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Carol Stream, Illinois 60132

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© 2026 Opportunity Internationala 501(c)3 nonprofit. EIN: 540907624.

News Blog

At Lent, How Do You Recharge to Find Purpose?

by Jamelyn Lederhouse

As we near the end of winter and enter spring, many of us celebrate Lent, the six weeks leading up to Easter. It’s a time of quiet and peace, as winter leaves a stillness in the air, as if the earth itself is holding its breath waiting in anticipation for new life in the Easter and spring season. Lent is also a time of solemn self-reflection—a time taken by many to evaluate their own spiritual walk. Most of the time, we associate Lent primarily with making small sacrifices–giving up our favorite…

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Hunger is Not a Game

by Steve Nelson

My 14-year-old daughter Hannah was upset at me for failing to read the book before seeing the movie. At 12:01 a.m. on Friday, I was one of the thousands of people who turned out to view The Hunger Games on its opening night. Hannah had been encouraging me to read the book for several months because she knew its themes would appeal to me. She has read the trilogy three times already. To be honest, I was worried about the idea of teenagers being encouraged to brutally kill each other for sport. Despite…

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“The Hype is Long Over” – Microfinance CEOs Respond to Washington Post Article, “Microfinance Doesn’t End poverty, Despite All the Hype”

by The Microfinance CEO Working Group

The following post was published today on the Center for Financial Inclusion’s blog. The Microfinance CEO Working Group consists of the CEOs of leading microfinance organizations ACCION, FINCA International, Freedom from Hunger, Grameen Foundation USA, Opportunity International, Pro Mujer, VisionFund International, and Women’s World Banking. In the post below, the CEOs respond to the recent Washington Post article by David Roodman. This may surprise you. As the CEOs of eight global microfinance…

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Meet Our Staff: A Closing Interview with AJ Renold as He Prepares to Leave Tanzania

by Abbi Antablin

AJ Renold, mountain trekker, pizza maker, kite surfer, manager of business development and donor relations for Opportunity International Tanzania, hails from Chicago, Ill. He joined Opportunity-US as an intern in their suburban Oak Brook headquarters in 2009. That summer, he helped plan and traveled on the first-ever Young Ambassadors Insight Trip to Tanzania. AJ quickly decided he had to find a way to work for Opportunity in Tanzania, even if a position for him did not exist… yet. I met AJ in…

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A Photo Tour of Colombia & Nicaragua Insight Trip

by David Santoso

In January we had the chance to visit Colombia and Nicaragua on one of our first Insight Trips of 2012. We could write pages and pages about the trip and all that happened, but sometimes, pictures just say things better than words. So here are a few pictures from the trip! We have more trips coming up this year. Check out our Insight Trips page (opportunity.org/insight) for more information.      

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Partnering with Nicaraguan Yucca Farmers to Increase Their Profits

by Abbi Antablin

A pungent, unfamiliar, almost rancid but still sweet, scent hit my nostrils: freshly ground yucca meets a growling grinder. Five men man the contraption: one filling the large funnel, one jamming a large stick into the funnel to feed the yucca chunks into the grinder, one scooping the pulp out of the bottom, one shoveling the pulp into a sack, and one, well, doing a great job holding the sack. I’ve eaten yucca fries and mashed yucca, but this is not a culinary operation. Stuffed-full sacks of…

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What We’re Reading: Top 10 Posts on International Women’s Day

by Emily Riemer

As we close out the week, I’m reflecting on some of the articles published in honor of yesterday’s International Women’s Day. Here are just a few of the provocative, interesting, inspiring and even maddening(!) ones I encourage you to read or re-read, in no particular order… 1. “What if Mark Zuckerberg Were Born a Girl in Rwanda?” Huff Post‘s Global Motherhood series – In light of IWD celebrations this week on social media–especially on Facebook–Kate Roberts of Population Services…

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Meet the Women of Opportunity

by Opportunity International

Today, on International Women’s Day, the world comes together to celebrate the achievements, strength and rights of women. On this day, we can all take a few extra moments to see and feel the connections that exist in the community of women that contribute to Opportunity International. It is through these connections that our supporters, staff and clients unite to help and inspire each other. If you’d like to do more to honor and support our women clients, consider making an International Women’s…

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How Will You Celebrate Women on March 8th?

by Ally Lynch

In just one week, on Thursday, March 8th, the world will celebrate International Women’s Day 2012. On this day, organizations and individuals will gather to celebrate the economic, political, and social achievements of women past, present, and future. Here at Opportunity, where 85% of our clients are women, we’re passionate about equipping the next generation of women with education and access to financial services. Because we’ve seen firsthand that having access to these tools can change the…

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Meet Client Monica: She is Clothed with Strength and Dignity

by Diane Ferguson

When I’m having a rough week, I take a quick break to remember Opportunity‘s clients, like Monica Koranteng, who is most definitely a Proverbs 31 woman. Meet Monica: she watches over the affairs of her household, and does not eat the bread of idleness. Before being introduced to Opportunity Ghana, Monica worked as a “hawker,” selling her wares on the streets of Madina. Most days she wasn’t sure if she could sell enough to eat. Finding it nearly impossible to continue in her situation without…

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