In celebration of the 750+ pageviews my blog has gotten since its launch exactly one month ago, I would like to give back by writing about websites with a cause.
This week, while blog surfing at work, I stumbled upon two websites that captured my attention: Mach's Grün and FreeRice.com. You might be familiar with them because they're not really new stuff, but I think they deserve to be featured. I also know that there are tons of other sites like them, and I will blog about them soon (I'm open to suggestions), but for now let's focus the light on the two.
I'm not really proclaiming myself here as a green person, but I do like to participate in advocacies once in a while. I once tried to sign up for the Philippine Red Cross and Bagumbayan-VNP, but they haven't gotten back to me yet. Also, for my birthday last year, I donated some clothes and books to my Alma Mater for the victims of typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng. For this year... well, I feel like I can do more.
So I will! By blogging about these two wonderful sites. The first one, Mach's Grün, promises to plant a tree for you if you write about their programme "My blog is carbon neutral" and include their button on your site. It's so cool, right? You just have to blog and copy-paste some codes and you help neutralise carbon dioxide emissions! Right now, they're working on the restoration of the Plumas National Forest in the US. Kudos to the Arbor Day Foundation and the brains behind the website! I guess this post means that they will soon be planting a tree on my behalf. Yay!
The second site is FreeRice.com. I really like this one because it combines gaming and advocacy. Upon opening the site, you will be welcomed by a background image of palay (rice) and an English vocabulary exercise. So what's the mechanics? For every correct answer, they donate 10 grains of rice through the World Food Programme! Isn't that neat? And the good thing is, the word game is not the only game available. You can choose from 12 other categories, such as English Grammar, World Capitals, Basic Math, and Chemical Symbols! Trust me, it's ADDICTIVE. They even have a warning to the players: "This game may make you smarter". Hahaha! But hey, if you get to help end world hunger, then it's all worth the procrastination, right? Oyeah!
I'm encouraging you guys to take part in their noble endeavors. You can make a big difference before the year ends just by doing a couple of simple deeds. There's no experience that's more spiritually rewarding than knowing that you've helped people and Mother Nature. So if you've got nothing important to do, spend some time on those sites to make your blog carbon neutral and help end world hunger.
World Hunger will never end, because it is about politics, power and infrastructure, not agriculture. Go to the store, buy $10 worth of groceries, and donate it to your local food pantry. This gives you a direct hands on tie to someone who has a temporary rough patch in life, but also keeps money circulating in your own community, which helps employment, which keeps people out of the food pantry line.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing your thoughts, Norma! We have our own ways of contributing, I guess. I'm glad you've found yours. =)
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