May 31, 2007 - 10:48am — Robinbird
Be the Banker
My family thought my little sister would be a banker. They way she hoarded money was both commendable and somewhat worrisome. However, paths easily diverge and she's now an obesity health educator and... a newly minted microfinancier? Huh?
Enter Kiva.org and c4-world.com, cool websites that connects developing world entrepreneurs with folks like my sister. Here's a blurb about Kiva from the esteemed New York Times:
- “For those readers who ask me what they can do to help fight poverty, one option is to sit down at your computer and become a microfinancier. That's what I did recently. From my laptop in New York, I lent $25 each to the owner of a TV repair shop in Afghanistan, a baker in Afghanistan, and a single mother running a clothing shop in the Dominican Republic.”
C4-World is a different from Kiva in that C4-World investors can expect a return on their investment and can contribute knowledge in addition to money. Similar to Youth Venture's Genv.net, C4-World is building an online community to share best practices. Both are worth checking out.