Miles Design had the pleasure of working with Citizen Effect (formerly 1WELL) to redesign their website and user experience, working closely with the team at ThriveSmart.

These brilliant and dedicated folks are committed to impacting third world countries in the areas of food, water, energy, health, and education through people they call “Citizen Philanthropists.”

You won’t find any celebrity endorsements here – Citizen Philanthropists are everyday people making serious impact in third world countries.

Here’s how it works. A Citizen Philanthropist becomes the project’s fund-raising quarterback, organizing anything from Facebook fundraisers, to garage sales or even dance-a-thons, all to raise money for a project of their choosing. Visitors can search for projects by global location, project type, or population impacted.

From their website citizeneffect.org you can search from projects like this one in Zambia in need of a “Women’s Centre.” What’s really cool about Citizen Effect is how intricately it’s tied to various social networks as well. Citizen Philanthropists can blog about their project right on the website, and as a project grows, various photos, videos, and other media will be posted.

So if you’re looking for a way to design a little impact this holiday season, check out citizeneffect.org and see if you find a project that speaks to your heart.