The holiday season is a great time not only to reflect upon how fortunate we are, but to think about others less fortunate than ourselves. While donating and giving to worthy charities is a great way to share the seasonal joy, this year I urge you to try something new: invest in a micro-loan.

While “investing” may seem like a scary word (especially during these tough economic times), it is important to truly understand the power of microfinance before writing off this means of eradicating world poverty.

The theory behind microfinance — the idea that a small loan, as little as $25, can enable the world’s poorest poor to work their way out of poverty — began in Bangladesh, a country where nearly 57 million people live on less than $1 per day.

After learning that many of these impoverished families had sold their children into prostitution or child slavery in order to make ends meet, the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize winner, Mohammed Yunus, founded Grameen Bank, the world’s first Micro-Finance Institution. What bothered Yunus most about the squalid conditions of these “poorest poor” was that most had been born into poverty and, upon birth, had automatically inherited debt from prior generations. Indeed, no matter how hard these people worked, their destiny as penniless city dwellers seemed predetermined; there was no opportunity to work their way out of continuous, endless cycles of poverty.

Unlike outright gifts of money or charity, which simply act as temporary “Band-Aids,” micro-loans address the core underlying roots of poverty by enabling families — who otherwise would have no opportunity — to work their way out of poverty and attain self-sufficiency. What is different about the micro-finance movement is that when individuals apply for and receive micro-loans to start their own businesses, the lending agency does not simply provide an affordable loan. Rather, each individual is assigned a “peer support group” and is mentored and guided in order to successfully establish their business.

While micro-lending is more established in Third World countries, you can become involved and contribute to the fight against world hunger and world poverty at both local and global levels:

1. Kiva.org

“Kiva is the world’s first person-to-person micro-lending Web site, empowering individuals to lend directly to unique entrepreneurs in the developing world … The people you see on Kiva’s site are real individuals in need of funding — not marketing material. When you browse entrepreneurs’ profiles on the site, choose someone to lend to, and then make a loan, you are helping a real person make great strides toward economic independence and improve life for themselves, their family and their community. Throughout the course of the loan (usually 6-12 months), you can receive e-mail journal updates and track repayments. Then, when you get your loan money back, you can re-lend to someone else in need.” More information at: www.kiva.org.

2. Washington Community-Alliance for Self-Help (CASH)

Based locally in Rainier Valley, Washington Community Alliance for Self-Help (CASH) is “a microenterprise development organization that provides people with low incomes access to capital and business development training. Washington CASH provides business development training, microcredit loans ranging from $1,000 to $35,000, technical business assistance, business consulting, computer lab, mentors, marketing assistance, Individual Development Accounts and access to a peer support network that enables our members to start or expand self-employment ventures.” More information at: www.washingtoncash.org.

Oikocredit

“Oikocredit, as a worldwide cooperative society, promotes global justice by challenging people, churches and others to share their resources through socially responsible investments and by empowering disadvantaged people with credit … Oikocredit’s loans are channeled through a network of Regional Offices spread over Latin America, Asia, Africa, Central and Eastern Europe and managed by local professionals.” More information at: www.oikocredit.org.

Josh Radman is the senior class president at Mercer Island High School.