KivaInnovating To Expand Opportunities
Posted by Camille Ricketts on Feb 13, 2012
This is the first of a multi-part blog series looking at how Kiva is getting creative with lending and partnerships to make an impact in exciting, new areas. Below, watch a short video introduction to the series with Kiva Director of Strategic Initiatives Michelle Kreger.
Imagine having limited or no access to higher education, nontoxic lighting, or clean water. These are realities faced by millions of people around the world every day. Kiva’s mission, now and always, has been to connect people through lending to change this picture.
We envision a world where every individual has the power to create opportunity for themselves and others. Working toward this reality, we challenge ourselves to find new ways for our lenders’ flexible, risk-tolerant capital to grow markets and reach even more people with innovative loan products. This is core to Kiva’s quest for deeper impact – one that is shared by our generous lender community.
In the coming months, this blog series will highlight important new work in this area spearheaded by Kiva’s Strategic Initiatives team. These efforts will expand Kiva’s footprint in exciting directions and continue evolving our work to alleviate poverty through microlending.
Through this series, we’ll introduce you to a new set of Kiva partners – from universities to social businesses, from mobile service providers to green technology vendors. For the first time, Kiva is working with partners other than microfinance institutions to offer different types of loan products. In doing so, we look forward to innovating how we partner with organizations and companies to give more people access to financial services and opportunities.
Designed to highlight both the challenges and potential of these new partnerships, this blog series will explore five areas where they are active:
1. Higher Education
Kiva Innovations: Closing the Global Education Gap
Kiva Innovations: As demand for education spikes, micro-loans may be the answer
2. Innovative Agriculture
Kiva Innovations: Loaning for a new "Green Revolution"
3. Clean Energy
The Case for "Green" technologies: What is the Need?
4. Water and Sanitation
Kiva Innovations: Expanding access to water and sanitation services
5. Mobile Transactions
Mobile transactions: The power of moving money by phone
6. Fair Trade
Kiva Innovations: Lending to support fair trade
Kiva Innovations: Keeping fair trade coffee fair
Blog posts falling into each of these categories will look at the types of funding that currently support individuals and organizations working in these fields, what more could be done, and how Kiva’s unique approach to microlending could make a difference. We will also be spotlighting Kiva partners and borrowers affiliated with these areas as they appear on the website – so stay tuned.
We sincerely hope you enjoy this series, and would love to hear your feedback along the way at blog@kiva.org.
Imagine having limited or no access to higher education, nontoxic lighting, or clean water. These are realities faced by millions of people around the world every day. Kiva’s mission, now and always, has been to connect people through lending to change this picture.
We envision a world where every individual has the power to create opportunity for themselves and others. Working toward this reality, we challenge ourselves to find new ways for our lenders’ flexible, risk-tolerant capital to grow markets and reach even more people with innovative loan products. This is core to Kiva’s quest for deeper impact – one that is shared by our generous lender community.
In the coming months, this blog series will highlight important new work in this area spearheaded by Kiva’s Strategic Initiatives team. These efforts will expand Kiva’s footprint in exciting directions and continue evolving our work to alleviate poverty through microlending.
Through this series, we’ll introduce you to a new set of Kiva partners – from universities to social businesses, from mobile service providers to green technology vendors. For the first time, Kiva is working with partners other than microfinance institutions to offer different types of loan products. In doing so, we look forward to innovating how we partner with organizations and companies to give more people access to financial services and opportunities.
Designed to highlight both the challenges and potential of these new partnerships, this blog series will explore five areas where they are active:
Kiva Innovations: Closing the Global Education Gap
Kiva Innovations: As demand for education spikes, micro-loans may be the answer
2. Innovative Agriculture
Kiva Innovations: Loaning for a new "Green Revolution"
3. Clean Energy
The Case for "Green" technologies: What is the Need?
4. Water and Sanitation
Kiva Innovations: Expanding access to water and sanitation services
5. Mobile Transactions
Mobile transactions: The power of moving money by phone
6. Fair Trade
Kiva Innovations: Lending to support fair trade
Kiva Innovations: Keeping fair trade coffee fair
Blog posts falling into each of these categories will look at the types of funding that currently support individuals and organizations working in these fields, what more could be done, and how Kiva’s unique approach to microlending could make a difference. We will also be spotlighting Kiva partners and borrowers affiliated with these areas as they appear on the website – so stay tuned.
We sincerely hope you enjoy this series, and would love to hear your feedback along the way at blog@kiva.org.