It’s great that we’re having more conversations about social justice and DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion), but actions speak louder than words. We cannot let our efforts dissipate after headlines and movements fade. Many of us feel helpless and wonder, “What can I do? How can I continuously and consistently contribute to change?” We all have skills, services, and talents that we can offer to help raise awareness and money to stimulate steady and sustainable change rather than just a fleeting surge of activity.
There are a few things I can offer in exchange for charitable donations. In return for these services, I request that you show me a receipt for a donation of any amount to one of the charities listed in the CHICAGO or ATLANTA pages below. This way you can still receive tax deductions for your donations and there is no new platform to navigate. You can also donate your credit card rewards to organizations you care about.
Please click on a button below to email me your request and donation receipt and we will figure out the logistics on a case-by-case basis. These are NOT limited-time offers because these are NOT limited-time problems. So please submit these requests to me any time.
I will cook/make any dish you want, within reason and limitations.
I will help you determine an optimal home food waste solution, given your household, circumstances, and limitations.
I will help you set up a mealworm farm system so that you can either raise them for your own sustainable protein production, watch them break down styrofoam, or do both! [But these systems stay separate]
I will talk to your organization about capitalizing on food waste, using insects for food waste, eating insects (entomophagy), sustainable development, and/or circular systems in general. I can customize and present this information through a live/video meeting or other digital platform.
This approach may not seem like much, because quite frankly it’s not. But if we all do lots of little things, they combine into something meaningful. Grassroots and crowdsourced efforts can be highly influential; ripples are real. Do you knit? Do you know how to make a website? Do you know how to fix bikes? Do you know how to play an instrument? Can you show someone how to make balloon animals? Can you teach someone how to meditate? Use your skills. Offer them to others in exchange for charitable donations. It doesn’t matter how small the contribution, but we must do things that are productive and safe to stimulate systemic change.
Many national organizations get a large amount of press and attention. Taking care of our local communities can help us gain traction close to home in this overwhelming atmosphere. We need persistent efforts on a local level in addition to macro level efforts. We cannot claim to care and then not use our dollars and actions to stimulate change on a daily basis within our own neighborhoods.
Therefore, I have chosen the charities below based on the criteria that their missions contribute to social justice for local communities. Anyone who is critical of my selection of organizations is welcome to start a conversation with me, educate me on a local-based charity that is not listed that you prefer to support, or patronize local Black-owned businesses instead. While many of these organizations do not have a specific focus on BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) racial justice, I have intentionally chosen these charities because they address multiple facets that contribute to systemic injustices towards BIPOC communities. Food deserts, homelessness, poor education, deficient mentorship, inadequate healthcare, insufficient legal representation, discriminatory housing, voter suppression, and police brutality contribute to the oppression of BIPOC communities everywhere. Systemic injustice means that there is not simply one dimension that can be addressed to solve these problems. There is a foundation of multiple, interdependent issues that need to be tackled simultaneously rather than only one at a time.
We all have skills, services, and talents to offer and every little bit counts. I encourage you to also employ your abilities in exchange for donations to organizations that you care about. Please join me in this continuous, necessary, and consistent journey towards equitable humanity.
“Fight for the things that you care about, but do it in a way that will lead others to join you.”
“Philanthropy is commendable but it must not cause the philanthropist to overlook the circumstances of economic injustice which make philanthropy necessary.”
Support Black-owned businesses online:
Please click the button below for the city in which you are interested in supporting:
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”