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    <title>Mercy Corps Lebanon Features</title>
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    <description>The Latest Mercy Corps Lebanon Content</description>
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<item>
	<title>Making Movies</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/countries/lebanon/2556/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[Nine teens used a Mercy Corps filmmaking course to express their needs, aspirations and dreams &amp;mdash; part of projects aimed at enhancing youth artistic skills and addressing societal challenges with technology.]]></description>
	<pubDate>Tue, 08 Jul 2008 09:50:18 -0700</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>Tasting Newfound Success</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/topics/economicdevelopment/2557/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[Sheikh Mahmoud Derbieh is one of several olive farmers receiving support from Mercy Corps to improve his oil and to start his own label &amp;mdash; changes that have translated into higher sales.]]></description>
	<pubDate>Tue, 08 Jul 2008 06:51:39 -0700</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>Support for small dairy farmers</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/countries/lebanon/2203/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[In partnership with ECHO (European Community Humanitarian Aid department) Mercy Corps' Emergency Economic Livelihood Recovery Programme works to preserve the livelihoods of communities affected by the 2006 war in Lebanon and the political and economic crises that have plagued the country ever since. The project provides desperately needed help to dairy farms in the Northern Bekaa Valley by helping them improve the health of their animals and thus increase milk production.  

Dairy farming in Lebanon is both one of the strongest potential growth areas in the country, and one of the sectors hardest hit by the 2006 conflict. The beneficiaries are among the most vulnerable in the Lebanese economy even in the best economic environment, and they face some of the biggest recovery challenges.  

The project addresses the key issues that hinder the farms' return to sustained and profitable livelihoods. It increases the productivity of herds, while also building capacity among animal health workers and dairy farmers to maintain herd health and increase the quantity and quality of milk production among small farmers. 

Zakia's story

Zakia al-Shayah, a widow and mother of four, lives in Kayal, Baalbek Caza, an area of Lebanon's agricultural heartland in the eastern part of the country. She has five cows, three calves and a small piece of land, where she grows vegetables for home-use. During the war she was not able to sell the milk, which was the only way to sustain her family, and she couldn't buy food for her herd due to lack of money and transportation. As a result the milk production per cow decreased from 25kg before the war to 15kg now.  

Since Zakia joined the ECHO funded Mercy Corps project, she has been visited twice by a veterinarian, during which he examined and numbered the cows, vaccinated them for foot and mouth disease and took a sample of the milk. 

&quot;The war really destroyed our life&quot;, said Zakia. &quot;But the support from the Mercy Corps project will help to make my cows healthy and productive again.&quot;

The video produced with ECHO illustrates how the project is changing the future for these Lebanese farmers.

]]></description>
	<pubDate>Mon, 25 Feb 2008 07:13:20 -0800</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>Youth Taking the Reins of Recovery</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/countries/lebanon/1852/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[Mercy Corps' Center for Excellence in Beirut is a place where young people gain access to technology tools they wouldn't otherwise have.]]></description>
	<pubDate>Wed, 01 Aug 2007 09:02:55 -0700</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>Helping Lebanon's Displaced</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/countries/lebanon/1751/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[Mercy Corps is helping Palestinian families who've fled their homes in a refugee camp as a result of fighting between the Lebanese government and a militant group.]]></description>
	<pubDate>Fri, 08 Jun 2007 09:53:48 -0700</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>Lebanon Crisis: From Relief to Recovery</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/countries/lebanon/1108/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[Mercy Corps continues to help Lebanese families and communities recover from last summer's 34-day war.]]></description>
	<pubDate>Mon, 04 Jun 2007 07:07:55 -0700</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>In the Nick of Time</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/topics/emergencies/1547/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[Just hours after a blockade on air traffic was lifted, a Mercy Corps-sponsored 747 filled with medical goods and other relief supplies touched down in Beirut.]]></description>
	<pubDate>Tue, 19 Sep 2006 10:49:37 -0700</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>After the War, the Mattas Press On</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/topics/economicdevelopment/1551/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[Manufacturers of olive oil are pressing on after the Israeli-Hezbollah war.]]></description>
	<pubDate>Thu, 07 Sep 2006 09:14:38 -0700</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>Relief to Recovery</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/topics/emergencies/1552/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[Almost every day since July 22, Mercy Corps has delivered food and water to Lebanese people like Mahasen affected by the war.]]></description>
	<pubDate>Thu, 07 Sep 2006 08:17:06 -0700</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>Q&amp;A: In Their Words</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/countries/lebanon/1541/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[What do young Lebanese people think about the prospects for peace and development in their country?]]></description>
	<pubDate>Tue, 05 Sep 2006 07:43:04 -0700</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>Recovery Starts With a Bell</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/countries/lebanon/1540/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[Brital, Lebanon — Walking through the empty halls and classrooms of Brital Public School No. 2, principal Salah Tleis is obviously proud.
 
