Sunday, January 24, 2010

2010 Charities

In 2010, I'm planning on supporting two great charities: Kiva and Wine to Water. I chose these two charities for a couple of reasons:
  1. They make great presents: Kiva's gift certificates and Wine to Water wine.
  2. They help two cause passions of mine: Microfinance and clean water.
  3. They are legit: Backed by the Skoll Foundation and CNN.
  4. They have an educational value to them: Getting younger generations involved in microfinance and clean water issues.
  5. They believe in social media: Kiva's Blog, Wine to Water's Facebook and Twitter.
Now you know why I love them, but let me tell you a little bit about each of them, so you can love them too!

Kiva's mission is to connect people through lending for the sake of alleviating poverty. Imagine creating an online stock portfolio, but instead of investing in large multinational corporations your investing in people. You can check out entrepreneurs' profiles on Kiva, choose who you want invest in. Your investing in human being, who is striving towards economic independence and thus improving the lives of not only themselves, but their family and community. With a 98% return on loans, you can reinvest that money into another individual within 6-12 months.

Wine to Water is focused on providing clean water to needy people around the world. Over 1 billion people in the world today lack access to adequate water and sanitation. The first miracle Jesus performed was turning water into wine. Being Christ-like, Wine to Water prays that those who have plenty of water can help provide someone who is less fortunate with the gift of clean water. This can be done by buying Wine to Water wine or hosting a Wine to Water fundraiser.

Who are you supporting in 2010?

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