Whether we’re talking about a small village in Haiti or an inner-city in New York, history has shown us time and time again that one of the most impactful ways to break the cycle of poverty is through education.

Here are some global facts about education and poverty that might surprise you:

A single year of primary school increases wages earned later in life by 5% to 15% for boys and is typically even higher for girls.

For every year of secondary school, a child’s future wages will increase by 15% to 25%.

No country has EVER achieved continuous and rapid economic growth without first achieving a minimum 40% literacy rate.

A child born to a literate mother is 50% more likely to reach their 5th birthday.

So when it comes to having a social, humanitarian, or community impact, the best thing you can do is to contribute to education. The truth is in the numbers, and it’s crystal clear that education is breaking the cycle of poverty — one child and one family at a time.

The reality is that we can’t expect children to do better if they don’t know better. When their own parents are stuck in survival mode and uneducated themselves, how can we ever expect things to change? Children are the most vulnerable creatures in the world yet millions are left to fend for themselves with no hope for a better future.

Did you know that in Haiti alone there are currently 400,000 children surviving without parents?

With the odds stacked against them, children who are unlucky enough to be born into desperate poverty have no hope of living a decent life or of helping their families to survive. But when, as a community, we can come together to help these children, we can quite literally change the course of a nation.

In countries where the government doesn’t value education or support social initiatives, such as Haiti, there are no programs or assistance whatsoever for children or families in need. When 90% of a country’s schools are private, it means that most children don’t get an education because they simply can’t afford it.

But what happens when education is provided to disadvantaged children and communities? What happens when these children learn valuable life skills and receive a healthy lunch throughout the week they would otherwise go without? The trajectory of their life changes. Their entire community is impacted as the new generation becomes of age and is able to give back to their community in a way that simply wasn’t possible before.

So if you want to donate — if you want to give back in a way that is truly impactful on the world — give toward education. Give the gift that changes lives and communities over multiple generations. Then, sit back and watch as your seemingly small gift empowers a nation to help themselves.

Here at L’ecole Dinas Mixed, our mission is to provide free education to Haitian children who are eager to learn and gain the skills required to lead healthy, productive lives. Our program shines a light on the poorest country in the Western hemisphere and empowers disadvantaged children to break the cycle of poverty.

Even the small donations have a massive impact.