The Brilliance!

It isn’t often that we take time out of our oh-so-busy lives to stop being super important and in a hurry for a second and think about other people. Face it, humans by nature are mostly concerned with themselves. I’m certainly guilty of this myself. But I’m trying - really - I’m trying to open my eyes to the importance of things like volunteering, participating in some kind of charity, or donating some of what I have to the places and people who have very little. But one thing some of these people out there in the world do have is hope and a dream or an idea. Enter KIVA.org. The concept behind what KIVA is doing is absolutely brilliant and truly puts a smile on my face. Their tagline is “Loans that change lives.” KIVA “...lets you lend to a specific entrepreneur in the developing world - empowering them to lift themselves out of poverty.” In other words, you go through the site, find a struggling business somewhere in an impoverished area, decide what you are comfortable with, and you lend money to a budding business. Thus making you a donator to the working poor. Microfinance truly simplified and made easy to get involved with. And don’t worry, your money isn’t going to King Savimbi from Nigeria who has $48M waiting in a bank account for you after you give your credit card number. This is totally legit, totally pure. From their press section as quoted from CNN Money, “If you’ve got 25 bucks, a PC and a PayPal account, you’ve now got the wherewithal to be an international financier.” This really just goes to show a little can go a long way. Some of these people are asking for as little $400 to start their business!! It shows how much money is still needed for each needy business, shows pictures, and gives very good descriptions of what you’re donating your money to. I love this, I really do. Keep in mind too - this is money you are lending! As loans are repaid, you get your money back. It’s win-win, honestly. Check it out and do what you can if you are in a position to help.