My idea would be something along the lines of this - that someone (initially I thought me, but I doubt I've got either the brains or the time) could set up a shop, probably online, where people could buy goods to help the poor and suffering, which would then get sent to the charities or organizations working with those who need it. It could be just like amazon or other online buying sites (or even become part of one who knows?) only instead of paying for stuff and having it sent to you you could buy say a hypodermic needle, parts for a well, leprosy vaccinations or materials to build a temporary shelter and then pay to have it flown to a third world country of your choice.
I guess this idea came out of a general desire to contribute to the poorest people in the world, but being in a very flexible financial situation (as well as being more than a little bit greedy and lazy I'm loathe to admit) I find this £2 a month business a bit hard to contemplate. While I definitely think we should give in this way and without charities doing the work my idea would be useless but I think this kind of idea could help someone who wants to give, but is not sure how or if they can afford to have money withdrawn from them constantly. Using this kind of system you could make a one off donation and know what the effect was. You could even make one off donations to charities through it, perhaps rectifying the people like me who would maybe use it to avoid regular giving.
Well that's my idea roughly - any takers?
OK, well I'm sure something similar is going on, and I doubt I'm the only one with that kind of idea and there are a few related sites that I will share with you now.
Kiva.org is the first I'll talk about and the one I'm most interested and since it's an official partner to Blog Action day it's not a bad start!! I've been really impressed by what I've seen on their website and it seems a really good way to give directly and make a direct impact on someone in poverty. Kiva is a micro-lending organisation, members of the public through them lend money (as little as $25) to an individual or a group in poverty to support their business or livelihood, people can contribute small amounts to a larger loan of around $1000 or more. What's interesting is it's done as a business so it is a loan, you will get repaid as the entrepenur's business grows and they get out of poverty - though this will naturally be a gradual process, and of course there's no such thing as interest in this arrangement. I think this idea is fantastic, you can contribute directly to people who are being held back by poverty, you know you are making a difference to an individual or a group and you even get your money back - I'm almost reaching for my wallet as we speak. If you haven't come across them before I strongly reccommend you take a look.
If you want to give to charity but aren't sure how then there's a way with agoodcause.com I'll admit to being a bit cuatious when it comes to these software download thingies, so I haven't signed up myself, though it seems like a good idea. Essentially through them every time you make a purchase on Amazon, Apple store or anywhere else then a donation will be made to charity - at no cost to you!!! I personally want to know a bit more before I sign up, and I'm slightly worried by the amount of dating companies that are signed up, but it's definitely worth a look at at least.
Right I think that's all I've got to say other than to encourage you, and more importantly me, to be active in giving to those who don't have what we have, whether it's through one of the sites above, or regular giving or even being involved. I've just demonstrated without much effort that there are ideas we can come up with and there are multiple ways to give so why not take action and give one a try? Have a look at the action day site for more ideas - I think I've got a link somewhere.
Word of the post: Malaise –noun
| 1. | a condition of general bodily weakness or discomfort, often marking the onset of a disease. |
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