Gregoria

Dreams to…Own sewing machines to make and sell clothing

Gregoria is a mother of seven, four of which live at home, and she sells shoes in the local markets around Santa Cruz, Bolivia. I visited her in a half-constructed small home in the outskirts of town; her sons built the home using their mom’s profits. Her three sons adore their mother and are all a part of the business decisions and the loan process. With a huge smile Gregoria said her dream was to purchase sewing machines and make clothing. This will allow her to employ her sons with a steady job. Clearly the bond of the family would be a driving force in her business.

Irene

Dreams to…Purchase a car to help her traveling business

Irene sells cleaning towels, cleaning products, and small household items out of a small cardboard box. Her business is, well, a traveling business. She walks twelve hours per day along the streets between towns selling these small items. I met Irene in the mid-morning after she had been walking for a few hours; she was already tired. “I am getting old,” she said, and she isn’t able to walk as far or as long as she used to do. With great strength she does not complain about walking, but her dream is to purchase a car so she does not need to walk everywhere and wear herself out to make a living.

Teodocio

Dreams to…Buy a fabric cutting machine to increase efficiency

Teodocio lives with his wife and two daughters in El Alto, Bolivia. He works at home three days a week making large brimmed hats for field workers and he sells the hats in the marketplace the rest of the week. He previously had one sewing machine to complete his work, but then purchased a second sewing machine with his loan. Since taking out his loan Teodocio has been able to employ both his daughters to sew the hats. Teodocio’s dream is to buy a fabric cutter to create custom designs and produce the fabric cuts at the pace and moment he needs them.

Julia

Dreams to… 1) Purchase a larger bus, and 2) Travel to Europe

Julia is the owner of a bus for public transportation in Santa Cruz, Bolivia. I expected her to be a bus driver, but she hires a driver and simply is responsible for all the maintenance. She is a woman of great business savvy, and is also is an active distributor of Herbalife products. As a responsible borrower and businesswoman, she is always seeking to grow her business and uses microloans as a means to expand and actualize her goals. After using a loan to purchase the bus, her new dream is to purchase a bus big enough to fit 40 or 50 people. I asked if she had other goals; her eyes became distant and she laughed as if it was utterly ridiculous, but Julia’s other dream is to make enough money to travel to Europe. She would “love to see Europe.”

Valentine

Dreams to…Plant more fields and increase his herd of cows

Valentine is a farmer and raises cattle in the quiet warm agriculture area outside of Santa Cruz, Bolivia. He has 30 cows and a few fields where he plants corn, yucca, and peanuts. Valentine lives in a house on the hillside with his wife and young son who loves to sing (he is about 6 years old and sang a few songs while strumming his guitar). I asked Vincent why he took out loans, “if I didn’t have a loan I couldn’t buy more seeds. If I do buy more seeds then I can plant and harvest more fields.” It’s that simple. Valentine’s dream is to buy more cows for his farm and more seeds to plant – both of which allow him to supply the local cooperative market.

Elvira

Dreams to…Construct her own house

(Elvira is the second from the left, in the back)

Elvira is member of the nine-woman-strong “New Hope” group working in a street market of Cochabamba, Bolivia. She sells noodles, rice, and beans in her market stall and is the dedicated leader of the solidarity group. With the few profits Elvira makes each month, her dream is to construct and complete a home. “That is all I want…to construct a home,” she said.

Martina

Dreams to…Pay for her two children to graduate from university

Martina lives in the rural town of Achacachi, Bolivia near the shores of Lake Titicaca. She owns four dairy cows and sells the milk to a local cooperative in her area. She has two sons in their early twenties who are attending university in La Paz. Her dream is to pay for her two sons to graduate from university. She has been using all her profits from milk sales to pay for their education. She purchased her fourth dairy cow with her loan, but it has since become pregnant and currently produces little milk. Despite slow milk production and sales, Martina is determined to pay for their schooling. Even while things are uncertain until the cow’s birth in January, she is frugal and knows she will see them both complete their education.

Gabriel

Dreams to…Own a reliable dump truck

Gabriel drives a dump truck for hire in La Paz, Bolivia. He used his Kiva loan to buy a new motor for his truck; his other motor up and died a few months ago. As an older man it is difficult to get steady work, so he relies solely on his skill of driving large trucks. He is the only worker in his family, and his financial situation is delicate, so if his motor goes out he has no income. Gabriel’s dream is to purchase a new, reliable dump truck to ensure his employment and steady income. He then would not need to worry if his “business” could break down at any moment.

Lilian

Dreams to…Travel to Europe and attend hairdressing workshops

Lilian owns a two-chair hair salon in Cochabamba, Bolivia. She is extremely kind, welcoming, and a great hairdresser. During my whole interview she had a huge smile and described how her loan allowed her to buy more hair products to sell to her customers. When asked about her dream, Lilian exhaled, rolled her lips inward, and closed her eyes, “I want to take hairdressing classes and workshops in Europe or the United States. I have heard of these classes and want to learn new styles and see Europe.” She knows it would be expensive, but she still has hope that one day her dream will come true.

Hugo

Dreams to…Purchase another skill saw and hire an employee

Hugo is a puzzle maker in El Alto, Bolivia. With his Kiva loan he purchased a skill saw to cut the intricate shapes of children’s puzzles. Previously he was cutting all the shapes by hand using a small tricky saw. Hugo’s dream is to purchase another skill saw and hire an employee (who would become his apprentice). He says there are plenty of people who want to work in his area and there is also high demand for his puzzles. Hugo loves puzzle making, and expanding his business is his ultimate goal.

Cesar

Dreams to…Re-open a restaurant with internet and a book store

Cesar owns two restaurants in La Paz, Bolivia, one is directly across from a local high school and the other is in a small neighborhood. With his wife, they have taken out a loan to expand and remodel the restaurants. “There are internet cafés, restaurants, and book stores,” he said, “but no one in his areas has combined all of them.” A true entrepreneur, Cesar’s dream is to remodel his restaurant, connect wi-fi, and offer bookstore items for the nearby high school students.

Eric

Dreams to…Start his own printing and copy shop

Eric studied at a local university in La Paz, Bolivia. He has been working at his father’s printing and copy shop making money to pay for his classes. However, he has had to take some time off from school to save up enough to continue his classes later. In the mean time he has decided to pursue owning his own print and copy shop. Learning from his father how to run a print and copy business, Eric’s dream is to use a loan and purchase his own copy machine and printers…thus moving out on his own and starting his own business.

Juana

Dreams to…Maintain steady sales and be equipped to do business

Juana owns a small storefront on a main street in La Paz, Bolivia. She has run the small store for years and taken out loans since 1995 to keep her business competitive and innovative. Always trying to differentiate herself, Juana has purchased phones for customers to use for local and international calling; no one in Juana’s neighborhood has these phones. When asked about her dream, Juana simply smiled and said, “I would like to equip my store and make it of the highest quality. I would like to continue on as I currently am…and, well, in the future make a little more in profits than I am now.”

