The Power of Leverage

It's the results that convince me that this organization is highly worth my time and money. If you divide up the number of people involved with RESULTS and the amount of money we leverage for programs like microcredit and health care, each of us raises tens of thousands of dollars a year. It's such a good business deal!

— Stan Merrell, donor since 1986

Most people are familiar with charitable gifts going to direct-service organizations like your local food bank, or a sponsorship program for children in the developing world. This kind of giving purchases tangible goods or services, usually offered locally by the organization.

Giving to direct service organizations is incredibly valuable, especially in getting people through an immediate crisis. The problem is, the crisis of the day often turns into a lifetime of dependency unless the proper social mechanisms to help people move beyond the crisis and out of poverty are in place.

That’s where RESULTS and RESULTS Educational Fund (REF) come in.

What's exciting about giving to RESULTS and/or REF is that you're helping to create the systemic changes necessary to bring and keep people out of poverty. We use your money to inspire the creation of strong health care systems, quality, compulsory education for all children, and access to economic opportunities that are critical for struggling individuals and countries to bring themselves out of poverty.

Our model is tremendously successful. When someone gives $100 to RESULTS or REF, we use that money to educate, train, and support volunteer activists around the country who advocate for changes to government policy. These changes range from increased funding for effective anti-poverty programs to improved policies that ensure programs are better run and more people's needs are met. Since our volunteers are creating shifts in the priorities with which our tax dollars are spent, we are often reallocating millions and sometimes billions of dollars into poverty-alleviating programs. Read about some of our results.

Getting one piece of legislation passed can mean that thousands of families are served by programs that empower their economic stability. It is very rare to be able to buy this kind of leverage with a charitable gift. This investment allows our donors to touch the lives of thousands of people that they could never reach directly.

People using the tools of democracy to create a just and sustainable world — this is the power of investing in RESULTS and REF.