I had heard of OxFam from one of my friends. She had mentioned her kids got her a cow as a Christmas present. I could tell she was waiting for a reaction given she lives in the suburbs of Portland, Oregon and I couldn't just picture a cow in the backyard.

She then proceeded to explain that the girls used the money they would have spent on a present for her, to "buy" a cow through the Oxfam website. The money then goes to one of their rural development programs like the Campaign for a Just Food and Farm Policy they run here in the United States or the "Asset-Based Community-Driven" development program in Ethiopia.

What's interesting is that they have 750 stores across the UK and other countries. They are the second largest retailer of used books in the UK and a direct competitor of Starbucks in the retail coffee market.

I say it's interesting because it is rather entrepreneurial and innovative of a non-profit organization to create an e-commerce website to "sell" their contribution needs as if they were products. Fundraising becomes familiar, easy and accessible.

I mean, c'mon, who doesn't love baby chicks, goats or donkeys?

Go ahead. Check it out.

[Photo Source: Screenshot of Oxfam America Unwrapped]