After months of build up, the day is here...Blog Action Day 2008 and the focus is on poverty. 11,400 sites/blogs are participating with an estimated audience of 12,428,109 people. Amazing.
Now, if every single one of those people did one small thing to help bring awareness to the mind-boggling issue of world-wide poverty, or contributed just $5 to a relief agency, can you imagine the impact that would make?
NOTE: SEE MY CHALLENGE TO YOU AT THE END OF THIS POST.
Last night I was watching The News Hour and there was story about the downward spiral of Zimbabwe that the political upheaval has wrought on the people. There was a long shot of a man, dressed in a suit, hanging out on a huge garbage bin going through it looking for anything to eat and pouncing on each new dump of garbage. It made me cringe and nearly brought me to tears.
One of the ways I -- and you -- can make a difference in the lives of millions of people is by getting involved with Kiva.org.
Kiva's mission is to connect people through lending for the sake of alleviating poverty.
I've been a micro lender to Kiva since January. I made 2 loans that have been repaid and currently have 3 more loans that are being paid off.
Why do I do this?
The idea of helping people take responsibility for their own life and success is important to me. Making a loan is not the same as giving money. These entrepreneurs borrow small sums, maybe a few hundred dollars, and improve their business.
By investing in their business, an entrepreneur helps not only him or herself, but also their family and their community. A $25 loan can make an enormous difference in the life of an entrepreneur in Peru or Nigeria or Togo. You can see my lending profile to see the businesses I'm currently lending to. So far, repayment has been 100% and I put the funds back into a new loans to entrepreneurs.
Kiva is a Blog Action Day partner AND this week won 3rd place in the American Express Member's Project which means they won $300,000 to invest in even more entrepreneurs in developing countries.
I have joined the Blog Action Day Lending Team and challenge you to do so as well. All it takes is $25 to make a HUGE difference.
THE CHALLENGE:
I will contribute $10 for every person who reads this post and joins the Blog Action Day Lending Team and funds at least one $25 loan.
Post a comment on this post and let me know you became a lender and include the link to your lending profile.
At 5 p.m. Pacific Time I'll add up the new lenders who have submitted their link and make my new loan to one or more deserving entrepreneur.
Let's join forces and help change the world!
