Microloans!

I've been hearing more and more about microfinance lately. I was babysitting a few weeks back and picked up a book by Muhammed Yunus, "Creating a World Without Poverty". Apparently, this man is one of the big names in microfinance, and started Grameen Bank which specializes in making small loans to the impoverished.

Wikipedia has great snippets about microfinance and microloans, including some controversial issues which have were raised about for-profit microfinance.

Fast forward three weeks and I ran into a snippet about Kiva. Kiva is a way for the average person to help those in poverty by *loaning* out their money, in any amount. The site notes that women are often targeted for many microfinance programs, and with the statistic like 70% of all in dire poverty are women, it's not a big surprise. If you scroll down the list of Kiva entrepreneurs, I'm amazed at the breath of different projects. The user can even give gift certificates to others, a great way to put a spin on a birthday or graduation gift. There are many sites just like kiva out there to explore. As I've said before, I'm in awe of this kind of stuff, the ideas behind their creation and the people who participate.

pushups:9/8/6/4/7 although I need to go down more...