In the past twelve years, Room to Read has grown from a small non-profit to a massive organization. Founded by John Wood, this San Francisco-based organization helps empower children around the world with their many literacy programs. Room to Read currently has initiatives going in Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Laos, Nepal, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, and Zambia. That's a lot of airfare!

Though they started with rather humble beginnings—bringing donated books to rural Nepal—Room to Read has big dreams. So far, they have reached over five million children, and plan to double that number by 2015. Volunteers from Room to Read have visited thousands of schools, distributing 11.5 million books and reaching millions of kids.

But Room to Read doesn't simply dump books or build libraries—they also initiate social change through their innovative programs. One of their central goals is to empower and educate girls. In order to achieve this, Room to Read partners with communities across the developing world to target some of the most disadvantaged members of their population. "Educating girls and women is widely acknowledged as the most powerful and effective way to address global poverty," their website explains.

Want to get involved? You can volunteer with Room to Read or even dedicate your birthday to the cause. Presents are great, but doing good is better.