War On Poverty (Blog Action Day)

By Pinyo, on October 15, 2008

Today is Blog Action Day and participating bloggers unite to discuss poverty. The goal is to raise awareness and initiate action

Poverty is not something that I think about everyday, and I am sure many of you don’t either. I am not saying that it is good or bad — that’s just how it is. There are so many things that occupy our daily lives that we don’t stop to think about things that are not immediately palpable to us. Heck, sometimes we are so preoccupied that we ignore things that are important to us.

But let’s us come together for a day and just talk about actions that we can take to fight poverty. I will start this list off, but it’s up to you to help build it (that means you get to leave a comment with your ideas).

Vote on November 4th. As an American citizen, this is your most precious right and who gets elected will have an impact on this issue.
Learn more about poverty. You can start by reading Wikipedia’s article on Poverty and read what others are writing about it on Blog Action Day site.
Donate. Personally, I prefer to donate to organizations that could help break the cycle of poverty. For example, putting books on library shelves, computer access for the poor, job training programs, etc.
Volunteer. This is something that I used to do when I was younger and just became too preoccupied as I get older. It’s something I hope to get back in to. There’s a great site called Volunteer Match which you can find volunteer opportunities locally or virtually. It’s worth taking a look.

Now, let’s here it from you. Tell us about your ideas to help fight poverty. You can be as general or as specific as you like about your ideas. If you are already doing something, then share your story!

Here’s what my friends are saying:

Poverty – It’s our responsibility to help at Gather Little By Little
How the US Military Fights Poverty Worldwide at Military Finance Network
Blog Action Day – Poverty at Cash Money Life
Blog Action Day: Bloggers Unite Against Poverty and How You Can Help at Being Frugal
Blog Action Day 2008 – Talking About Poverty at My Two Dollars
Blog Action Day – Poverty at Plonkee Money
Teach a Child, Save a Generation – Blog Action Day at One Caveman’s Financial Journey
Free Money, Blog Action Day, Lending Club and More! at My Dollar Plan
Causes Of Poverty – Blog Action Day 2008 at Free From Broke
Blog Action Day 2008: Poverty at Bible Money Matters

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Pinyo is the brain behind Moolanomy personal finance blog and a few other web sites. If you like this article, please subscribe for free daily email updates.

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5 Comments

Quintin
October 15, 2008, 10:47

Poverty is something we never think about until we see it, like someone eating out of the trash or something of the sort. But we can help by working at homeless shelters or giving a class to help people aquire some of the skills you possess.
kouji
October 15, 2008, 15:25

for my part, i turn to sites like freerice (rice donation), kiva (microfinance), and goodsearch (donation per search), as ways to help alleviate poverty online. i also put up their banners on my blog.

saw this post via the front page of blog action day. it’s great that you’re participating.
Alexis
October 15, 2008, 14:58

I agree, it is easy to let poverty in our own and other countries take a backseat to the millions of other things we think about on a daily basis. That is why today is so important. Making even the smallest contribution can help someone in need; donating blankets and warm clothes, volunteering at shelters and kitchens, and if you have the means, providing donations to charitable organizations.

I work for a non profit company that provides computers, resources, training, and help to those in poverty. Our goal is to give them the necessary skills they need to enter the workforce and stop the cycle of poverty. We’re also blogging about poverty today and I believe that raising awareness is the first step to remind people that there is a problem and we all need to do our part to help, no matter how small.
Pinyo
October 17, 2008, 14:21

@Quintin — I think helping other people acquire new skills is the key to breaking the cycle.

@Alexis — Agreed.

@Kouji — I’ve heard about Kiva before, but not the other two. I’ll check them out. And thank you for stopping by.
Make Friends, Earn Money
November 6, 2008, 7:25

It is interesting that the credit crunch has for a fleeting moment helped those in many western countries realise the difficulties associated with poverty, although clearly this cannot be compared with the day to day poverty that billions live with everyday. Let’s hope that the crunch makes us more willing to help fight poverty

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