Gifts Which Give Back
By Jenn (TinyChoices.com) | December 6, 2007
In this season of Buy! Shop! Spend!, I thought it would be neat for us to share ideas on “alternative gifts”– those which might not come in a big box, but do come from a big heart. Be sure to share your favorite charities in the comments!
“Malaria, from the Medieval Italian words mala aria or “bad air,” infects more than 500 million people a year and kills more than a million— one person dies about every 30 seconds. The disease is particularly devastating in Africa, where it is a leading killer of children.
Despite the magnitude of the problem, there is a simple and cost-effective solution to prevent malaria deaths. For just $10, we can purchase a bed net, deliver it to a family, and explain its use. Bed nets work by creating a protective barrier against mosquitoes at night, when the vast majority of transmissions occur. A family of four can sleep under an insecticide-treated bed net, safe from malaria, for up to four years. The benefits of bed nets extend even further than the family. When enough nets are used, the insecticide used to deter mosquitoes makes entire communities safer—including even those individuals who do not have nets.”
Simplify your gift giving this holiday season – dedicate a tree and fit everyone on your list! Planting a tree is a powerful gift of life during the holidays and all year.
You can dedicate a single tree for $25 or a grove of five trees for $100. Beautiful!
“The Elephant Sanctuary exists for two reasons:
To provide a haven for old, sick or needy elephants in a setting of green pastures, old-growth forests, spring-fed ponds and a heated barn for cold winter nights.
To provide education about the crisis facing these social, sensitive, passionately intense, playful, complex, exceedingly intelligent and endangered creatures.”
For my birthday this year, my dear friend Lorelei gave me the gift of feeding Ronnie for a day. The sanctuary also sent me a profile/photo of Ronnie, and their newsletters. I feel honored to be connected to this gorgeous lady, if only in a small way.
And check out the Elecam!
Blood:Water Mission is partnering with groups and individuals to empower Africans to build healthier communities through sustainable clean blood and clean water solutions, while developing social responsibility in the U.S. through initiatives that provoke personal engagement and ownership.
$1 = ONE YEAR OF WATER FOR AN AFRICAN
YOUR ONE DOLLAR WILL SAVE A LIFE
Through Farm Sanctuary’s Adopt-A-Farm Animal Project, you can fill a loved one’s heart with joy, spread the message of compassion for all living creatures, and help farm animals all at the same time! A gift sponsorship not only provides food and shelter for a needy farm animal, it creates a lasting bond between the adopter and the animal.
As I wrote about on “Happy Adopt-A-Turkey-Day,” I am a proud sponser of Luna. I’ve just received her portrait in the mail, along with the Farm Sanctuary newsletter. I kind of really love Luna…
The mission of One Laptop per Child (OLPC) is to empower the children of developing countries to learn by providing one connected laptop to every school-age child. In order to accomplish our goal, we need people who believe in what we’re doing and want to help make education for the world’s children a priority, not a privilege.
Since November 12th, OLPC has been offering a limited-time Give One Get One program in the United States and Canada. During Give One Get One, you can donate the revolutionary XO laptop to a child in a developing nation, and also receive one for the child in your life in recognition of your contribution.
Bogo Flashlights:
As discussed in a previous post, these supercool solar flashlights are a twofer gift– buy one for yourself or as a gift, and a second flashlight gets donated to an individual who needs a safe, reliable source of light.
What are your favorite charitable gifts?
Related Reading:
Beliefnet’s Top Ten Unusual Ways to Give
Topics: General | 5 Comments »
Just Give (justgive.org) actually let’s you buy a gift certificate for someone and they get to log on and decide which charity (ies) to give the money to.
Even if the recipient doesn’t give one to an organization focused solely on sustainability, you’re enabling and encouraging someone to make a difference in areas that he/she believes in and sparing someone from wasting/throwing away a material item that they really don’t enjoy.
Thanks, Michelle, I love this idea!
My fave gift to give is a subscription to Teaching Tolerance, a mag from Southern Poverty Law Center – it gives great ideas for promoting respect on our diverse planet! http://www.splcenter.org/center/tt/teach.jsp – click Donate to make a donation in honor of a friend.
karen
[...] here and here are some tips. Also start to research alternative gifts, like donation – check here and here! If you want to generally gently key down the holiday, evaluate different ways of giving [...]
My favorite charity gifts come from a UK charity called FARM-Africa. They have a website called FARM-Africa PRESENTS, where you can give a fun, quirky present to your lucky chosen person this Christmas (camels, goats, tree nurseries) AND help change lives in Africa.
Have a look at their site: http://www.farmafricapresents.org.uk