5. It isn’t a handout (lender) – From a lender’s perspective microfinance is excellent because you get to directly effect somebody’s effort to better their lives. And once you have aided in bettering the community you get your money back so you can do it all over again! With just $25 you can continually lend to new, enterprising individuals. This is seriously rewarding. Start now.

4. It isn’t a handout (recipient) – People who work hard and earn the things they have are more responsible with them than those who simply receive a handout. This is not a new concept. Having a sense of empowerment and control over your destiny is an exceptional motivator.

3. Women – An overwhelming number (97%) of participants/recipients in global microfinance are women. This suggests microfinance helps to correct discrimination in capital markets.

2. Loan repayment rates – According to kiva.org’s records the loan repayment rate is 98.3% (default rate: 1.7%). Grameen Bank’s default rate is 2%. This is far superior when compared against the 60-90% default rates in some of the same region’s commercial sectors. It also bests default rates in the United States which is approximately 4%.

1. Anybody can participate – It has never been easier for average individuals to make a difference. Take 4 minutes to setup a Kiva account now and change the world!

* This blog post is part of Invoke’s participation in the 2008 Vancouver Blogathon for Charity

Earlier this year, while hanging out with the CTO of Kiva.org, I was introduced to Shawn Smith who runs Global Agents for Change. At first I wasn’t drawn to what they were doing because it sounded a bit odd: ride bicycles from Vancouver to Tiajuana in an effort to raise awareness and money.

Once we got to talking, I realized that this is actually something much more than a bike ride. It is a massively empowering organization, and it also has a dynamic, driven leader in Shawn.

Overview:

* Global Agents organize innovative and sustainable projects such as their Riding to Break the Cycle bicycle tours, university based Microcredit Challenge, and The Catalyst – a youth run magazine on social change

* They provide funding and mentorship for young social entrepreneurs (ages 12-18) with projects capable of meaningful impact, and work with teachers and schools to speak with young people about the power of youth to shape their world

* They are building the world’s largest youth run microcredit fund, supporting hundreds of developing world entrepreneurs in their struggle to escape poverty and tangibly connecting young people to global issues

In my opinion, one of the most import things GlobalAFC does is empower youth to understand they they CAN make a difference. Little things add up but don’t be afraid to go big too! I saw this first hand at their second annual gala which Invoke helped to sponsor. Agents from all over approached the mic and told what they were doing to make a difference and some of the stories were mind-blowing. From that moment we knew this was a serious organization doing exactly what they said they would and we wanted to be a part of it.

Word on the street is there will be a 3 or 4 week bike tour in Europe next year. Time for us all to start training!

For more information check out the Global Agents for Change website.

Since facebook opened their social networking site to the public in September 2006 (prior to this, you had to be attending a US University), it has become a resounding success. Currently, there are 63 million active users on facebook and it has grown at an astonishing rate of 125% per year. I’ve been on facebook since January 2007 and have found it to be a great source for connecting with my friends and organizing events.

In May 2007, facebook opened their platform to developers to create applications that users could add to their profiles. This brought an onslaught of zobmie bites, sheep tossing, what’s your stripper name, and applications of similar ilk. But through the noise, there was some great applications that were developed. Some were useful in sharing your interests to your friends, like ilike. There are also applications that allow you to support and raise money for your favorite charities.

The most popular of these is the Causes application. Causes has registered 12 million users, with 95,886 daily active users, who are now supporting more than 80,000 non-profit causes worldwide. $2.5 million has been raised for 19,445 different 501(c)(3) charitable organizations.

I’ve had the causes application on my profile for close to a year now, and I am supporting: Invisible Children – who have raised $21,220 through facebook, One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) who have raised $6,321 through facebook, and my new one Team Diabetes Easter Island. This is a great way to let your friends know what causes are dear to you, and if so inclined, to help support your cause. Other charitable organizations have seen the resounding success of causes and have started to develop applications to help drive awareness and social consciousness.

Invoke in conjunction with Lochmaddy Foundation and Lundin For Africa is working with Kiva to help them develop an application to help raise awareness and funds to help support their cause. Kiva’s mission is to connect people through lending for the sake of alleviating poverty. Kiva is the world’s first person-to-person micro-lending website, empowering individuals to lend directly to unique entrepeneurs in the developing world.

The facebook Kiva application lets a user grow their funds by using the facebook platform as a means of soliciting friends for monetary contributions. The Kiva Facebook application has 2 core features including one that simply isn’t available to Kiva users outside of this application.

• New users can create accounts, browse businesses, loan, and track their loans just like they can on the Kiva.org site.
• We have a new feature that allows passionate users to solicit contributions to a large pool of funds for a single user to manage. This creates a scenario where people who think Kiva is an excellent service but dont necessarily have the time to manage an account can still make a difference. It also allows for many many small donations to be pooled and have a huge impact. These managed accounts will be non-withdrawable.

Also, the application increases the brand awareness of Kiva by posting news feeds when specific actions occur. The end result is that a Kiva user can lend to more entrepreneurs and non-Kiva users can contribute without having to having to manage their own funds.

The Kiva facebook application is set to launch in mid to late June. I know that this will be an application that I will add to my facebook so that I can do my small part in raising awareness and funds to this worthwhile cause.

I think that this move towards social responsibility reflects the need and desire of our generation to get involved and help make the world a better place. Today, it is easier than ever to get your voice heard and get involved in organizations that matter to you. Facebook is just one avenue for this and I think that these charitable applications make up for every zombie/vampire bite and sheep toss I received.