Today is Blog Action Day; over 9,800 bloggers have committed to writing about poverty. How does the effort to control clutter relate to poverty? In at least three ways.
1. As you get rid of things that no longer add to your life, you can donate them to the many people who could really use them. That might mean local groups that support the poor in your part of the world, and it could mean national or international groups.
For those in the USA, I'm sure you already know about organizations like Goodwill. But did you know you could donate to a furniture bank in your area? Or donate your old eyeglasses? Or donate women's clothes, appropriate for job interviews - to help women going out on those interviews?
And as we move into winter, how about donating to One Warm Coat - or even organizing a coat drive?
2. As you select gifts this upcoming holiday season, consider not adding to someone else's clutter; make a donation in that person's name instead. Not everyone will appreciate such a gift - but many people are delighted to get such gifts. There are many wonderful organizations that fight poverty in many ways. One of my favorites, when I go beyond the local level, is Seva.
3. OK, this might be stretching a point, but it's for a good cause.
For those in the U.S., instead of creating candy clutter in your home at Halloween, consider reviving the tradition of Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF.
4 comments:
I love this Idea!!
Need brought to Brazil!!
We do DECLUTTER and do steps too, but we give the donations for churchs or fondations!!
Bye!!
Good Bless all!!!
Rô
Thanks for bringing up Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF. It's such a great way to get kids involved in charitable giving. I also like One Warm Coat.
I'd also like to put in a shameless plug for Kiva, the organization I promoted on my blog today. It allows individuals to contribute to short-term micro-loans to entrepreneurs who want to start small businesses -- everything from buying two pigs to start a pig breeding business, to buying a loom for weaving. It's quite inspiring to see how hard people are willing to work to improve their living conditions and to realize how little it takes to help them do so.
What a great post! I love the way you connected clutter, organizing and poverty!
I wrote posts for 2 blogs today...it's such a personal topic for me. I included a link to your post, too.
Thank for introducing me to Seva. This year my goal is to send ecards and donations instead of sending physical cards. I've been trimming my card list the last few years...stopping altogether is going to be really hard.
Rô, thank you for providing the Brazilian perspective. Churches do a lot of good work in helping the poor.
Cynthia, I saw your post, and Kiva does indeed sound like a wonderful cause to support.
Ariane, thank you for giving me a push to join Blog Action Day!
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