07 octobre 2012

Something to consider

If you’re like me, you probably have a common problem when it comes to charitable giving: you want to give money to help to help those in need, but you’ve just heard too many stories of fraud, peculation, and abuse. Charity staff embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from food funds. Supposedly upright charities being a front for organized crime.  Charity managers gambling away donations. Or maybe just the old Nigerian email phishing scam. It’s called charity fraud, it’s a real problem, and it keeps a lot of people who would otherwise be willing to donate from contributing.

Well…not to sound like a scammer, but I may just have a solution for you: TREES. It’s not a big project, and it’s not flashy or sexy – heck, they don’t even have much of a website – but it’s direct, it’s realistic, and you’ll know exactly what your money is going to buy.

So what is TREES?

Put simply, it’s a project that isn’t trying to do anything big. All it wants to do is help one group of tree farmers in one village buy one set of equipment to help them improve their lives. However, its size is, in my opinion, its strength: you can see exactly what it is that you’re paying for, you know exactly who it is that you’re helping, and at the end of the day you know exactly how your money will be spent. It’s simple, accountable, and will actually do some good.

At this point, I suppose I should provide some disclosure: TREES is a project that’s being run entirely by my significant other. Strictly speaking, this represents a conflict of interest. However, I can say in all honesty that I would be fully supporting this project even if I had never met Elizabeth. It’s exactly the sort of project that the world needs more of, and if you’re looking for a way to donate money where it will make a real difference, this is absolutely the way to go.

So please: if you’ve found any enjoyment out of reading this blog, donate to TREES. Many of you have stated in the past that you wanted to donate to my Peace Corps projects. Since that sadly isn’t possible now, I would encourage you to consider TREES instead. It will be helping out the exact region where I was posted, and it’s very much the sort of project that I would be working on, if I were still in country.

Thanks so much.

To donate, please click here.  Please note: they’re an aid group, not a website design company. Donations are safe and secure (I myself have donated), but with the best will in the world, Amazon it ain’t. Thanks for your understanding.