GivingSomeThing is a new and innovative resource revamping the nonprofit industry and we're happy to know that we're not alone. Check out these original and visionary resources that are energizing the nonprofit industry and providing new and creative ways to give.
Team Up for Nonprofits is a new organization founded in 2009 that channels giving through the outlet of music. With a home base in Seattle, Team Up for Nonprofits is on a mission to harness the power of music to inspire meaningful giving. By organizing Gigs4Good, a concert series ranging from rock to folk to funk, Team Up raises both funds and awareness for nonprofits. Team Up mobilizes musicians and bands who are looking to give back to their community, the public buys the tickets, and the nonprofits receive 100% of the proceeds.
This organization, however, has far more than just a financial impact. Team Up provides publicity for nonprofits and exposes them to a new audience in a way that will more effectively capture their attention. Team Up is a great opportunity for nonprofits to get a little limelight and amp up excitement and support for their cause. The rewards of Team Up, however, run even deeper as they provide musicians with a powerful avenue for philanthropy and introduce a new generation to the very real and very positive effects of giving back.
As it is a young organization, Team Up currently only serves Washington state-based non-profit organizations. While this concentrates support and helps give back to an entire community, it is no doubt that such a visionary service, with the support it needs, can grow to have an impact far beyond just the state of Washington.
Another new organization, Good Return, has taken the beauty of giving and remodeled it into lending. Established by World Education Australia, Good Return is a lending portal to bring aid to the Asia Pacific region. Focused in microfinance, financial literacy and livelihood development, Good Return is designed to foster individual, community and national growth.
On their website, lenders can read descriptions and requests of women who are seeking loans to lift themselves out of poverty. They can then choose the woman they want to lend to and how much they want to lend. The website updates lenders on the woman’s progress and repayments, and once the loan has been completely repaid, the lender gets to hear about how their funds were used and how much they changed the woman’s life.
It is not the usual form of giving, but by means of lending, Good Return gives education, skills and long-term benefits to some of the women who need it most.
Finnegans: Turning Beer into Food
Jacquie Berglund of Minnesota combined her personal interests (more specifically- happy hour) with a strong business plan and created another innovative way of giving: turning beer into food. Finnegans Irish Amber Beer was the first beer in the world to donate 100% of its profits to charity. Today, Finnegans uses their profits to first pay their bills and salaries and then donates the remainder, a whopping 95%, to non-profit partners who support the fight against hunger.
Finnegans makes sure to nourish its community with fresh produce and thereby supports local people and businesses. It relies on its many devoted volunteers, but as they are all “social, community-minded, beer-loving folk,” it is hardly considered work as much as it is considered fun and in here lies the secret to Finnegans philanthropic success- turning an interest, a hobby, or a passion into giving.
Here’s to giving back.
And, of course, 
1) Briefly describe the work that Changes for New Hope does, and your involvement at the organization.
