Support Kiva Club!

Support+Kiva+Club%21

Ania Szydlowski, Editor

Kayla Huang ‘20 and Hannah Hansraj ‘20 welcome you at to the Kiva Club at Whitney Young! What is Kiva? Glad you asked!

Kiva is a non-profit micro financing organization devoted to eliminating poverty across the globe. It helps people worldwide create opportunities for themselves and their communities. Founder of the club, Kayla Huang ‘20, explains, “what most attracted me, initially, to Kiva was how unique its premise is: loaning directly to those who have been abandoned by local banks has been exponentially rewarding. When the money is returned, we can continue to loan to others in need, allowing its impact to multiply. Additionally, our club members have gained important leadership and management skills through fundraising efforts, and have become more engaged and informed participants in our global society.”

Here’s how the Whitney Young Kiva Club does it:

It’s really simple, all it takes is three steps! First, select a borrower. On the Kiva website, you can choose patrons from over 80 different countries and over 20 different sectors. Once you have selected a borrower, you can lend the borrower any amount of above $25 and then within a year, that money will be repaid to you to start the process over again! “Kiva is vital in providing funds to small businesses in locations where it would not otherwise be accessible,” notes Hannah Hansraj ‘20. The Kiva Club raises money through various seasonal fundraisers in order to lend money to borrowers of developing countries. In the past year, the club has lent over $1700 to over 30 countries. “I love knowing that my actions are having an impact,” says Naomi Wu ‘20. You can support the Kiva Club at their upcoming fundraiser. Winter treats will be sold in blue house next Wednesday and Thursday, December 12th and 13th! For more information, feel free to email the club, [email protected] and follow the Kiva Instagram Page.