Miguel

Dreams to…Start his own dairy

Miguel has taken out two loans so far. He lives in a rural farming community hours away from La Paz, Bolivia. His uncle owns a farm with dairy cows, and Miguel wanted to try his hand at owning a dairy. With his first loan he purchased a cow, and he did the same with his second loan. His dream is to be a dairy farmer and little by little he is reaching his dream.

Ben

Dreams to…Send his two young daughters to school through university level

Ben is a painter who specializes in the restoration of 17^th-19^th century colonial art works living in La Paz, Bolivia. With his loan he was able to purchase more works of art in antique shops and more supplies to continue his restoration business. Ben sells his renovated pieces to private collectors as well as in the markets of La Paz. He lives with his wife and two daughters in a beautiful little home with paintings (most are his own) from floor to ceiling. His dream is to make enough money to send his two young daughters to school through university level.

***

I feel privileged to have had the opportunity to share with you the dreams of some Kiva borrowers I met here in Bolivia. Dreams are a wonderful thing to share and are a part of people’s lives regardless of economic standing. It may be expected that people living in developing countries might only have dreams for cleaner water or better healthcare, however most have very concrete dreams for one more cow or traveling to Europe or owning a car. There is kind of a glass ceiling above people in developing countries in the perception that poorer people might only want potable water or medicine. This idea really limits their dreams and desires to a perception of what I (we) feel they are asking for. Their dreams are greater and go further than I could have imagined.

Eric currently working with the 16th Class of Kiva Fellows in Bolivia, bouncing between La Paz, Cochabamba, and Santa Cruz.

This season is one of my favorites of the year, and not only because it means warbling off carols with family and friends or immersing myself in the yuletide spirit (or spirits). It’s because every year in the Bennett family, we duke it out to see just who can give the most responsibly: we exchange goats through Heifer International, carbon credits through Carbon Fund, and donations to NPR and Wikipedia.

Sure, it comes off as a competition in self-congratulatory giving. (And yes, since you ask, we are liberals from the East Coast.) But it’s also a valuable practice in stopping to recognize that we are fortunate enough to help those that need it most. Furthermore, it’s a practice that everyone can partake in, regardless of political leaning, denomination, or country of residence.

A recent article in GOOD Magazine pointed out that, “in fact, according to a study by the Women’s Philanthropy Institute, the Americans who give away the biggest proportion of their own income [to charity] are women who make $23,509 or less a year, not ridiculously wealthy white dudes named Bill.” But this is not only because we ladyfolks with shallow pockets are good and wise and magnanimous. (Though this assuredly must play a big role.)

It’s because philanthropy doesn’t just mean a million dollar aid package, a fleet of new computers for an orphanage in Honduras, or a new well sunk in an South African village. Philanthropy can come in smaller and unconventional packages. And so it was that several years ago the Bennett family discovered the paragon of responsible giving.

Behold: the Kiva Card. It comes in red and green or blue and silver* and is the gift that keeps on giving. Benefits to you: you look like a real do-gooder, and your recipient will find you both beneficent and savvy. Benefits to them: they will get to experience the exhilaration and certain joy of picking their own entrepreneur to lend to through the Kiva website. They’ll be given an opportunity to learn about an incredible and potent organization working in a vital emerging field in development. Finally, your recipient will reap the direct monetary benefits of their borrowers’ repayments (at least, 98.93%  of the time) over the next four to thirty-six months. Benefits to the world: somewhere in the sixty-one countries where Kiva works, yet another entrepreneur will be able to realize their microenterprise, and thus bolster the local economy, create jobs, and provide their families with the income and tools to move forward.

And best yet, unlike many other responsible gifts this holiday season, Kiva charges absolutely no overhead for Kiva Cards. (Unless you choose to donate on top of your $25 Kiva Card, which we could hardly blame you for.)

So what’s the drawback? You might actually look too generous and informed. And no-one likes being handed just an envelope, so be sure to find an extra big box in which to place your gift card before delivering it to its lucky recipient.

*Depending on what color construction paper you print it out on and what color markers you use. To give the gift of Kiva this holiday season (wink wink nudge nudge), check out Kiva Cards here! Kate Bennett is currently living in Ica, Peru and working as a Kiva Fellow with Kiva Field Partner Caja Rural Señor de Luren.

Before I volunteered as a Kiva Fellow in Sierra Leone (May of 2011) and Bolivia (September 2011), I was living in Santa Barbara, California. Imagine: Santa Barbara beaches saturated with color, mansions with the smell of jasmine twisting through the air, and a pace of life only to be set by the sun. While there, I was working for a de jure artist and took up the ranks as a de facto artist myself. Life was pretty easy, and moving to a developing country and working with microfinance seemed a million miles away. Leaving it all made me wonder why I would forfeit the comfort and normalcy of home for places where it feels like I have to relearn basic parts of life (i.e. restroom, showers, and food).

While volunteering, I was often asked , “Why would you come volunteer in my country?” Each time, I rambled about a desire to foster opportunities in the development of people around the world. But that is just it, how concise can pre-volunteers really be?

Well, the life of a volunteer goes with the wind. Four weeks ago I was living in Sierra Leone and today I am sitting in an office in Bolivia. Obviously, volunteering is not the most advantageous financial move one can make; in fact, while in the States, I qualified for free immunizations before coming to Bolivia because I was “low income”. In all honesty, most volunteers are a footnote to an organization’s real employees, and the “We couldn’t do it without you” speech only gets volunteers high for a split second. So why endure the bucket showers in Sierra Leone and language barriers in South America? Why volunteer?

For me, it has to do with something I encountered as a child while hiking around my home in Washington State. I saw the diverse beauty of nature: cedars, Douglas firs, ferns, and myriad wildflowers. I then thought about the diverse beauty of humanity (although those weren’t my exact thoughts as a child…). What it came down to was that I knew people (and the world) had to be different beyond my hometown population of ninety-something.

I didn’t leave and volunteer to “save the world.” (Do people still do that?) Rather, I had this desire to cease to be dichotomized from the developing world. Volunteering was a means to share life with people and hope to understand why populations live at different standards of living. This, hopefully, is joining in the process of lifting people out of poverty –the more minds and hearts that are included in the “process” (any process or cause you are voluneering for), the more potential there is to yield results and answers.

The wonder in volunteering, I have found, is simply in the interaction between me and a Kiva Borrower (those who recieve loans). In most cases, we each have something to add to the life of the other. With Kiva, microfinance volunteer work is geared to sustainably enable entrepreneurs in developing countries by facilitating capital for their business through loans.

My greatest interest in life was to see this “process,” and I have been so encouraged by what Kiva Borrowers are doing with their loans to better their lives. In reality, when any volunteers collaborate with people in development, we begin to answer for ourselves the questions we could not articulate beforehand. Within it all, volunteers are fortunate to take the time and witness the diverse beauty of humanity.

