Kiva.org

 

4

34

Lili G.

San Francisco, CA

What a great way to help others! I learned about kiva.org on NPR and find it very inspiring: My 14 years old daughter browsed the site, read a lot of profiles and chose to help women from Ecuador and Nigeria. We will also buy gift cards as they make great holiday gifts!

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Elite '08

155

119

Lucas O.

San Diego, CA

I've been Kiva-ing for a good year and a half now probably, and it's pretty much the greatest thing I've ever found for a po' boy like myself to make a substantive difference in the world.  The beauty of it is the renewable aspects.  Not just the obvious- the loan is paid back and can then be re-lent, but also the notion that this is not a hand out.  This is teach-a-man-to-fish territory in the best possible way.  This builds communities, skill sets, local, regional and national economic bases.

As previously mentioned, the gift-card options are fantastic, and in fact most of the money that I've put into Kiva has been in this fashion.  I've also found that picking out a specific loan opportunity that suits the person receiving the gift also works well.

Most of all, this is just one of many fantastic elements of bottom-up change in the world. People have been waiting decades for governments to put this stuff together and for whatever reason, it isn't happening. Over the past few years, everywhere I turn I find people taking positive change into their own hands and making good things happen.  Would that I could support them all, but in the meantime I Kiva.

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Elite '08

25

48

Kevin F.

San Francisco, CA

I just made another loan through Kiva; this one to a rickshaw driver in Pakistan.  This is my 7th loan through the site and it is awesome... as in AWE-inspiring...  simply amazing how a little well-placed money can make such a profound impact to another family in the developing world.

If you've already made a loan through Kiva then you know how rich an experience it is.  If you haven't, then it is definitely worth the time to tour the site and contemplate the possibilities.  For me, this is a bit reminiscent about how my grandmother used to make lots of small donations through disparate institutions... even through Christian institutions that would channel some of the money to Israel.

There's an extremely diverse set of entrepreneurial projects ranging from a grocery store in Uganda, to a general store in Iraq, to a used clothing store in Peru, or a food market in Kenya, to maybe the more frivolous, but no less important... cosmetic sales and beauty supplies.  The last few months have been absolutely tumultuous in Pakistan... and there are many businesses that could use startup capital--hopefully providing a bit more stability for everyone.

Yes, there's a chance that you might not be repaid (although Kiva's current default rate is a paltry 0.2%; other microfinance institutions report 97% repayment rate).   But for me, the investment is not so much monetary (although it is great to get repaid so i can reloan!)... but much more about forging connections and making the world feel just a little, tinsy-insy bit smaller.

What difference does one small loan make?  To be realistic, probably not much.... But try to tell that to the individual recipient... or their families and neighbors.

Who knows how our little bit of faith might be reciprocated in the future?

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Elite '08

392

324

Veronica V.

San Jose, CA

I was introduced to Kiva through linkedin.com.  There has been a lot in recent news about micro-financing with economist Muhammad Yunus winning the Nobel prize for his successful concept of microcredit; a logical way to help people who want to be self sufficient.  Pair this with an intuitive and functional website and you have Kiva, one of the best sites I have encountered.

I have given to a family run clothing company in Mexico, a craftsmaker in Peru and other projects around the world, all from the comfort of my home in San Jose, CA.

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Elite '08

298

310

Bucky K.

San Francisco, CA

I wasn't sure about completing a review for my involvement with Kiva because I find it much easier to write about ways that I act like an ass or embarrassing myself. I don't want this to be "Why Bucky should be beatified" because that sure as hell isn't the case. In the grand scheme of karmic scales I feel like I have a ways to go til the balance creeps out of the negative. I don't want votes or fans as a result of this review, just take a few minutes and click on Kiva.org.

Kiva's business is facilitating micro-lending to borrowers in third world countries. The borrowers are typically small business owners or entrepreneurs asking for relatively small amounts of money and these loans are given at incredibly low interest rates. You peruse the site, figure out who you would like to loan money to in increments of twenty-five dollars and with the click of a mouse your money goes to help someone who is trying to help themselves. Once this loan is paid back, you are given the option of collecting your twenty-five dollars or rolling it over into another borrowers account. It's that simple and easy. Twenty-five dollars... that's it. (Ugh, why do I feel like Sally Struthers all of the sudden??) As the loan is getting getting repaid you get frequent updates and are given the opportunity to communicate with the borrower through e-mail if you wish.

Here are some reviews of Kiva from people much smarter and better spoken than me:

The Chronicle: http://www.sfgate.com/...

