Santos Organics Donations

At the end of the financial year the staff charity committee meet to discuss and determine how the funds could be distributed from that year. The members on the committee are representatives from all 3 stores and bring with them the ideas of the other staff members involved. We chose to list charities of interest under the 3 categories of International, national and local. In amongst the International charities that were nominated and chosen was KIVA - http://www.kiva.org/about.

 

Kiva is a non-profit 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. Microfinance is a general term to describe financial services to low-income individuals or to those who do not have access to typical banking services. Microfinance is also the idea that low-income individuals are capable of lifting themselves out of poverty if given access to financial services.

 

As our discussions progressed around Kiva we decided, rather than just donate to Kiva directly, we could buy gift vouchers and give them to local schools to administer thus expanding the impact and educating at the same time. Our vision was to make these one off donations to senior classes on a primary school level or high schools and have them decide on who and what they want to support, organise the loan and monitor the repayments. The money repaid will sit in a "Kiva" account until fully repaid and then hopefully the following year’s senior classes can repeat the process and so on and so forth. Santos Organics does not want the money back - it wants to see it keep being used over and over to hopefully support and enable many people to end poverty in their lives. 

 

Santos Organics staff liaised with a number of local schools and chose 3 to partner up with. In May a presentation was given to Brunswick Heads Public School’s Year 5 and 6 students and the vouchers were handed over to class representatives. The students were engaged, excited and really appreciative to be given this opportunity to help make a difference in the world with several of them voluntarily approaching presenters from Santos and thanking them directly. We have also given vouchers to Shearwater School and Wilsons Creek Public School.

 

Perhaps your workplace, neighbourhood, family could do something similar with the local school in your area?? Supporting organisations like Kiva who enable people and organisations in developing countries to set something sustainable up for themselves and their communities is a simple process with far-reaching effects on so many levels. Go to http://www.kiva.org/about to find out more!!