Holiday Gifts That Give Back

I’m sure many of you have had the experience of trying to shop for the person who has everything (I know I do). Before you buy them yet another gadget that they can’t use, think about giving gifts of charity. My family tried this last year, and it was a big hit. Below is a non-comprehensive list of suggestions. Feel free to share other ideas.

World Wildlife Fund

WWF’s mission is the conservation of nature. Using the best available scientific knowledge and advancing that knowledge where we can, we work to preserve the diversity and abundance of life on Earth and the health of ecological systems by

* protecting natural areas and wild populations of plants and animals, including endangered species;
* promoting sustainable approaches to the use of renewable natural resources; and
*promoting more efficient use of resources and energy and the maximum reduction of pollution.

We are committed to reversing the degradation of our planet’s natural environment and to building a future in which human needs are met in harmony with nature. We recognize the critical relevance of human numbers, poverty and consumption patterns to meeting these goals.

This was my favorite charitable gift last year. You can “adopt” an endangered species and they send you a plush toy of the animal, along with a certificate and frame. I got everyone one of these last year. My favorite was a bucket of frogs for my then 3.5-year-old niece. How can you resist a bucket of frogs?

This year I got her meerkats, but don’t you think this arctic hare is awful adorable?

Oxfam

We are an international relief and development organization that creates lasting solutions to poverty, hunger, and injustice. We are part of Oxfam International, a confederation of 14 Oxfams working in more than 100 countries. Together with individuals and local groups in these countries, we save lives, help people overcome poverty, and fight for social justice.

What sets Oxfam apart?

We create partnerships. Rather than provide short-term aid, we work with local communities to create lasting solutions to poverty by helping people address the root causes themselves. We rely on the knowledge and insight of those affected.

We’re independent. Among leading humanitarian organizations, we stand alone in our refusal of US government funds. We accept no money from sources that could compromise our ability to make decisions independently or to speak freely about injustice.

We work locally and globally. Oxfam is deeply committed to our community-based work, but we also recognize that there are larger barriers that can keep people in poverty. To tackle these obstacles, we do national and international policy and advocacy work.

We believe that human rights are fundamental and nonnegotiable. Oxfam adheres to the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which entitles all people to safety, a voice in the decisions that affect them, equality, basic social services, and a secure means of earning a living.
Oxfam’s reach

We’re on the ground around the world. Our regional offices are staffed by experienced people who often come from the regions in which we work and who know the local realities.

We work as part of a confederation. As part of Oxfam International, we’re able to campaign globally, uniting around some of the world’s biggest problems to achieve far-reaching solutions.

We’re there when an emergency strikes. Since Oxam is already working in communities around the world, when disaster strikes, we can be first responders—channeling funds, aid workers, and relief supplies to where they are needed in a matter of hours.

Oxfam has a holiday catalog called Oxfam Unwrapped. In the catalog you can donate money to initiatives like giving a goat to a family in a developing nation, school books, mosquito nets, water purification systems, among many other items. Oxfam will send a card explaining the gift to your loved one. These were a big hit with my family last year.

Heifer International

Bringing an End to World Hunger Through Unimaginable Blessings

Today, millions of people who were once hungry will be nourished by milk, eggs and fresh vegetables.

Families who for generations knew only poverty will be building new homes and starting businesses.

Children who once headed out to the fields to do backbreaking work will be heading into schoolrooms to learn to read.

And people who never thought they’d be in a position to help someone else will be experiencing the joy of charitable giving.

How is this possible?

With Heifer’s proven approach – almost 60 years in the making – to helping people obtain a sustainable source of food and income.

Cornerstones guide our efforts to end world hunger and care for the earth.

Long-Term Solutions emphasizing community involvement distinguish our work from that of global relief organizations.

“Passing on the Gift” means recipients agree to share the offspring of gift animals with others in need, making them equal partners with Heifer in the fight to end world hunger.

Environment and Sustainable Development is taught to our project recipients to help them achieve sustainable agricultural production.
Animal Well-Being guidelines are strictly reinforced with professional veterinary training staff.

