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.
Joy in Giving: Minneapolis Women Philanthropists Share Inspirational Ways They Put their Passion Into Action
The following guest blog post was written by Cassidy Burns, an Opportunity International supporter who works for Riverbridge Partners. On Tuesday, more than 150 women gathered at the Joy in Giving event in Minneapolis, Minn. to learn and share why giving changes the world and changes you. The event was sponsored by Opportunity International, the Minneapolis Foundation and Riverbridge Partners. The evening brought together women of all ages to share inspiration and actionable ideas for making their…
Read MoreHappy New Year! Thanks For a Great 2010
At Opportunity International, we’re grateful for an exciting and productive year for our efforts to alleviate global poverty. In 2010, thanks to supporters and staff around the world, we achieved many of our goals and were able to serve even more clients working their way out of poverty. Just a few highlights from 2010: Meeting the experts and learning a lot at Opportunity’s spring and fall microfinance conferences Exciting new opportunities and grants from corporate partners like the UPS…
Read MoreNews: Community Development in Nicaragua
To combat poverty in the second poorest country in the Western hemisphere, Opportunity has implemented a community economic development initiative in Nicaragua. Our programs provide training and finance for small and medium enterprises in Granada’s most promising industries—tourism and agriculture. Opportunity is helping individuals like Silvia Elena Canda, who learned how to hand-filigree jicarogourds from her aunts when she was 11 years old. In 2006, she and 32 other women formed the Women’s…
Read MoreWhat We’re Reading: The Impact of Microfinance at Home and Abroad
Every Wednesday we highlight an article, book or a blog in our “What We’re Reading” series. We feature works that are noteworthy, inspiring, educational or relevant to the work we do at Opportunity. We welcome your comments in the comment field below–-tell us what you’re reading, or respond to the piece we’ve highlighted. The following post by Eric Walcott, an intern in our Resource Development department, reflects on two recent articles he read about domestic microfinance, and the lessons…
Read MoreA Fun Way to Fight Poverty: Host a Chili Cook-Off
Allison Bearden, an Opportunity intern and chili cook-off co-host, shares how easy it is to host a small event like this at your work, school or church, raising awareness and funds to help eradicate poverty. Do you want to make a difference in the life of an individual living in poverty? Virtually anyone who wants to contribute to poverty alleviation can make an impact through hosting a small fundraising event. For example, here at Opportunity’s U.S. headquarters, our fall interns hosted…
Read MoreMeet Opportunity: Minnesota College Students Get to Know Microfinance
This fall, I spoke to a class at the University of Minnesota about Opportunity International’s work and about my involvement with Young Ambassadors for Opportunity (YAO). The students were asked to write a one-page reflection paper on the topic, which gave me a great insight into a college student’s first impressions of Opportunity. The students in this class, called Entrepreneurial Management: Launch to Maturity, were primarily upper-classmen, and most of them were double-majoring in…
Read MoreMerry Christmas from Malawi
Merry Christmas from our world family to yours. Watch the video below for a special Christmas message to Opportunity supporters from Fanny, Dorothy, Grayson, Elizabeth and Elliot inMalawi–just a few of the more than two million clients around the world whom Opportunity served this year. We wish you a peaceful Christmas season and a joyful new year.
Read MoreA Meaningful Last-Minute Gift
Give the last-minute gift that helps end global poverty. You can still order OptINnow gift cards in time for Christmas through one of our two online options: print or email. Go to optinnow.org/giftcard and choose to email your cards to family and friends with a personalized message, or print them out at home to give them in person. Give a meaningful gift in an instant. OptINnow gift cards start at $10 and are a great way to get your family, friends and co-workers involved in the movement to end…
Read MoreWhat We’re Reading: “Microfinance: Women’s Way Out”
Every Wednesday, we highlight an article, book or a blog in our “What We’re Reading” series. We feature works that are noteworthy, inspiring, educational or relevant to the work we do at Opportunity. We welcome your comments in the comment field below–-tell us what you’re reading, or respond to the piece we’ve highlighted. The following post reflects on a piece published this week in WomenEntrepreneur.com entitled ”Microfinance: Women’s Way Out,” written by our VP of women’s…
Read MoreOpportunity Mozambique Is on a Roll with Three New Mobile Banking Vehicles
Last week, Doug Pond, head of operations for Opportunity Mozambique, announced the Mozambique Central Bank’s approval of our three newest mobile banking vehicles. Opportunity plans to deploy all three mobile banking vehicles in the coming weeks to significantly increase its outreach to families living in Mozambique’s rural villages. With the rollout of its agriculture finance program, Opportunity Mozambique plans to increase its number of satellite branches and ATM service centers to serve…
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