Inspired Giving through Kiva.org
Lydia Taylor August 30th, 2007
The other day I found out about a wonderful website called Kiva.org. They attempt to link up deserving entrepreneurs in 3rd world countries with willing lenders around the world. The premise is that lenders can make loans to small businesses at no interest. In turn, these businesses commit to gradually paying back the capital within a defined time period.
Kiva is a non-profit entity, so the Kiva website doesn’t take a dime of the transaction. Their overhead is entirely covered through private and corporate donations.
I think this a wonderful way to make a charitable contribution. It’s not giving without a return, it’s giving with strings. The difference is significant. As they say, “Give a man a fish he eats for a day, teach a man to fish he eats for a lifetime.” In this case the borrowers are charged with returning the lended capital.
The borrowers rarely default on these loans, and when you get paid back you can use the money or just lend the returned money to someone else. With one small contribution, you can continue to use that money to change many lives - not just one.
These borrowers aren’t just deserving people that need a leg up, these are people that are fighting to make a better life for their families and their communities. Please take the time to make an on-line visit to Kiva. With your help we can make a difference.
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- Comments(3)
I was snooping through your site and this blog article caught my attention! I have signed up and donated to a cause. Apparantly, this website has received some very favorable media attention as of late.
David, thanks for letting us know you made a donation to Kiva. It’s a fantastic charity and they need all the help they can get. Although in a way, having the whole Oprah crowd taking over recently was kind of overwhelming…almost like a treasured secret was now in the open!
Long time supporter of Kiva. Glad to see you gave them some props.