Co-Chairs’ message
Fiscal Year 2018 was another productive one for the Book Project as we worked with sponsors from across Africa, Asia, Haiti and Bolivia to coordinate the provision and distribution of thousands of text books and library books.
This year, the Book Project collaborated with the Ratna Nidhi Charitable Trust to help fulfill their mission to provide textbooks to over 6,000 schools and colleges throughout India. In the Spring of 2018, the Book Project collected and packed a twenty-foot container of textbooks which was sent to Maharashtra for distribution to schools in rural and urban areas throughout the state.
Large shipments also went out to Ghana and Nigeria this year and smaller shipments went to Haiti, Ghana and Bolivia. The Nigerian shipment, however, has proved to be a challenge, as it has been delayed in customs since its arrival in Lagos. Our colleagues with the World Bank are currently assisting us in working with Nigerian authorities to arrange for the release the shipment, and we are very appreciative of their ongoing help.
In early Spring, we also purchased over 1200 brand new books – consisting of atlases, encyclopedias and geography books – which serve to augment our shipments of used textbooks.
Finally, if you’re reading this, you are doing so from our newly redesigned website, which was launched in April, 2018. We’re very happy to have the new site and we wish to thank Ms. Gilda Dadush and WBFN for their help in making this possible.
Looking forward to 2019, packing has been completed for a shipment to Cameroon and the shipment is on its way. Presently, we are packing for a shipment to Sierra Leone and plans are in process for shipments to Senegal and the Philippines.
Laura Byerlee and Agnes Nuval
Co-Chairs, Book Project
- A total of 4,540 hours donated by active volunteers (with an average of 5-10 volunteers per day) over nine months.
- Recruitment of volunteers for the Book Project is coordinated through WBFN and includes spouses, children (minimum 16+ years of age) and relatives of World Bank staff members. Additionally, a number of volunteers are retired staff from the World Bank.
Primary Sources
Three (3) surrounding metropolitan public school districts:
- Maryland: Montgomery County, Charles County
- Virginia: Fairfax County, Arlington County (Oakridge Elementary School only, not from school district)
- Private Schools: Little Flower School, St. Stephens, Norwood, Linton Hall, Landon School, St. Patrick’s, United Nations, Sidwell Friends School
Secondary Sources
- Private donations from individuals
- Bank Staff member donations
Logistical support for warehousing, transporting and shipping books is provided by the World Bank’s General Services Department (GSD). Among its responsibilities, GSD arranges for the transfer of books from warehouse facilities to the packing room (JB3-105) of the Book Project. Once a shipment has been packed, they oversee the transfer of one or more containers from our packing room to the recipient country, including shrink wrapping pallets of books, obtaining the relevant documentation for shipments and otherwise ensuring the smooth delivery of all books from the relevant ports of departure to ports of entry.
Twice each year, the Book Project organizes a book fair where we offer for purchase used books in the areas of fiction, non-fiction, cookbooks, arts and crafts, history, biographies, memoirs and others. Proceeds raised from these book fairs are used by the Book Project to purchase new textbooks which we include in our shipments of books to schools.
Typically, these used books come to us from private, individual donations and because they are not textbooks or are otherwise not appropriate for sending to schools, we set them aside for inclusion in our book fairs.
This year, the Book Project held two book fairs, one in December, 2017 and the second one in May, 2018. For the December Book Fair, we decided to do something a little different and organized the Book Fair in-house at our packing room location in the J Building (J-B3-105). Staff members dropped by during their lunch or coffee break and not only acquainted themselves with the available books but also with the work of the Volunteers of the Book Project. Our second Book Fair was held in May in our usual venue in the MC-C1 Corridor of the World Bank, and also drew a large number of World Bank staff. WBFN provided promotional assistance in helping to get the word out through social media and from the WBFN website.
Our Donors
The Book Project could not operate without the continued generosity of our many donors from public and private schools in Maryland, Virginia and DC and, of course, the many private individuals who donate books.
We are also grateful for the financial donations we receive from private individuals and members of the World Bank staff who support our mission.
Operational Support
We are grateful for the kind and generous support we continue to receive from the World Bank family Network (WBFN) and the many individuals of the World Bank’s General Services Department (GSD), who provide valuable logistical support for all of our book shipments.
Our Volunteers
Finally, a huge thank you to our wonderful group of dedicated volunteers who work long hours sorting, stamping, packing and labeling books for shipment and also providing assistance in organizing and setting up our books fairs.