It appears London is the latest in a number of European cities to be visited by the guerilla massive hand-builders. The hands have no branding, nor any indication as to why, or how they got there. They are tagged with a link and Twitter hashtag #bigwhitehands.

Social media experiment? Art project? Massive underground giants? Who knows? I like them, though.

Jane

You may have noticed we’ve been rather quiet on the blog, Facebook and Twitter recently. We have an excellent excuse – we’ve moved office! Yes! We’ve moved (just…) across the Thames, to London Bridge. We’re within spitting distance of the Shard and striking distance of the lovely restaurants and pubs of Bermondsey Street. Most importantly, we’re within sniffing distance of Borough Market.

Madge has space for his art, Stacey has room for her shoes, Clementine has extra drawers for her miso soup collection and I have room to stretch my legs! We love our new office, so pop in and see us, if you’re in the area!     Jane x

First, a word from Madge:
Here is a series of words and phrases to describe what the cycle to Paris was like for me.
Wind
Lots of wind
Sunshine
Hills
Aching legs
Hunger
Carbohydrate gels
Laughter
Ibuprofen
Somme Valley
Road kill (I might write a separate blog on the dead animals i have seen)
More hills
Exhaustion
Restless sleep
Big breakfasts
Aching legs
Power bars
Wind
Rain
My lovely bike
Elation
Champagne
Want to do it again

I think he missed ‘cake’ and ‘tea’. I seem to recall both featured quite heavily along the course…

Anyway, here’s how it was for Anna:
It’s now been a few days since we finished the London to Paris bike ride for Macmillan Cancer Support and I’m still on a high from the experience and scouring the internet for the next cycling event! It was an amazing few days, an excellent challenge full of fun, meeting new friends, getting lost…., eating too much cake, lovely cold beer stops, lots of laughter and pedalling many many miles for an amazing charity. We never forgot why we were there – to raise the money – but it was also the most fun a whole group of people can have whilst travelling all the way from London to Paris under your own steam. What a great sense of achievement, get out there and sign yourself up, you’ll love it, I promise!!

And as for me..? Well, I can safely say it’s the most wonderful experience I’ve had. Saddle sore, getting lost in a strange country and nearly missing lunch, NOT missing lunch, eating lunch, most excellent sunburn, a police escort to the Tour Eiffel, I loved it all. The Macmillan team couldn’t have been better. Lauren and Sarah were with us the whole way, encouraging us when it got tough, just being generally brilliant. For me, it was always about doing something I love, in order to fund raise for Macmillan, an organisation that changes people’s lives. I didn’t expect to make so many new friends and meet people with similar experiences to mine and have such an incredible time!
An amazing challenge, an inspiring group of people, an incredible charity. AND ALL THE CAKE YOU CAN EAT.

Together, we raised over £110, 000 for Macmillan.

Here’s to the next challenge!
Jane x

PS. You can see some of our photos on Flickr

Stacey

Microfinance is a general term for the help offered to those with low-incomes, or without access to traditional banking methods. The microfinance partners are organisations that work on the premise that those low-income individuals can lift themselves out of poverty, given access to financial services. People in developing countries are unlikely to want, need or be able to secure bank loans of huge amounts. Neither are they able to open bank accounts, for logistic and financial reasons.

The idea behind Kiva.org is simple. The lender (you, for example) browses profiles of the projects on the site. The projects are based all over the world., from Chilli, to Detroit, to Rwanda, to the Phillipines. For example, Los Picarones Del Portal, is a collective of entrepreneurs striving to establish a communal bank in Temuco, Chile. They are mainly merchants, selling through shops, or stalls on the street. The loan will be split between each of the collective members, to use how they wish for the good of their company, be that buying stock, improving shop displays, or paying for a shop unit.

Once the lender has chosen their project, they make a donation. Loans range from $25 to the full loan amount, with payments made via that ecommerce stalwart PayPal. Once the project has raised 100% of the total loan, the field partners pass the funds onto the project, which receives 100% of the money raised. The borrower then uses the funds as they see fit.

Now, here’s the interesting bit. The project then repays the loan in full, over a period agreed in the Kiva.org profile. The loan repayments will be paid into an account, which becomes your Kiva Credit. You can use your credit to finance more projects for more borrowers, or to take out and spend however you wish.

Of course, lending money to anyone is risky. There’s always the chance that you won’t get it back. Kiva.org are very open about the fact that the repayment history is just over 98%. The projects are very carefully vetted for viability, and their repayment plans are realistic and achievable. It seems that many of the defaulters have been victims of unanticipated difficulties: crop failures, family illness or other issues such as theft. Often the field partners will guarantee the loan, covering the lender against default.

I think Kiva.org is a great idea. While they (and we…) are careful to point out that microfinancing those on low-incomes isn’t necessarily appropriate in all cases, it is an option to those who are unable to develop their businesses for merely logistical reasons. It seems like an excellent, altruistic use of eCommerce, a medium so often hell-bent on self-gain. The fact that you can lend as little as $25 means it’s a legitimate method of donation for a wide range of people. The fact that the borrower receives 100% of the funds raised will also appeal to many, at a time when charity administration fees are in the spotlight. It’s also a sustainable donation. The Kiva Credit account means that you can donate the same $25 as often as you like. Innovation at it’s best…

Jane

The initiative launched in May 2011 in Uganda, and the blanket design features infant growth charts, breastfeeding and vaccination frequency, doctors appointment reminder, a high temperature alert and a list of illnesses with their warning signs.

Distribution of the blankets is via donation – when you buy a blanket for $25 it is hand delivered to a new mother. You can also buy one for yourself and one to be delivered in Uganda.

