Want to donate to a good cause but can’t work out the best place to send your hard-earned dollars? Here are the RESET team’s top 8 fundraising projects for 2019 – hand-picked projects we love, with top marks for innovation, impact and integrity.
There are so many different organisations doing incredible work tackling the planet’s biggest problems, it can be hard to decide which ones to support. RESET is here to help! We’ve taken a closer look at lots of projects that work for positive change, and picked out our favourites.
These have made it into our Top 8 because:
- they’re super innovative and have a fresh, new approach to age-old issues.
- they have a proven record of creating positive change.
- they’re transparent and they use donations both constructively and responsibly.
1. Wikipedia – Free and open knowledge for a more-informed and fairer society
Everyone has heard of Wikipedia by now. And, to be honest, many of us would probably find it a challenge to live without it by now. What makes Wikipedia so special is that unlike other encyclopedias, Wikipedia is open to everyone: both as a reader and as a contributor. Founded in 2001 by Wikimedia e.V., today the world’s most famous free encyclopedia has more than 49 million articles in around 300 languages and is part of a global movement for open knowledge. Wikipedia’s reach is huge: it’s one of the top ten most-popular websites in the world and has around 15 billion visits a month. But providing and taking care of the platform, and developing the open source software, costs money of course – and as you’ve probably seen on a banner on their website, you can donate to support the project.
Donate now to Wikimedia e.V. and support the human right to access to knowledge and education!
2. CADUS – Fast, Uncomplicated Emergency Aid, Where and When It’s Needed
Behind the Berlin NGO CADUS is a young, very dynamic and dedicated team that provides crisis regions with fast, uncomplicated emergency services. An independent aid organisation, CADUS is committed to delivering an innovative and truly sustainable approach by building and supporting mobile hospitals in crisis-hit regions.
And in Berlin, they’re busy in the city’s first humanitarian maker space, developing new technical solutions and concepts for effective and affordable emergency aid. The results are designed to be used by everyone: following the principles of open source, the ideas and projects they develop can be used, copied and further developed by others.
Donate now for faster and more effective medical response in Syria.
3. Sea-Watch: Saving Lives at Europe’s Mediterranean Borders
Human lives continue to be lost in the Mediterranean – and instead of developing forward-thinking, humane policies that protect human life and effectively tackle the causes of displacement, the EU continues to pursue isolationist strategies and seal itself off. Sea rescue missions therefore remain indispensable – and it’s down to civil society to take action. Sea-Watch e.V. is a non-profit initiative dedicated to civil search and rescue missions for refugees. They provide emergency aid, and push at the same time for rescues to be carried out by European institutions, while also publicly standing up for legal escape routes (#SafePassage). Sea-Watch is politically and religiously independent and is financed exclusively by donations.
Donate now to set a sign of humanity and save lives at sea!
4. The Coalition for Rainforest Nations: Battling to save the world’s remaining rainforests
Healthy rainforests are one of the planets biggest protectors against a changing climate, as well as generating much-needed biodiversity and providing safe habitats for wildlife.
Founded in 2004 by the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea and the President of Costa Rica, the Coalition for Rainforest Nations is an intergovernmental organisation that partners with governments, communities and peoples in tropical nations to help them responsibly and sustainable manage their rainforests with concrete actions, policies and tools.
CfRN exercises significant influence in international negotiations, and played a key role in establishing, among other things, a global agreement on deforestation, the REDD+ mechanism, which provides developing countries with compensation for preventing deforestation – designed to incentivise conservation and contribute to the battle against climate change. REDD+ has been included in global climate agreements, including, perhaps most notably, the 2015 Paris Agreement – a huge and impactful achievement in the fight against deforestation.
Donate to create policies that protect our rainforests!
5. OceanCare – Preserve our oceans and marine mammals
OceanCare has been committed to protecting endangered animal species for 25 years and is doing everything in its power to ensure that protection laws are enforced at the international level. Pollution in our oceans is increasing more and more: plastic waste, underwater noise and chemical pollution are currently the most urgent problems that we are trying to solve on an international but also on an individual level.
One focus of OceanCare’s work is on formal cross-border processes: by contributing the data won from research, conservation projects and environmental education to international bodies, OceanCare promotes and shapes the formation of international agreements. Since 2011, OceanCare has been involved as a UN special advisor on marine issues.
Our oceans are the basis of life on this blue planet – donate to OceanCare to protect them!
6. RESET – Donate for more independent, constructive journalism!
On RESET.org – Digital for Good we provide over one million users a year with free, open, up-to-date and carefully-researched information on the most pressing challenges of our time. We are non-profit, completely free of advertising and sponsored links (which also keeps our content as unbiased as possible) and we have a clear mission.
To create inspiring, independent, solutions-oriented journalism that explores the projects, opportunities, trends – and also potential pitfalls – of a truly sustainable digital future, in the belief that together we’ll be able to find a way to ensure a planet that’s liveable for all.
As constructive journalists, we do not stop at merely analysing the issues of climate change, environmental destruction and social inequality. We also look to the future and look for answers to the questions: What’s next? What smart solutions already exist? And how can we ensure we have even more of them?
If we are to ensure that our voice stays strong now and into the future, we rely on our readers becoming our donors.
7. Plant trees with Eden Projects
Eden Projects is plants trees together with local villagers. It’s a win-win: the destruction of healthy forest systems is halted, the habitat of many animals is preserved, floods and erosion is mitigated, and the soil is provided with the nutrients needed for agriculture. At the same time, Eden Projects contributes to poverty reduction by providing the farmers with a decent income to support their families. The result is sustainable forests, cared for by the local villagers who themselves helped to plant them.
Since its launch, over 250 million trees have been planted worldwide in Ethiopia, Madagascar, Nepal, Haiti, Indonesia and Mozambique.
Donate now for future forests!
8. Jaguar Rescue Foundation: rehabilitation for ill, injured and orphaned animals
Birds, reptiles, amphibians and small primates – in the Jaguar Rescue Center sick, injured and orphaned animals that could not survive in the rainforest or the Caribbean Sea find a temporary or permanent home. In addition to animal care services, the JRC offers educational services for Costa Rican residents and visitors as well as internship and research opportunities for biologists, veterinarians and researchers from around the world. Through educational work, the JRC promotes environmental awareness, promotes a harmonious relationship with indigenous wildlife and encourages the community to protect our fragile ecosystems.
