Friday, June 19, 2009

WEBSITE: United We Serve

President Obama is asking people across America to get involve in giving back to their communities. This website provides volunteer opportunities according to the location and type of work. It also has tools and a wealth of information for those who would like to start their own service project and/or event.

Check it out here: Serve.gov

WEBSITE: MIT OPEN COURSE WARE

Free course materials for a variety of topics from the Art of Rock Climbing to Information and Communication Technology in Africa. This is a great site for people who don't have the time or money to take courses, but wouldn't mind just learning on their own and at their own pace.

Having free access to learning materials that are typically taught in the undergraduate and graduate levels of universities would give others, who may not be able to afford to attend college to still learn on their own. This is also a great way to have an open discourse on course materials being taught among academia to improve and fine tune theirs.

Check it out here: MIT OPEN COURSEWARE

Saturday, June 6, 2009

PROFILE: Wokai

I found out about Wokai from one of the volunteer coordinators at work. I mentioned my interest in microfinance and she said there is an up and coming organization that is similar to Kiva but with a focus on rural China. That was a couple of months ago and my involvement with Wokai has not progressed much other than joining their Facebook group. A couple of days ago I got an email from the group asking the members to blog about Wokai as part of a campaign called "Blogging For A Cause" by Zementa. So please check out Wokai, which translates to "I start" in Chinese, and its mission statement below:



What is Wokai?
Wokai delivers an internet microfinance platform that allows individuals to provide Chinese microentrepreneurs with loan capital. Our organization acts as an intermediary in this process, transferring funds from contributors abroad to microentrepreneurs in China through our field partners.

Who does Wokai support?
A typical Wokai microentrepeneur is a female rural inhabitant, living on less than $1/day. Her microfinance loan, ranging from $150-$300 dollars, provides her with the capital to start a small business. Her business varies by location, raising sheep in a rural grassland or operating a small fruit stand in a city center.

With her income, she accumulates savings, which allows her to allocate money towards long-term investments like education and health. By the end of her loan cycle, she has experienced increased financial independence, bolstered self-confidence, and a strengthened sense of community.

Learn more and contribute today at http://www.wokai.org.

This blog post is part of Zemanta's "Blogging For a Cause" campaign to raise awareness and funds for worthy causes that bloggers care about.

Friday, June 5, 2009

EVENT: Kiva and ACCION - June 15th, 2009



Repost from Kiva.org Blog:

"For those in New York City, join Kiva and ACCION on Monday, June 15th, for a bLENDer!

Please help us spread the word and don't forget to RSVP by emailing: bLENDer2009Invite@gmail.com"

Click here to see the flyer.

I've been to networking events with speakers from both Kiva and ACCION and they are always engaging. Kiva has been particularly successful in generating media awareness with its mission and is probably one of the more well known players in microfinance. ACCION USA is a strong local presence in the NYC area so the pairing of these organizations should make for an interesting and informative night.

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

WEBSITE: Microfinance Gateway


Microfinance Gateway is one of the most comprehensive online resources relating to microfinance. The section that I check out most frequently is the Library. You can search for published reports on various microfinance topics and the reports can be downloaded free of charge.

Currently I am in the middle of reading Community Investment Fund: A Study in Andhra Pradesh. This report is of particular interest to me because the microhealth insurance NGO that I volunteered for is in Hyderabad, which happens to be A.P.'s capital. If you are the least bit curious about microfinance, I have no doubt that you will find something of interests in Microfinance Gateway.

Contributors