Today’s guest post comes from Rob Gradoville, a current Kiva Fellow, Rotary Scholar, and Fulbright Fellow in Cusco, Peru. Since 2005, Rob has been thinking about the best way to provide the basic services that rural folks in the developing world want and need most: clean water and electricity. During his undergraduate days he designed a water pumping system for a coffee cooperative in Nicaragua, and was hooked by every aspect of the work. He later worked with the Peace Corps in the Dominican Republic, bringing water, improved sanitation, and electricity to a mountain village over the course of his stay. Returning to graduate school he focused on environmental sustainability of service provision, and managed an Engineers Without Borders water pumping and distribution project for a village in Ecuador. Given his myriad experiences in international development work and his familiarity with some of the best-known programs for working and volunteering abroad, his post today seeks to inform would-be-do-gooder’s just what to expect from working and living la vida Idealist. Check out his last two posts, which discussed the value of overseas service-trips & overseas learning workshops and Fulbright Fellowships & Rotary Scholarships.

To recap: I imagine some La Vida Idealist readers have considered applying to the Peace Corps,overseas research grants, overseas workshops on topics in development, Fulbright Fellowships, Rotary Scholarships, Kiva Fellowships, and possibly service-learning trips if you are currently students.  The list goes on and on.  And it can seem like a big and slightly mystifying list for anyone who just wants to make a decision and do something!

There are a lot of similar experiences out there, and it can be tough narrowing down the right choice for you. Here is my perspective as foreign workers in Peru who is currently doing or has done those projects listed above.  If you are thinking about “doing something different,” “getting out of a work rut,” or “finally being one of those people who GOES and DOES something,” I hope this post helps you make a decision about what exactly to do.

The Peace Corps

The author's village in the Peace Corps in the Dominican Republic.

1) What it’s Like and What it was Like for Me

I served as a “Healthy Environments” volunteer in the Dominican Republic from 2007 to 2009. Peace Corps is something I can’t stop thinking about.  It is a mix of training, really independent work, and unique field research.  I lived in the mountains with 200 villagers, without ready access to clean water, adequate sanitation, electricity, you name it.  I bathed in the river every day, collected drinking water from a spring with the locals, and really slooooooooowed down for a bit.

I was sent there to help my village gain access to clean, piped water.  I ended up doing that, learning a lot about what it means to be poor and not receive any attention, and working on a bunch of other projects.  The first 3-5 months I was pretty uncomfortable, lonely, even scared at times.  But in the next year and a half I built closer relationships than many of mine in the states and felt much more comfortable, happy, and alive than I have ever felt in the USA.  My time was filled with sun, pipes, wrenches, concrete, donkeys, mud, plantains, mangoes, rice, beans, grants, paperwork, and more community meetings that I can count.

Peace Corps is really an in-depth, immersive service-learning experience.  Nothing is sugar-coated for you, and that might scare you at first.  But as an insider view of a different culture and a different way of life, there is absolutely nothing like it.

2) Level of Freedom or Structure

First three months are language, culture, and technical training.  After that Peace Corps staff tell you to call X number 24-hours a day for health problems, Y number 24-hours a day for other problems, drop you off in a village where you probably only speak a little bit of the local language, and say GOOD LUCK!  They tell you that you will be receiving around $300/month with which you are supposed to live, work, pay rent, buy food, all that.

In short, the Peace Corps provides the most basic structure for survival but beyond that you are on your own.  They also try to pair you up with a community that has need for your specific skill-set.  For me it worked out great.  For others, it was a mess and they had to “make it work” on their own, demonstrating their value and getting involved where they felt they could help.  Peace Corps REQUIRES you to be extremely independent, proactive, and outgoing.

3) Was I Useful? Did I make a ‘Difference’?

Yes and yes – I brought engineering skills to a village that needed them.  I also am kinda stubborn, which helped with motivation in an area that was used to beingpobre, having nada, and expecting nada. Sometimes the match of your skills meshes perfectly with the needs of the community.  If it doesn’t, you better suck it up, find where you are needed, and make it happen.  Peace Corps is an opportunity to guide the development of a poorer area, from the inside out, and will test you in every way.

4) Dolla Dolla Bills Y’all

Peace Corps doesn’t cost you one cent.  They will fly you from you house to the host country, teach you some language skills, some technical skills, and plant you in a community with a family that will take care of you for two years. When it’s all over, they will fly you back home and give you around $6,000 to “re-adjust” to the United States. It is an amazing deal, and I really hope to do it again some day.  On the other hand there is some significant investment of time (2 years of service and three months of per-service training).  On the whole, when I was at home two years later with $6,000 in my pocket, I was financially about the same place as many of my friends who had taken more traditional paths.

5) Was it Worth it?

Yes.  I am a huge fan.  The application and interview process is very rigorous and trying, and the average time between applying and being given an overseas position is usually 6-9 months, but it is well worth it.  Even if you leave your country of service without thinking you “helped” as much as you should have (this is almost universal, by the way), you leave with a very personal relationship with your host-family and community.  That relationship will affect the way you live your life, the perspectives you can understand, and overall, your level of solidarity with people who drew the short straw in life, for whatever reason.  It is not easy or straightforward, but as is a common phrase among RPCVs (Returned Peace Corps Volunteers), that this is “the toughest job you will every love.”

Kiva Fellowship

A group of Kiva borrowers just outside the city of Cusco.

1) What it’s Like and What it was Like for Me

I am currently a Kiva Fellow with Asociación  Arariwa in Cusco, Peru. If you are reading the Stories From The Field blog you probably have a good idea of what we do.  But if you don’t, I am proud to say that Kiva is one of the most organized experiences of this sort that I have participated in.  I was trained for a week in San Francisco(LONG 11-hour-days, where you learn a LOT!), paired with a microfinance organization somewhere in the world, given a desk, given specific tasks (but still the freedom to innovate and take on news tasks as they may appear), and given a lot of support from Kiva Fellows Program staff.  If I need to talk to someone in San Francisco, I can do it probably tomorrow.  If not, I can just keep showing up to my office and working with my in-country partners.

2) Level of Freedom or Structure

As I mentioned above, I was given a work-plan that I am expected to accomplish for Kiva.  They maintain long relationships with their in-country microfinance partners and can look strategically at what most needs improvement at a specific point in time.  Kiva Fellows are eyes, ears, and boots-on-the-ground implementers for all it is that Kiva does.  There is no long period of ‘figuring out what to do’ because you arrive with a very good idea of what needs to be done.  But Kiva is a very innovative startup, with an environment that breads creativity.  I have never felt stifled by any Kiva staff, and that has allowed me to enjoy each day of this Fellowship.

3) Was I Useful? Did I make a ‘Difference’?

