Haiti : How should we respond?

Last night I was talking to a friend while washing up dishes. She works for Tear Fund and we were discussing Haiti and then our discussions turned to loans for businesses in the developing world. This is one of her particular passions.

I asked if she had heard of Kiva?

She hadn't, so I thought some of you might not either.

The story of how Kiva came to be as told by its founder Jessica Jackley is inspiring.



So I think there are two ways to connect with people through this horror:

1. The first is to respond to a specific incident like Haiti with money and that is a good thing to do. I would commend giving to a charity you know or one you have friends who can keep you updated-mine is Tear Fund-and you can give here.

2. The next thing is to connect with other nations, poverty and giving longer term hope in a more sustained way and this might be where Kiva comes in. You can lend resources and make a difference and this sort of action lasts so much longer than the headlines do. It is also very easy to do.

So I hope this goes a tiny way to offering you a way to respond.