Great creative thinking – I hope this project is a massive success.

Stacey

I finally got the new jacket I’d been waiting for and was all ready to get going with my training, and then I went on holiday, naturally all cycling was forgotten once more. Since being back, I’ve got myself on track and finally got into the swing of my training. Annoyingly, most of rides I’ve been on have been with the company of gale force winds – it seems London has become the new Windy City lately, but also thankfully I’ve often had Jane with me to keep me going and keep me smiling and we’ve had some lovely days out on the bikes together with picnics and the odd pint to reward ourselves.

A couple of weeks ago I took my bike up to North Wakes on the train for a few days holiday with the folks in the hope of some sunny and scenic cycling, and then I remembered….it’s North Wales. So, facing yet more wind and grey skies and far too many hills I made my way across Anglesey, it’s a beautiful place though and the sun did shine on me once or twice, although I found myself swearing at the wind whilst practically going backwards trying to get up yet another hill.

None of which was anywhere near as bad as my latest little adventure. Sunny spells and summer showers was what the weather man told me in the morning, yet cycling to North London up from Camberwell I got caught 3 times in torrential downpours and was nearly swept off Waterloo Bridge. After drying out at my friend’s house with a cup of tea and a fresh pair of socks, I set off for home again during a promising looking break in the clouds, only to find myself 2 minutes down the road with a puncture. It was my first one, but thankfully my friend is a dab hand with an inner tube and helped me sort it out in no time and I was ready to go again. Now, I’ve lived in London nearly 14 years but apparently I can’t find my way from Camden to Euston. A few wrong turns and Googlemap searches later and I was heading in the right direction, when the heavens opened once again. I’ve never known rain like it, I was cycling blind thanks to the rain on my glasses coming in all directions, my trainers were so heavy with water I could barely lift my legs and my hands were frozen to the handle bars, but all you have to keep telling yourself is that we’ll be raising money for an amazing cause and you can keep smiling through anything!

Oh, one useful thing I did learn that day – my new jacket is definitely not waterproof.

Anna

The Big Feastival, Clapham Common, London

Why not raise money AND have yourself a right old fun time on the Common? The Big Festival returns from 1st to 3rd July, with Clapham Common playing host to some of the country’s most exciting chefs and a big-star musical line-up combining to create an atmosphere somewhere between music festival and village fete.

The gourmand’s line-up includes restaurants such as Fifteen, Benares and Locanda Locatelli, while the musical feast will serve up the likes of The Charlatans, the great Norman Jay, who will bring his Good Times, the funky/dreamy Soul II Soul, and festival stalwarts The Cuban Brothers. The Big Festival Bandstand will feature showcase acoustic sets from upcoming unsigned artists.

All the proceeds from the Big Festival will go to The Jamie Oliver Foundation and The Prince’s Trust, both charities that aim to change the lives of disadvantaged young people.

Visit the website to purchase your tickets. You can buy entry-only tickets, or food and music inclusive tickets. It’s up to you! Not only will you have a great day, with great food, you’ll contribute to two fantastic causes.

The RNLI is the charity that saves lives at sea. They provide a 24-hour lifeboat search and rescue service around the coast of the UK and Republic of Ireland. The Royal National Lifeboat Institute is holding a number of fundraising events around the country, over the summer.

On Sunday 12th June you can take part in the RNLI Long Swim Series at South Cerney, Gloucestershire. This open-water challenge is open to all abilities, offering the chance to take the plunge with a sponsored 3.8km, 1.6km or 750m swim. The RNLI will offer full fundraising support and the promise of a free t-shirt if you raise over £50 for the charity!

The RNLI Cross Bay Walk 2011 takes place at Grange over Sands, Cumbria on Saturday 25th June. Walkers will be guided safely across the treacherous sands of Morcombe Bay. The Queen’s Guide, Cedric Robinson will join walkers with tales of the area. Everyone over the age of 11 is welcome on the walk, but are asked to recognise that it is a fairly tough, 8 mile terrain. Entry is £10 and walkers are asked to raise as much sponsorship as they can.

If you find yourself near Angelsey on Sunday 26th June, take part in the Angelsey Abseil. Enjoy the gorgeous view over the Menai Straits from the end of a rope, 30ft in the air, atop the Marquis of Angelsey Column…

So there you go, just a few ideas to take you out and about and raising some money this summer. If you have any information on any charity events happening over the next few months, please get in touch and we will  be happy to feature your event in our July Charity Update.

Alison is speaking on developing a cohesive digital presence for your charity and social enterprise organisation, and will be talking through the challenges that the merger of Help the Aged and Age Concern presented from a digital perspective.

From the packed convention programme the ones that have caught my eye include the panel debate, titled: ‘How do we all get on the same page and how far can we go digitally? Transforming the Third Sector’s Culture in Digital Marketing and Social Media.’ I’m particularly looking forward to hearing insight into how the semantic web can help transform Third Sector digital culture, having spent a large part of my time in 2009/2010 working on a semantic project with Comic Relief.

Alison Fine’s session on ‘The Networked Non Profit’ and Steve Bridger’s strategic keynote on Putting people at the heart of your social media strategy’ both sound really strong and on Tuesday ‘User led, user oriented and completely online: Lessons from the revolutionary online network, Mumsnet’ is a must-see for me.

I’m really choosy with the conferences and events I attend.  Let’s face it the good ones are not cheap and you have to be sure you’re getting the very best speakers and insights to make it worth the investment. I’m pretty confident that this one will be good. A reason to look forward to Monday!

Stacey