Posts Tagged ‘ten thousand villages’

'Tis the time of year for gift giving and receiving, and it's very easy to get caught up in consuming. During the holidays, as we're gorging on turkey and shortbread, my dad always reminds us that there are many who are less fortunate than us, unable to celebrate the holidays with food, family and warmth. As an alternative to gift giving, it's a good idea to donate to a charity on behalf of a loved one or colleague.

Here are two charities and giving options that I like:

• Ten Thousand Villages Living Gifts - Ten Thousand Villages offers a series of donations that benefit those in developing nations. Give Care, Give Education, Give Comfort and Give Green are all affordable give alternatives. At $20, Give Green provides tools, vegetable seeds, organic fertilizers and training for one farmer in Guatemala; at $49, Give Care provides a goat and its care to a family in places like Bangladesh, Palestine and Kenya. You can find more info about Living Gifts here.

• Unicef's Gifts of Magic - Give the gift of education, health, life, relief, hope, play or water with one of Unicef's Gifts of Magic. At $18 for the Gift of Play you can provide four local-language storybooks to kids in developing nations, or at $38 kids will receive a soccer ball and pump. Find more info on Gift of Magic here.

Which charity do you give to during the holiday season?

Are you still using paper napkins at the dinner table? If you are, you should consider breaking this nasty habit ASAP. You can cut down substantially on the amount of waste you produce in your kitchen by using cloth napkins. They're perfect, as you don't throw them out after each use, and depending on how messy an eater you are, they can be good for plenty of uses before needing to be laundered. My favourite cloth napkins come from Ten Thousand Villages. They have such a wide selection of napkins (and other beautiful products) made by artists from many different countries, and should you visit the store, I guarantee you'll leave there with a unique collection to show off to guests. Besides their beautiful designs, I love that my napkins from Ten Thousand Villages are made by artisans in developing communities who are being paid a fair wage for their beautiful work.

Do you use cloth napkins at home?