&quot;I helped open this school in 1992,&quot; says Tleis, whose close-cropped hair and crisp pace hint at his first career, as an officer in the Lebanese army.  &quot;Now we have more than 400 students, from ages five through 17.&quot;
 
But like many of the schools in this war-affected area of eastern Lebanon, Public School No. 2 is in need of repair, and fast: the Lebanese Ministry of Education says schools will open by the second week of October.
 
Today, thanks to Mercy Corps supporters, construction engineers are at Public School No. 2 assessing the needs and making plans for repairs.
 
&quot;This school escaped any direct bomb damage,&quot; says David Holdridge, who is managing Mercy Corps' response in Lebanon. &quot;So we'll be replacing lots of broken glass, fixing damaged door frames and blackboards, and repainting the entire building.&quot;
 
[photo=1245]right[ephoto]

In the aftermath of armed conflict, Holdridge says, it is critical to get children back to school as soon as possible, pointing out that a familiar routine helps them deal with the trauma they have just experienced.
 
&quot;In every post-conflict environment I have seen - West Africa, the Balkans, the Middle East - the key to getting kids back on track has been getting them back to school as quickly and safely as possible,&quot; Holdridge says.
 
Principal Tleis agrees.

&quot;The children here live a rough life,&quot; he says in heavily accented English. &quot;They were hearing the bombs and fighting for a month and they were very scared.  The new glass, the doors, the fresh colors - they make this a safe and more welcome place when they return.&quot;
 
Public School No. 2 is one of seven schools that Mercy Corps is repairing in the area. 
 
Throughout the 34-day conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, schools were used to temporarily house thousands of people fleeing the fighting, so the repair and refurbishment challenges are significant.
 
The Lebanese minister of education estimates that just in southern Lebanon, where the bulk of the fighting took place, 50 schools were completely destroyed and 300 had been seriously damaged.
 
With those needs in mind, Mercy Corps is working hard to get more than 40 schools up and running in the hard-hit southern Lebanon districts of Nabatiye and Marjayoun. 
 
In addition to school repair, Mercy Corps is working with local partners to give kids the tools they need to succeed when they get back to class: more than 25,000 age-appropriate &quot;back-to-school&quot; kits for students in war-affected areas. 
 
Primary school students will receive a bag of school supplies, including writing tablets and colored construction paper, pencils and pens, crayons, erasers, and other basics.  Secondary school kids will get sturdy expanding folders that include a geometry set, a scientific calculator, and an Arabic-English dictionary - all supplies that are critical to the Lebanese secondary curriculum.
 
Help Mercy Corps meet the needs of war-affected Lebanese children, please donate to our Lebanon Crisis Fund.]]></description>
	<pubDate>Sat, 02 Sep 2006 11:26:22 -0700</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>Lebanon: The Rebuilding Begins</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/countries/lebanon/1543/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[Mercy Corps communications director Jeremy Barnicle is spending the week in Lebanon looking at the prospects for the area's recovery and reporting on Mercy Corps' role in the long-term reconstruction effort.]]></description>
	<pubDate>Sat, 02 Sep 2006 07:14:30 -0700</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>Safe Access Critical to Helping Southern Lebanon</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/topics/emergencies/1524/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[As aerial bombardments and heavy fighting between Israel and Hezbollah continues in southern Lebanon, Mercy Corps continues to probe for opportunities to deliver aid to those trapped by the conflict.]]></description>
	<pubDate>Fri, 11 Aug 2006 06:16:20 -0700</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>From the CEO: 'Enough is Enough'</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/countries/lebanon/1499/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[Mercy Corps' humanitarian response has focused on the needs of displaced families in Lebanon. Estimates are that more than 700,000 Lebanese have fled their homes.]]></description>
	<pubDate>Tue, 08 Aug 2006 07:44:37 -0700</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>Aid Convoy Reaches Hard-Hit Southern Lebanon</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/countries/lebanon/1509/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[Two Mercy Corps truckloads of critical food and blankets reached Marjeyoun earlier today, one of the first organized relief convoys to reach the beleaguered southern Lebanon city since the current crisis began.]]></description>
	<pubDate>Tue, 01 Aug 2006 11:19:40 -0700</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>Letter to Secretary Rice</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/countries/lebanon/2397/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[On behalf of the undersigned U.S.-based international humanitarian and development organisations, we write to you with urgent and great concern regarding the current crisis in Israel, Gaza and Lebanon. As all parties continue to escalate this conflict,]]></description>
	<pubDate>Fri, 28 Jul 2006 08:19:06 -0700</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>Lebanon Crisis FAQs</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/countries/lebanon/1505/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[Why should I entrust my donation to Mercy Corps? How do I know that my donation is going to people in need?

