I decided that it'd be good for someone new to take over and impart a fresh perspective.
Posted in MIT's Mission: Who We Are | 3 Responses