Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

In April 2014 I will run in my first London Marathon (and first marathon ever). I'm really excited about the challenge and the opportunity to support a charity that is helping poor people in the developing world lift themselves out of poverty: Practical Action.

Practical Action uses technology to challenge poverty, working with poor communities to develop the tools, skills and expertise they need to build their livelihoods and overcome the challenges of poverty - not a handout, but a leg up.

Practical Action is able to create sustainable opportunities for poor communities to enhance their own wellbeing by eschewing a one-size-fits-all approach in favour of a community-specific one, tailoring its projects to the unique resources, challenges and people of each community they work with.

Practical Action works in over 40 developing countries across Africa, Asia and Latin America with programmes in four core areas: energy access, food and agriculture, urban water and waste, and disaster risk reduction. To learn more about Practical Action's work, go to http://practicalaction.org/.

Out of each £1 donated to Practical Action, 83p goes directly into their operational programmes. 15p is used to support fundraising efforts to generate future revenue for projects and 2p goes towards management and admin. 

Donating through JustGiving is simple, fast and totally secure. Your details are safe with JustGiving – they’ll never sell them on or send unwanted emails. Once you donate, they’ll send your money directly to the charity. So it’s the most efficient way to donate – saving time and cutting costs for the charity.