History

In the weeks following the attacks of September 11, 2001, a small group from Seattle began a series of conversations to try to understand what had happened. They wanted to know what they, as individuals, could do to promote more direct and positive international engagement at a community level. None of the charitable organizations they were supporting seemed right for this level of engagement, so over the next year, they developed an idea for a new and different kind of international organization.

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Pangea Giving co-founders Allan Paulson and Linda Mason reminiscing about the early days of the organization.

From its founding, Pangea has been a community of like-minded individuals whose members learn together and pool their resources to reach out to people struggling to improve their lives in other parts of the world. Originally called World Venture Partners, we changed our name in 2005 to Pangea Giving.

Pangea Giving started with five founding members and grew to its current membership to 78 individuals and 24 circle of friends.  Since 2003, it has partnered with 45 grassroots organizations in 13 developing countries and awarded grants of over 1.5 million.

Why Pangea Now?

COVID-19 has shown us how interconnected and interdependent we are in this world. Borders have little significance in the face of global pandemic and climate change.

As global citizens, it’s our responsibility to educate ourselves and act on pressing issues in our country and around the world, from poverty to food security to climate change to the many of root causes of disparities in education, health and economic opportunity.

We invest internationally in social change and dynamic leadership in grassroots organizations. We stand in solidarity with ethnic minorities and indigenous communities in the face of marginalization in their own countries.

What Does Pangea mean?

Pangea or Pangaea (derived from Παγγαία, Greek meaning ‘all earth’) is the name given to the super-continent that existed during the Paleozoic and Mesozoic eras, before the process of plate tectonics separated each of the component continents into their current configuration.

Early members named the organization “Pangea Giving” to symbolize their desire to bring the world’s people closer together.