kiva

kiva.org is a fantastic website that allows you to personally lend money to any number of persons or people all over the world in order to help them with their businesses, which thus helps their lives, their childrens' lives, and the world at large by a chain effect.
Muhammad Yunus helped the micro-finance movement going and it has taken off in such a way that we can personally be involved which is such a great and incredible thing to be a part of!
We spend so much money on things we don't really truly need (coffee, clothes, shoes, drinks, etc) and when we set some of that money aside why not lend it to someone who will create a better business and life for themselves, their family, and their community? Once the person or people you lend to pay you back, you can lend your money out again to someone else!
http://www.kiva.org/
below are the people I have lent to thus far, to give you an idea of the sort of people, places, and types of businesses you can lend to...