Kiva Fellows do important work, work that keeps Kiva not only up and running, but allows them to explore new avenues of growth and innovation.  It is exciting seeing directly the improvements you make with Kiva and your partner microfinance institution.  It is also exciting to be given the chance to go meet Kiva borrowers, meet the loan officers that facilitate those loans, and hear, feel, see how these small loans are such a source of hope and improvement for people all over the world.  I studied engineering, and have not had a problem keeping up with the financial work involved with the position.  I would say if you are comfortable with mathematics and basic accounting you can expect to be utilized very well by a Kiva Fellowship.

4) Dolla Dolla Bills Y’all

The one major downfall of a Kiva Fellowship is that there is no financial support beyond basic health insurance coverage.  Fellows fundraise or directly pay for their time overseas, including the flight to San Francisco for training, the flight overseas, rent, food, etc.  This can be a substantial burden, but I think that the experience is worth the expense.  It is an investment in your personal growth, and allows you to help in a significant capacity with a major player in the world of global investment/philanthropy.

5) Was it Worth it?

Yes.  It is not as easy to say yes because, let’s be honest, a number of other programs don’t require a financial investment up front.  But the Kiva Fellows Program gives you a look into what I consider to be one of the most promising approaches to creatively finance progress and development overseas.  Like most things, and exactly like Kiva borrowers all over the world, you have to invest something financially to reap the benefits later on.

It is a bottom-up approach, and relies on the sensibilities of millions of entrepreneurs.  Kiva provides a loan.  Borrowers decide how to use it to improve their own lives.  In this way, you can be sure that the funds are used for something truly productive.  It is a simple concept, but to keep that bridge open Kiva needs your help.  Kiva NEEDS Kiva Fellows.  Entrepreneurs NEED Kiva Fellows.  And that is why the experience is so worth it.  You can be that person, fill that need, and learn a ton in the process.

*          *          *

There you have it.  Those are my impressions.  I hope this was helpful but now it is up to you to decide.  To each his own!

To recap: I imagine some La Vida Idealist readers have considered applying to the Peace Corps,overseas research grants, overseas workshops on topics in development, Fulbright Fellowships, Rotary Scholarships, Kiva Fellowships, and possibly service-learning trips if you are currently students.  The list goes on and on.  And it can seem like a big and slightly mystifying list for anyone who just wants to make a decision and do something!

There are a lot of similar experiences out there, and it can be tough narrowing down the right choice for you. Here is my perspective as foreign workers in Peru who is currently doing or has done those projects listed above.  If you are thinking about “doing something different,” “getting out of a work rut,” or “finally being one of those people who GOES and DOES something,” I hope this post helps you make a decision about what exactly to do.

FULBRIGHT GRANT

1) What it’s Like and What it was Like for Me

I am currently a Fulbright Scholar here in Peru, working with PACC-Peru on water resources issues associated with climate change in the Andes Mountains. My opinion of Fulbright is very good, though it seems to be relatively front-loaded.  The application process is very rigorous, and at the end of the day requires two very polished essays- one about who you are, and one about what you want to do as a Fulbrighter- and collaboration with a host-institution overseas, which eventually needs to write a letter of support for your work. Once in-country you are given a short (in my case, one-day) orientation by the local Fulbright staff, then are sent off to your location of study.  (Every country is different, and many include a 3-day orientation in Washington DC before departure from the United States, but mine country was not included in this event.)  Upon arrival you discuss that finely tuned research proposal with your host-institution, making modifications that range from slight variations to complete redirection, and you go on your way, exploring whatever you set out to explore.  You are not babysat, you are encouraged to get to know the country, and you are reminded that the research is only part of your experience.  Most Fulbrighters need to be reminded to chill out, not the other way around.

2) Level of Freedom or Structure

Once in country, the Fulbright experience is very open.  You receive a monthly living stipend to cover all of your expenses, and are asked to “check in” once a month just to let the Fulbright Commission know how everything is going.  In this way you really can do anything you want, as long as it is communicated with your host-institution.  I think this would be a daunting challenge if I hadn’t had significant overseas experience previously.  From another perspective, it is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to do and study whatever gets you going!  You are in the driver’s seat.

3) Was I Useful? Did I make a ‘Difference’?

Fulbrighters are listened to.  It is regarded as a very prestigious grant in both the United States and overseas (though I imagine this can depend on the host country).  Though  I am only a couple months into my grant, I am aware that my results will not simply be filed away.  They will be read and analyzed.  The potential for helping is very real.

4) Dolla Dolla Bills Y’all

Fulbright is a grant.  All expenses are paid for (after you are awarded the grant).  So, it is a great option if you have a good idea, connections overseas, and the time and patience necessary to get through the application process and overseas experience (about 2.5 years from the start of the application to the end of the grant period).  The application should be started probably 3-6 months before the submission date, which is typically about a year before the date of departure for Fulbrighters.  And, like all competitive things, there is much luck involved.  I would consider Peace Corps a “weed-in” program, where most applicants who sincerely want to help can make their way in.  Fulbright is a fine toothed comb, and even very brilliant people are not accepted for one reason or another.

5) Was it Worth it?

So far, so good.  I can’t help but compare this experience to that which I had in the Peace Corps.  As a Peace Corps Volunteer I was not respected very much by local government, and generally treated as another “missionary” of sorts.  I understood what poverty was, but felt incapable of fixing lots of the problems I saw.  As a Fulbrighter I know that I have access to much more influential people, and I will be listened to.  It seems to me that it is definitely worth it.  As a side note, had I not experienced the Peace Corps, I might have seen the Fulbright experience as semi “normal”.  I live in an apartment, pay bills, and work on my research.  In that way a Fulbright Grant is less of a life-changing experience for me than living in a mountain village; it is complete freedom to explore issues that are important to me, given the support and resources to do so.

ROTARY SCHOLARSHIP

The author concentrating wayyy too hard to try to take a steady photo, looking down on Cusco, Peru.

I am currently a Rotary Cultural Scholar in Peru. Becoming a Rotary Scholar involves an application similar to Fulbright but, in my opinion, it does not have to be nearly as polished of an idea as the Fulbright application process requires.  I am studying Quechua and water resources management with my Rotary funds.  This Rotary Scholarship provides support monetarily.  There is no orientation, no help with overseas planning, and no in-country contact for my work.  I am on my own.

2) Level of Freedom or Structure

Extremely free.  I have not communicated directly with my grantor more than once in the past two and a half months.  As a Rotary Scholar you define your own structure in the application, and you are expected to follow that plan.  But again, there is no babysitting.  Your experience is what you make of it.

3) Was I Useful? Did I make a ‘Difference’?

I am studying here, so I don’t see a direct impact to what I am doing.  Still, I know that Quechua skills will pay dividends in my Fulbright and Kiva work and will be an invaluable skill in the future.  Whereas Peace Corps was immediate gratification (seeing water come out of a pipe), Rotary is about building capacity, namely in people who they think will be able to help further down the line.  It is similar to Fulbright in this way.

