What are Your Favourite Things?

I discovered this gorgeous video via The Serendipity Factory.- an absolute treasure trove of serendipitous finds that will make a difference to your day! Enjoy!

My Favourite Things from kidswithcrayons on Vimeo.

What is Our Environmental Legacy?

Image via Wikipedia

I am haunted by a picture I saw some time ago, of a man standing atop a dead blue whale, hacking it up for processing. I can't understand how this awe inspiring creature of the deep could be treated with anything less than incredulous wonder and how they could have been hunted to near extinction - between 1900 & the mid-1960's some 360,000 of them were killed (national geographic). What were people thinking back then?

While most of the world has stopped whaling, we are all still threatening the existence of these magnificent creatures - acidification of the seas, use of sonar, increased sea-going traffic, overfishing, cluttering the oceans with our rubbish . . .

What pictures will haunt my children and grandchildren and leave them shaking their heads at our thoughtless stupidity?

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• Blue Whales Return To Former Alaska Waters (huffingtonpost.com)
• The Soliloquy of the Blue Whale (environmentalgraffitti.com)
  

Do Your Home Work

I was reading this great article form Yes! Magazine today - 31 Ways to Jump Start the Local Economy. I've come away feeling all inspired.

The ideas aren't earth shattering. As my venerable father commented, if we looked back to the time when he was growing up, many of the suggestions in the article, such as buying less, fixing things, putting down roots and being part of the community, were the norm.

My favourite idea is:

Do home work parties. Each month, go to a different household to do major home greening, a garden upgrade, or some deferred maintenance.

I can see that would be such a positive and uplifting thing to do in Mataura. The town is a little bit run down, and people don't have a whole lot of money. I would love to pull together some funding and help people to fix their homes, tidy their gardens and make the town look a little more loved. It would help create such a sense of pride in our town and community spirit.

I don't want to give you the wrong idea about Mataura. We have plenty of beautiful homes with well kept gardens that people obviously take pride in.

Wouldn't it be great if all the homes could look like that? And rather than bemoaning the fact that some people can't, or won't, maintain their houses why don't we step in as a community and help each other out?

10 Online Resources to Help You Become an Expert for Your Cause

Image by degreezero2000 via Flickr

If you are going to be an effective advocate for your favourite charity you need to arm yourself with as much knowledge as possible (preferably related to your cause!). The internet is a great way to do this - if you know where to look.

Here's a list of 10 great places to go for information and discussion about the causes that you are passionate about:

1. Alltop is like an online magazine rack of popular topics and the stories are updated every hour. To find out more about your cause, simply type it in the search box. My favourite channel is Alltop Good - for all you need to know about doing good!
   
   
2. Addict-o-matic lets you perfom a search for your topic and creates a custom page with the search results that you can bookmark and refer to later. It searches on Twitter, Google, Friendfeed, You Tube, Digg, Flickr and more
   
   
3. Twitter is a cool micro-blogging/social networking tool that allows you to build a network of like minded people. Its amazing what you can learn from 140 character soundbites!
   
   You can find people to follow using tools like Twibes (groups of Twitter users interested in particular topics. I love the Philanthropy Twibe) or Twellow (the Twitter yellow pages).
   
   A great way to find Charities and Non-Profit organisations that use twitter is to check out #charitytuesday
   
   
4. Charity Evaluators such as Intelligent Giving and Charity Navigator can help you to choose a charity that is going to make the most efficient use of your donations. So you can be sure that your money is actually going to make a difference rather than be used to fund the organisation's operating costs!
   
   
5. Your chosen charity will more than likely have a website. Be sure to check it out. It should have plenty of information about the charity organisation - what they do , who they help, success stories and testimonials - as well as background information about the cause they work for.
   
   
6. Squidoo is a great place to find out more about the Cause(s) you are passionate about. People create Squidoo Lenses about a whole range of topics - simply search for the one that interests you.
   
   
7. GiveWell is a Charity Evaluator that conducts in-depth research on charities to help people accomplish as much good as possible with their donations. They focus primarily on how well the programmes work. So if you want to be sure that the charity you donate to is really having a positive effect on the people it serves - this is the place to find out!
   
   
8. Causecast is a place to explore issues and connect with a community of people wanting to make a difference. Its chock full of great information!
   
