On July 23rd, I will be moving to Tanzania to begin my service as a Kiva Fellow. I will be in East Africa working for Kiva for 6-9 months, and I need your help in order to make it all happen. The Kiva Fellowship is a volunteer-based position with no funds or stipend provided for the fellow’s service. By contributing to my fellowship, you can enable me to assist Microfinance Institutions in providing loans to the destitute so that together we can be responsible for helping individuals in developing countries break the cycle of poverty.
What does a Kiva Fellow do?
As a Kiva Fellow, I will be working for Kiva and directly with a Microfinance Institution (or “field partner”) in Tanzania to track the progress of current and former borrowers, train field partner staff on how to maximize the funds they receive through Kiva, journal about entrepreneurs to keep lenders like you abreast of their progress, and blog about my experiences to spread the word on microfinance. Specifically, I will meet with at least 15 borrowers or potential borrowers each week to ascertain how the loan received through lenders like you has changed their life. The journals I write based on these interviews will go both onto Kiva’s website and directly to the lenders who contributed to the individual. I will work with field partner staff both in the Dar Es Salaam office and in the rural branches to train them on how to effectively use Kiva to receive funding for their clients. I will also be writing at least one blog entry each week to engage lenders around the world in the work that Kiva is doing and the positive impacts of microfinance on the world’s most impoverished individuals. I will act as a link between the lender and the borrower and between Kiva and the field partner. My first placement is with BRAC Tanzania, and I will be working with them for a minimum of ten weeks. At that point, I may be moved to a different field partner, a different city, or a different country in East Africa, depending on the needs of the field partners and Kiva.
Want to learn more about Kiva? Click here or select the “What is Kiva?” tab at the top of this page.
Where did all of this come from?
Last December, I spent three weeks in Ethiopia on vacation. Instead of merely a vacation, it ended up being an eye-opening experience that showed me extreme poverty for the first time. Shortly after I returned from Ethiopia, a friend introduced me to Kiva and I found that Kiva’s mission and method aligned both with the skills I can provide and with my understanding of how one person or organization can make a difference in the lives of so many. I applied to be a Kiva Fellow and carry out its mission on the ground, and my goal is finally being realized as I prepare for my departure.
Some have asked me why now? Why Tanzania? Why microfinance or Kiva? My answer has to do with my deep gratitude for all of the opportunities I’ve been afforded and my desire to use them to combat poverty on the ground, getting my hands dirty and having a direct impact. I’ve had the privilege of a good education, a stable job, and a consistent roof over my head and food on the table. I have an opportunity to take some time to give back, so I am seizing it both in the hopes that even a few lives are improved by my being there and that I gain a practical education in the alleviation of poverty that serves me as I continue this fight for years to come.
If you want to learn more about what I’m doing, check out the rest of my blog by navigating the tabs at the top of this screen. If you would like to donate to help send me to Tanzania, click here. Thanks for visiting, and thank you for your support!
1 Comment
July 14, 2008 at 3:42 am
What you are doing is fabulous, Julie. Please keep us all up-to-date on this great work.