When people think of global poverty, their mind often goes straight to the misconceptions of ending global poverty. These misconceptions include that we give too much money already, starvation will help overpopulation, and we have poverty here why should we focus on them. In fact, we actually give much less than most Americans expect. We are the only country that could help end global poverty and still have the most expensive military in the world. What most people don't understand is that if we increased our aid to countries that are in need, we too can benefit.

1. It can create U.S. jobs

Global poverty is a topic that many people overlook because either they feel there are more important issues to focus on or they don't think helping end poverty has any benefit for them, but that is not not the case. Small investments in the poor can have big returns for the U.S. Foreign Policy magazine describes the world's poor as the largest untapped market on Earth. History has shown that as people transition from barely surviving into consumers it opens new markets for U.S. companies and creates American jobs. In fact, 1 out of 5 U.S. jos is export-based and 50% of our exports now go to developing nations. 95% of all potential consumers of all U.S. goods and products live outside of the United States. Which is why, in 2012, more than 50 major companies including Google, Pepsi, and Microsoft sent a letter to Congress urging them to increase foreign aid. For American farmers and businesses to prosper, the U.S. must be globally engaged and investing in transforming poor regions into consumer regions. In the end, aid equals investment which equals new jobs.

2. It can prevent terrorism spreading

When the issue of global poverty is brought up, a lot of people jump to "why should we focus on global poverty when we have it here". There are a couple of reasons for this actually. When we focus on global poverty it can help eliminate the threat of terrorism. If you look at the top ten dangerous countries they are amongst the poorest in the world. While poverty doesn't turn the poor into terrorists, poverty, weak institutions and corruption can make weak states vulnerable to terrorist networks. By helping develop these poverty ridden states, we can lessen the threat of terrorist organizations spreading. Besides decreasing the threat of terrorist organizations, helping develop poor nations means we can spend less on military endeavors. According to former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, "Development is a lot cheaper than sending soldiers." Many past generals have called for support of bills that will lead to the end of global poverty. They believe that investments, non-military tools of development, and diplomacy foster economic and political stability of a global state. Proactively investing in stronger societies and human welfare is far more effective and efficient than responding after state collapse

3. Poverty can help end overpopulation

The issue of overpopulation confuses many people. When overpopulation and poverty are mentioned many believe that poverty can help stop or slow overpopulation but it is the exact opposite. The areas where poverty is high are the areas that suffer from overpopulation. When people know their kids will die they keep having more, when they know their kids will survive they have less kids. The higher the death rate the higher the birth rate will be. Addressing global poverty and keeping children alive is crucial for reducing overpopulation. Poverty, lack of education and poor health all lead to high birth rates and overpopulation. BIll Gates said, "The key thing you can do to reduce population growth is actually improve health." The United Nations projects that the population in the 48 poorest countries in the world will double from 850 million in 2010 to 1.7 billion in 2050. Where rapid population growth far outpaces economic development, countries will have a difficult time investing in the human capital needed to secure the well-being of its people and to stimulate further economic growth. It is simple really, less poverty equals less overpopulation.

Ending global poverty is something that can benefit us all. Learning how to help and the real facts of poverty is something that should have a larger focus. Hopefully we can be the ones to put an end to global poverty.