#DhanDaan for Covid-19-related causes

Dhan Dhaan started with a bit of fun on Twitter, which evolved into a donation drive for Pratham Books, which aims to put books in every child's hand. Then, thanks to a nudge from a friend, I decided to do another round, asking friends to join in with their own offers, this time in aid of Wheels For Life, which gives wheelchairs to those who need them. I called it DhanDaan, and the array of generous of offers these people put together was indeed an embarrassment of riches. And the responses to them were gratifying; we raised awareness of Wheels For Life, and donations helped buy wheelchairs worth a few lakh.

This was all in 2016.

I've meant to do this again, but life kept getting in the way. Well, now, a bunch of good people are doing a similar thing. You could join them too.

Welcome to DhanDaan for Covid-19-related causes.

1. Find and vet an organisation or group that is doing work for Covid-19-related causes and that is raising money.You can find one list at India Development Review, and this one at India Covid Resources and this one put together by a collectove called Mutual Aid. And I'm building one in this Twitter thread. I'll add more such lists as I find them.

2. Make your offer of your skills, time, resources as a 'return gift' for people who donate to the cause or causes you support. If you want a minimum donation and a receipt as a condition, make sure to tell donors clearly.

Suggestion: 'price' your offer such that you are offering something valuable to the donor, but also that the donors are not getting something more valuable than their donation. For example, if you value your time at  ₹10,000 an hour, then ask that they donate, say, ₹11,000, or ₹15,000 to get one hour of your time. Be sure to tell people how to contact you, and we suggest that this should include some way that is not dependent on them having Twitter accounts.

3. If you like, we'll add a post with your offer (or invite you to join and post yourself) to this blog, which you can share across social media. (Twitter has reach, but there are many, many people who don't bother with it.) 

Leave a comment to this page or a reply to this tweet, outlining your offer with all that I've said above.

4. Tell others, and invite them in too.

~ Peter Griffin (@zigzackly on Twitter)