4) Dolla Dolla Bills Y’all

Rotary Grants vary in the amount they provide, but they generally are very flexible as to what they can cover.  Flights, insurance, food, lodging, costs of courses and/or tutors, and cultural trips are all fair game.  The grants vary greatly in their duration, but one year seems to be common.  In my case, the funds were dispersed up-front and I am required to provide documentation of all expenses.  Whatever isn’t spent, I will have to give back.

5) Was it Worth it?

Very much so.  More than the funding, Rotary is a global network.  I hope that this experience will help me connect with like-minded people in the future as I may try to continue to “help” those in the world that need it.  As an experience by itself, I think Rotary is amazingly un-regulated.  As a first long-term overseas experience, I would not recommend it.  The structure provided by Peace Corps, Fulbright, and Kiva(discussed below)  are necessary to guide your overseas experience.  That said, if you are an experienced traveler and are looking for some funding to do something creative and open-ended, a Rotary Scholarship might be just what you are looking for.

Check out Part I, which took on overseas service-learning trips and overseas workshops, and stay tuned for Part III, which will Kiva Fellowships and the Peace Corps.

Should I become a Kiva Fellow? I imagine some La Vida Idealist readers have considered applying to the Fellowship, or have wondered what the comparison is between the Kiva Fellows Program to similar volunteer or development programs abroad. This may include the Peace Corps, overseas research grants, overseas workshops on topics in development, Fulbright Fellowships, Rotary Scholarships, and possibly service-learning trips if you are currently students.  The list goes on and on.  And it can seem like a big and slightly mystifying list for anyone who just wants to make a decision and do something!

There are a lot of similar experiences out there, and it can be tough narrowing down the right choice for you. Here is my perspective as a Kiva Fellow in Peru who is currently doing or has done those projects listed above. This series of posts will compare and contrast “what it’s like” to be a Kiva Fellow to the myriad other programs out there.  If you are thinking about “doing something different,” “getting out of a work rut,” or “finally being one of those people who GOES and DOES something,” I hope this post helps you make a decision about what exactly to do.

To that end I will categorize each of the above experience based on five criteria.

1) What it’s Like and What is was Like for Me

2) Level of Freedom or Structure

3) Was I Useful? Did I make a ‘Difference’?

4) Dolla Dolla Bills Y’all

5) Was it Worth it?

‘Nuff talk.  Enjoy!

Overseas Service Learning

College students working on clean water project in Ecuador, '11.

1) What it’s Like and What It was Like for Me

I designed community water projects in Nicaragua as a student and have directed service learning projects for students to do the same in the Dominican Republic and Ecuador(and will do the same in Peru this coming spring).

Service-learning is really close to my heart because it is how I got pulled out of the sometimes dry world of engineering and into the colorful, inspired, much more complicated world of international development..  As a fourth-year undergraduate engineering student I designed a water pumping and delivery system for a village in Nicaragua. In order to implement this project, I  wrote out a proposal and was granted $10,000 bucks from the Davis “Projects for Peace” Foundation.  This service learning experience showed me for the first time how useful my skills could be in the world.  I have never been as challenged on a daily basis as I was during that project, nor have I have I been as ecstatic to get up every day and work.  My work included engineering design, studying Nicaraguan history and politics, trying to communicate with NGOs overseas and in the states, and learning as much Spanish as possible.  Occasionally I would talk with people in the village itself through skype, and my heartbeat literally doubled from excitement.  That personal connection was something extremely knew and exciting.

Service learning may exist at your university, and may not.  If it does, be proactive and get involved, then make it your own.  If it doesn’t exist, make it happen!  I found like-minded students and professors, and was allowed to work on the first service-learning engineering project at my university.  My last year at college I learned more than I did in the previous three, thanks to this service-learning project.

2) Level of Freedom or Structure

Usually these are fairly structured, for good reason.  It is part of a class and you have to finish SOMETHING.  Small, bite-sized projects are typical for service-learning experiences.  So, don’t get involved in this if you want to have the freedom to do exactly what you want or possibly scrap your original idea half-way through.  That said, these projects typically are more open to creativity than standard theoretical projects and/or reports.

3) Was I Useful? Did I make a ‘Difference’?

My experience was great, and I think I did help.  My service-learning team (engineers and environmental science students) was lucky enough to successfully pair up with NGOs that had follow-through capabilities.  This was very important, as we were new to the work.  Looking back, we were a group of young students trying to change the lives of 350 Nicaraguans.  That is powerful stuff, and if we were alone on the project, I think we would have had little impact or worse, would have set them back.  Make sure you have a good mentor capable of picking up the pieces if you decide to start up a new service-learning project.

4) Dolla Dolla Bills Y’all

This stuff usually costs some dough.  I would expect it to be around $1000-$3000 extra to do one of these for a semester rather than typical coursework. It is possibly included in your course fees or can tack on an additional couple grand.  Every experience is different.  BUT the good news is that you can dip in the educational funds money-bucket.  Educational grant funds are huuuuuge.  You can probably apply for scholarships, grants, etc. and get away doing this kind of thing almost for free.  If your “project” costs money to implement, that’s another thing.  It will probably be much harder to find funds within your university to go and implement, but look!  Mission programs, international study offices, and outside foundations like the one mentioned above are a good start.

5) Was it Worth it?

As a foot in the door, DEFINITELY.

That said, service-learning is a mixed bag, because it is usually attached to an educational institution (universities) where there is a focus on the educational component for students.  That is great, but sometimes leaves the person/group you were serving a little disappointed.  As service-learning is a partnership between a student-group and clients (overseas or not), there is much time and effort invested on both sides.  The student group will be expected to do more than simply write a final report, in many cases.  Be wary of the impact you are having on the project beneficiaries, and make sure that when you leave they also think it was worth it.  But at the end of the day, if I had not done this I would probably be a much wealthier but much more depressed engineer, sitting in a cubicle somewhere, making calculations.  Therefore I am a huge fan of service learning as a tool to show young people how to engage their community and world, and try to help.  To read an article I published on service-learning click here.

Overseas Workshops

The author soldering together individual solar cells in Nicaragua, 2007

1) What it’s Like and What it was Like for Me

I participated in a workshop on Appropriate Technologies in Nicaragua with the National Engineering University of Managua, which entailed some basic classes on the physics behind appropriate technologies like solar panels, solar water pumps, biodigestors, solar ovens, rope pumps, composting latrines etc.  We also built our own solar panels, solar cookers, helped construct an adobe building, and practiced our intercultural skills with a “homestay” with a humble Nicaraguan family. I have also participated in a  course on Globalization, Leadership, and Technology that culminated in an overseas conference in Vietnam and Taiwan.  The conference encompassed some very high level, involved visits with CEOs of large corporations and, in my opinion, was very much an outsiders view of a local culture.  The former was a bottom-up approach.

