Every day, we are learning more about the horrible devastation caused by Tuesday’s magnitude 7.0 earthquake in Haiti.  As the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, Haiti is no stranger to calamity – both natural and man-made - but this natural disaster has caused heartbreaking conditions for residents, aid workers and humanitarians in and around the capital of Port-au-Prince.  You may have already received many petitions from worthy organizations arranging rescue and relief efforts.  No doubt these platforms have their work cut out for them and can use all the help from donations they can get.  There are other non-charitable ways to contribute as well and fixed income investors might be interested in these alternatives.  You may have already heard or read about “microfinance” or “socially responsible investing.”  Microfinance is a means of providing small dollar loans to the working poor in developing countries.  Organizations such as Kiva and MicroPlace enable microfinance enterprises in developing nations to receive funding through contributions from individual investors.  Typically, credit is unavailable in impoverished nations and the overhead cost of making small loans to those without any formal credit history is very high.  Microfinance organizations work on the ground to make business loans to the working poor, many of which are done within a community setting that encourages repayment through groups within a given society.  As a result, the default rate for most microfinance lending institutions is low and the impact is high.  Successful microfinance endeavors enable the working poor to raise their standard of living and begin to provide food and shelter for their families. Where this discussion gets interesting to investors is in platforms that operate as for-profit entities.  MicroPlace is a social business owned by eBay that is working to alleviate global poverty.  It’s not a charitable organization, rather it allows individuals to make investments that help microfinance organizations fund loans to the working poor.  You can deploy your excess investment dollars and earn a financial return in the process, anywhere from 1-6% annually.  Investments are illiquid for the one to four year term and carry various degrees of credit risk, but in an environment of relatively low interest rates where charitable donations have been falling, this is an interesting alternative that allows you to make a social investment for a financial gain.   Work in Haiti MicroPlace has a funding relationship with a Microfinance Enterprise in Haiti named Fonkoze and sells investment notes through a partnering fund to benefit this organization.  Fonkoze’s goal is to provide financial and educational resources to help eliminate extreme poverty in Haiti.  It seems like there is no better time than to bolster these efforts.  While assistance provided through this channel is not immediate, it is more sustainable than one time charitable grants.  Helping people help themselves is the most powerful way of creating better living conditions.  Doing so at a financial gain diminishes the opportunity cost for investors and ultimately helps others create a better life for themselves.  This particular note carries a 4.25 year term and pays investors 2.0% per year, which is in-line with comparable U.S. Treasury yields.  To learn more, visit: http://bit.ly/8o19U4.     Disclosure: At the time of writing, Adrienne Penake has no position in the security mentioned, but has other outstanding investments through MicroPlace.  Be advised that positions may change without further notice