50 Weeks of Opportunity
Each week for the next 50 weeks, we will share a piece of Opportunity’s history—major or minor, sobering or inspiring, we have gotten where we are today by facing some of the world’s greatest challenges, with you by our side. Please join us in celebrating the many impactful moments that have built the foundation on which we will embark on our most audacious vision yet: ending extreme poverty.
Investing in Limitless Possibilities: Extreme poverty in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
A family’s economic condition not only determines their immediate experiences—things like inadequate housing, poor health outcomes, and a dearth of educational opportunities—but also their imagined possibilities; their ability to design a better than the life they have now.
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One man’s journey staring down prejudice, hunger, and life as a child soldier
Join the Opportunity Book Club as we read one of the best nonfiction books from last year
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Healthy People, Healthy Communities: Lessons Learned in India Throughout the COVID-19 Pandemic
In the spring of 2021, when COVID-19 ravaged communities in India, Opportunity International responded. While our traditional work is in financial services, our primary goal has always been to serve our clients—and at that moment, their immediate need was not accessing loans or building their business. Their immediate need was to stay alive.
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Waymaker Wednesday: Five Sisters
I’ve traveled all over the world, and met with hundreds of families living in poverty. I’ve sat on dirt floors of school classrooms and I’ve listened to their stories. So you would think that cultures would set us apart or maybe their challenges would divide us, but the thing is, parents all want the same thing: they all want to build a better life for their children. The family you see here wanted the same. Their father, Sekinder, drove his rickshaw taxi for more than 12 hours a day, yet he…
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Get Ready to Think Again
This month, we’re reading a #1 New York Times bestseller by one of our favorite organizational psychologists.
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Celebrating 50 Years at the Opportunity International Summit
This spring, supporters and friends from around the world gathered in Chicago to celebrate Opportunity International’s 50th Anniversary—a milestone marking five decades of service, impact, and transformation.
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Director of Philanthropy in the Field: My Trip to the DRC
It wasn’t until Director of Philanthropy, Heather Radsinski, went on the 2-hour road trip through deep sandy roads, holes, and difficult terrain, that she came face to face with the complexities and the challenges our farming clients battle day in and day out. The realities of their circumstances challenged her assumptions.
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Giving As a Family Affair
When Jill and Steve Smith were students at Georgetown, little did they know a chance encounter during those late 1970s would shape their philanthropy for the rest of their lives.
Read MoreWaymaker Wednesday: Luz & Andrea
Luz Dary and Andrea form part of a savings group in the south of Bogotá. They live in the area of Cazuca and it is mostly formed by internally displaced people that flock to the cities looking for safety because the countryside is very violent in Colombia right now. In the case of Luz, she used to be married to a man that was affiliated with the guerillas. He was assassinated, and she flocked to Bogota with her six children. Luz and Andrea are recyclers. Every night they leave their homes, they…
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The Power of Home
Home means something different to us all. For many, the term may invite feelings of warmth and memories of joy. But for others who have experienced instability and pain, home can be a symbol of hurt or loss. A reminder of what they never had.
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