The New York Times: http://video.on.nytime...

Oh and by the way Kiva is a Bay Area company whose offices are in San Francisco! Now I am going to put my soap-box away and do what I do best....
buttsnifflefartgiggle!!!

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Elite '08

213

318

Tom D.

Washington, DC

My best use of $25 dollars in 07 -- my first loan and certainly not my last -- good cause, empowering and inspiring for all involved -- and fun!

Gift cards make for a great holiday gift!

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230

117

d d.

San Francisco, CA

I first heard about Kiva on NPR when one of my favorite journalists, Nicolas Kristof of the New York Times, was promoting ways for us to help fight poverty in the developing world. Before you yawn and click away to the Talk Boards, please just put aside your mouse for a moment.

At Kiva, you don't donate money; you lend it. You'd basically be playing banker to the poor, who have absolutely no access to affordable credit. Your loans help aspiring small-business owners fund their projects, allowing them to develop their careers and inch closer to economic independence. Loan amounts start at $25, and the terms typically range between 6-24 months, at which point the borrower will repay you.

It's important for me to note, Kiva doesn't post lurid and dramatic sob stories; it simply gives a background of the borrower and states why that person needs a loan. You'll be able to view the borrower's photo, loan amount, and country of origin. There's no guilt trip here; you loan because you want to. And once you start loaning, your heart will be changed.

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1

15

Jeannie R.

Palo Alto, CA

A really, really rewarding experience!

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Elite '08

310

500

Irene S.

Oakland, CA

do this.

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36

102

Ann P.

San Francisco, CA

I really like microfinancing and have lent $50 to a woman in Cameroon to buy a pig. It seems like every month or so I get an email saying that a loan installment was paid. I'm earning interest on this loan. My plan is to invest about $1000 through kiva and just keep rolling it over and over and over into more loans. And in a sense let past loanees fund future ones.

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Elite '08

190

999

Rachel R.

Santa Clara, CA

Wow!  I think Yelp is super useful, but even if it were good for nothing else, I would have to love Yelp for introducing me to Kiva.  You get to change someone's life in $25 increments.  You get to see a picture of and read a story about the person you are helping.  To top this, 100% of your loan goes to the entrepreneur.  PayPal isn't taking a slice.  Kiva isn't taking a slice.  You get back what you loaned (no interest or profit) and the entrepreneur pays interest to the local "Field Partner" who coordinated the whole loan.  It's a fabulous system!

Here is my lender profile: http://www.kiva.org/le...

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64

1166

Diana B.

New York, NY

www.kiva.org is an organization through which you can make a small (or larger) loan to an aspiring business person somewhere in the world. She/he will then, hopefully, be successful, even in a small way, and repay you.

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Elite '08

135

335

Steven N.

Pacifica, CA

I just made my first loan here. I don't want to call it a donation because you get it back. But it is really nice to use your own good fortune to help someone else in need. I just found out about this tonight and I've already given a small amount. It seems like the perfect model to empower someone else in their own business endeavor. A perfect opportunity for someone who has some cash sitting in their Paypal account because, Yes they do take Paypal.
12-29-07
here's some more info-
http://www.sfgate.com/...

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0

13

rebecca m.

San Francisco, CA

FINALLY, a great idea to help those in need...that actually WORKS!

thanks kiva.org
great work!

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185

265

Gur E.

Hayward, CA

I donate to Kiva and lend via Kiva as well.

I plan to lend more often through Kiva and I am glad that Paypal does not take a cut for the money I give via Paypal.

Kiva is providing a great service and it allows people like me to donate/lend to make someone's life a bit easier.  I simply annot believe how far $25 goes in other parts of the world.  

I sometimes blow $25 on one meal where as it could help someone with inventory so they can be self sufficient and provide for their families.

I just got a $100 check for a medical claim that I forgot about.  I will lend it via Kiva.  It would be nice to lend 20K at some point in the future, I will get there at some point in my life.

Kiva -- Good job folks.

Why only 4 STARs?  I wrote to them and they actually did not reply to my last email.  Must be super busy.

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Elite '08

52

324

lisa w.

San Francisco, CA

i just found out about kiva.org, read their mission statement and info about microfinance and immediately picked a lovely woman in togo to receive my loan.

the best part about it is that kiva.org is available to people like me who don't have lots of cash to donate but still want to make a difference (you can make loans in as small an increment as $25).

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4

37

mike c.

San Francisco, CA

i used to think prosper.com was a great idea until i found kiva.org.

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