   
9. Big Think is a great place to find out what other people are thinking about your favourite cause. You can join in and share ideas or just read through what others have to say. They have a great collection of really interesting and knowledgeable experts on a variety of topics. It is a fascinating site!
   
   
10. Just Cause is a great site to find information about your favourite cause as well as inspiration to help you make a difference.
    

Where do you go to find out more about the causes you are passionate about?

Are You a Rebel with a Cause?

Image by Blondi000 via Flickr

In times of economic turmoil, non-profit organisations need their supporters more than ever. When there is less money to go around, there is usually more need - and when you put that together with the fact that donating to charity is often first to be cut from the budget when money gets tight, you can see how charity organisations are caught between a rock and a hard place in the midst of recession.

Supporting the cause that you are passionate about isn't just about giving money. There are plenty of things you can do that can help your favourite non-profit out that won't cost you anything but a little of your time. Not that some financial support isn't needed - but if you are not able to give that just now, try some of the things below. You can make a difference!!

1. Become an expert
If you want to become an effective advocate for your cause, you need to be informed.

Read widely, talk with people who understand the cause you support, talk with people who have differing opinions from yours so you are aware of all sides of the issue - even if you disagree wholeheartedly!

The more you know the better you can answer other people's questions, counter other people's arguments and spread awareness about the cause you are passionate about.

2. Spread the word
Most charities don't have a ton of money to spend on marketing (and are often condemned if they are perceived as spending too much money on advertising) so they appreciate the work of their supporters bringing awareness to the cause!

3. Donate things you no longer need
You may (or may not) have spare cash to donate, but charity organisations need more than just money. You can donate clothing and other items to your local goodwill store, material scraps to your local school or pre-school, outgrown toys to the women's refuge . . .

4. Vote with your wallet
Be aware where your money goes. You may not be able to give money to support your cause - but by spending mindfully you can make sure you are not supporting companies and industries that go against your values.

5. Volunteer
If you have some time on your hands, consider volunteering for your favourite charity. Even if you only have an hour or two a month, you can make a difference. Volunteers are the lifeblood of most non-profit organisations.

6. Find ways to give for free
There are plenty of great opportunities to support causes you believe in online that cost you nothing. From Care2's Click to Donate, to Better the World, to Everywun . . . not to mention all the Facebook applications that donate money to charity.

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What Causes do You Donate to?

Share your favourite charities in the comments below.

Blog to Save the Atlantic Forest

Image via Wikipedia

The Atlantic Forest needs your help!

It is one of the most endangered forests in the world according to The Nature Conservancy. In the last 100 years it has been reduced to only 7% of the area it once covered - and the deforestation is continuing.

SALVEASERRA is a fantastic organisation working to restore the Atlantic Forest by educating farmers about sustainable agro-forestry.

Farms in the Rainforest were opened with non-sustainable production methods that led to severe soil, water and landscape degradation which in turn led to increasing rural poverty and migration to the cities.

SALVEASERRA have pioneered a unique, two-pronged approach which addressess both the degradation of the environment and the plight of the rural poor. Local farmers are trained in agro-forestry technology and vegetable garden production to help them achieve more lasting and profitable agricultural results, be more self-sufficient and to take care of the environment.

Want to help SALVEASERRA restore the Atlantic Forest?

All you have to do is blog about them - and get as many people as you can to join with you!

How will that help?

Well . . . the clever folk at Zemanta have been working with Social Actions, an initiative that aggregates civic causes from more than 50 databases, to create a tool that recommends charitable causes to bloggers while they write. In recognition of their great work they were awarded 2nd prize at the Change The Web Challenge.

Zemanta have chosen to donate the $3000 prize money to charity - and the good guys at Social Innovation Greenhouse @ Weber Shandwick have generously offered to match that donation. But its up to bloggers to decide who gets the money.

The 5 charities with the most blog posts get to share the money!

What can SALVEASERRA do with its share of $6000? Plenty!

Consider this:
$50 buys 50 seedlings of fruit, palm or other rainforest trees
$100 makes it possible to plant and care for 30 of those trees
$50 buys 1000 vegetable seedlings such as lettuce, broccoli and carrots
$600 takes 30 community members for a full day environmental education programme
$2000 will donate an irrigated, organic vegetable garden that will feed 5 families and provide surplus produce to sell at market.

You have until the 6th of June to get your post out there and help SALVEASERRA! Find out more here.


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.

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