Millennium Promise is the organization that actually does the dirty work when it comes to helping the poor in Africa.  In fact another post about the OmniPeace tees gives their profit to this organization.  I like this line from their mission statement “Our work is premised on the belief that, for the first time in history, our generation has the opportunity to end extreme poverty, hunger, and disease.”  They have many other supporters in addition to their current campaigns to raise money.  Millennium promise is in 80 different villages in 10 African countries.

Thought I should add this to the collection. Product Red if you’re unfamiliar is an effort to end AIDS in Africa by selling products that are….well…red. The companies give a certain amount 5-10% generally to the global fund. If you are a college student who needs to bulk up the resume and help this cause, check out their website soon as Product Red is looking for 5 student ambassadors to “turn your campus red.”

It’s May 15th, 2008. A day in which Bloggers Unite. This day we hope to throw support to Amnesty International (Unite for Human Rights) Specifically, the Crisis in Darfur, Human Rights in China, and the teardown of Detentions at Guantanamo Bay. While so many people are taking the “out of sight, out of mind” approach, it’s nice to see Amnesty International caring. Travellers and Backpackers generally know about what is going in the world. Most likely you’ve encountered some form of it on the road. Sooooo…educate yourself and have a look if you haven’t already.

Ethos Water…tagline….”Helping Children get Clean Water.” This seems to be a pretty common theme among businesses now. Helping causes around the world and putting out a nice flash website and strong marketing campaign. The main business behind Ethos water is Starbucks. They are also partnered with PepsiCo for distribution purposes. The website will tell you they’ve reached 6.2 million of their 10 million dollar goal. All this by only donating .05 cents for every bottle purchased. Hmm…maybe should have gone for the big dime and you could have reached your goal. Anyways, they give the money to previously established relief organizations. If you wanted to know that.

Save the planet! I think this video explains it all. Earth Hour is tonight, March 29th, from 8:00pm - 9:00pm. I will be participating, because sadly, I’m pretty dependent on energy, and it’s an easy way for me to participate. I think I’ll go for a run, or maybe draw something. If you ever find yourself asking what these posts have to do with backpackers and travellers, just realize, anything that involves the world, involves backpackers and travellers.

Terra Pass is for those who want to travel yet feel guilty about the carbon emmissions that is involved. This site provides a card you purchase based on the amount of carbon emmissions you generate. They have calculators to predict your pollution by flight, road, and even wedding parties. The money you spend on your terra pass goes to causes that offset the damage. You can also trade in your old cell phone for dollar’s on a terrapass.

Besides having one of the greatest logos for peace organizations, OmniPeace makes some great T-Shirts to end poverty and raise awareness in violent Sub-Saharan Africa. The company donates half the proceeds from a $25-$30 shirt to the non profit Millenium Promise. You’ve probably seen these shirts on the t.v. lately, as hollywood stars are draping themselves in these. I won’t question their motives in this one case.