Lending to Help Others in Third World Countries – How and Why You Should Too
One of the small things I take joy from is being privileged enough to be able to live in a first-world country with a strong currency that can do amazing good for a relatively small (to me) amount of money. One of the ways I do that is to used Kiva.org, which I’ve done for years.
Kiva is a nonprofit, crowdfunded microloan platform that connects lenders with borrowers, primarily in developing countries, to help expand financial access and alleviate poverty. In short, you can help give loans to people in developing countries. You can lend as little as $25, and the people you help use the funds for various purposes like starting or growing a business, pursuing education, or accessing clean energy.
Just to be transparent, I’m not associated with them in any way, I just really appreciate their services and wanted to spread awareness.
How I Use Kiva
As you may have noticed, this is not a donation platform. I donate to other organizations regularly, but that’s not what this is: It’s a loan – I get the money I give back.
So what do I do to ensure that my money keeps getting used in perpetuity? Personally this is what I do:
- Find someone who I want to help, usually something in helping agriculture, better education, or clean energy.
- Lend money to their cause (usually along with a dozen other people)
- The money gets paid back to me slowly over time.
- Once I have enough to lend again, I add a little bit more to the pot of lending money, then lend the money to the next person!
This way, I have a steadily growing fund of money that never comes back to my bank – it constantly goes back to people who need it more than I do.
How does this contribute to sustainability?
There are SO many ways in which helping people in developing countries can significantly contribute to reducing global pollution and combating climate change.
Here are just a few:
- Access to Clean Energy – Many developing countries rely on polluting energy sources like wood, charcoal, or kerosene for cooking and lighting. These not only contribute to deforestation and indoor air pollution but also emit greenhouse gases. By supporting access to solar panels, clean cookstoves, or mini-grids reduces emissions, improves health, and supports more sustainable development.
- Sustainable Agriculture & Land Use – A lot of global emissions come from deforestation and unsustainable farming practices, often due to poverty-driven land use (e.g., slash-and-burn agriculture). Training and funding farmers in regenerative agriculture, agroforestry, and climate-smart practices protects forests, improves soil health (which stores carbon), and boosts food security.
- Education, Especially for Women – Educating women leads to lower birth rates, better health outcomes, and increased economic opportunities—all of which reduce pressure on natural resources. It’s been shown that when you empower women, communities benefit. Children are raised healthier, not to mention women are often responsible for a significant portion of food production, so empowering women in agriculture can lead to more resilient food systems.
- Global Justice and Equality – Pollution and climate change are global problems, but those in poorer countries often suffer the most, despite contributing the least. Supporting them isn’t just practical—it’s ethical.
So I hope some of you go out and try Kiva.org, or if not, find some other way to donate or help those in developing countries. If you have US dollars, they can go a huge distance in other countries and you can have an impact magnified many times over.
Kiva even supports creating teams of lending people…I’m on the UCLA team, but maybe if enough of you wanted to start using Kiva, we could make our own lending group! Get in touch if you want to team up on this!
