April 22, 2010 | Read Time: 1 minute
Earth Day marks the start of another social-giving contest, the eBay Fundraising Tournament for the Environment.
The competition is open to any nonprofit organization that focuses on conservation or environmental issues.
Participating organizations are reaching out to their supporters via e-mail, Facebook, and Twitter to encourage them to vote for the charity to receive a share of the tournament prize money, the first $50,000 of which has been donated by eBay. So far 98 charities have registered.
People who sign up at the tournament site are eligible to cast initial vote for their favorite charity. To earn more votes, people can:
- Donate to the tournament cash pool, earning 10 votes for every $10 donated.
- Contribute to a participating charity, earning five votes for ever $10 contributed.
- Refer others, earning one vote for each person they refer who registers at the site.
- Complete a profile on the site, earning one vote.
The competition will run for two months, through June 22. The 30 nonprofit groups that receive the most votes will share the prize money. The most any one organization will receive is 10 percent of the tournament pool, a decision that organizers hope will encourage small and medium-size groups to participate.
HumanityCalls.org, a new nonprofit organization, created the tournament Web site and plans to hold future contests that focus on other large-scale issues, such as health, education, poverty, and human rights.
