Remember a while back, when I did a blog post about Kiva? Kiva is an organization that facilitates microloans: you use your Paypal account to lend money to a small business in the developing world. Kiva vets the entrepreneurs, then through their website, they connect entrepreneurs with lenders. You can pick the amount you donate, and it can be a small or large amount, depending on your resources.
When I first heard about Kiva, I searched their pool of entrepreneurs looking for knitting or fiber-related business. At the time, an influx of publicity had resulted in Kiva not having any entrepreneurs to fund -- they'd all been funded. But someone on Ravelry drew my attention to this group, a Bolivian collective that creates knitted sweaters, scarves and other garments to sell. The group still needs lenders, so if you're so inclined, check it out.
Way cool- they reached their loan amount!
ReplyDeleteCarol, thank you for highlighting Kiva on your blog. I think this is one of the coolest organizations around. Our family gives eachother gift certificates to Kiva for birthdays and Christmas. Even the younger members of the family participate, to teach them about money and social responsibility at a young age. I am so delighted that the knitters co-op has been funded. Hopefully your readers will find other borrowers worthy of their bucks!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great blog post! Thanks
ReplyDeleteThanks Carol! When I first heard of Kiva, I was seriously underfunded myself. Now I have a little to spare and thanks to you, it's going to do some good.
ReplyDeleteJude