These experiences are similar to service-learning projects being that you are really only expected to learn.  They are also a great foot in the door or a refresher course on field work in a specific part of the world.

2) Level of Freedom or Structure

These are very structured. There will probably be a schedule for everything you do, from the time you land on the runway to the time you are swooped back up. They are usually pretty jam-packed and don’t leave much freedom to “do what you want” if it isn’t the specific goal of the workshop.

3) Was I Useful? Did I make a ‘Difference’?

The goal of these courses isn’t to ‘make a difference’ at all, or at least directly.  You pay to participate in these courses, and some of those funds may go towards the efforts of an NGO or social movement, but don’t expect to directly have a huge impact on anyone.  I didn’t leave Nicaragua thinking I had helped much, but I was more equipped to do so in the future.  I knew leaving Asia that I hadn’t done anything, but the experience might contribute to my future path in life.

4) Dolla Dolla Bills Y’all

Pricey.  I have seen these offered anywhere from $500-$1500 for a week!  That adds up.  Outside funding is probably harder because of what I said in #3. These courses are similar in price to overseas vacation tours.  The only difference is that on vacation tours you typically sit on a beach, get a tan, and enjoy relaxing.  For those short on time, this is probably a good option.

5) Was it Worth it?

In terms of professional development, for sure.  It is a very unique experience and might inspire you to do more, learn more, etc.  These are typically more serious about transferring knowledge to you than service-learning trips, so in terms of personal bang for your buck they might about the same, even though service learning experiences might be much longer.  Nevertheless, the personal connection to the experience developed over a longer period of time like a service-learning project is unlikely in these shorter trips.

Stay tuned for Parts II and III, which will cover Fulbright Grants, Rotary Scholarships, Kiva Fellowships, and the Peace Corps.

Yes, Kiva warned us Fellows about this. But I felt it was simply a mirage or, at least, a pit for the weak and inexperienced. But when one sails further away from home, their ship seems to disappear from friends and relationships in the fog. It is as if we fall of the edge of this flat ol’ earth. And if there comes a time when the organization with which you volunteer doesn’t seem to value you as they once did, then your own purpose of presence becomes blurred. Without warning, it feels like your volunteer experience changes from a great piece of literature to a cheap romance novel. Not even a Snickers bar or a hamburger can jog your memory to the pre-Trough-blues and yank you back to that original bravado which sent you to God-knows-where Bolivia in the first place.

So take heed, my friends, those who may be toeing that line of gung hoe volunteer and get-me-the-hell-out volunteer: I have six pieces of advice to get you back on your horse and move along!

1. Get to a place with a view

NOTE:

Don’t go to a high place if you want to jump!

WHY?

It gives you perspective on how big the world is and how small the buildings and people are. This gives you perspective on the Trough and your troubles within it. Remember the Trough is of disillusionment, and despite how real it might feel, you can make it through!

***

2. Clean your apartment

NOTE:

At least take the garbage out…

WHY?

It will make you feel like the place is yours. Clean and organize your small rented room or apartment or twelve-bed hostel dormitory- small personal touches in your living space will help you get settled.

***

3. Run some stairs

NOTE:

Even if it’s two flights, you’ll feel like Rocky Balboa.

WHY?

It will stop you from moping and gets the blood flowing! Lethargy is a symptom of the Trough and stairs distract you from any disillusioned feelings…even if it’s for 15 seconds, it helps.

***

4. Splurge on Dinner

NOTE:

Depending on what country you’re living in, “splurging” can be between $3-$20. Even a volunteer can afford that once and a while.

WHY?

It will make you feel special. And you need that right now.

***

5. Clean your eco-friendly water bottle!

NOTE:

If you unscrew the lid and look around wondering what smells like dead pumpkins, it’s probably your dirty eco-friendly water bottle.

WHY?

It will bring about new beginnings. You’ll feel like you did at the beginning of your volunteer experience: unsullied, clean, and ready for the road ahead.

***

6. Talk to those deadbeats from high school and college

NOTE:

This might temporarily sink you deeper in the trough, but a few well-placed phone calls and emails to your friends sitting in their parents’ basements or, worse yet, cubicles, will immediately catapult you from the trough. This may require small-talk-catch-up on Facebook… but worth it once you look at their pictures (inevitably with other deadbeats from high school or college).

WHY?

It will remind you why you moved to another country in the first place! Trust me, it works.

***

And finally, rest your blog readers’ minds and let them know how resilient you are, because in one way or another, the trough will strengthen your heart and mind (and backbone) and exemplify your steadfastness  as you change the world volunteering!

This is Eric Rindal’s first post on La Vida Idealist. Eric is currently working with the 16th Class of Kiva Fellows in Bolivia, bouncing between La Paz, Cochabamba, and Santa Cruz.

Kiva Fellow David Connelly, my predecessor here at Kiva Partner Caja Rural Señor de Luren in Ica, has written before about the 2007 8.0 magnitude earthquake. The statistics are chilling: 519 people dead, 1366 injured, and some 76,000 homes collapsed. “After two and a half years,” he wrote in 2010, “Ica is still very much recovering.” Last week’s comparatively modest 6.9 magnitude earthquake made it clear as day that the wounds are fresh.

Moments after the quaking abated, Peuvians tore out of buildings into the streets. The roads flooded with vehicles screaming out of Ica, trying to reach homes and families on the city’s peripheries. Co-workers clutched at each other outside, waiting for tremors, which arrived dutifully shortly thereafter. While the earthquake itself had not unsettled me, the sight of a city in sheer terror was consummately unnerving.

Ica, in many ways, is a modern city. It is the capital of its department in Peru. We have several large supermarkets, wide asphalt avenues with obeyed stoplights, and our very own over-priced coffee house, where I sit now and where I sat at the time of the quake. The buildings here are solid, new, and given the events of the last decade, built to be earthquake-proof.

Though standards of construction and seismic mitigation efforts were doubled during reconstruction in Ica, time and financial constraints did not afford this kind of purposefulness beyond the borders of the city. This is where you’ll find the truly vulnerable population and Kiva’s target market. They may live in fragile and overcrowded adobe homes. They may live with instable or nonexistent access to water, electricity, and gas lines. Their transportation infrastructure is meager. Faulty ATMs spell for limited access to liquid assets. Peru’s poor, those already on unsure financial footing, are those impacted greatest by natural disasters.

Let me give you a scenario for the average micro-enterprise in the wake of a natural disaster. Say you lend $25 to Kiva borrower María, to invest in her small store, where she sells sodas, candy, and pastries. She is making repayments on time, selling goodies to her neighbors, and flourishing in the way that we hope that every Kiva borrower will. But what happens to her store in the wake of a disaster?

