What pictures come to your mind when you think of donation? You could imagine an extremely wealthy man like Bill Gates donating a huge sum of money to poor people. You might think that donation is worthwhile  work, but still feel it is something hard for common people to do easily. However, the culture of donation has been changing. It is melts into and is becoming a part of our daily lives.
First, a donation is no longer a matter of enormous money. Although it has not fully taken root in our culture yet, active donation of small amounts is becoming a common activity. Donation is not a one-off event, but a part of a culture melting into people’s lives. There is a plethora of examples of small donation. Many relief organizations such as UNICEF, World Vision, and Save the Children have been organizing programs in which people donate 20000-30000 KRW every month. If they want, organizations connect donors and people in need one-to-one, and donors can stand behind the people they support for a long time. Also, donation organizations that conduct these small-scale donations have been increasing.
The Internet and SNS have a good influence on small-scale donations, too. When a pitiful story of someone is introduced on television, people do not just take on a passive attitude. They post the story in an online bulletin of famous portal sites, and plan a donation project. Internet users who read the post can donate even a small amount using Internet cash or a gift voucher. SNS like Facebook also play a role of bulletin for donation these days.
Small donation as a daily activity can be found on the way to work. When subway users use all money on transportation card, they can receive 500 KRW if they give back the card. At subway stations, there is a collection box for the cards, and people can donate by giving the cards. Donating is turning into something that people can do anywhere and without a large sense of burden if they want.
Secondly, the content of dona- tions is becoming more diverse. Now, donations do not mean just money, but whatever people want to share with others. Recently, “talent donation” has become a common expression. Students volunteer as teachers in community centers, or famous professors give a special lecture to the public for free. Singers holds a charity concert for fund-raising. Kim Jin-ho, a member of SG Wannabe, made headlines because of his talent donation activities. He gave benefit performances at many hospitals and schools nationwide. By expanding donation contents, the spectrum of donors also broadens. Someone knits some clothes for children in need, artists draw beautiful wall paintings at poor hillside villages. Any talent can be donated if the person donating has a heart to donate.
Charities aids foundation, British international charity foundation announced the World Giving Index (WGI), which represents the degree of charitable of populations in 153 countries. Korea has increased from 82th (2010), to 57th (2011), to 45th (2013). That is a remarkable increase, but there are still shortcomings in our donation culture. Thus, if people think of donations more comfortably and accept it as a part of their life, our country will become a happier living place for everyone.