The wise man does not lay up his own treasures. The more he gives to others, the more he has for his own. - Lao Tzu
With the economy foundering and the media conjuring up images of depression at every opportunity, the idea of generosity may seem a bit of a hard sell.
In reality, now, more than ever, is the time to dig deep and give what you have to help others in need. Take a look at the list below to see why giving generously is good for you - and the recipients of your largesse:
Almost half the world population live on less than $2.50 a day If we all do what we can to share our 'plenty' with those less fortunate, it will go a long way to alleviating poverty both globally and in our own communities.
Being generous can boost your immune system A study by Cornell University found that volunteering increases a persons energy, their sense of being in control of their life and their self esteem. Several studies have documented that these sorts of positive emotions strengthen the immune system.¹
Generosity makes you less fearful Generosity is a great form of greed control. It helps us to let go of the fear of not having enough, and end the 'cycle of clinging and hoarding'¹ that goes with it.
What is more, by prioritising generous giving we create an attitude of abundance which allows us to give even more.
Generosity creates community Generosity is not just about giving. It is about generating possibility, about creating hope, dignity and opportunity. While a lack of generosity leads to despair and alientation, an abundance of generosity builds community and connects people.²
Lack of generosity is at the root of many of our 'personal, societal, national & global problems'² Generous attitudes and generous actions can help solve even seemingly intractable issues like poverty and climate change. By being generous we become less afraid of what we might lose and more creative in finding positive solutions to our problems.
Image via WikipediaHotelsCombined are donating $20 to charity if you take the time to spread the word about their service on your blog!
You can choose to donate to WWF, Make a Wish or World Vision.
And all you have to do is give HotelsCombined a quick write up!
Don't have a blog? Become a fan of their Facebook Page and they will donate $5.
In September they donated $155 . . . How nice is that? HotelsCombined is a unique search engine that consumers can use to find hotel availability and rates, and to compare prices and offers from multiple merchants. Using their service, you don't have to search websites one by one to find the best deals and lowest rates. HotelsCombined does that all for you!!
Once you find the supplier suitable for your needs, they link you through to the supplier website to book directly.
What's more, they aren't paid for your booking - so you get the full picture about each hotel before you book.
So, help them spread the word - and raise some funds for your favourite Charity!
FundraisingIP.com has compiled a list of the 15 most popular online fundraising applications. Well worth a look if you are planning an online campaign.
"Which one is the right one for you? First, make a list of what kind of services you need: online payments and tracking, online auctions, volunteer management, marketing, e-mail campaigns, website design and hosting? Anything else?
Then - remember that each of these services is in business to make money from the groups that sign up with them - compare services and fees of three to five of the fundraising services listed. Fees to consider are one-time setup fees, any monthly fees and per transaction fees. Some fees might be higher or lower depending on how much you collect in donation dollars.
Each of the websites below provides a variety of services, some which might be useful for your group, some won’t. Be sure you don’t pay for services you don’t need and that the customer support offered is sufficient for you. Of course, make sure the website itself appeals to you and is easy to use!"
Image by uncultured via FlickrIt was Blog Action Day on the 15th of October - some 12000 bloggers joined in the conversation about Poverty.
Here's an interesting post from DailyBlogTip on how the 'internet is giving people their voice back'.
"The Internet is basically democratizing the access to information and making the world flat. Here is what Bill Gates once said about it, and which summarizes the point well:
"If you had a choice, thirty-five years ago, between being a B student in the Bronx or a genius born in Bangalore, there is no question; your life opportunities would be so much better if you were a B student in the Bronx. You could be a super-genius in Bangalore, but you really couldn’t translate that into anything. When the world is flat, it is just the opposite. You do not want to be a B student in the Bronx, because every genius in Bangalore can now plug and play more directly than ever.""
The First of its Kind, ECHOage Parties Inspire Children to Celebrate Giving, While Reducing Their Environmental Footprint
TORONTO, February 26, 2008 – Want to make your child’s birthday party more meaningful? Looking to cut back on all the plastic you-know-what in the house? Now – with a new concept in gift giving for children’s birthday parties – both can be achieved! ECHOage (www.echoage.com) is an innovative online party planning website that provides a unique opportunity for children and parents to support those in need, help protect the environment and inspire others to follow in their footsteps, all while helping parents save precious time and money.
According to ECHOage’s co-founder, Alison Smith, “ECHOage is convenience and conscience wrapped up in a big green ribbon!”
Regardless of the party theme, location or size, ECHOage adds a meaningful component of charity giving – not just receiving -- to traditional birthday celebrations, giving children a practical, hands-on way to make a difference at the time of their birthdays. With ‘One Gift, One Cause’ as the company’s mantra, the site pools gifts of money from guests so that a portion goes towards one special gift for the birthday child, and a portion goes to a single charitable cause of the birthday child’s choice --making it easier than ever for parents and children to give and receive. How it Works It’s easy to ECHOage any birthday party, no matter where or when it will be held. Parents and children planning a party begin by choosing from a variety of creative and fun online invitations through echoage.com. Next, they sit down with the birthday child to choose from a selection of charitable causes that ECHOage has screened and selected based on a demonstrated track record of hands-on, practical and results-focused work that improves the lives of children and benefits the environment. To date, participating charities include Nourish America, EarthCorps, International Child Art Foundation and Girls Inc, and in Canada, Evergreen, Camp Oochigeas and Second Harvest, with more planned.
