Kiva loans -- who here has made them?

[Catshrink]

I just lent $25 to four different entrepreneurs. Two are in Vietnam, one in Peru, and one in Tajikistan. Three are in agriculture -- pigs, trees, and rice -- and one is a trademan.

I'm kind of excited to see how this all works. It's such a great idea!

[Idealism]

1. I have a Nigerian prince you'd might like to meet...

[IndyOp]

3. You might want to check out Kiva.org -- it isn't a joke...

http://www.kiva.org/

I've loaned and been paid back.

[Idealism]

17. Got KIV and KIVA confused

KIV is a type of negative amoratization corporate loan... i'm a fool

[Catshrink]

20. Nah....not a fool.

But ouch, eh? Getting schooled by DUers stings.

:hi:

[Idealism]

28. Important to remember one knows very little in the grand scheme of things :)

[Catshrink]

31. Yep..

DU keeps me humble.

[roguevalley]

42. fabulous way to help people. the inventor of micro loans won the

nobel peace prize.

[Kalyke]

38. OK... one silly bone to pick.

Why am I on the Florida Gators' page?

I'm a Vols fan, dagnabit!! ;)

Yes, pitiful year we've had, but why ad insult to injury?

Seriously, is there another page view or is this a rotating thing?

[rucky]

6. It's actually a really cool (Nobel Prize-Winning) Concept...

here's some reading...

http://www.bankertothepoor.com/bankertothepoor/

[Lex]

13. Ignorant Post of The Day.

Sheesh.

[Midlodemocrat]

15. Epic Fail.

[IndyOp]

2. Me! And I gave gift certificates to friends last year and this year so they could

make loans. Last year I gave a gift certificate to a friend who just loves telling me about micro-loans in India so it was a perfect gift for her. This year I gave a $50 certificate to my neighbors -- I thought that their elementary school daughters would be interested in reading about people all over the world and then loaning to the 2 they liked best. The loan I gave last year to a woman in Uganda has almost all been paid back, so I loaned out a chunk of it again.

I love Kiva! :hi:

[Catshrink]

5. Cool.

I've heard a lot about them and finally decided to give it a try. The only problem is choosing who to lend to!

[Obamarama]

9. I gave my god-daughter $100 for her 10th birthday last year to "spend" at Kiva

I wanted to teach her about philanthropy, the responsibility of helping her fellow human beings, and a simple lesson in basic finance.

She was a little confused at first when she learned the $100 wasn't for her (I did get her another birthday gift), but she's hooked. Her mom helps her out with keeping track of the progress of her loan recipients. She can't wait until her next birthday so she can loan more.

[Catshrink]

11. I might try this with my nephews...

they are 7 and 10. They like the Heifer animals. Teaching them about philanthropy is a wonderful thing to do. Their dad has done volunteer mission work in Central America so they would enjoy reading about people from those countries and maybe helping them. I already bought them a Christmas gift so I might wait until Valentine's Day when things are calmer and there's more time to think it through for them.

[soothsayer]

27. plus she can always cash it out later--but i bet she won't want to

[Obamarama]

4. I have done $75 each quarter for the last year and a half.

It's a great way to make a difference in an individual's life. If others don't know what Kiva is, check it out here: http://www.kiva.org/

Other terrific causes that I try to donate to at least two to three times a year:

Project Peanut Butter:
You can literally save a malnourished child for a $15 donation
http://www.projectpeanutbutter.org/donate.htm

Another amazing project to end hunger is Heifer International. You can buy an animal or animals, or contribute to the purchase price of an animal or animals that will allow people to generate income and food from the farming of these animals.
http://www.heifer.org/site/c.edJRKQNiFiG/b.201470/

[Catshrink]

8. I've done Heifer before.

I like to get my nephews involved in that. One of my Kiva people wants to buy a sow. With her previous loan, she rebuilt the pigsty for the pigs she has.

I'm glad to hear you've had such good luck with Kiva. They seem to have a really good repayment rate. I can't wait to hear more about the pigs and trees!

[Mojorabbit]

7. I have been loaning money

with them for a couple of years, many loans paid back and the money relent. It is wonderful to help people get a start. One of my loans was for a woman to buy another cow. It is exciting.

[Catshrink]

10. I plan to relend my repayments also.

The recipients seem to be hardworking people who just need a little help to do better and provide for their families.

[soothsayer]

34. I've got two cattle farmers. Love them! The cows are so fuzzy.

[jtrockville]

12. I have. So far they've all been repaid and I re-loaned the money.

I love the idea.

[Catshrink]

25. That's encouraging!

I plan to reloan the money also. It is a great idea!

[Midlodemocrat]

14. For quite a while. It's been amazing.

[Catshrink]

24. Glad to hear this!

[Warpy]

16. I lend every month

and so far, no one has defaulted. I've been relending money as it comes in.

It doesn't take much to get somebody a few inches up from terrible poverty.

The interest covers servicing the loans and is typically less than half what a bank would charge if a bank would lend money to people like these.

People can pay these loans off. Village loan sharks keep them poor.

[Catshrink]

23. Do you lend "new" money

or recycle the old? I'm not sure how often I'll do this. I think I'll wait and see how it goes for a while before sending more $$. I also want to get my little nephews involved.

