Blogging for a Cause

KIva.org, an organization I support, is participating in a "Blogging for a Cause" contest. Are you familiar with Kiva? Kiva provides a way for you to get involved with microfinance, to provide a small loan to men and women around the world who want to start or expand small businesses. Your money is pooled with other people's money for a micro-loan which is then repaid by the lender. You then get your money back and you can lend again.

My first loan for $25 was to Makbuliddin Boboev. Makbuliddin is 31 years old, married and had three children. He lives in the picturesque mountain region of Isfara, in the Vorukh district of Afghanistan. Every year, from June to July, is the season for drying apricots. At this time, Makbuliddin and his family go to orchards to gather aprictos for drying. His total loan was $600 for a 10 month term which is paid back 100%.

Although there is a small risk of default, I do not consider this charity. It is a way for your money to help empower others who are trying to improve their lives. It is your money which goes out and comes back and works over and over again.

If you haven't checked it out, I encourage you to go to www.kiva.org
And for a great introduction to microfinance, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muhammad_Yunus

Brent

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.

Life in the Slowed-Down Lane

A little update on what I am doing these days (and maybe you can help me piece it all together).

First, I am working on greening my life, house, driving, eating habits, etc. I am walking to work (when there are no tornadoes expected). I am composting. Sara and the boys planted lettuce, peas, peppers, and tomatoes in a neighbor's garden (thanks Robin!). We also signed up for a 1/2 share of fruits/veggies/herbs from a local organic farm. We pick up first box on June 1 (yeah!). For the college I work for, I am brainstorming a grassroots effort to work on sustainability issues. Working name: Culver's Green Team. Financially, I am studying the SRI movement, natural investing, and ESG investing (environmental, social, and corporate governance). This is for personal preferences and also because I hope to one day help my friend Pete with his financial planning business www.krullco.com. (Krull & Company is a financial services firm specializing in Socially & Environmentally Responsible Investing. We help you align your investments with your values.)

Second, I am working on class preparation for 2 new-to-me courses next semester. New Testament - reviewing material I have previously studied. Zen, Punk Rock, and Personal Transformation - this is an First Year Experience course, my own creation, and I'm jazzed about it. We'll listen to a lot of music, sit zazen, read Brad Warner's Hardcore Zen and work on writing skills.

Third, this summer, I will be homebrewing. The equipment was donated and I have some extra malts left over from my last try (hope this batch turns out better). If its any good, I'll let you know.

Destroy what needs to be, Love the Rest,
Brent

Emergency Help for My Friend in Mexico

I know its been a long, long time since I've blogged. The following post comes from a good friend of mine in Mexico. I can personally attest to the need to provide "food packages" to some of the poorest people I have ever had the privilege of meeting.

If you would like to help, you can email me for more information. Any small amount will go a long way to helping those who need it most. All money will go directly to the people who need it most (not to overhead, administration, etc.)

Please read on...

This has been a particularly difficult year for our country: the economic crisis, the presence each day of organized crime, the contamination problems, and now the serious sanitary crisis for the outbreak of a new type of virus that attacks the population. In general, they take us as being en a state of alert.

This is a hard test of faith for all the citizens of this country; the people fear for their health and for their security. For preventative measures, we have made the decision to send the students home, following the recommendations of the federal government.

Thinking a little of the future, we want to invite you to participate in our fund for emergencies. We know that, due to this health crisis, many people are left without employment and without means of survival. For that, we would like to increase our food and water program in communities of limited resources. If you are interested in that, do not hesitate to send me an email in order to receive more information about it.

Also, we ask for prayers. In this very difficult time for our country and for our people, there is nothing better than the protecting hand of our Lord, taking the load for us. We are convicted that without the help of God, we could not get very far.

We very much appreciate your friendship and your prayers. We will continue confiding in God and doing our work as much as we can.

We know that the crisis is the ideal time to reinforce our faith and that separated from God, we can do nothing.

We send you a great greeting.

Sincerely,
Samuel Rodriguez
IBB