Happy Holidays to Our Readers
Some gift-giving resources for activists, curated by Hold the Line Maryland members
This holiday season, give a gift that helps make change.
Give the gift of preservation
821 million people go to bed hungry every night. Heifer International’s mission is “to end hunger and poverty in a sustainable way by supporting and investing alongside local farmers and their communities.”
One Tree Planted is a nonprofit that plants one tree for every dollar donated:
“We want to make it simple for anyone to help the environment by planting trees. Together we can restore forests, create habitat for biodiversity, and make a positive social impact around the world.”
“Since 2014, we have more than doubled the number of trees planted each year, and are working with partners across 43+ countries in North America, Latin America, Africa, Asia, Europe and the Pacific.”
Sea Change is a nonprofit organization devoted to preserving the Great African Sea Forest, home to the cephalopod star of My Octopus Teacher. You can order the gorgeous and informative book Sea Change as a hardcover, softcover, or digital version and support the world of Sea Change. And then you can watch the film My Octopus Teacher with the recipient of your gift.
Sheldrick Wild Animal Trust is Kenya’s home to orphaned elephants and rhinos, most of whom are reintegrated into the wild. It costs $50 per year to sponsor an orphan elephant or rhinoceros. Your gift recipient will receive news, with photographs and videos. For an added treat, you can purchase handmade chocolate elephants from L.A. Burdick, a chocolatier that donates 100% of its net profits on these confections to the Sheldrick Wild Animal Trust.
Support Black-Owned Businesses
Support Black-Owned Businesses, a blog, features 181 online Black-owned businesses, organized by category. You might also visit Support Black Owned (Maryland Page), where “you will find information related to the State of Maryland as it pertains to Black and African American Owned Businesses and Organizations. […] Here at Support Black Owned you can find many Black and African American owned businesses listed all over the state here in our Black business directory. We list Black and African American owned churches, beauty salons, media companies, photography and film companies, restaurants, entertainers, authors, doctors, and lawyers.”
For the news-minded in your life
Consider gifting a subscription to independent, fact-based journalism. And, instead of the standard newspaper or magazine subscription, perhaps gift a subscription to one or both of these two excellent digital newsletters, delivered directly to email:
Heather Cox Richardson, Letters from an American:
“Historians are fond of saying that the past doesn’t repeat itself; it rhymes.
To understand the present, we have to understand how we got here.
That’s where this newsletter comes in.
I’m a professor of American history. This is a chronicle of today’s political landscape, but because you can’t get a grip on today’s politics without an outline of America’s Constitution, and laws, and the economy, and social customs, this newsletter explores what it means, and what it has meant, to be an American.
These were the same questions a famous observer asked in a book of letters he published in 1782, the year before the Treaty of Paris ended the Revolutionary War.
Hector St. John de Crevecoeur called his book “Letters from an American Farmer.”
Like I say, history doesn’t repeat itself, but it sure rhymes.”
Judd Legum, Popular Information:
“You are not a spectator and democracy is not a game. But so much of what is written about politics treats you that way. That’s why I created Popular Information. It is daily news and analysis that respects you as a citizen. You won’t just learn about who is up and who is down. You’ll get in-depth information and perspective on the things that really matter.
“The upcoming elections will have a profound impact on the future of the United States and the world. Every day there is an avalanche of information — but much of it is a distraction. Popular Information guides you through the noise and helps you focus on what’s important.”