Invitations are sent via email and instead of bringing a wrapped gift, guests are asked to make a secure online donation of $10 to $30 dollars. After deducting a small administration fee to sustain the cost of the service, ECHOage sends half of the party proceeds to the child’s chosen charity, and remits the other half to the party’s host towards the purchase of one really special and more meaningful gift for the child, from all of his or her party guests. The child receives his or her dream gift while learning valuable lessons about giving and quality versus quantity. The host even receives a tax receipt for the portion donated to charity.
The ECHOage Tracker easily allows party hosts to send invites, track RSVPs, and send thank you notes and reminders. The ECHOage Tracker even gathers important parent contact details and critical allergy information about guests, underscoring the site's commitment to helping children and parents be worry-free at birthday parties.
Key ECHOage Benefits:
Time saving and convenient – Easy-to-use website saves time and money for hosts and guests. NO MORE SHOPPING, WRAPPING OR RETURNING GIFTS!
Cause-Oriented – With a selection of charities to choose from, the birthday child and family together select which one to support – it’s a great opportunity to open a dialog with your child about giving.
Environmentally sound–Electronic invitations and thank you notes save trees, and guests avoid driving to buy gifts and wrapping paper to wrap them – plus, one meaningful gift instead of many gifts that end up unused or re-gifted.
Educational – Using ECHOage together with your child provides a fun yet impactful way to teach kids about giving, charity and protecting the environment.
“Children are full of creative solutions to environmental and social issues and the impact they can make on this world is extraordinary,” said Debbie Zinman, co-founder of ECHOage. “Our dream is that ECHOage parties will help members of our youngest generation recognize that they can make meaningful choices that have a positive impact on others.”
About ECHOage ECHOage was founded and created by two mothers – Alison Smith and Debbie Zinman -- who believe that children can improve the world, one birthday at a time. Based in Toronto, Canada, ECHOage is an innovative online party planning website that provides a unique opportunity for children and parents to support those in need, help protect the environment and inspire others to follow in their footsteps while also helping save precious time and money. For more information about ECHOage, go to http://www.echoage.com.
Want your Digital Philanthropy to be easy and at no cost to you?
You need to visit Improving Your World. All you do is choose a cause and vote for it! You can vote once a day - so be sure to bookmark the site. Donations are paid for by corporate sponsor's advertisements and the money is donated based on the percentage of votes each cause receives.
So get to it! Choose a cause . . . Click . . . Improve the world!!
If you have had to cut back on your charitable donations recently, or you feel that you are not able to make the impact you would like with only small donations, then perhaps you should consider joining or setting up a Giving Circle.
Giving Circles are the bookclubs of the giving world! A group of people who get together to learn about their community, global issues and philanthropy. They pool their donations and decide collectively where to give their money. This way they can leverage the contributions of their members to make substantial, meaningful gifts to non-profit organisations.
If this sounds like something you would like to get started in your community, check out the 10 Basic Steps to Starting a Giving Circle at GivingForum.org.
Image by thinkjose via FlickrI started out raising money for SALVEASERRA in July. I had no experience, but lots of good intentions and plenty of passion for the cause.
So far, I have to admit, I haven't raised vast wads of money for them. I have sold a few t-shirts at We Add Up - but still not quite enough for them to pay out. The How to Make a Difference Toolbar has earned just over $100 - but once again, not quite enough for Conduit to actually pay.
There is so much to learn - and so little information out there for people like me. Individuals who are starting from scratch trying to build up a fundraising 'brand', get the word out there for a worthy cause and build a network of donors and supporters. Given that, I thought I would share three important things I have learned about online fundraising in the last month:
It takes time to build credibility and create momentum If you are just starting out in the world of Online Fundraising, then immediate results are unlikely unless you already have a sizeable network of potential donors.
So don't give up if nothing seems to be happening straight away. Keep your name and your cause out there and remember . . .
Social Networking is the Key I used to think Twitter was kind of weird and stalker-esquebut in the last month I have become a convert. Not only has it been the path to some really useful sites and information (and some not so useful but equally appreciated), but it has been a steady driver of traffic to my blog. And everytime I get a new follower I feel so special!!
There are some great tools out there if you want to make the most of Twittering for your cause - check out my list of favourites on Delicious. If you have any more that really work for you please let me know!
Facebook has also been sending a fair percentage of my daily traffic. I don't actually do a great deal with Facebook - other than have my blog feed and Twitter feed display on my profile. Perhaps my next focus should be to look into how I can make Facebook really work for me!!
Visiting other blogs has also been of real value. Not just for the great information and inspirational writing. I have found that taking the time to comment on other people's blogs has helped me to become involved, in a small way so far, in the greater community of bloggers. And, it does have the added benefit of getting my blogging efforts noticed as well!
You have to ask If you want people to help you, you have to ask. If you want people to read your blog, you have to ask. Do you want comments and discussions for your blog posts? You guessed it, you have to ask. And if you want people to buy a t-shirt or download a toolbar to help raise money for charity - well of course, once again, you have to ask! (Please buy an awesome t-shirt from We Add Up - and download our fantastic How to Make a Difference toolbar!!)
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