24-Hour Talkcast for Microlending and www.kiva.org - Sunday March 18th

OK Folks we will be participating in the telethon after our regular show on Sunday 8pm -10pm eastern. At 10:30pm eastern we will do our part. this is something I support as the RIGHT way to introduce capitalism into third world countries. I hope you tune in to find out why...

A 24-hour live interactive podcast charity event for Kiva (http://www.kiva.org) is being held starting Sunday, March 18^th at noon on TalkShoe (http://www.talkshoe.com). The event will raise awareness and money for Kiva, web-based microfinancing organization which enables individuals to lend money to people in developing countries for starting small businesses.

Podcasters will unite to raise money and awareness for Kiva.org, (www.kiva.org) a web-based microfinancing charity that enables individuals to lend money to people in developing countries for starting small businesses. "Microlending is a way for those of us who have benefited from the Internet and the prosperity of the Western world to give something back," commented Dave Nelsen , CEO of TalkShoe.

The 24 hour Talk-a-thon will start at noon (US Eastern Time) on Sunday March 18^th 2007 on TalkShoe (www.talkshoe.com). Anyone and everyone can join in the live interactive podcast to listen, talk and text-chat. During the Talk-a-thon (www.talkathon.org) podcast hosts will raise awareness about Kiva and microlending, and ask listeners who are so inclined to contribute money to a dedicated PayPal account. TalkShoe will administer lending of this money to developing nations' entrepreneurs thru Kiva, a website that has been implemented as an efficient and effective microlending program. 100% of the funds raised, including $500 contributed by Dave Nelsen of TalkShoe, will be perpetually reinvested thru Kiva. Periodic progress reports will be given on TalkShoe’s blog.

"We feel that those of us who get so much information, entertainment and community from the Internet should also explore its use to make the world a better place for all its peoples", says Randolph Resnick, who had the idea during a live TalkShoe podcast about aging and retirement.

Kiva has receive accolades throughout the world from organizations including NPR, the New York Times, the BBC, PBS, ABC News, Business Week, the Wall Street Journal, CNN, The Village Voice, and the general blogosphere. The following quotes are from the Kiva website.

Vinod Khosla, founding CEO of Sun Microsystems and a partner at the venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins, has called microlending "one of the most important economic phenomena since the advent of capitalism and Adam Smith."

The New York Times, in its article Web-Based Microfinancing, December 10, 2006 said, “At Kiva.org, a schoolteacher in Kansas can partner with an expert seamstress in countries like Kenya, Mexico and Ecuador to jump-start a tailor shop.”

“Friends and neighbors have been lending one another money forever, but as the Web makes virtual neighbors of strangers, Kiva, which is Swahili for ‘agreement’ or ‘unity,’ is harnessing the power of social networking to support micro-enterprise in the developing world,” said Business Week in A Little Money Goes a Long Way, July 31, 2006.

Kiva is “…revolutionizing how donors and lenders in the US are connecting with small entrepreneurs in developing countries,” commented BBC News, March 1, 2006.

About Kiva (from Kiva’s website)

Kiva lets you connect with and loan money to unique small businesses in the developing world. By choosing a business on Kiva.org, you can "sponsor a business" and help the world's working poor make great strides towards economic independence. Throughout the course of the loan (usually 6-12 months), you can receive email journal updates from the business you've sponsored. As loans are repaid, you get your loan money back. Kiva partners with existing microfinance institutions. In doing so, we gain access to outstanding entrepreneurs from impoverished communities world-wide. Our partners are experts in choosing qualified borrowers. That said, they are usually short on funds. Through Kiva.org, our partners upload their borrower profiles directly to the site so you can lend to them.