The holy month is a sacred period of reflection, self-improvement and prayer. It’s also the perfect time to give back. We’ve rounded up the best ways for you to make a positive difference this Ramadan.

1. Stock up a ‘Sharing Fridge’

Sharing what you have with the less fortunate is the essence of the holy month. A Sharing Fridge is a place everyone can leave water, snacks or food for those who need it most (our blue-collar workers). The concept is the brainchild of Australian mum-of-two Sumayyah Sayed, who launched the initiative last year. One fridge feeds around 100 people a day. With more than 70 fridges open, you can definitely contribute to this heart-warming initiative.
You can find a list of the fridges in Dubai here.

2. Order a free Careem to donate food

During Ramadan, residents can order a “Food Bank” delivery Careem, free of charge to donate their surplus food from within the comfort of their homes. This initiative between the UAE Food Bank and ride-hailing app Careem, will allow residents to donate every Thursday, Friday and Saturday, from 2pm to 6pm. Once booked, a delivery captain will arrive on the weekend at the user’s location, pick up the extra food or grocery items and deliver it to the 80 food bank community fridges distributed in residential areas and mosques.• For more details, follow Careem on Facebook

3. Help feed a child

When there are 20 times as many smartphone users as hungry children, if every one of us gives just a little, we can make this world a better place!
Feed a child with a simple tap of your phone. ShareTheMeal is the charity app by the World Food Programme that allows you to support needy children in Yemen, Malawi, Cameroon, Lebanon, Jordan and Syria. It costs only Dhs1.80 (US$0.50) to feed a child for one day.

4. Help cure ill children with flowers

If you’re thinking about saying it with flowers – this limited-edition flower box from Maison Des Fleurs is the purrrfect gift. The gesture is both loving and charitable with fifty per cent of the boxes’ revenue going towards the Al Jalila Foundation, a Dubai-based initiative that helps treat children with life-threatening illnesses. Maison Des Fleurs has teamed up with French calligraphy artist eL Seed on the Arabic designs. The Dhs749 boxes will be available from the start of Ramadan until August.

5. Donate clothes to the needy

Spring-clean your wardrobe this month and donate your unwanted items in the spirit of Ramadan. Washmen, the UAE’s leading dry cleaning and laundry service, has teamed up with OMO detergent to gather your unwanted clothes to distribute to the less fortunate.
To join the initiative, follow the steps below:
1. Make a Washmen order through your mobile; accessible with both Android and iOS
2. Set the time of pick-up, gather your dirty laundry in a Washmen bag
3. Alongside the dirty laundry, gather your unwanted clothing and Washmen will pick it up along with your laundry to give to OMO

The addition of the charity bag is free of charge with every Washmen order.

6. Call a cab and support refugees

Turn your everyday normal ride into an act of kindness. Local ride-hailing app Careem has launched an initiative which lets you support refugee families in the MENA region, by simply booking a ride. The Dubai-based company launched the new feature in partnership with UNHCR, the United Nations Refugee Agency. When selecting your car, you can now choose a special UNHCR option, which automatically adds a Dhs3 donation to your fare. During Ramadan Careem will match every donation, making your charitable act go a longer way.

7. Food Drive

If you’ve been to one of Dubai’s more high-end Iftars, you’ll know that the hotels go all out, with lavish display of food enough to cater for days on end.
A new initiative launched by Dubai Municipality is making sure these lavish Iftars are not just reserved for the region’s elite. Heafz Al Na’amah avoids surplus waste from these high end hotels and restaurants by collecting and distributing the food in labour camps and other less fortunate parts of Dubai. The public are also able to donate food to the needy via Heafz Al Na’amah, however the food needs to be halal, packaged and ready-to-eat.

We Love:

Blowout&go‘s Company Food Challenge

Paria Ghorashi, founder of Blowout&go has undertaken a great Ramadan initiative. The #blowoutandgo team set a target, and will pack and deliver meals to those less fortunate.  They will then challenge companies to beat their record!  Check out Paria Ghorashi’s IG page and get your company involved!

The next time you’re going about your usual routine remember it just takes a few mins to be apart of Dubai’s giver’s by paying  it forward and  putting a smile on someone’s face.