Searching for a Good Cause

How many times do I search the web each day? Several organizations have created web search interfaces that make small contributions for charity every time we use their engines. To date, most of these sites have used Yahoo as their search engine. Yet I recently learned about a newer option, EcoSearch.org, which uses Google. The upside: a much more powerful search engine, and support for organizations including the Sierra Club, Natural Resources Defense Council, and Save the Bay. (The downside is that EcoSearch is light on details about how much they contribute per search, how often they make their donations, etc.)












For sheer transparency and accountability (albeit with a Yahoo search engine), I really like iSearch, which is an offshoot of the charitable shopping site, iGive. On iSearch, you choose the charity you want to support, from an extensive list that includes lots of smaller local options. iSearch’s benefits: you can click to see the donations to the charity to-date, your own contributions to the organization — this is the only site I know that allows individuals to track their own contributions — and the date and amount of the last check they set to the organization. And iSearch/iGive mails quarterly for amounts over $25 (other similar sites only mail donations once a year). I’ve included a screenshot above for the group I’m currently supporting, Wisconsin AIDS Network.

Today’s mitzvah: search out EcoSearch or iSearch the next you’re searching the web

Click here for Daily Mitzvah (almost) daily feeds.

Weekend Spotlight

Here’s your Weekend Mitzvah round-up:

A food drive that picks up at your house: Don’t forget: Leave food donations in a bag next to your mailbox for the Saturday, May 10 Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive.

A hat tip to Skeet’s Stuff, which included Daily Mitzvah in its Sharing the Good Stuff Thursday post this week. Mahalo, Skeet!

Burma update #1: Agencies that are already in-country: Many of us have seen today’s headlines about the military government in Burma confiscating UN food aid, including supplies that would have fed and provided medical care for 95,000 people. The UN and the U.S. have decided to continue aid flights into the country, despite the Burmese government’s absurd obstructionist tactics. The situation presents a challenge for donors. I’m trying to focus on aid agencies that already had a presence in Burma before Cyclone Nargis, since they have at least a tenuous working relationship with the very dysfunctional government. World Vision has an established presence in-country, according to their web site: a 40-year continuous presence in the country and more than 500 staff on the ground even before the cyclone. Médecins Sans Frontières / Doctors without Borders has 40 international staff and 1200 international workers already on the ground in Burma. Read an update of their activities here. Since it’s almost impossible to get new aid workers in at present, it’s worth checking out these two groups that are already in the country. (Photo © 2008 Agence France-Presse)

Burma Update #2: UW Credit Union hat-tip: The Myanmar Red Cross/Red Crescent Society is also long established in Burma. My terrific credit union just made Red Cross contributions easier (via the American Red Cross), by providing an link that allows a direct contribution right out of one’s checking or savings account, without any fuss or extra paperwork (must be logged in to Web Branch to access). They typically set this up for Christmastime charities. But I wanted to give a shout-out for this quick and creative response to the current humanitarian crisis. Google is also helping with a donation link right under their search box, facilitating contributions to UNICEF and Direct Relief International.

Weekend Mitzvah: Leave some canned food for the mail carrier on Saturday, and keep en eye on the Cyclone Nargis response to see where we can help.

Enjoy this post? Click here for daily feeds.

I always like to find ways that my daily activities can multitask and give back, such as charity shopping portals. While I don’t shop online everyday — I do search the web. A lot. And now a search engine called GoodSearch will contribute approximately 1¢ to a nonprofit I designate, each time I search the web. A penny a search. Is it a lot of money? Nope. For me I’m guessing this works out to about $36/year. But that’s money that wouldn’t otherwise make its way to the organization. GoodSearch is also transparent about the amounts raised — a link below the search button lets you see how many clicks and how much money the group has received each month. Most charitable groups and nonprofits are listed. I have two computers, so I have the desktop set to fund WORT-FM, and the laptop set to benefit Kiva.

GoodSearch is powered by Yahoo Search. It’s not Google, but then again Google doesn’t pay my charities when I visit.

Today’s mitzvah: Try a search on Good Search, and kick back some change for a favorite nonprofit.

Enjoy this post? Click here to subscribe!