Oxfam Unwrapped

Getting a $50 crocodile as a holiday gift sounds more like the bad punch line to an off-color Christmas joke than something that could actually happen. But with Oxfam's renowned gift-buying program, not only can you give someone that toothy reptile, but you can also select a camel, sheep, cow, an emergency toilet, a quinoa crop, or a coffee mill as a present—not to mention providing legal training for community activists, starting a village savings group, installing a water pump, building a stable, or staffing a workers' rights center (just to name a few).

Here's how it works: Visit the Oxfam America Unwrapped website, which organizes gifts into categories (saving lives, making a living, promoting human rights, women and families) and prices (from under $25 up to over $500). Browse, select, and purchase your gifts via a secure interface. And then Oxfam—a tireless nonprofit focused on ending global poverty—will send a personalized card to your gift recipient, with a picture of your purchase (say, a $35 veterinarian's field kit), explaining your gift, the Oxfam Unwrapped program, and that field kit's importance to Oxfam's overall organizational goals. You get credit for giving the season's most unique gift (without leaving your computer, no less), Oxfam puts that $35 donation to use in the field where it's needed most, and your generosity may even inspire a few friends or family members to forego the mall next year, instead donating $40 in your name to irrigate a farmer's land for four months.
1.800.850.7608; www.oxfamamericaunwrapped.com