Blog Archives

Meet Our Staff: Why Do I Believe in Opportunity?

In May of 2010, I attended a luncheon hosted by the Chicago Council on Global Affairs where Melanne Verveer, the first-ever U.S. ambassador-at-large for Global Women’s Issues, spoke to the significance of investing in women as a means to drive economic growth in the developing world. Equally as captivating as Ambassador Verveer’s remarks was being Read more…

Posted in Our Leadership, Our Mission and Vision, Our Motivation, Our Work, Resources
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Top 5 Highlights from Opportunity’s 2011 in Review

As we take the first steps into 2012, it’s good to see where Opportunity International ventured on the road of 2011. We ran all over the globe and hiked into new territory both literally and figuratively. We celebrated milestones, and went to new heights, for the sake of our clients and the sustainable work of Read more…

Posted in Events, Insight Trips, Microinsurance, Our Leadership, Where We Work, Women's Opportunity Network, Young Ambassadors for Opportunity
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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 Read more…

Posted in Events, Microfinance Conference, Our Leadership, Our Motivation, Young Ambassadors for Opportunity
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Breakout Session: Why Women? Why Now?

The impact of focusing on women is thus multi-fold: not only will empowering women [with financial services] uplift the lives of women, but it also produces a wider impact on multiple generations and the communities in which they live. -2011 Study by Women’s World Banking In families where have an income, they have a voice Read more…

Posted in Events, Insight Trips, Loans, Microfinance Conference, Our Leadership, Our Work, Where We Work, Women's Opportunity Network
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Conference 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 Read more…

Posted in Events, Microfinance Conference, Strategic Partners, Technology, Where We Work, Women's Opportunity Network
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Congratulations to President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, One of the Winners of 2011 Nobel Peace Prize

Congratulations to President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia, winner of the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize along with Liberian peace activist Leymah Gboweeh and Yemeni pro-democracy human rights campaigner Tawakkol Karman. They were the first women to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize since Professor Wangari Maathai, who passed away a couple weeks ago, won in Read more…

Posted in Events, Resources, What We're Reading, Women's Opportunity Network
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Faith in Action: Opportunity Supporter Walks 500 Miles of Christian Pilgrimage El Camino de Santiago

With just 50 miles to go, Opportunity International supporter Ann Loar Brooks is about to complete a 500-mile walk for Ugandan women. Ann began her journey on August 27th, hiking the last 500 miles of the Christian pilgrimage El Camino de Santiago, which starts from southern France and winds through the Pyrenees across northern Spain. Her mission: to raise awareness Read more…

Posted in Board of Governors, Events, Faith in Action, Our Work, Where We Work, Women's Opportunity Network
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In Memory of Wangari Maathai, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate

I had the great honor of twice meeting Nobel Laureate Wangari Maathai. The first time was in the frenetic hallways of the Clinton Global Initiative in New York. The second was in a quiet lecture room at the Los Angeles Public Library. While the settings were in stark contrast, Professor Maathai was quite the same Read more…

Posted in Events, Resources, What We're Reading, Where We Work
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Tanzania Reporter: Our Day at Arusha’s Faraja Center for Young Women

Reporting back from the recent YAO Insight Trip to Tanzania, Tanzania Correspondent Contest winner Kelly Flanagan shares photos from the community service day she and her fellow travelers spent at the Faraja Young Women Development Unit in Arusha. The Faraja Center is a residential facility that helps rehabilitate young female victims of human trafficking, offering them vocational Read more…

Posted in Insight Trips, Where We Work, Young Ambassadors for Opportunity
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What We’re Reading: Opportunity Rwanda’s Daniel Ryumugabe & Chicago Supporters Gather to Discuss Left to Tell

On Monday, I joined 15 women for a meeting of the Chicago Women’s Book Discussion Group in the home of Kim Stephens, a member of Opportunity International‘s Board of Governors. The group, led by my Opportunity colleague, regional director Linda Vander Weele, has been meeting regularly for the past two years to discuss books that touch upon Read more…

Posted in Board of Governors, Events, Faith in Action, Women's Opportunity Network
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