Interactive One, the digital division of Radio One, Inc., home of BlackAmericaWeb.com and "The Tom Joyner Morning Show," has launched an online one-stop shopping site for black Americans looking for ways to donate their time and resources to the community.

When Interactive One was launched about 18 months ago, “we knew that we wanted to have some component, some aspect that was giving back to the black community,” said Maria Weaver Watson, the division’s marketing director, who oversees community outreach.

“As we moved through the process, it became really clear to me that we wanted to be a resource online to give people tools to get involved in the community,” she told BlackAmericaWeb.com.

BlackPlanet Rising allows people to log in and find a range of programs, activities or places to donate time, money or a skill, all in one spot.

“A lot of times, people don’t know how or where to go,” Watson said. “There are lots of options that we found that they can do, even people who cannot physically leave their homes. There are things they can do, from making calls to stuffing envelopes.”

BlackPlanet Rising partnered with VolunteerMatch, one of the Web’s most popular volunteer network with more than 68,000 nonprofit organizations, to help volunteers find programs by simply entering their zip code, skills and interests, including education and public service.
 
“Our hope is that we are giving a community that is inspired to contribute the tools and information to make an impact on the causes that are most important to them,” Tom Newman, president of Interactive One, said in a statement.

“Community service is at the heart of Radio One’s mission and history, and we felt that in these challenging economic times, we needed to be front and center as leaders," Newman said. "I am very excited to see how BlackPlanet Rising will mobilize the community further by introducing and encouraging acts of service and social change online. There is really nothing out there like this.”

BlackPlanet Rising also collaborated with DonorsChoose.org, a non-profit Web site that connects donors to public schools that need resources, including books, computers, supplies and field trips.

The site also features profiles of individuals who have done exceptional work, a news section with information about community service and an events calendar that will list national and regional events to encourage volunteerism. A couple of major events are scheduled for September, Watson said.

Traditionally, the African-American community has done most of its giving through the black church and on an informal basis within the community. Watson said BlackPlanet Rising does not intend to conflict with those efforts.

“Lots of people do give of themselves and their time at their church, but oftentimes the church has selected which causes they want to support. (BlackPlanet Rising) gives people a lot more choice,” she said. “There are so many things to support that the church can’t support everything.”

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