How can you contribute to the International Day of Charity | Artemis
United Nations General Assembly declared September 5th as the International Day of Charity with the main aim of giving a platform to charities all across the world to organize activities and raise awareness.
This year instead of limiting the day to a few customary social media posts or letting the NGOs and charities carry all the load, we can all take small setps to make an impact.
When people about charity, the most spontaneous reaction is to donate money. But there are so many other ways in which you can contribute to the International Day of Charity. After all, the only thing you can give away is not money. Here are some ways in which each one of us can contribute and celebrate charities and philanthropic people all over the world.
Help a stranger
A charitable act does not necessarily mean donating money or things. A kind gesture towards a stranger, helping someone in need, helping someone cross a road, are all seemingly small actions, but these actions can often create a chain effect of positive, altruistic actions.
Plant a tree
Planting a tree can be one of the most charitable action anyone can do for our planet and the living beings inhabiting the planet. Millions of dollars are being given every year to charities working towards environmental conservation and this is a small step through which you can complement actions taken by then in order to save the planet.
Be kind to your family
‘Charity begins at home’, an old saying that holds true universally. Be kind to your family and neighbors, give a listening ear to them, appreciate their efforts, take them out for a dinner and some of the things, which can have a huge impact on someone’s day and lives.
Give old things to charity
So many times we keep on hoarding old things — clothes, utensils, old furniture. How about collecting all the things you haven’t been using in a while and donating those to charities. So many people still live below poverty line and can’t afford basic necessities of life. Giving away unused items to charities could mean a household being able to get a little bit closer to their basic human rights.
Prepare a meal and give it to someone who needs
Did you know that more than 800 million people do not have the resources to get enough food for a day to lead a healthy life? A simple action of cooking an extra meal or giving away raw material could mean a child can get enough nutrition and give them hope for a safer future.
Donate books to NGOs
There are many NGOs that are working towards providing education to children. Even if you can’t give away a hefty cheque to help their cause, you can donate your old books to them and make a huge impact in lives of many children.
Volunteer with an NGO
This International Charity Day, commit to give away a certain amount of time each month to volunteer in your community for any cause you believe in and would like to support. It could mean helping them fundraise, teach a kid, spend time at an animal shelter, planting trees or cleaning up beaches. Volunteering has countless benefits for volunteers (read here). Donating your time could be the best way you could contribute to this day. Artemis is a tool through which you can find NGOs to volunteer with and also keep a track of the number of hours you volunteer.
Foster an animal
Foster an animal. It could be for a day or few weeks or few months. Most of the pounds don’t have enough resources to take proper care of animals; give them food, take care of their vaccines. Even if you foster an animal for a day every month, it could really help take the load off the animal shelters and support the cause of animal welfare.
Donate Money
Of course, this option is still there and needed. There are many NGOs/charities that can benefit a lot even with small contributions from all of you. If you have concerns about how the money will be used or if the charity is legitimate, then there are a few websites that you can use to check e.g. GiveWell.
We all have the power to change this world with our actions — no matter how small or big those actions are. It depends on who actually takes up this challenge and do something about it. Let’s make sure that this International Day of Charity we make some actual impact.
Be the Impact!
Originally published at https://www.artemis.im on September 5, 2019.
