I have thought about donating to Kiva, but have never taken any action on it. I did browse through some individuals on their website a few weeks ago and was impressed with the "personal" feeling of it all.

It is extremely misleading and I don't blame Lisa for being disappointed/frustrated/angry/upset. There should not be a place to select a profile of a person if there is no way to directly help that person. It makes you question if the profile is a "composite" or an actual person.

Kiva would be wise to match people with lenders, because people feel much better about donating to something concrete and specific. Several years ago my museum started a "Capital & Replacement" campaign where each department creates a wish list of items we would like to have, along with a price for purchasing it. Donors send checks for a specific purchase for a specific staff member. Even in the midst of this recession, we are still getting donations for our 2009 campaign. People like knowing exactly where their money goes.

I understand that people are still being helped, but once the integrity of an organization is brought into question, it is like a house of cards. What else aren't they telling us? How much of the lenders' money actually funds people's projects and how much goes to some mysterious "overhead" charge?

It just feels wrong to me. I think we should look elsewhere for a project to support. If nothing else, rescinding our free ad space will send a powerful message about what the CEO has spun as "miscommunication."

Just my two cents!


Kim Kenney
BellaOnline Museums Editor
My Museum Ebooks

"Seek those who find your road agreeable, your personality and mind stimulating, your philosophy acceptable, and your experiences helpful. Let those who do not, seek their own kind." -Jean-Henri Fabre