--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, tartbrain <no_re...@...> wrote: <snip> > I recently finished, and highly recommend, "Banker to the > Poor" by the guy who won the Nobel prize for his work in > implementing and promoting micro-finance for the world's > poor.
Such a fabulous concept. I gave a small chunk of money to the microloan organization Kiva via the Web a couple of years ago, and it's been one of my most satisfying donations, because it keeps *renewing* itself. You choose folks to lend to from a list, and as the borrowers pay back their loans, the funds become available again for new loans. To the donor, it feels as if you're donating over and over again even though you aren't. (Of course, you can always increase the amount you give Kiva to work with.) Point being, there's a huge psychological satisfaction component to this arrangement that you don't get with many other donations, which from your end just seem to go down a black hole. I think that must be part of what makes microloan setups work so well. There are no doubt other organizations on the Web that are doing the same thing as Kiva, but here's its site if you want to have a look to see how it works: http://www.kiva.org Minimum amount to donate for the loan program is $25. (Oh, and you can also get your money back once it's repaid. No interest, just whatever you gave in the first place.)
