The way things are in the world today it is very tempting to simply throw up your hands in despair and give up before you even try to address the problems. Everywhere you look you can find war, hunger, poverty, disease, or various combinations of all of the above. In the face of these overwhelming issues it is tough to figure out how one person can even begin to make the slightest improvement. The surprising truth of the matter is that, with only a little help, you actually can make a huge difference. Where can you find this empowering help? It is as close as your keyboard!

Want to join the join the fight against disease and hunger? Pay a visit to http://www.WorldCommunityGrid.org. The World Community Grid is an organization dedicated to harnessing the vast amount of unused computer processing power available through the internet using the concept of grid computing. WCG has assembled a world grid computer to further advanced research in areas like agriculture, DNA, and vaccine development. They are actively employing grid computing on a world wide scale to cure childhood cancer and AIDS. What can you do to help? Simply sign up and install a grid computing client application on your computer. WCG will periodically download computational work units to your computer to be processed in the background at times when the CPU is idle. Results are automatically collected when they are complete. The WCG web site even shows how you rank in terms of results returned against all the other members on the grid. The client application is user friendly and fully configurable so you can decide how much or how little CPU time you want to contribute to this amazing grid computing effort.

Want to give someone in another country some assistance in building a better life? Visit http://www.kiva.org. Signing up with Kiva allows you to join with other Kiva users to pool funds and make micro loans to entrepreneurs in other less fortunate countries. By utilizing micro loans these industrious farmers, shop owners, and livestock producers are able to improve their station in life. You can begin making micro loans with as little as twenty five dollars and know your money is being put to good use by a hard working individual. You will get periodic email updates to keep you posted on how your borrower is doing in his or her current project. When your micro loan has been repaid you have the option of making another micro loan to another person or withdrawing the funds for your personal use. Another benefit of getting involved with Kiva is that you can join different communities (they call them teams) of users/lenders with common interests to share ideas and make new friends. If you aren't interested in making micro loans overseas Kiva has recently started to accept loan applications from fledgling companies right here in the United States.

It's time to stop grousing about the state of the world and take action. Whether you choose micro lending or grid computing (or both). these two web sites make it easy and fun to be a part of the solution.

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