donorschoose.org

This is another of mine and Oprah's favorite things.  Donorschoose.org is an online charity that makes it easy for anyone to help students in need.

Okay, first things first, if you are doing any shopping for books or CD gifts, go to Borders today or tomorrow, December 4 or 5, for Borders Super Classroom Days and any customer making a purchase will get a $15 gift card to make a donation to a classroom on Donorschoose.org.

There is also another a completely and totally FREE way to support donorschoose.org.  See?  I am just like Oprah.  Speaking of...as one of Oprah's favorite things this year, Bing is donating $1 million to education.  You can get Bing to donate $1 simply by clicking, so at the very least I think you all should go and do that.

You can also go directly to Donorschoose.org and choose a classroom project to fund in someone else's name or buy them a gift card so they can choose their own classroom project.

Lastly, if you know of a project on donorschoose.org that you want to mention, post a link in the comments!

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robin hood foundation

Anyone who knows me will soon learn why I am so excited about today's posting.  It's about cheese.

Give an artisanal Cheese of the Month Club and a contribution will be made to the Robin Hood Foundation to fight hunger.  How novel...fighting hunger with food! 

Okay, first of all...cheese.  Enough said.  Second, I have a huge philanthropic crush on the Robin Hood Foundation.  Since 1988, the Robin Hood Foundation has targeted poverty by applying sound investment principles to philanthropy, helping the best programs save lives and change fates.  $25 is all it takes to provide 3 meals a day for an entire week.

At Robin Hood, 100% of your donation goes directly to programs helping poor New Yorkers.  

You don't have to buy cheese to help out Robin Hood.  You can make donations or tributes, register for gifts, or buy cards or party favors.  And thanks to a matching grant in effect right now, your donation will get matched dollar for dollar and have twice the impact.

I'm not done yet.  Check it out...there are other FREE ways you can help out the Robin Hood Foundation.  You can donate your FB status or tweet a message in support of the Robin Hood Foundation and promote this awesome organization to your friends, family, and community.

And one more cool thing for music lovers...

Tomorrow, December 4, join Sheryl Crow at Irving Plaza for a concert to benefit Robin Hood. One general admission concert ticket ($250 - $130 of which is tax deductible) will provide 300 meals for hungry New Yorkers.  And you get to rock.  With Sheryl Crow.  And there's an open bar.  Win win win.

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drawchange

at the Fatima School in Cartago, Costa Rica

This organization was started and is run by a friend of mine that I met during my first trip to Costa Rica.  Jennie was so inspired by the magical power of art on underprivileged kids that she whipped up her own little 501(c)(3) called Drawchange dedicated to aid global change by supplying the world's children with art supplies.

Pretty awesome, right?

I love the big guys, but I can't think of a better organization to support with a donation than a personally-inspired, grassroots one like Drawchange.  As if helping impoverished kids see the beauty of life isn't enough, Jennie also shows us all that one person is capable of.  Donate some money or some scissors.  At the very least, go and make their acquaintance on Facebook and find out more about what these guys are doing to keep art alive for kids.  Muchas gracias y pura vida!
 

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(RED)

Today, December 1, is World AIDS Day and (RED) needs your help turning the world (RED) and drawing attention to the efforts of eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV by 2015.  (RED).

The (RED) campaign works with brands to create unique products which give up to 50% of their profits to the Global Fund to invest in HIV and AIDS programs in Africa.  (The Global Fund, in case you were wondering, gives 100% of (RED) dollars to HIV/AIDS programs in Africa, including interventions targeting women and children.)  There are actually some really cool products in the catalog.  For instance, I've always been a big fan of the (RED) Hallmark cards.  Or if you're in the market for a candle or a laptop, they've got those, too.

I support this particular cause because it's about time global corporations start using their power for the good of the planet, don't you think?  And if we are going to be consumers anyway, I think we might as well buy products that also benefit the world in some way (and not just corporate profit margins).  Campaigns like (RED) also continue to raise awareness (even though I'm sure we are all aware of the horrific AIDS crisis in Africa) and hopefully remind most of us of how lucky we are and what we should be doing to help. *step down*

What if you're done with your holiday shopping?  I hate you.  Just kidding. But there are a bunch of other ways you can support the campaign.  Today, you can turn your Facebook profile photo red, post a tweet, or unlock the (RED) badge on foursquare to show your support of RED. Also, do all the major landmarks look red to you?  Yeah.  That's (RED) illuminating the world’s most iconic landmarks (RED) to raise awareness of the goal of an AIDS Free Generation due in 2015.

If you don't want to buy products but still want to contribute, you can go directly to the United Nations Foundation site where you can make a contribution to the Global Fund inspired by (RED).

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