In recent years, online charitable giving has taken off in record numbers. The recent outpouring of support for tsunami victims over the Internet is a case in point; in the first half of January alone, online giving accounted for $350 million in relief aid (source: GetActive). Part of the reason for this phenomenon is that international philanthropic opportunities are now widely available to people of all ages and income levels. Just ask the following elementary schoolchildren, who in the past month have donated to grassroots projects featured on GlobalGiving.

Second and third graders from Brownie Troop 2233 in Essex, Connecticut raised money from their annual cookie sale for Bridging the Digital Divide in Rural Areas. The project will establish a computer lab in Haiti, where impoverished students can improve their reading, writing, and computer skills.

A fifth grade class from Dr. Green Elementary School in El Paso, Texas collected donations for the India Tsunami Rehabilitation Fund, which will help survivors to rebuild their homes and livelihoods.

Second and fourth graders from Kensington Academy in Beverly Hills, Michigan chose to support Wooden Boats for Indian Fishermen. Altogether, the students raised enough money to purchase a fishing boat and nets, which will enable five Indian families to return to sea and put food on the table.

Ms. Callan's fifth grade class from Edinburg Community Unit School in Edinburg, Illinois raffled off gift baskets to raise money for Tsunami Relief - Safe drinking water in Sri Lanka. This project uses an innovative UV technology to disinfect biologically contaminated water; each installation provides safe drinking water to thousands of people for up to twenty years. As Ms. Callan explained, "The most important thing [the students] learned, or actually stopped to think about, was how lucky they are to live where they do and have the things they have."

A warm thank you to all of these students, whose good will and generosity are a shining example for the GlobalGiving community. If these children represent the future, we have good reason to be hopeful.

As the AIDS epidemic continues to take its toll upon the population of Uganda, thousands of orphaned children remain destitute with little to no access to education or healthcare. Below, Twesigye Jackson Kaguri, founder and co-director of the Nyaka School in Southwestern Uganda, observes how more than 100 orphans have come to rely upon the school as their basic means of education and survival...

Addressing the problem of AIDS orphans is a daunting task, but the Nyaka School, located in the Southwestern village of Nyakagyezi, has taken on that challenge and is proving what a difference a small amount of money can make on many lives.

For orphans whose parents have died of HIV/AIDS, the Nyaka School provides free, high-quality primary education, social activities, and basic healthcare. Nyaka brings the community together to provide these children with a family atmosphere that will impart self-confidence and values, which will significantly increase their chances of reaching adulthood as healthy, functional members of society.

In government-mandated exams, our students consistently test above the district average. Our health interventions have improved the daily existence of many of the students, allowing many to attend school on a regular basis for the first time in their lives. Our community gardens have provided food for more than 200 families in the area, including student foster families. We have increased the number of orphans we serve by at least 25% each year, yet hundreds more are turned away due to limited resources. Long-term financial support will allow Nyaka to serve a greater proportion of the large number of AIDS orphans in Nyaka and surrounding areas.

Not long ago, one of the 116 students at the school spoke of his emotional journey. "When my dad became very sick, my mom sold all the cows, goats and chickens to get medicine but the situation did not get any better. Then my uncle suggested that we sell all the land and move into a hut with my two sisters, which we did. When it rains we stand in the corner and wait for the morning to go to our school, Nyaka. Without Nyaka, I would be working for food everyday."

Kaguri's Nyaka School was one of the 16 finalists selected to the 2005 Marketplace. In qualifying, the school was hand-picked from a pool of 112 candidates as a project that was of the highest quality.

Resources

• Give now to support the Nyaka School's mission to protect and educate AIDS-orphaned children in Uganda
   
• Read more about "Nyaka School for Children Orphaned Due to HIV/AIDS"
   
• See the complete list of finalists from the 2005 Marketplace

Bangladesh's Centre for Development Services (CDS) was established in 1983 to provide start-up support, technical assistance and guidance to the poor so that they could start their own businesses. CDS's model supports sustainable, self-initiated economic development, particularly for women.

Courtesy of International Development Exchange

Runa Das described her former existence as "miserable:" living in a slum of Chittagong City, Bangladesh, she struggled to make ends meet for her husband and two children.

Like many residents of the slums, her husband moved the family to Chittagong with a dream of factory work. However, the urban realities are harsh and there is little work to be found. Women in particular are affected, as often they have minimal education and scant business skills to help earn family income.

Centre for Development Services (CDS) has been working in the Chittagong region for over eight years. In 1999, CDS launched the Women Entrepreneurship Development program as part of its Economic Justice Initiative. The program not only gives women the initial funding to start a business, but provides training on running a business, as well as savings and credit, so the women can sustain their enterprises. Goals also include increasing self-reliance and mutual knowledge sharing through women's groups, and raising their awareness of human rights. Lastly, to make the women's entry in the workforce as seamless as possible, CDS provides preschool for participants' young children.

Last year, Ms. Das received a microcredit loan of 25,000 Taka (about $215) and purchased two sewing machines, thread dyes, and fabric paints to start up her textile business. At her weekly women's group meetings, she and the others discuss progress and constraints of their nascent enterprises. They share their experience in marketing strategies and product feasibility. They also find the groups a forum in which they can freely discuss women's rights in society and in the family. Many note that their income generation made them more willing to assume a role in making the decisions that affect their families. Now Ms. Das has plans to expand her business and open a showroom at the local Kazir Dewri market.

With additional funding, CDS would like to expand the program to include 25 more women in Chittagong.

Resources

• Give now to support women's microenterprise in Bangladesh
   
• Read more about "Self-Employ 25 Women in the Slums of Bangladesh"
   
• See all projects sponsored by the International Development Exchange