A Brief History:
The Humanitus Foundation was conceptualised in late 2001 by Jeffrey Richards, Lars Christopher Cölle and the late Trent Okeefe. Operations were initially focused in Uganda through the office of the Ugandan Vice President, Professor Gilbert Bukenya. Projects were concentrated in the areas of education, rural diversification, health care/education and community radio.
Due to ever increasing logistical difficulties coupled with World Bank funding shortfalls, endemic corruption and personnel safety concerns, operations were ceased in late 2005. Sadly in early 2006 the chief proponent of the Humanitus Foundation, Trent Okeefe passed away suddenly. The Directors of the Humanitus Foundation were determined to continue with the legacy that Trent Okeefe had left behind. This continuity, albeit in a different region of the world, necessitated a great deal of planning and commitment from the remaining Directors and plans that were put in place in late 2005 would become a reality in South East Asia in 2008.
The Humanitus Foundation would not exist today if it were not for a team of professional and dedicated humanitarians working selflessly in a concerted effort to make a difference to the lives of those less fortunate in developing nations.
What we stand for and what we do:
The name Humanitus is derived from the Latin word 'humanus' meaning; pertaining to man, humane, cultured.
The Humanitus Foundation is a community specific, non-political, non-religious, not-for-profit Australian registered charitable institution working within communities in SE Asia at all levels to achieve shared goals.
The Humanitus Foundation empowers indigenous communities and individuals through the development of educational and sustainable rural development opportunities. We work alongside many agencies, NGO's, CBO's, Government ministries, education providers and industry experts. Our current focus is in the SE Asia region. Humanitus is headquartered in Melbourne and has key team and board members in Germany, Sumatra and Cambodia.
Humanitus is a fully transparent foundation and undertakes only projects which have solid support at all levels. With key personnel based in SE Asia Humanitus can ensure that 100% of funds raised through partner schools, corporate sponsors and private donors are disbursed to directly benefit the recipient schools and communities.
Issues of appropriate education, rural development, sustainability, health care program implementation and inclusive growth are many and varied and Humanitus is continually reviewing these issues and amending or adding to programs as required.
Humanitus takes into account the views of communities, governments, NGO's and other interest groups when evaluating issues. As such, we appreciate feedback on our methodology, selection, implementation and evaluation of issues covered in our website.
Some examples of our work can be found on this website.
We hope to give you a brief insight into what we are striving to achieve in SE Asia. It is difficult to encapsulate our work and vision simply in words and photographs and we urge those interested in our work to email us for further information. Please spend some time on our website to gain a better understanding of our achievements thus far and our vision for a better future for the people in these countries.
If you have any queries about our work and ways you can get involved please don't hesitate to contact us.