With a team of more than 30 people on the ground in Beirut, Nabatiye and Baalbek, and a decade's experience in Lebanon, Mercy Corps was one of the first agencies to begin meeting the needs of the most vulnerable people during the recent crisis: the elderly, the disabled, children, and the destitute. As one of the few humanitarian agencies with a long-term presence in Lebanon, we are especially well positioned to contribute to relief and recovery needs. By the last week in August, we had reached 165,000 people with food, water, hygiene kits and educational material, diapers, blankets, and tents since the start of the crisis.

Ensuring that resources are wisely spent is the cornerstone of our values, vision and strategy for future growth. Over the last five years, 90 percent of the agency's resources have been allocated directly to programs that help those in need.

Are you helping people in Israel?

Mercy Corps acknowledges that there are people in need our both sides of the conflict. Our focus is on Lebanon because of the need on the ground and because the Lebanese government asked for our help.

Mercy Corps has been working with Israeli leaders for several years on a project that brings together members of the Israeli and Palestinian negotiating teams to study conflict resolution. 

We encourage those wishing to help Israeli victims of the conflict to donate to one of several organizations providing aid in Israel:

The American Friends of Magen David Adom, at www.afmda.org, is providing emergency service for combatants and civilian victims.The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC), www.jdc.org,is focused on providing assistance to vulnerable populations such as the elderly, children and disabled.

Can I volunteer or go to the affected area to help?

Mercy Corps is unable to use or place volunteers for this or any emergency situation. We work with local organizations and communities in responding to crisis.

Can I donate food, clothing, blankets or other items?

No. The cost to collect, manage and ship those items is prohibitive. Financial contributions allow us to purchase exactly what is most urgently needed by displaced persons. In addition, cash donations allow relief supplies to be purchased at locations as near to the area as possible. 

Is my donation tax-deductible?

Yes, Mercy Corps is a registered 501 (C) 3 nonprofit charity. Our Tax ID number is 91-1148123.

Will I get a receipt?

Yes, your online donation is followed by a web page receipt, and you will receive a receipt via email shortly thereafter. You will also receive a receipt in the mail in a few weeks.

How can I get matching funds from my company?

If your company matches charitable funds, just keep your receipt. Request a matching gift form from your employer, and send it to us at:

Mercy Corps
Matching Gifts Department
PO Box 2669
Portland, OR 97208-2669

Can I put a link to Mercy Corps on my site or blog?

Sure, visit this page for code and banners.

Can I make my donation in honor or memory of someone?

Absolutely. When you checkout, you will be given the option to personalize your donation and send a card via mail or email. 

Will you put me on a mailing list, call me or email me if I give a donation? Will you sell or trade my name with other organizations?

We will not sell, trade or share your information with anyone else. To serve you better, we may contact you in the future to inform you about Mercy Corps' response to the needs of the world's suffering people. We will offer various mailing options, so you can choose how often you hear from us. Mercy Corps will remove your name from our mailing list, email list or telephone solicitation list at any time, at your request. Please see our privacy policy and our donor pledge for more information.

How else can I help?

There are many ways to help. Organize a fundraiser in your community, church or school, or link to our web site.  Look here  for more ideas.

Can I send a donation via mail or over the phone?

Sure. Call (888-256-1900), or mail to:
Mercy Corps
Dept. W
PO Box 2669
Portland, OR 97208-2669]]></description>
	<pubDate>Thu, 27 Jul 2006 07:57:11 -0700</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>Q&amp;A: Lebanon Relief Efforts</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/topics/emergencies/1131/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[Mercy Corps' Cassandra Nelson finds overcrowded shelters and growing needs at a town an hour's drive outside Beirut.]]></description>
	<pubDate>Thu, 20 Jul 2006 10:12:21 -0700</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>Middle East Crisis: The Humanitarian Need</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/topics/middleeastcrisis/1078/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[Mercy Corps plans to begin distributing relief supplies to the most vulnerable southern Lebanon residents displaced from their homes.]]></description>
	<pubDate>Mon, 17 Jul 2006 08:36:38 -0700</pubDate>
</item>
<item>
	<title>The Mule Whisperer</title>
	<link>http://www.mercycorps.org.uk/countries/lebanon/524/</link>
	<description><![CDATA[Mohammed leads trips up sacred Mount Hermon on muleback, part of a Mercy Corps program to increase tourist-related job opportunities for rural residents of South Lebanon.]]></description>
	<pubDate>Fri, 10 Feb 2006 10:55:44 -0800</pubDate>
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