Five ways to make money doing good

Fancy turning a profit doing someone a good turn? Donna Werbner rounds up five ways you can make money, making the world a better place.

Have you ever spent a weekend with a group of Guardian-reading Green Party activists in Brighton?

I have.

Don't get me wrong, I had a lovely time, but confessing that I'm the editor of a site called lovemoney.com did not meet with immediate, widespread approval over the dinner table laden with vegetarian curry.

"You love money?" "Are you one of those awful price comparison sites?" "So you actually make a living out of selling your soul?"

OK, I made that up. They weren't that bad. But most were leading very worthy lives, working for think-tanks and charities. And it was pretty clear that, when it came to finance, making money wasn't one of their top priorities.

Which got me thinking: can you be worthy, and wealthy, at the same time? Isn't it possible to get richer by being ethical? Couldn't you try to turn a profit while doing someone a good turn?

So, I set out to find five ways you can make money, making the world a better place. Let me know if you have any of your own suggestions!

1) Recycle your junk

By recycling, you can rid your home of your junk, help the environment and make some cash at the same time. Hurrah!

And when I say junk, I don't mean good quality, second-hand goods that are bound to be worth something. I mean, erm, junk. For example, you can:

You can also get Green Clubcard points for recycling aluminium cans at Tesco and a £5 Marks & Spencer voucher for donating Marks & Spencer clothes and soft furnishings (such as towels and bed linen) to Oxfam. Read Six things you can recycle for cash for more help.

2) Generate your own energy

Did you know that if you generate your own energy, you can sell it back to the grid? This is particularly a good option if you have a fast-flowing stream or waterfall on your land, and can afford to invest, because then you can potentially make thousands and thousands of pounds a year! But even if you only generate enough electricity to power your own home, you can still get paid for all the electricity you generate. Visit the energy saving trust website to find out more.

3) Bank with an ethical bank

By banking with an ethical bank, such as the Co-op or Smile, you can earn interest on your cash and support investment in ethical companies at the same time. At the moment, you can earn 4.5% AER on a three-year bond with the Co-op or Smile. This isn't as good a return as the 4.7% offered by Barnsley Building Society on its three-year bond, but it's pretty close.

Alternatively, if you have a minimum of £5,000 to invest, why not consider saving with the Islamic Bank of Britain. The bank will not invest in unethical industries like pornography, gambling and tobacco and it pays the equivalent (in compliance with Islamic banking principles) of 4.5% AER on its two-year fixed term deposit account. This is 0.15% ahead of the nearest competition, a two-year internet bond from the AA.

4) Help a holidaymaker

It's expensive to travel, so if you have a spare room, why not rent it out to a holidaymaker, using a site like crashpadder.com? OK, so it's not exactly the most altruistic act in the world, but still, you're helping someone to have a cheap holiday. And by inviting them into your home, rather than a hotel or a B&B, they'll get a different, more genuine experience of Britain. And I think that counts as doing good.

Similarly, you could help a commuter! Use website mondaytofriday.com to find a lodger for, you guessed it, Monday to Friday. Just imagine all the agonising hours of some horrendous commute you could be saving someone - while making a nice little nest egg for yourself at the same time!

5) Solve a problem

Have you ever felt like all the problems of the world could be solved if someone just bothered to ask you?

OK, so maybe not all the problems of the world. But I'm sure most of you know a thing or two about a thing or two. Why not put your knowledge to good use solving the problems of some of the world's largest organisations, for cash?

Take a look at Innocentive.com, a "global, online marketplace where organisations in need of innovation - companies, academic institutions, public sector, and non-profit organisations - can utilise a global network of over 160,000 of the world's brightest problem solvers". IdeaConnection.com and EdisonNation.com are also worth a visit.

Maximise your income

OK, so I haven't counted this in my five tips because it's not a tip for making money by doing good - it's a tip on how to make money. And then you are free to do good with it.

So first, read our goal on how to make some extra cash. Then, read Five ways to make money in five minutes. Then, read Make money using your creative talents. Then, read Make money from old rope. Next, preferably in the evening, read How to make money in the evening. And if you've got a hobby, then read Make money from your hobby. And last but not least, check out these nine financial products that will make you money.

If, after all that, you're still stuck, then why not ask your fellow lovemoney.com community members for their tips on our funky new Q&A tool? Or even better - use the knowledge you've learned here to answer a few questions there and spread the make-money-doing-good karma!

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