Within moments of the event, costs accrue. It’s possible that her physical business- the building, her cash register, her products- are damaged or destroyed in the event. María now must pay to repair or rebuild, and might be without income in the interim. Meanwhile, her neighbors, experiencing similar interruptions in income, have stopped buying her sodas and candy. Even if her store is still standing and her cash register still works, she may be without electricity, and therefore unable to open the register or to operate past dark. Not to mention, if María was stocking dairy products, they just went bad.

And even if she’s lucky enough to find that her store is fine and her neighbors still have their disposable income to buy sodas and candy, she’s still not out of harm’s way. All of the sudden, the small business or company from which María bought her soda and candy are unable to produce these goods, because the water services have been shut off and their production facilities have been damaged. And even if they could keep making candies for María to sell in her store, they’re now unable to reach her store due to damaged transportation infrastructure.

The economy cannot function at normal levels in the wake of a severe natural disaster. Consider the direct economic losses, such as destroyed or severely damaged buildings, transportation infrastructure, energy and water infrastructure, environmental infrastructure (such as dams), and other private property. These result in innumerable disruptions of the business sector; production facilities, economic markets, and distribution systems are stalled or stopped altogether. And when micro-enterprises come into the picture, these private sector interruptions become a personal tragedy as well. Damages to personal items, injury, or death all bear heavily on a small business owner’s livelihood and their day-to-day lives.

So what, then, can microfinance do to alleviate the effects of a natural disaster? What role should microfinance institutions assume? In normal conditions, microfinance seeks to expand access to financial services- whether savings, credit, or insurance- to those traditionally excluded from the credit market- by poverty, geographic isolation, loan size, or other barriers from traditional banking institutions. Microcredit specifically (what we do here on Kiva) addresses two needs of borrowers. It smooths existing income and protects against fluctuations in livelihoods, a “micro-disaster insurance,” if you will. Microcredit also works to boost income by removing capital constraints and allowing for micro-enterprises to realize their potential. The point being, it serves certain needs of the poor.

However, the needs of the poor shift dramatically in the wake of a natural disaster. Affected parties are not interested in expanding their micro-enterprises. Frankly, in the case of a catastrophic disaster and a disrupted economy, this could be considered imprudent. What affected parties require is some form of speedy mitigation, direct assistance, and a return to normalcy. Their own immediate changes in behavior may include a “reduction in consumption, sale of assets, migration, withdrawal of savings and borrowing and using remittances to mitigate the effects of a disaster” (Parker and Nagarajan 2000). Their coping mechanisms, in short: access all available liquid assets, and apply prodigiously.

As such, disaster relief does not call for market-driven microfinance but for well-allocated aid or subsidized credit, as controversial as that idea may seem. This may not be an appropriate task for financially self-sustainable microfinance institutions in the open market. But Kiva Field Partners are in a much better position to provide this support.

After the disastrous 2007 earthquake hit in Peru, Kiva Partner Caja Señor de Luren provided a six-month grace period to a large portion of their affected portfolio. Virtually all restructured clients repaid their loans on time and clients were able to make a full recovery. Furthermore, Caja Luren’s partnership with Kiva enables them to reach out to riskier clients, those impacted most heavily by the earthquake, in a time of extreme need.

But even when subsidized and cheaper microfinance products are unfeasible or inapplicable, microfinance institutions have other means of alleviating the effects of a disaster. Microfinance institutions can proactively offer micro-insurance and support disaster preparedness leading up to the event, and retroactively provide the invaluable service of financial liquidity of savings to their clients in case of a disaster.

Microfinance, even in normal conditions, is not without its limitations. In a time of upheaval and economic collapse, this may be doubly so. But microfinance can support clients before and after the fact. Through improved access to microfinance services, clients can build and fortify their productive assets, be they economic, human, or social. Access to financial services can restore borrowers’ livelihoods and enhance the preparedness of clients for the next possible disaster. Here in Ica, there’s no telling how far off that might be.

This blog post was invaluably informed by “Can Microfinance Meet The Poor’s Financial Needs in Times Of Natural Disaster?” by Joan Parker and Geetha Nagaraja. To read the article in its entirety, click here.

Kate Bennett is currently living in Ica, Peru and working as a Kiva Fellow with Kiva Field Partner Caja Rural Señor de Luren. More more videos of borrowers or to hear more about her experiences, check out her blog!

A particularly infamous group of chulcos in Ecuador operates out of Guayaquil, where they’re known for their motorcycles, their Colombian origin, and their 20 percent compounded monthly interest rate. This group of chulcos is as efficient as any financially self-sustainable microfinance organization: they promote their services with fliers, divide up the city into quadrants, each with its own assigned chulco, and they police their quadrants on motorcycles for new or delinquent borrowers. They are much like any reputed microfinance institution… except for the inherent exploitative, violent, and illegal nature of their work.

Guayaquil is the biggest and most dangerous city in the country, and a high number of local crimes are attributed to this type of organized predatory lending. The trouble with illegal lending is that wronged borrowers are powerless to report chulco misbehavior to the authorities. And unfortunately, it’s more than a fear of reprisal that keeps these crimes from being reported: it’s a need for continued access to credit, at any price.

Just what is a loan shark? In short, an illegal moneylender who charges exorbitant interest rates to borrowers unable to obtain a loan elsewhere. And for lenders concerned about Kiva Field Partners’ high interest rates (which in Ecuador, due to transportation and administration costs, reach no higher than 30 percent), the reality is that the alternative is much worse. Here in Ecuador, loan sharks- or as they’re called locally, chulcos or chulqueros- charge interest rates as high as 150 percent, imposing truly unfair and abusive loan terms on borrowers.

The danger of borrowing from these loan sharks is twofold. First and foremost, they take advantage of vulnerable small business owners, simultaneously depriving them the benefits of lending from accredited institutions while engaging in exploitative and illegal practices. Chulcos lack all the benefits of legitimate microlending institutions, such as establishing a credit history to ensure continued access to credit in the future. Furthermore, the inordinately high interest rates tend to trap borrowers in a cycle of debt, borrowing repeatedly only to pay off their existing loans. Like Marcia said, lending from chulcos means a life of repayment; the capital never even pays off.

When starting a business, it can only expand “poco a poco,” as Marcia says- profits don’t come instantly, they only come little by little, until entrepreneurs get their businesses on stable ground. But the cycle of debt and usurious interest rates that come from chulco lending will only driving a budding business into the ground. Not to mention the inherent dangers of lending from loan sharks, who take drastic and violent measures to ensure they collect on their money, whether through threats, public humiliation, leaving pigs’ heads on doorsteps, seizure of other family members’ assets (all of their assets), or outright forceful and illegal actions.

Considering loan sharks’ interest rates and share of the market, their profits make up a considerable proportion (up to 40 percent) of the microfinance market. These illegally-obtained profits are untaxed and go directly and fully into the pockets of the often dangerous individuals that make them. But costs of loan sharks in a credit market end up being much more than the high interest rates: loan sharks can distort the market and in some extreme cases have crashed it altogether.

