Combine Online Giving and Holiday Shopping with Charity Gift Cards

Last week I wrote about sites that combine holiday shopping and philanthropy by making online giving and gifting as simple as a series of clicks. Featured were worthy nonprofits like Strummerville and World Wildlife Fund (WWF) along with other cause-based retailers such as TOMS Shoes, TOMS Eyewear, Warby Parker, Moraleyes, SKECHERS BOBS, Seven Virtues, Sevenly, EDUN, Krochet Kids, Kourage Athletics, (RED), ONEHOPE Wine and Project 360.

The shopping for good concept also includes charitable gift cards which offer more options for those interested in giving the gift of charity. This is the perfect gift for the difficult-to-buy-for philanthropists on your list as they allow the recipient to choose the cause or borrower that the funds will be allocated. A few fine examples are:

• Kiva is a nonprofit organization with a mission to connect people through lending to alleviate poverty. Leveraging the internet and a worldwide network of microfinance institutions, Kiva lets individuals lend as little as $25 to help create opportunity around the world. Kiva is an organization that we support full-heartedly as it appeals to both the entrepreneur and philanthropist in us. We have been supporting Kiva’s microfinance lending through our null since June 2009 and we have proudly financed 200 loans during that time. Kiva now has gift cards available for purchase and they are deliverable via email, snail mail, posted to the recipients Facebook page or you can print it off and deliver it yourself. Kiva gift cards allow the recipient to choose the borrower they want to support and when you give a Kiva Card, your card is a gift that changes lives. [vimeo]http://vimeo.com/16991128 [/vimeo]
• CanadaHelps.org is a registered charity with a goal to make giving simple. Through CanadaHelps.org, anyone can donate online to a registered Canadian charity and to date the website has successfully facilitated over $100 million in charitable donations since its launch in 2000. Online giving is also available via CanadaHelps charity gift card in any amount. The gift card recipient receives an email notification and they can then visit the website to spend the gift card on the charity of their choosing. If you happen to stop by their site, read about their Cause Wish List which allows you to create a new kind of holiday wish list based on causes rather than gifts – interesting.
• Globalgiving is a charity fundraising website that gives social entrepreneurs and nonprofits from anywhere in the world a chance to raise the money that they need to improve their communities. Since 2002, GlobalGiving has raised over $55,483,593 from 240,013 donors who have supported 5,071 projects. Projects on globalgiving.org undergo compliance checks to ensure they have a bona fide charitable purpose and meet applicable laws relating to international philanthropy. Globalgiving gift cards are available for purchase on the website in any denomination and can be purchased as a printable pdf gift card, email gift card or a physical bioidegradable gift card. They currently have a Global Open Challenge on until the end of December and they also have a pretty cool Holiday Gift Guide.

Co-founder Dennis Whittle’s TEDxYSE talk on the history of GlobalGiving

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvK7VK8hv70[/youtube]

If you still have some holiday shopping to do, or are having trouble finding that perfect gift for the person who has everything, consider one of these charitable gift cards and give the gift of online giving.
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