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.
Credit Suisse Celebrates 10 Years of Microfinance
Congratulations to our corporate partner Credit Suisse on achieving 10 years of leadership in microfinance. Opportunity International CEO Vicki Escarra participated in two panel discussions, both of which highlighted innovations in products and delivery mechanisms to reach and serve clients more effectively. “We take a private equity approach by providing leadership and financial training as well as health and welfare education around that loan,” she said. Today, Opportunity provides financial…
Read MoreHabitat for Humanity & Opportunity Join Forces to Improve Housing in Africa
Opportunity International and Habitat for Humanity announced a new partnership to increase access to better housing for families living in poverty. The two organizations will collaborate to provide home improvement financing, housing support services and construction technical assistance to impoverished people to enhance the well-being of communities, beginning in Ghana, followed by Malawi and Uganda. By 2030, Africa is expected to have the world’s highest urbanization rate, with 50% of the population…
Read MoreOpportunity Colombia’s Grand Opening Celebration as a Deposit-Taking Bank
Opportunity Colombia celebrated its grand opening event in Bogota last month. As a regulated financial institution, Opportunity Colombia can now offer a full range of financial services to its clients, including interest-bearing savings. By 2015 it aims to reach 60,000 Colombians who live at the base of the economic pyramid. With 150 attendees at the beautiful Metropolitan Club, in the hills above Bogota, Opportunity Colombia’s CEO Enrique Ordonez and his staff were on hand to welcome the finance…
Read MoreWhat We’re Watching: Change Makers and Great Videos at the Global Citizen Festival in New York
In late September, 60,000 people, including Opportunity supporters from the NYC chapter of Young Ambassadors for Opportunity, descended on Central Park for the largest syndicated charity concert in online and broadcast TV history. The Global Poverty Project‘s Global Citizen Festival brought together change makers with artists such as Neil Young, Crazy Horse, Foo Fighters, The Black Keys, Band of Horses and K’Naan. On the eve of the opening day of the UN General Assembly they urged world leaders…
Read MoreOpportunity Teams Battle Hurricane Sandy & Cyclone Neelam at Home and Abroad
As many of our own Opportunity team members along the East Coast of the U.S. await power and water services following Hurricane Sandy, we join the rest of America in mourning the loss of life and the destruction of property. We applaud our first responders and the many public officials guiding us through these trying times. At the same time, in India, where Cyclone Neelam touched down Wednesday in the states of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, eleven people have been reported dead, power is down and…
Read MoreIt’s More Exciting than Landing a Movie with Tom Cruise
Malin Akerman is an actress and Young Ambassador. A couple weeks ago in L.A., I had the pleasure of reuniting with two incredible women, Geralyn Sheehan, Program Director at Opportunity Nicaragua, and Debbie Levin, President of the Environmental Media Association (EMA). I met Debbie when I got involved with EMA’s School Gardens Program, which supports gardens in urban schools in the L.A. area. I love spending time with the students; through this experience I’ve learned about the positive impact…
Read MoreDeyl Kearin Runs 155-Mile Ultramarathon Sahara Race to End Poverty
Deyl Kearin, is an Opportunity supporter and member of the Board of Governors, who’s en route right now to Egypt for an ultramarathon, Sahara Race, starting October 28. He’ll run the equivalent of six marathons in six and a half days — a total of 155 miles (250 kilometers) — to help Opportunity’s clients in sub-Saharan Africa work their way out of poverty. Follow along on Deyl’s Run 4 Poverty at run4poverty.org, make a donation at his Opportunity fundraiser, and share his story at opportunity.org/run4poverty…
Read MoreWhat We’re Pinning: Our Favorite Reads on Poverty, Philanthropy, and Women’s Empowerment
With all the amazing authors and books on countless interesting topics, it was hard to pick just six on Pinterest this week to share with you. But the ones we’ve chosen have especially inspired us and focus on topics ranging from empowering women to how to best help those in need. Some of these authors are also speakers at the Opportunity Summit happening this weekend. Let us know what you’re reading or if you have any good book recommendations on these topics in the comments below! In this memoir,…
Read MoreYoung Ambassador Malin Akerman at EMA Event on Opportunity Nicaragua at the Microsoft Experience
Environmentalists, Opportunity staff, and some of Hollywood’s finest came together to support entrepreneurship, microfinance and education at last week’s benefit hosted by Malin Akerman and the Environmental Media Association (EMA). The benefit raised funds for Opportunity Nicaragua’s Emprendedora School, located near Granada. Microsoft generously hosted the event at its new venue, The Microsoft Experience, and pledged a donation of five computers to be delivered to the school in February. Malin,…
Read MoreWhat We’re Pinning: Poverty Eradication Day, World Food Day and a Week of Social Activism
With World Food Day on Tuesday, and International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on Wednesday, and more, it was a busy week for activists everywhere! This week on Pinterest, we’re sharing a few of our favorite pins from the causes we supported and promoted this week. Check them out, see if there’s any you’d like to get involved with, and maybe even start your own campaign! In honor of World Food Day: Infographic addressing the global issue of hunger with a great way to act! Malala Yousafzai…
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