Giving Tuesday is here, so I thought I’d share a few of my favorite charities that have earned my hard-earned cash this year.

Before you give to any charity, please check out Charity Navigator which rates non-profits.   Charity Navigator can help you find charities where your money will have the most impact by offering detailed financial information and a simple  1-4 star rating system. It can also help you easily search for good charities that support causes you care about.

My top 3 this year:

• Wikimedia Foundation: (4 star) Runs Wikipedia and other related projects.  Wikipedia is arguably the greatest repository of human knowledge ever created.  Help keep this knowledge free. If you don’t want to contribute money, consider making some edits.   We’re all smarter together.
• Human Rights Campaign: (4 star)   Love is love.   Persecution of LGBTQ people remains an issue here in the United States and around the world.  The Human Rights Campaign fights for LGBTQ equality.
• Crisis Aid International: (4 star)  Provides aid for famine, disease, natural disaster, and victims of sex trafficking both in the United States and in Africa.  Both their President and Vice President work for free.

If you’re a Facebook fan, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation are matching up to $2 million in funds raised on Facebook.  You can learn more here.

Open your hearts (and wallets!)  This is an opportunity for everyone to be a hero to someone.

So what charities are important to you?