Download the new Switched app for your iPhone

Skip to Content

Click on a label to read posts from that part of the world.

Map of the world

4 Generations: A Water Buffalo in China

Last month, blogger Philip Greenspun wondered aloud on the morality of charitable organization Heifer International's questionable "Helping Hooves" program, designed to give an Asian farmer a much needed water buffalo for a $250 donation. A good idea perhaps, but upon reading the fine print, Philip found out that no actual water buffalo is delivered to an Asian farmer. Instead, "the money simply gets dumped into the common fund at the charity."

Enter Robert Thompson, a musician living in China who, after reading Philip's blog post, set out to purchase an actual water buffalo (in financial collaboration with Philip and Craig MacFarlane) and give it to a real farming family in need. Robert -- video camera in hand -- recorded the process of searching out a young water buffalo, finding a family, and delivering the animal. What follows is a beautiful 7 minute video of the entire process, from conception to delivery.

What a great story.

Click on the image below to view the video in a new window:

[via Kottke]

Filed under: Arts and Culture, Learning, Blogs, Stories, Asia, China, Video

Related Articles From Our Partners

Search Travel Deals

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Gadling Features

Categories

Become our Fan on Facebook!

Gadling on Facebook

Featured Galleries (view all)

Dim Sum Dialogues: Bangkok
The King Tut exhibit in SF
Flea Market Finds: Brooklyn
East of Africa: Ilakaka
Amsterdam's Floating Flower Market
Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo
Air France Inaugural A380
Roatan, Honduras
New Zealand Icebergs

Our Writers

Grant Martin

Editor-in-chief

RSS Feed

Scott Carmichael

Executive Editor

RSS Feed

View more Writers

Autoblog Green

DailyFinance

Download Squad

Engadget

Joystiq

Luxist

Switched.com

FanHouse

WoW