Here’s what I want for Christmas

A war that’s worth fighting:

The war on poverty is my kind of war and I’ve found a way I can wage war and win.

I’m sure you’ve all heard of microloans but Kiva.org has a kind of microloan I’ve never heard of before. You and I can be the lenders and we can lend as little as $25.00.

Kiva partners with microfinance institutions that screen entrepreneurs in impoverished communities and, through Kiva, individuals can sponsor these entrepreneurs for as little as $25. The microfinance institutions don’t have the resources to fund many loans but they are experts in picking borrowers.

Here’s a diagram from Kiva.org of how it works:

The individual entrepreneurs are listed with their pictures on the website along with their plans for the business they want to start or expand. Once you pick a business, you receive journal updates on the business’ progress. It usually take about six to 12 months before the loan is repaid.

A Kiva loan would make a wonderful Christmas or birthday gift. You make a loan on behalf of the person you want to receive the gift. Then, when the loan is repaid, they get the money. If they choose, they can recycle their gift from you into a loan to another individual. Now, that’s a progressive gift!

You can watch a New York Times video

HERE

Or one of these bags would also do nicely:
TOP 5 REASONS TO REUSE A BAG:

1. The petroleum in 14 plastic bags could drive a car 1 mile.
2. Americans use over 14 billion plastic bags annually. (That’s 1 billion miles)
3. It takes 70% more global warming gasses to make a paper bag than a plastic bag.
4. Paper bags do not biodegrade in landfills
5. Cities spend up to 17 cents per bag in disposal costs. (That’s $2,380,000,000.00)

Save the world one bag at a time! RE-USE 1 BAG TODAY!

1 Bag At A Time The website has a great flash show with some amazing facts about plastic and paper bags. I bought one of these bags today at Cupboard Natural Foods in Denton, TX. It’s a really nice, sturdy, big bag with a rectangular bottom so it stands up well. I’m going to buy several and use them for all my shopping.

These would make good Christmas and birthday gifts.