The Untours Foundation provides low interest loans here and abroad. Loans are issued to individuals and organizations in order to create jobs among disenfranchised populations, build low-income housing, and support Fair Trade Certified products all through the most environmentally friendly means possible. (Fair Trade certification guarantees a comprehensive form of development including fair prices and wages to producers and workers, land farmed in sustainable ways, women holding key decision making roles, and the list goes on.) We look for projects that are innovative and replicable.
The foundation's interest rate on loans is one of the lowest in the world: normally the U.S. inflation rate. Most loan recipients have no collateral or track record necessary to borrow money through conventional lending institutions. By giving loans and not grants, the foundation provides a "hand up" and not a "hand out".
Paul Newman said of the foundation: "Untours' giving is creative in every sense of the word. Their low-interest loans literally create jobs among the hard-core unemployed and housing in decaying urban centers."
Ben Cohen of Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream has said of Hal Taussig and the foundation: "What makes Hal so special is that he combines real kindness and compassion with that practical business side, and that, I think, is the key to making a difference."
The foundation's portfolio is quite eclectic. Most loans are under $50,000.