My name is Ha Lam and I am the National Projects Photographer for Whole Foods Market. Over the last two years, I’ve had the opportunity — and privilege — to meet several recipients of Whole Planet Foundation micro-loans. Those trips, which spanned South and Central America, have been nothing short of amazing. Though our time was short with each borrower, I felt a connection with each woman. At times I wondered: How much can you really learn about people after being in their homes for just a few hours? The relics of our lives, the ones we live with every day, the ones we quit paying attention to years ago — those are the things that often say the most about us.
As a young boy I’d often watch the early evening news whilst waiting for my favorite television show to start. I remember being shocked and confused by some of the harrowing images of human poverty I saw around the world.
In June of 2006 I had the incredible opportunity to travel to Guatemala with Whole Planet Foundation Team Member, Steve Wanta. The goal of the trip was to record the personal stories of several Grameen Guatemala borrowers in the Lake Atitlán region. The video footage we shot was used to create Cristina’s Story- the video above. This video illustrates the profound change that microcredit operations can create for the people who participate in them.
From a guest blogger for the Whole Planet Foundation, Alex Crane.
Maria Juracán is waiting for me outside her home. She waves as Manuel Mandoza and I walk down the steep dirt path to Peña Blanca, a farming community isolated by the mountainous topography of the Western Guatemalan Highlands. My legs are stiff and I’m walking clumsily; I’ve just ridden a motorcycle for the first time. And what a first! The road up from Panajachel to Peña Blanca is windy, narrow, and chaotic (buses tend to honk at blind corners rather than decrease in speed). I took to clenching my legs to the bike with all the strength I could muster. I smile and wave back, trying to contain my excitement; today brings another first: my first interview with a Grameen Guatemala borrower. Read the rest of this entry »
In my humble opinion, poverty is the most pressing problem facing the world today. It either magnifies the devastation of other global issues like HIV or is the direct cause of epidemics like vitamin A deficiency in infants. The 1.2 billion people living on less than $1/day confront a fight for survival on a daily basis. Their plight has been well documented. Equally, people are recognizing the poor’s inalienable ability to be their own change agent with the rise of microfinance. This was never more apparent than with the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to Dr. Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank, which acknowledged the direct link between peace and prosperity.
Hey fellow Whole Bodies! Jeremiah here, the Senior Global Whole Body Coordinator. Having been in the natural products industry for 15 years I have never seen a more exciting time than now. Check out the shelves this month for all kinds of fun EXCLUSIVE products launching. Many of them are what we call “mission driven” or, in other words, they support a cause besides just making a profit. For instance, we are launching three new soaps from Alaffia (check out Jessica Johnson’s Whole Trade post for more scoop on these), which directly support the small community of Togo, West Africa. This is also a Whole Trade Guarantee group of products so we donate 1% of our sales to the Whole Planet Foundation on those items too! Another great story is the three soaps from Save Your World (SYW). Not only do these soaps smell and feel great but for every bar you purchase SYW leases one acre of Rainforest for one year preserving it from being chopped down! So check out Whole Body and make a difference while you take a shower!!! (And, oh yeah, of course all of the exclusive products meet our new super clean Premium Body Care Standards!)
One woman’s story – Aracely Cruz. [2:31m]: Play Now | Download (411)
I recently traveled to Estelí, Nicaragua to fulfill one portion of my job as the Development Associate for Whole Planet Foundation, Whole Foods Market’s non-profit that supports microlending programs in countries and communities where we source products. Microcredit is small loans given to the poorest of the poor, with a focus on women, so that they can invest in their own businesses and pull themselves out of poverty over time. I was on a mission to meet with the women we are supporting through this microlending program to discover if we are having an impact. Does microlending work? What is being done with the microloans?
To learn more, I spent time with the women (and some men), in their homes and visiting their businesses. Our partner on the ground, Pro Mujer, a microfinance institution, has long standing relationships with these communities and due to that strong friendship, I was welcomed by the individuals we support. One of the women I met with, Aracely Cruz, runs a cake business out of her very modest home. Until recently, she did not qualify to receive a loan from a traditional bank and without cash, she didn’t have a way to grow her business which is the sole source of income for her and her four children. One of the true values of microlending programs, is that they don’t require collateral or request that the individuals sign a contract. When Aracely learned about Pro Mujer, she was brave enough to take out a loan of $150. The funds have enabled her to buy greater quantities of ingredients for her cakes and she increased her production from 10 to 55 cakes per week. Aracely told me about her plans to move her wood burning oven into her home and repair the dilapidated walls in her house with profits from her cake business. Extreme poverty is evident in Aracely’s neighborhood –we saw children dig through landfills looking for small pieces of metal to sell for extra money- so Aracely’s success with microcredit has given real hope to her family and peers. Aracely expressed her gratitude for the opportunity to take out a loan without having any collateral. She is determined to grow her business and create a better life for her and her children. She told me, confidently, “My word is my collateral.”
Whole Planet Foundation has provided loans to over 16,500 individuals, like Aracely, in the developing world since its inception in 2005. Meeting with borrowers is an important part of our work as a Foundation and we are continually amazed by their resilience and hard work to create a higher standard of living for their families and for their children’s future.
Hallie is the Development Associate for Whole Planet Foundation. In this role, she supports the team in communications- including writing borrower stories, partnership development and fundraising programs. She has extensive travel, study and work experience in Latin America and is fluent in Spanish and Portuguese. Hallie has a BA in Psychology from Texas A&M University and enjoys traveling, music and rock climbing.
How do you bring people out of poverty without taking away their dignity? Tune in to hear what the Whole Planet Foundation and a Nobel prize-winning banker are doing to help the poor help themselves.
Understanding the Whole Planet Foundation [4:39m]: Play Now | Download (146)
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