Believing in...

Some people might have wanted me to have my head examined when I started an online community with Women on the Verge (WOTV).  But, I HAD to do it.  It represented too many things that I believe in - Women, Community, the Internet and Free.

I believe in Women.:

I was raised and surrounded by strong, wise, out-spoken women.  My female friends have known me through decades - child birth, bad dates, marriages, divorces, bad hair styles, trials at work, and as travel companions -always there, making me laugh, crying with me, a glass of wine, an open hand, reaching out.  We support and uplift each other.  It is my belief that these characters represent the core beauty of women.

Women on the Verge, even though it is a very young community (less than six months old), seems to be attracting this very type of person - passionate, open-minded towards others viewpoints, yet unafraid to state our own and supportive.  The members never cease to amaze me with their ability to share, open their hearts and let all of us be the beneficiaries of their lessons.  They talk  to each other, they blog about very personal experiences and they become more beautiful to me every day.  Everyday of sharing, their light shines brighter.

I believe in Community.:

A a previously single mom (for fifteen years), I practiced and believed that old adage, "it takes a village to raise a child". Problems in our family were not secrets.  We talked about it - sometimes ad nausea - to coaches, teachers, friends and extended family.  Community helped me raise college graduates, solid adults and really good people that I am proud to call my children.

I believe in the Internet.: 

No one entity owns the Internet.  No one entity governs the Internet.  The Internet is global and infinite.  The Internet is information and in my opinion, our current day version of the Industrial Age.

I believe in Free.:

The first time I dialed into the Internet via a browser, in 1993, I was in awe.  Free?  I registered domains - free.  I got a site hosted - free.  I marketed websites - free.  Everything was free and I felt like I had found buried treasure.  Many of the Internet's treasures are still free - and I still get excited about it.

We're not alone.:

Currently, approximately 5000 followers and members combined share the WOTV community, still in it's infancy.  I would say that we are not alone in our thinking that community and sharing on the Internet is a wonderful place to be, grow and believe.

Creating a World Without Poverty

I recently read a book called, Creating a World Without Poverty, by Muhammad Yunus. He discusses ways that we can help poor people the most by giving them the power to help themselves. Dr, Yunus is a pioneer of micro-lending and his words inspired me to do what I can in my own little way.

I searched online for some place to help other entrepreneurs and found Kiva.org. And this is what I found:

Kiva's mission is to connect people through lending for the sake of alleviating poverty.

Kiva is the world's first person-to-person micro-lending website, empowering individuals to lend directly to unique entrepreneurs in the developing world.

I then browsed through the volumes of entrepreneurs and decided to make my first loan to Clementine.

Here's Clementine's story. To be honest with you, I chose her because of her smile.:
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Clementine Kra is an ambitious woman. She was born in 1966 and is a single mother with 4 children. She lives in Port-Bouët, a very populous suburb in the south of Abidjan District with her mother, who takes care of the children when Clementine has to go to the market for her micro-business.

Clementine sells palm seed and various vegetable products in the Port-Bouët open-air market. She wants to be able to purchase products in bulk in order to wholesale them to retailers. She intends to increase her income so as to open a hairdressing shop in the long run, as she has got training in this field 2 years ago. Clementine is a good client who has repaid all the loans she has previously received from AE&I in a timely manner.
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Clementine has since paid off her loan in full and I decided to make more loans. Currently we have 9 loans - mostly to women entrepreneurs and on every continent except Antarctica.

Check out Kiva.org for yourself and be inspired by the amazing people, their stories and hope.