Walking in Someone Else’s Shoes

Recently in my inbox, I received a fundraising email from Opportunity International. I get many of these appeals, as many of us do. However, this one stayed with me. Not because of the ask, but because of the insight it offered.

"You never really understand a person until you consider things from his/her point of view. Until you climb into his/her skin and walk around in it."

— Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird

Opportunity International is a nonprofit organization working to break the cycle of poverty through microfinance and community investment. Their appeal began with a deep human challenge: “Imagine standing in your home with just a few dollars left in your hand. You must choose between buying food for your children or sending them to school.” This was not a hypothetical situation. It was a real dilemma that I now faced.

Opportunity International created an interactive experience called Impossible Decisions.  It invites you step into the shoes of Miriam, mother of three in Northern Ghana. As Miriam, you are asked to make a series of painful choices. Difficult choices in which every option carries a cost. With each decision, you see the consequences, not in abstract terms, but in deep personal, human ones.

The experience does not last long, but it is powerful. You are no longer just an observer of poverty or injustice. For a few minutes, you are the person living it. This brief experience reminded me that for many, the choices agonized over are not between good and bad, but between two bad options. Walking in Mariam’s shoes left me more aware, more humbled, and hopefully, more compassionate.

"When you understand the suffering of another person, that understanding brings compassion and the desire to help."

— Thich Nhat Hanh

If you're looking for a meaningful way to broaden your perspective today, I encourage you to take a few minutes and walk through Impossible Decisions. It will not take long, but I predict it will leave a mark. https://opportunityinternational.ca/impossible-decisions/

You will walk away not just more informed, but more connected. And maybe, like me, with a fuller heart.

-Sister Nancy Wales, CSJ

Image: Saulo Meza/Unsplash

Microfinance: The Innovative Idea

MICROFINANCE: THE INNOVATIVE IDEA

By Dan Murray, CEO, Opportunity International Canada

According to the dictionary, to innovate is to make changes in something established, especially by introducing new methods, ideas, or products.  It is further stated that innovation is crucial to the success of any organization.

Opportunity International was founded in 1971 and is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.  Canadians were deeply engaged in the work from the beginning, with Opportunity International Canada eventually formed in 1998 to deepen the engagement.

Innovation has been a defining characteristic of Opportunity International throughout its fifty years. In fact, it was borne out of innovation – the innovative idea that a small loan with training was a more effective – and more dignified – pathway out of poverty than a handout.

At Opportunity, innovation isn’t about change for the sake of change.  The immense and diverse challenge of global poverty, spread over many countries, cultures, and demographics, demands the very best ideas to bring about real, measurable, and lasting change.

Innovation is demonstrated by the range of Opportunity programs that have already made an impact, including micro-loans, women’s trust groups, micro-savings, savings groups, and microinsurance, all in partnership and collaboration with local Partners. 

Recent transformative initiatives are just as innovative, including Education Finance, Agriculture Finance, and Digital Financial Services, each impacting the fight against poverty. 

Impact indeed!  That seed of an idea fifty years ago has grown into a massive engine of poverty elimination. In 2020, almost 19.5 million clients in 30 countries were served, with $2.4 billion in new loans, 7.13 million active loan clients, 14.9 million clients with savings, and 7.3 million children getting an education.

And the journey of innovation continues, with emerging initiatives to unleash the power of financial inclusion in refugee camps, among displaced persons, training for unemployed youth, community health in rural areas, and to help clients and Partners build climate resiliency.

It is said the more things change, the more they stay the same.  What hasn’t changed is that poverty is an attack on the dignity of those who are trapped by it.  And what hasn’t changed is the commitment of Opportunity International to fight poverty through holistic financial inclusion.  

But everything else is on the table as we relentlessly pursue more effective and impactful means to end the inter-generational transfer of poverty.

Reposted with permission.

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Opportunity International provides access to savings, small business loans, insurance and training to 17.5 million people working their way out of poverty in the developing world. Clients in 28 countries use these financial services to expand businesses, provide for their families, create jobs for their neighbors and build a safety net for the future.