Monthly Archives: April 2010

CGIU 2010 Concludes with a Focus on Haiti

At the Clinton Global Initiative University (CGIU) conference this year, the final plenary session centered on the devastating earthquake that rocked Haiti on January 12, 2010. For me, this final panel was the most moving of the entire weekend. It is plain to see why Haiti was the focus of the final session at this Read more…

Posted in Events, Our Mission and Vision, Strategic Partners
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Let’s Celebrate Moms Everywhere

  Mother’s Day is a time to celebrate the special women in our lives who made sacrifices for us and taught us how to be “good” people. For me, this was my mom, Kathleen Nightingale. I grew up with five brothers and sisters outside of Valparaiso, Ind. My father worked long hours as a tool Read more…

Posted in OptINnow, Our Mission and Vision, Women's Opportunity Network
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Women Helping Women: Panel Discussion Inspires Women’s Investment Group

It is a unique situation: a roomful of professional U.S. women gathered together to learn how to help expand the professional prospects of poor women in other countries. At the lunchtime talk, “Beyond the Basics of Microfinance: Empowering women through scalable, sustainable, multi-faceted financial solutions,” hosted by Women Investment Professionals (WIP), Chicago women from the Read more…

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A mother’s inspiring story from Uganda…

  When Nassaka Maria Kasujja noticed that there was a need for educational facilities in her community of Kampala, Uganda, the widowed mother of two decided to take action. Maria took out her first loan of $101 from Opportunity International to establish a local primary school. Four loans later, the school provides an education to Read more…

Posted in Our Work, Women's Opportunity Network
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A Working Session at CGIU: Alleviating Global Poverty

Recently, I had the privilege of participating in the Clinton Global Initiative University (CGIU) in Miami, Fla. I was a table facilitator at two “working sessions” in which I collaborated with student leaders committed to effecting global change. With me at the conference was Liesel Pritzker, founder and chair of Young Ambassadors for Opportunity (YAO), Read more…

Posted in Events, Our Mission and Vision, Our Motivation, Young Ambassadors for Opportunity
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CGI and Young Leaders Collaborate for Change at the CGIU Conference

“I strongly believe that, through CGIU, we can harness the energy and power of today’s young leaders to improve the lives of people around the world and build a stronger future for us all.” – President Bill Clinton Reflections from Clinton Global Initiative University (CGIU)… At this conference we spent 36 hours rubbing shoulders with the Read more…

Posted in Strategic Partners, Young Ambassadors for Opportunity
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Global Agriculture and Food Security Program

We are excited about the news that the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the United States, Canada and other countries have launched the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program to help the world’s poorest farmers grow more food and earn more to lift themselves out of hunger and poverty. As part of the worldwide effort Read more…

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How Online Giving Connects You With Our Work

I recently had the opportunity to attend the Non-Profit Technology Network’s annual Nonprofit Technology Conference and present on two panels: one on the changing face of donations online and what that means to charities today, and the other on how to approach big issues (and unfortunately, last I checked, poverty is still a big issue). It Read more…

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Clinton Global Initiative University 2010

Opportunity International and leaders from our Young Ambassadors for Opportunity (YAO) group will be at CGI-U this week participating in the conference. You can watch the live webcast here or Watch this space for a list of articles about the event as the weekend unfolds: Washington Post: Student loan change could boost aid work: Clinton

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Two Dollar Challenge

This year, Opportunity International is proud to announce our partnership with the Two Dollar a Day Challenge (TDC). TDC is an initiative that began with Shawn Humphrey, assistant professor in the Department of Economics at the University of Mary Washington. Shawn charged his students with the very same challenge that people all over the world Read more…

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