An eventful week in world news may have distracted attention from the need for aid in Japan, but the need remains. Images of Japan’s tsunami and earthquake devastation still pour out of the country (as reflected in this Bloomberg news article), and at this point, the affected are no longer expressing shock, but the question: “How do we go about getting back to normal?”

And while it’s likely everyone is putting off shopping trips as they watch financial markets bounce around, that doesn’t change the fact that most people still want to help and donate to Japan’s relief efforts.

As mentioned in the Hartford Courant’s March 18 article on donating to Japanese relief, by Korky Vann, you can find myriad ways to help Japan, even when you are short on cash. This includes donating accumulated hotel rewards points, and in the case of United, Continental, and American Airlines, donations of $50 or $100 will get you rewarded with bonus miles on your frequent flier account.

The article also mentions Plastic Jungle: “At PlasticJungle.com, you can donate unused gift cards (minimum balance of $25) to the Red Cross, Direct Relief or Global Giving.”

If you’ve got unused gift cards, you’ve got a means to donate. Check out our Nonprofit Directory. You can donate the value of your unused gift cards in a matter of minutes to any nonprofit listed in the directory.

Begin your donation process by linking to Plastic Jungle’s Sell Gift Cards page. You will be offered the opportunity to donate part or all of the proceeds from your gift card sale to an organization of your choice. You can donate a plastic gift card (Plastic Jungle provides you with a free shipping label), or an e-gift card.

Plastic Jungle will forward the funds to your nonprofit of choice, along with a donation report, by the 30th of the following month. Remember that all of Plastic Jungle’s transactions are guaranteed. Donating via Plastic Jungle is safe, easy, and efficiently effective.

Plastic Jungle will provide you with a receipt for your tax-deductible gift.

If you’re a nonprofit and would like to become listed in our directory, go to our PJ for Nonprofits page. You’ll find out how to become a nonprofit affiliate (a very simple process), and how Plastic Jungle can help you raise funds for your local, national, or even international cause. For questions regarding the nonprofit directory, email fundraising@plasticjungle.net.

Let’s see if we can get a count on how many readers can spare an unused gift card to help Japan recovery. Please leave a comment if you’re taking the initiative to give via Plastic Jungle, and let us know who your intended nonprofit is.

We know that aid comes from many places so here are several other ways that you can help relief efforts:

American Red Cross

Your donation to the American Red Cross will help support disaster relief efforts to help those affected by the earthquake in Japan and tsunami throughout the Pacific.

Global Giving

Global Giving has already raised over $1.8 million for the Japan relief efforts.  Go to their site and make a tax-deductible contribution and they will send you progress updates so that you can see how your gift is making a difference.

eBay Giving Works

eBay is helping their users donate to relief agencies through the buying and selling of items. To ensure that all funds raised go to the relief efforts, eBay is waiving the standard donation processing fees on these donations.

Our hearts go out to those impacted by this terrible disaster and its aftermath.  We send our sincerest wishes for a thorough recovery to all those affected around the world.

January 19^th, 2011 In a segment entitled, “Ask the Experts” on the CBS Early Show, consumer correspondent Susan Koeppen was confronted with a question that many are facing in the wake of the December holidays: What can I do with all the gift cards I got for Christmas from stores I don’t shop at?

Susan Koeppen, an "expert" on the CBS Early Show

Ms. Koeppen was equipped with her reply: “You can swap or sell them … and on the website Plastic Jungle.com, you can donate your gift card and get the tax break for it.”

Ms. Koeppen is right. As the web’s largest secured gift card exchange, Plastic Jungle gives consumers the choice and flexibility to convert their gift cards into other forms of spending power, including charitable donations.

Included in the options for Payout Choice on the “Sell” page on Plastic Jungle are Check, Amazon.com Gift Card, PayPal, and Donate to Charity.

Gift Cards for Good: How It Works

Plastic Jungle calls our program which siphons off those possibly uncounted gift dollars to worthy causes “Gift Cards for Good”. It’s as easy as selling or trading unused gift cards for yourself, only in the end, you’ll have a receipt for a tax-deductible donation.

To begin, enter your gift card information in our Sell Your Gift Card form. Select the Donate to Charity offer. You will go through the transaction as if you were selling or trading your card to keep, but before you confirm your transaction, look for the blue and green ribbon to make a donation and select a nonprofit to support. You may donate all or part of your card’s trade-in value.

Print the FREE shipping label, and drop your gift card in the mail. Upon receipt, we will verify your card’s balance and process your donation. You will receive an email receipt for your generous tax-deductible contribution.

Just some of the organizations Plastic Jungle works with include: The American Red Cross, Autism Speaks, DonorsChoose.org, various preschool, Parochial and private high schools and education funds across the country, the Starlight Children’s Foundation and many more.

If you’d like to get your nonprofit organization involved in accepting donations via Plastic Jungle, see below, and don’t hesitate to Contact Us.

PJ for Nonprofits: How to Begin Utilizing Donors’ Gift Cards

For nonprofits interested in fundraising with Plastic Jungle, here’s a simple overview.

Plastic Jungle offers your organization a safe and simple way to turn hidden treasure into unrestricted funding to further your mission.

With Direct Sales, nonprofits collect gift cards from individual and corporate donors, via a gift card donation drive or by asking donors to bring a gift card as the cost of entry to an event. Plastic Jungle provides a prepaid envelope for nonprofits to send the cards in, and after verification, we send you a check (for up to 92% of the value of each card*).

Donors can specify your charity as they cash in gift cards at PlasticJungle.com. These Donations can be all or part of the proceeds from the gift card sale. Plastic Jungle will forward the funds to you, along with a donation report, by the 30th of the following month, and Plastic Jungle provides the donor with a receipt for his tax-deductible gift.

With Implement PJ Payments, you can accept merchant gift cards as a donation payment option from your website and raise funds with this highly incremental source of contributions. Learn more »

If you’re a nonprofit interested in learning more about Gift Cards for Good or PJ for Nonprofits, please contact our Business Development Team.

* Plastic Jungle will purchase eligible cards from your organization at our standard purchase rates, which are available on our website.