[Warpy]

40. I got a decent inheritance

and don't need my monthly income. I lend what I can while I save for an upcoming move.

[Oceansaway]

18. thanks...just joined and lent $50.00

was hard to pick who to help...thanks !!

[Catshrink]

21. Exactly!

There is so much need and the stories are compelling. Glad you invested also. It feels good to do something positive.

[ZombieHorde]

19. K&R, I will look into this. Thanks for the heads up.

[Catshrink]

22. It took me a while to actually do it.

I looked at the site several times before taking the plunge tonight. Good luck in making your decision!

[ZombieHorde]

32. If you get any feedback, please make a thread about it. Include the word 'Kiva' in your subject line

That would be sweet.

[soothsayer]

26. i've got some $700 recirculating in there. love kiva!!

[Catshrink]

29. Wow!

That's amazing! Do you know how many people you've lent to/helped?

[soothsayer]

33. yep. six of my seven original loans are each 42% paid back, and one is 10% repaid.

kiva used to make you wait until the loans were repaid in full to get your $$, but they recently switched to allowing you to access your money as it is repaid (monthly) so you can reloan it if you wish. So my second batch went to a lady in Azerbaijan (8% repaid) and thanks to your reminder, I just went to Kiva and redistibuted $125 to 4 women-- 1 in Peru, 2 in the Ukraine, and 1 in Tajikstan. My other peeps are in Azerbaijan, Kazikstan, Mexico, Viet Nam, Somoa, and Cambodia. I just love them all! Especially my darling cattle farmers in Tajikstan and Azerbaijan--so cute!!

[Catshrink]

35. Sweet!

One of my loans went to an electrician in Tajikston. He repairs appliances for others and needed some tools. I love tinkerers and thought this was something to support since it helps reuse applicances. The rest of mine went to farmers.

I like the idea of being able to reloan as the money is repaid. That was pretty smart on Kiva's part.

[soothsayer]

36. yeah, and makes total sense, as some loans are 12 mos or more.

I like appliance guys, and almost lent to one but went with a farmer or some general store folks instead. My viet nam loan is to a lady who runs a liquor store and makes rice wine. Love her pic, posing with her brewing equipment. Too cool.

[Catshrink]

43. I was poking around their site some more and found the community page.

We could start a DU Kiva community. I'm not sure what the communities do but it sounds interesting.

[Warpy]

46. You never forget that first loan

Mine was to a woman in the Ukraine who took fashionable leather goods out to the villages, displayed in a van that converted to a small shop. I thought the idea was an ingenious one and she didn't disappoint me.

The lesson I've learned from the experience is that poor people will always pay the money back if they possibly can. The default rate there is amazingly low, something the Grameen Bank (which I also support) has reported.

Charity tends to destroy pride and hope, although it is absolutely necessary when conditions are dire. Giving loans like these helps keep the recipients proud and hopeful as they pay them off.

It doesn't take much to change the world. You can do it one person at a time, $25.00 at a time, and that is what I call a bargain.

[crispini]

30. I think I have $50 in there.

I'll probably lend it out again when it comes back.

[Bozita]

37. That's it! ... My shopping's done.

Thank you.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

39. We do, regularly. 18 loans out so far.

[Liberal_in_LA]

41. I heard about this. Good for you. Seems like a great idea.

[liberalla]

44. I have and it felt so good doing it!

I was recently notified that one has been repaid and I need to go and redirect my (loan) funds.

It's a good thing! :thumbsup:

[Buns_of_Fire]

45. Oh, yeah. I'm a Kiva Junkie.

At the moment, I've got 23 outstanding loans, made when I still had a sort-of semi-steady income of my own.

Now, I figure I may have to hit a few of them up for a place to live if things don't improve on the home front.

It's a great idea, and a great organization.

[Catshrink]

47. Do you belong to any Kiva communities?

Do you think it would be worthwhile to set up a DU Kiva Community?

[Buns_of_Fire]

48. No, I don't belong to any existing communities on Kiva.

But the idea of a DU group on Kiva would be kinda neat...

[Catshrink]

50. Okay.... I'll set one up.

[wryter2000]

49. I have

When the first loan got paid back, I put it into another loan. I got a notice that one got paid back, too. I keep forgetting to re-loan it.

Thanks.

[Catshrink]

51. We now have a DU Kiva team...

It's called Democratic Underground. (duh) I used the DU logo -- do I need Skinner's permission to do that?

[soothsayer]

52. Cool! I'll check it out...

Thanks, Catshrink!!

[Greyskye]

53. Great stuff - my 10 year old is going to get some money to loan for Xmas

What a great teaching tool!

K&R!

[seemunkee]

54. Thanks for pointing this out. Going to give gift certificates to my kids

and I'll put some money into it too.

[alstephenson]

55. I'm a KIVA lender!!!

For awhile they had so much interest that there was no one to lend to! I think because Oprah did a segment on KIVA and President Clinton, who is a big supporter, mentioned KIVA in his book. KIVA is a great organization! Thanks for posting this.

[Catshrink]

56. Join the DU Kiva team!

I just set it up today. Search for democratic underground.