Disaster Rehabilitation, with long-term, sustainable development the goal of Heifer’s rehabilitation projects.

How We Measure Success shows how people’s lives have permanently changed since Heifer came along.

Heifer International offers mostly livestock-based items for people in developing nations. They have a unique approach, they don’t just give someone an animal and leave, they train them on how to take care of it, how to breed it and how to use the by-products. You can choose to give goats, ducks, chickens, rabbits, geese, heifers, water buffalo, sheep, llama, pigs, honeybees and other agricultural-based gifts. They provide you a printable card or e-card to give the recipient.

MADRE

MADRE uses human rights to advance social justice. We partner with women in communities worldwide to meet urgent, local needs and create long-term solutions to the problems that women face.

Our programs areas are:

Peace Building
Women’s Health & Combating Violence Against Women
Economic & Environmental Justice

MADRE Vision

MADRE is an international women’s human rights organization that works towards a world in which all people enjoy the fullest range of individual and collective human rights; in which resources are shared equitably and sustainably; in which women participate effectively in all aspects of society; and in which people have a meaningful say in decisions that affect their lives.

MADRE’s vision is enacted with an understanding of the inter-relationships between the various issues we address and by a commitment to working in partnership with women at the local, regional, and international levels who share our goals.

MADRE offers a variety of gifts. You can buy fair trade crafts and you can also donate to specific programs like prenatal care, counseling for child soldiers in Colombia, emergency shelters for Afghan women and sewing machines for indigenous women, among other items.

Falling Whistles

Falling Whistles gives a small window into our world’s largest war. Originally just a journal written about boys sent to the frontlines of war armed with only a whistle, readers forwarded it with the same kind of urgency in which it was written and demanded to know – what can we do?

The Falling Whistles campaign launched with a simple response – make their weapon your voice and be a whistleblower for peace in Congo. Read the story and buy the whistle. Proceeds go to rehabilitate and advocate for war-affected children. Share their story and speak up for them.

Together, we’ll become the voice of a growing coalition for peace in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

I came across this organization when I was researching this post. You can buy a whistle and the proceeds go to their organization which helps rehabilitate child soldiers in Congo. You also get a nice piece of jewelry in return.

Kiva

We Let You Loan to Low Income Entrepreneurs

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 to unique entrepreneurs around the globe.

The people you see on Kiva’s site are real individuals. When you browse entrepreneurs’ profiles on Kiva, choose someone to lend to, and then make a loan, you are helping a real person make great strides towards economic independence and improve life for themselves, their family, and their community. Throughout the course of the loan (usually 6-12 months), you can receive email journal updates and track repayments. Then, when you get your loan money back, you can relend to someone else.

Kiva partners with existing microfinance institutions. In doing so, we gain access to entrepreneurs from communities world-wide. Our partners are experts in choosing qualified entrepreneurs. That said, they are usually short on funds. Through Kiva, our partners upload their entrepreneur profiles directly to the site so you can lend to them. When you do, not only do you get a unique experience connecting to a specific entrepreneur on the other side of the planet, but our microfinance partners can do more of what they do, more efficiently.

Kiva provides a data-rich, transparent lending platform. We are constantly working to make the system more transparent to show how money flows throughout the entire cycle, and what effect it has on the people and institutions lending it, borrowing it, and managing it along the way. To do this, we are using the power of the internet to facilitate one-to-one connections that were previously prohibitively expensive. Kiva creates an interpersonal connection at low costs due to the instant, inexpensive nature of internet delivery.

Mohammed Yunus and Grameen Bank won the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize for pioneering microcredit. Kiva lets you buy gift certificates for your loved ones so that they can start lending to potential entrepreneurs. The gift certificate recipient can go to the Kiva website and look for projects they wish to finance.

This is not an exhaustive list. There are lots of worthy charities like the American Cancer Society, Doctors Without Borders, the Food Bank of Delware and Autism Delaware. Please add your ideas and suggestions to this list in comments.