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.
Breakout Session: Stand Up for Opportunity
I sat down to listen to a panel of Opportunity International volunteers and contributors to hear their thoughts and best practices on how they share and involve their own communities in Opportunity’s mission. Each panel member shared their own journey with Opportunity and how they came to be involved. Though unified in passion, each contributor’s work was unique to fit their own talents, interests and goals. Dick Leathers, member of the Board of Governors, shared how he educates church members…
Read MoreBreakout Session: Banking on Education
A quality education empowers students with the skills and abilities to secure higher paying jobs, build strong families and help in the economic development of their communities. Today, we discovered how Opportunity’s Banking on Education program is increasing educational opportunities for more than 120,000 children in underserved neighborhoods in Ghana, Malawi and Uganda. The panelists were Liesel Pritzker, founder and board chair of Young Ambassadors for Opportunity; Geoffrey Thige, chief operations…
Read MoreConference LiveBlog: Conference Opens with Kadita “A.T.” Tshibaka, Board of Directors
The 2011 Opportunity International Conference“Innovating to End Poverty,” kicks off just moments ago with opening remarks from Lillian Covington, VP of Resource Development, and our CEO Bill Morgenstern, who welcomed attendees. Throughout the weekend, we’ll be streaming live video of plenary sessions and breakout sessions at the conference. Watch it live at opportunity.org/live. Welcoming attendees to the conference, Bill said: “When we decided on our conference theme, we knew that the place…
Read MoreConference LiveBlog: Kevin Compton of Radar Partners
At this morning’s opening plenary session on the main stage at the Opportunity International Conference, Kevin Compton, the co-founder of Radar Partners and co-chair of Opportunity’s Banking on Africa Executive Task Force, spoke about the impact and goals of the ambitious Banking on Africa campaign, and how despite all the exciting technologies he’s seen, one of the greatest innovations he ever witnessed was the Trust Group he saw on his summer Insight Trip to Rwanda. Highlights from Kevin…
Read MoreConference LiveBlog: Anessa Chui of Credit Suisse
This morning, Anessa Chui–VP of Human Resources-Onboarding and Program Management at Credit Suisse–spoke from the main stage at Opportunity’s annual conference. Credit Suisse, a strategic partner to Opportunity International, is the generous sponsor of our conference this year. Anessa visited Opportunity’s operations in Uganda as part of Credit Suisse’s Global Citizens Program, examining the branches’ processes and working with staff to make the banks as efficient and effective as they…
Read MoreConference LiveBlog: Daryl Collins, Co-Author of Portfolios of the Poor: How the World’s Poor Live on $2 a Day
This morning at the Opportunity International Conference, Daryl Collins, co-author of Portfolios of the Poor: How the World’s Poor Live on $2 a Day, spoke from the main stage about the financial portfolios of people in poverty and the impact that savings has to mitigate the effects of their uncertain financial futures. Highlights from Daryl’s Presentation Forty percent of the world live on $2 a day or less and if you live on $2 a day it’s easy to assume… You live hand-to-mouth You can’t…
Read MoreConference LiveBlog: Karen and Ronnie Lott, of Opportunity International’s Board of Governors
At the final presentation of this morning’s first plenary session of the conference, philanthropists Ronnie and Karen Lott, members of Opportunity International’s Board of Governors, spoke about what brought them to support Opportunity, their life-changing experience meeting client Talekeleni Kagaso on an Insight Trip to Malawi, and why they’re passionate about helping people in poverty. From the Lotts’ speech… Karen: We are grateful to be here with you today to share just a little about…
Read MoreConference LiveBlog: Reeta Roy Accepts the 2011 International Women’s Leadership Award on Behalf of The Mastercard Foundation
Today, Betsy Perdue, co-chair of the Women’s Opportunity Network (WON), presented Reeta Roy, President and CEO of The Mastercard Foundation, with WON’s 2011 International Women’s Leadership Award. Roy accepted the award on behalf of the Foundation, honored for its role in supporting and inspiring global women entrepreneurs. By increasing access to microfinance and youth education in developing countries, the Foundation helps women realize their potential and lift themselves out of poverty.…
Read MoreConference LiveBlog: Aleksandr-Alain Kalanda, CEO of Opportunity Malawi
This morning, the impassioned and inspiring Aleksandr-Alain Kalanda, CEO of Opportunity Malawi, spoke at the conference plenary session about the triumphs of launching Opportunity International Bank of Malawi (OIBM) in 2003–offering formal financial services to impoverished people in Malawi–and the ongoing challenges they still need to address in order to access more of that country. Through Aleksandr and Opportunity Malawi, we truly see the power of microfinance at work. Highlights from Aleksandr-Alain…
Read MoreConference LiveBlog: Dr. Julie Howard of USAID’s Feed the Future
Dr. Julie Howard, the U.S. Government’s Deputy Coordinator for Development for the Feed the Future initiative, shares her background, and her perspectives on food security and global hunger from the main stage today at the Opportunity International Conference. Highlights from Dr. Howard’s presentation I have always wanted to work to implement a different kind of development assistance, one that works with NGOs, and was doing so starting ten years ago. Then, almost a year ago, administrator Shah…
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