How Much Do I Have to Raise?
Each team taking part on the Mongolia Charity Rally must raise a total of at least £1,000 (not including gift aid) for a UK charity working in Mongolia selected from the list on the website. See the menu at the left for the options. Anything on top of this you can raise for any other charity of your choice.
In exceptional circumstances, you can request to raise the first £1000 for a UK Charity of your choice. However you will need to justify how the charity will offer benefit to Mongolia.
Why do I have to raise money for the charities you list that work in Mongolia?
We require you to raise a certain amount for Mongolian charities because the ethos of Charity Rallies is to help people in the destination country. There are other charities that work in Mongolia not on our list who do some great work, but the charities have been specially selected for the quality of the work they do, and the Charity Projects they are working on. Be careful that many of the bigger charities do not send the money you raise to Mongolia. Our biggest charity, Save the Children, have specific projects so that you can see where the money you raise is spent.
How can I raise money?
Teams raise money directly for their chosen charities: by using a Justgiving web page (or if the team is based in the US, a Firstgiving web page) or making payments directly to their chosen charities. You can sign up for a justgiving page by going to the Mongolia Charity Rally Justgiving event site and following the directions: http://www.justgiving.com/event/180263
More information is sent to you in the Information Pack you receive after sign-up.
Which Charities?
We are adding to the list of charities on the site and finalising details with several new charities. Some of these charities will have projects in Mongolia, others will have projects you can visit in countries en route. We have first hand experience of these charities and know that they are really making a difference.
We are also supporting the CDPF (Children's Development Protection Foundation) based in Mongolia who will receive the vehicles at the end of the event. The CDPF are our Mongolian partner and help us to run the Go Help charity projects in Mongolia. Teams will not be fundraising directly for the CDPF, instead the CDPF receive the proceeds of the auction of the vehicles, and any aid items that teams can take with them. Teams should try to ensure a decent sale value for their vehicle when it is auctioned by the CDPF at the end of the trip. The CDPF work with Go Help on a number of projects, including the project to supply Helmets to Mongolian Child Jockeys.
Can I volunteer in Mongolia?
If you would like to volunteer with any of the organisations in Mongolia please get in touch. Also, If your chosen charity is not listed, and you feel passionately about the work it does, then you can contact us, telling us about its work and we will endeavour to add it to the list. If you also want to support a charity local to your home in addition to the Mongolian charities, this is fine, providing it is a UK registered charity. The important thing is to raise money for charities that you are passionate about, and being able to see the projects in action.
What about raising money to cover our team's costs?
Many teams also set up donation pages using systems such as Paypal. This is fine, but must be in addition to your charity pages. One idea is to get sponsors to pay for your petrol or your visas: let people donate by the litre of petrol on your website to buy miles on your trip. You must make it very clear if the money that is being donated is to your costs or to your charity. The simple rule is: "Justgiving for charity donations, Paypal or an alternative for team costs". Do not use paypal for charity donations - not only does the money not go direct to the charity, but the charity loses out on the Gift Aid.
Finally, anything you raise beyond your basic costs has to go to your chosen charity or handed over to the Go Help charity fund. In no way can any team profit from the event. Should a commercial sponsor come along and offer a big wedge of cash, you can only cover your costs and the rest has to go to your chosen charity. Read more in the Charity Rallies Fundraising Guide.
