Mars Hill is partnering with a micro-finance program in Burundi, where there are quite a few conservation concerns/efforts. If you'd like to partner with them, see the following website. shelly
http://www.marshill.org/serving/focus/z/ We believe that the poorest people in the world's poorest economy (Burundi) should be given a chance to help themselves. This is where our partnership with Turame (a micro-finance program started by World Relief). Turame extends business loans to 3,500 individuals in Gitega and Bujumbura provinces. It was judged by the United Nations to be the best microfinance operation in the country. We are working to integrate peace-building initiatives and AIDS education into the program. Our goal is to Increase income for the poorest 30% of the economically active in Burundi, the world's poorest economy. >From: WENDEE HOLTCAMP <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >Reply-To: WENDEE HOLTCAMP <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >To: ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU >Subject: Re: microlending/RE: hunting & conservation/was ECOLOGY >Conservation Principles and Transformations >Date: Tue, 14 Aug 2007 21:56:52 -0500 > >The article Warren mentions is online at >http://www.conbio.org/CIP/article30713.cfm if anyone is interested. Scroll >down as it's the 4th on the list. > >So who wants to start a business venture with me ;) > >W. > >~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > Wendee Holtcamp, M.S. Wildlife Ecology > Freelance Writer * Photographer * Bohemian > http://www.wendeeholtcamp.com >Bohemian Adventures * http://bohemianadventures.blogspot.com >The Fish Wars: A Christian Evolutionist http://thefishwars.blogspot.com >~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ >Online Nature Writing Course Starts Sep 15. Sign Up Now! > > >-----Original Message----- >From: Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news >[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Warren W. Aney >Sent: Tuesday, August 14, 2007 9:37 PM >To: ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU >Subject: Re: microlending/RE: hunting & conservation/was ECOLOGY >Conservation Principles and Transformations > >Wendee may be onto something, and apparently she's not the only one >thinking >along this line. There's an article in the July-September Conservation >Magazine about using microlending for women in poor coastal communities to >curtail overfishing: "Good Credit Risk" by Amanda Vincent. (This magazine >is a publication of the Society for Conservation Biology.) > >Warren W. Aney > > >-----Original Message----- >From: Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news >[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of WENDEE HOLTCAMP >Sent: Tuesday, 14 August, 2007 19:14 >To: ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU >Subject: microlending/RE: hunting & conservation/was ECOLOGY Conservation >Principles and Transformations > >Why don't people who care about conservation (nonhunters) consider tithing >to causes they care about in the way religious people pay a tenth of their >income to their church (or are asked to - not all do)? Is it too much to >ask >to contribute back a significant part of everyone's earnings to tax >deductible causes that will invest in our children's future and the Earth's >future? > >Another idea I just had is microlending for conservation. Heck if I had a >Harvard MBA maybe I'd start it myself. Kiva.org is one such organization >that lends small loans to small business owners in 3rd world countries, and >that enables them to draw themselves out of the cycle of poverty. They have >an extremely high repayment rate (97-98%), partly due to the concept of >community loans where everyone has to repay when one in the community >defaults. You can go online and invest from $25 on up, divided by as many >people as you want - you can see their photo and the business and the >country. The interesting thing is this is not a donation, but an investment >and you actually get your money back (unless the person defaults) and then >you can reinvest. It's brilliant, really. Mohammad Yunus won the Nobel >prize >not long ago for this concept of microlending. Not a lot are environmental >or conservation things though. > >What if we could create a system where conservation investors could choose >to fund the grassroots individuals working throughout the world to raise >awareness of their local individual causes. The businesses, like organic >farms, or eco-products, could make the money and the rest could be >donations. There are probably a lot of people who would do a lot more if >they had small amounts of capital (rather than their own bank account). The >merits of their conservation project would be chosen by you and I, who >donate, rather than the people having to apply for some grant. (Of course >there is also a screening to get approved) > >Wendee >~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ >Wendee Holtcamp * Freelance Writer * Photographer * Bohemian > http://www.wendeeholtcamp.com >Bohemian Adventures Blog * http://bohemianadventures.blogspot.com >The Fish Wars: A Christian Evolutionist http://thefishwars.blogspot.com >~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ >Online Writing Course Starts Sep 15. Sign Up Now! _________________________________________________________________ Now you can see troubleĀ before he arrives http://newlivehotmail.com/?ocid=TXT_TAGHM_migration_HM_viral_protection_0507