Loan sharks will be continue to be successful in Ecuador as long as the microfinance sector is unable to absorb all of those borrowers who turn to chulqueros in their time of need. What can we do to counter this effect? Simply supporting existing accredited microfinance institutions in Ecuador, like Kiva’s five current Field Partners Cooperativa San Jose, Banco D-MIRO, Fundación ESPOIR, Fundación Alternativa, and the MicroEnterprise Development Fund (FODEMI), goes a long way. Empowering lawful and upright microfinance organizations with social missions can ensure that access to affordable and fair microcredit continues to spread far and deep into the sectors that need it. And instead of trapping borrowers in a cycle of debt and moving them further from success, microfinance institutions can help them move forward to a better quality of life.

Kate Bennett is currently living in Quito, Ecuador and working as a Kiva Fellow with Fundación Alternativa. More more videos of borrowers or to hear more about her experiences, check out her blog!

Each Kiva borrower visit I perform here in Ecuador introduces me to new role models. New strong, inspiring women I can look up to; women who, through their business and determination, are fighting the uphill battle against machismo in their own country.

I can’t say exactly what “machismo“ is, but I can tell you, I don’t like it. It means much more than catcalling women on the street. It’s a symbol of domestic violence against women; denying women deeds to land; requiring women to dress conservatively; keeping women in the home to make food and babies, rather than allowing them to generate their own income and pursue their own fulfillment in work or personal life.

Yes, machismo is more than just catcalls. It is a desire to humiliate, overpower, and oppress women in general. To me, it seems that machismo is dressed up as a cultural norm in certain parts of Latin America; it’s treated like the rude, pervy uncle of the family that simply must be tolerated cause he is not going anywhere. Indeed, machismo is a part of the culture in Latin America, and to a certain extent, we have to respect its presence. But we certainly don’t have to agree with it.

But let’s be fair- machismo is not a strictly Latin American phenomenon. We actually have a word for “machismo” in English: chauvinism. And the fight against chauvinism is ongoing throughout the world. Look at cities like New York, Paris and London, where women were not allowed to wear trousers in public places until the second half of the twentieth century. At my preparatory school in Princeton, New Jersey, women were only admitted starting in 1987. “Machismo” and its brothers Chauvinism and Sexism can be observed the world over in any male-driven society in which men suffer the delusion that they are superior to women.

Enter the world of microfinance. Every now and again on Kiva.org, when shuffling through the thousands of images of borrowers on the site, you’ll come across something special in the photo: a blurred face. Often these faces are in Palestine, Afghanistan, or Iraq. Based on the political and social environments of these areas, personally identifiable attributes of these borrowers- their appearance, their location, and sometime their names- are altered or hidden to protect him or her.

But once in a blue moon, you will stumble across a hidden name or face in other parts of the world- those considered comparably more stable, indeed, safe enough to have taken out a loan. These are the faces of women in Nicaragua, Kenya, and Mongolia. Often the husbands of Kiva borrowers do not know they have a loan out, and might find it problematic if they did know. Regrettably, in many countries where Kiva works women often need male permission to perform basic economic activities.

For this reason, many microlending partners of Kiva (for example, Fundación ESPOIR in Ecuador) require only the borrowers’ signature to take out a loan (although the law for traditional lending institutions might require the signature of both husband and wife). This allows Fundación ESPOIR’s clients to borrow money without their husband’s knowledge, which also helps safeguard the loan’s timely repayment (important note: Kiva never publishes profiles that would in any way endanger its borrowers).

I recently met such a woman during a routine borrower visit- sorry, I can’t tell you her name or where she lives. I also can’t tell her husband she has taken out a loan. But I can tell you this woman is working in the face of adversity to provide food, housing, and schooling for her children. She works incredible hours every day without any help (or financial support) from her husband. This is her fourth loan, and she repaid the last three on time without any problems.

So why, then, would husbands take issue with their wives succeeding in business, family, and microborrowing? Wouldn’t this just make their own lives easier? Primarily, there is a danger of delinquent husbands squandering loan money through gambling or drinking. However more significantly, women receiving microloans experience a shift in their role in the household.

In the impoverished areas where microfinance is targeted, “machismo” is manifested in education and health. Men receive schooling, nutrition, and health care far beyond their female counterparts. In agricultural societies, this is reinforced by physical strength’s priority over intellectual and social skills. A gendered division of labor and wide discrepancies in wages is palpable, not even questioned. Even if this environment of male domination is merely a function of economic industrial dynamics, it justifies and continues the existing and inequitable social order. For women in these families, self-realization is achieved only through marriage and procreation.

But through their loans and their entrepreneurialism, woman borrowers have begun to generate income for the family, often as much if not more than their husbands. They become the primary breadwinner. A former Kiva borrower stated that she had become “husband and wife for the family and everyone knew it.” It’s a blow to the husbands pride, hubris, indeed- his machismo.

Microfinance is decidedly a field for woman borrowers. All evidence shows that women are better micro-borrowers; they have far higher rates of repayment and successful loans. Indeed, Fundación ESPOIR (the aforementioned Kiva partner) only started letting male borrowers join into on group loans less than a year ago after a twenty-year history in Ecuador. Not only do women make better lenders in terms of repayment, but lending to women does better things for their children and the status of women in their respective societies.

Dozens of studies have shown that microfinance fosters the safety, economic self-sufficiency, health, and self-confidence of women all over the globe. It leads to downward trends in domestic violence and improves women’s abilities to participate in household decision-making. Women around the world are up against insurmountable challenges: poverty, disease, violence.

Microfinance can be a hand up (not a hand-out) to these women. Achieving social equality obviously requires a multi-sectoral approach, but there is sufficient data to suggest that women’s economic empowerment (through microfinance) can help reduce partner and targeted violence. Most incredibly, as I’ve sat in on group borrower meetings, feeling the support and care that these borrowers give each other, I’ve realized how incredible it is that rather than perpetuating “marianismo” (reverse sexism) these women are setting the foundation for a more socially equitable future.  Machismo may not be going anywhere anytime soon, and microfinance is clearly not a panacea for combating it, but loan by loan, mother by daughter, micro-borrowers throughout the world are determining their own future within a culture and an economy.

For more on dealing with “machismo” in South America, check out “Coping with the Burn,” by Nereida Heller, “Warning to Women: Thicken Your Skin, Machismo Awaits in Costa Rica” by Sebastian Kindsvater, or “Watch out for What, Exactly?” by Lizzie LaCroix. Kate Bennett is currently living in Quito, Ecuador and working as a Kiva Fellow for Fundación Alternativa. This is not is not an official Kiva Fellows blog. The views and information presented are Kate’s own and do not represent the Kiva Fellows Program, Kiva.org, or any of its partner organizations.