Today is Blog Action Day 2008, and this year’s topic is “Poverty”. Unfortunately an increasingly appropriate subject given recent events in the global economy. More and more people are finding themselves unable to make ends meet on payday, and and increasingly large groups of people - even whole cities and countries, are on the verge of failure because of economic shortfalls.
It is easy to view this issue as being large enough to be unmanageable by any one individual, but it’s important to remember every little bit counts. We can make a difference - even one small step as a time.
The Internet can be an effective tool for helping to fight poverty. A few years ago I started a Christmas tradition with my kids, where they go through the World Vision or, in Canada, Plan Canada, web sites, and purchase goods for other children in developing countries. It’s a simple way to keep in their mind that not every child gets a mountain of toys during the holiday season.
I went online and picked a couple of local causes that automatically get $10 a month from my bank account. Organizations in my area like United Way and the Red Cross are usually happy to get this kind of gift, and using this technique I can give more than if I was asked to make a single lump-sum donation.
Finally, one of the most innovative programs I’ve come across is the micro-lending site, Kiva. It’s less a donation site, and more of an investment in global entrepreneurship. The basic idea is to link people who are able to invest relatively small amounts of money (by North American standards) with people who want to start up a business or project, but need working capital to get things moving. Their mission is ” to connect people through lending for the sake of alleviating poverty”. It really is worth checking out, and is an excellent example of how small steps in the global community can have a commulative effect through the power of the Internet.
