Seasonal Vegetables

We just made a loan to Bilqees group via Kiva, to buy seasonal vegetables. I loved the colour in the saris and onions in this photo, so thought I would share.

Bilqees, Sharifan, Nasreen Bibi, Zainab Bibi, Rehana Kosar and a mountain of red onions. Relish?

I just planted raspberries in my garden, and some cucumbers, too, though my red onions have gone to seed due to weather fluctuations. Aaah, Melbourne in spring time.
Looking forward to the meeting on Sunday!

Spring

We will be meeting on the 30th of September. Sneaking in a spring meeting to maybe even meet and greet some new members. I'm making horseradish. Neigh. Photo found by Adam. Thanks Adam.

Also just wanted to share our 51st Kiva loan, you can see the details here. And an open invitation to all to join us on Kiva.

Spreading the love

I have just updated our Kiva loans with all the funds raised by ticket sales online. I love looking at the map view of where the loans have been dispersed across the map, 35 loans now.

Also, we get a small mention in the age via Pen alongside Feral Fruit Trees.

Money Lenders

I have just topped up our Kiva account with funds raised from our raffle on Sunday. You can see the details of our loans here. Thank you to everybody who bought tickets and everyone who contributed! We have more money to spend on Oxfam unwrapped gifts, and I will be doing that over the next few weeks. Merry Christmas from Chutney Club and I hope you have a safe and happy New Year.

Christmas Hamper 2010

It's happening again. Go to your friendly chutney club member for your chance to win one of three amazing hamper prizes.

Each Hamper will also include some wine, crackers and other goods to help you enjoy the chutney club experience. As well as giving you the chance to win some of this loot, proceeds will allow us to loan money via Kiva. Last year we raised over $500 and have been receiving updates all year on the benefits of our loans. We also contribute gifts to Oxfam and with the proceeds from the last fundraiser we bought goats, a veggie patch, fruit trees, some breakfast and also some eggs.

Working in 26 countries, Oxfam Australia is providing people with the skills and resources needed to develop their own solutions to poverty. Simple things like seeds, clean water systems, and skills training can mean the difference between desperate poverty and hope for the future.

The raffle will be drawn at the end of year BBQ on December 19th. We will endeavor to deliver prizes within Melbourne before Christmas to help with festivities. Get in touch if you want a ticket or if you'd like to contribute!

Kiva Update

Part of the money we loaned through Kiva has been repaid so I reinvested in a group in Kyrgyzstan. It's great to be updated on how each group are going with their business and re-lending the money as it's paid back.

Kiva

We just made a loan to a woman in Nigeria, a co-operative in Bolivia , these beautiful women of the Makotekokoumana Group in Mali and another group in Vietnam using a new website called Kiva. For more information our lender page is here.

You can go to Kiva's website and lend to someone across the globe who needs a loan for their business - like raising goats, selling vegetables at market or making bricks. Each loan has a picture of the entrepreneur, a description of their business and how they plan to use the loan so you know exactly how your money is being spent - and you get updates letting you know how the entrepreneur is going.

The best part is, when the entrepreneur pays back their loan you get your money back - and Kiva's loans are managed by microfinance institutions on the ground who have a lot of experience doing this, so you can trust that your money is being handled responsibly.

It's finally easy to actually do something about poverty - using Kiva you know exactly who your money is loaned to and what they're using it for. And most of all, you know that you are helping them build a sustainable business that will provide income to feed, clothe, house and educate their family long after the loan is paid back.

Join us in changing the world - one loan at a time.