Make a loan. Change a Life!

Good Evening!

Ahhh… a brilliant idea that bridges the gap between two passions of mine: Entrepreneurship and Humanitarianism. This time of year, most people are so invested in politics (watching  ”False Fronts” running for our nation’s presidency), that they care little about their own social responsibility. Instead of throwing money to an individual’s campaign that is probably going to go towards a commercial trash talking an opponent, why don’t you invest it in something worthwhile! 

Lets face it- we are all not millionaires. We would like to say, “ If we had a million dollars, we would like to help others just as much as we try to help ourselves.” Well folks, lets get real and talk about the options that don’t pop up on lottery tickets.

What I am talking about is Micro financing, or Micro lending. According to Wikipedia (yes I am quoting Wikipedia—face it, you would have done the same), Micro financing envisions, “a world in which as many poor and near-poor households as possible have permanent access to an appropriate range of high quality financial services, including not just credit but also savings, insurance, and fund transfers.” Instead of donating, which to an entrepreneur is a” return-less” investment, micro financing creates common good for both parties. In plain text: You give someone money to start something they are passionate about, and in turn, you get your money back and the warm fuzzy feeling that you made a difference. Everyone knows there are risks. For one, you are taking the chance to lend to people who don’t have the promise to pay you back. In any investment there is risk- and to be compelled to contribute to a noble cause, makes the risk that more attractive. I have found a website that truly embraces this idea.  Read below for the amazing-ness known as Kiva!

Description of Kiva from their website:

“Kiva lets you connect with and loan money to unique entrepreneurs in the developing world. By choosing a loan on Kiva, you can “sponsor a business” and help the world’s working poor make great strides towards economic independence. Throughout the course of the loan (usually 6-12 months), you can receive email journal updates from the entrepreneur you’ve sponsored. As loans are repaid, you get your loan money back.”

Please view the video below from the founders of Kiva. They share their inspiring story about how Kiva started and how they strive to make the world one big global village. Rather than viewing other countries as underdeveloped and taking tremendous pity on them, why don’t we empower them with the same tools that many of us our granted with?

 

There are links below for the Kiva site . . . it is one of the best investments I have made all year.

 

Kind Regards,

 

Taylor