Please consider helping these organizations make the world a little bit better

If 2009 has been good to you, please consider joining me in contributing to the following organizations that try and make the world a slightly better place.

* charity: water - charity: water is a non-profit organization that brings clean and safe drinking water to people in developing nations. I haven't contributed previously, but as both Shak and Daniel have repeatedly tweeted about the organization and its cause I've made a contribution.

* Creative Commons - Copyright law needs to adapt to a networked world and Creative Commons is an example of how works can be copyrighted in a way that facilitates remixing and creative use. I think a good example, like Creative Commons, will play an important role in changing legislation over time.

* Kiva - Kiva aggregates microlending organizations and lets you lend directly. Kiva works with local partners who find entrepreneurs seeking loans and manage the contact with the entrepreneurs. As a lender one chooses which entrepreneurs to lend to. Read more about Kiva and the concept of microlending in the blog post I wrote when I made my first loan in 2008. (If you sign-up as a Kiva member as a result of this blog post, feel free to add my e-mail henrik@torstensson.com in the Referred by a friend? field on the sign-up page.)

* Médecins Sans Frontières / Läkare Utan Gränser - Médecins Sans Frontières is a medical humanitarian organisation that delivers emergency aid to people affected by armed conflict, epidemics, healthcare exclusion and natural or man-made disasters. MSF helps people in very bad situations in some of the worst places on earth. Please donate.

* Wikimedia Foundation - Wikimedia is the foundation that runs Wikipedia. Wikipedia, even with its issues, is an amazing thing that deserves support.