Global Partnerships’ mission is to expand opportunity for people living in poverty. www.globalpartnerships.org

continued on back cover

Our Evolution

SUMMER 2012

First Business of Hope Luncheon in 2003 brings micro-finance to SeattleIn 2003, before Mohammed Yunus and Grameen Bank won the Nobel Peace Prize, only a few people in Seattle were familiar with microloans, yet there was a growing interest in finding sustainable solutions to poverty. I had joined a great group on a PartnerTrip to El Salvador the previous year where we had seen and heard firsthand the difference that microloans could make.

We met women who had traditionally been excluded from access to financial services and were moved by their stories; how one loan at a time, they were able to grow their businesses, pay for school, buy medicine, deal with emergencies and survive disasters.

Over the course of the trip these stories formed a pattern: with capital and support, borrowers were able to develop their businesses and improve the lives of their families and communities. Moved by the stories and inspired by Bill and Paula Clapp’s extraordinary commitment to making a difference, we opened our mind and hearts to how we might respond.

Returning to Seattle, I joined other participants from that trip, Global Partnerships staff, board members and a very committed group of volunteers and sponsors to help to create an inspiring annual event that would introduce the work of Global Partnerships to broader audiences, and

Since its inception Global Partnerships (GP) has been committed to expanding opportunity for people living in poverty. Our organization has consistently supported mission-aligned partners that work to improve the lives of the poor.

Yet our approach has evolved considerably over the last 10 years, and has often paralleled trends in the global development community.

Ten years ago GP’s work focused on microfinance, and during that time we observed as the debate moved from “Can microfinance institutions (MFIs) sustainably meet the needs of the poor?” to “How fast can the microfinance industry scale?” Many of our own partners were transitioning from fragile organizational structures to fully sustainable business models.

As this debate shifted, so did the manner in which global development was supported. Many programs like microfinance – long upheld by philanthropy – began to attract the attention of investors seeking both a financial and social return. According to a 2010 report by J.P. Morgan, social investments directed to sectors such as sustainable agriculture, clean water and microfinance have the potential to grow to at least $400 billion over the next 10 years.

Global Partnerships’ own approach mirrored this transition within the industry. In 2005, we launched our first social investment fund and developed three additional funds in the next five years, enabling us to dramatically increase our impact within the region.

Yet as billions of dollars flowed into the

industry to help commercially-driven enterprises reach as many people as fast as possible, often times the needs of the most vulnerable clients were left behind.

Observing this trend, our social investment team shifted its approach from growth to depth, choosing partners that weren’t necessarily reaching the most clients most quickly, but rather had the potential to reach clients in the most meaningful, highly impactful way.

Much has changed here at Global Partnerships in the past ten years. No longer do we focus only in Central America; our geographic footprint has expanded into Mexico, deep into South America and reaches to the Caribbean. Today we complement our philanthropic resources with social investment capital. Our investments include not just microcredit but critical non-financial services such as health screenings and technical assistance for small farmers. Through all this change, our commitment to serving communities most in need remains central to our approach.

Reflections from Jason Henning, Director of Investor Relations and GP’s longest employed staff member

PartnerTrip Bolivia, April 2012

Sharing the Journey I have been fortunate enough to travel three times to different countries in which Global Partnerships (GP) has business partners. My most recent trip, to Bolivia, occurred just last month. It was noteworthy for two reasons. First, I was able to travel with my wife and 17-year old daughter – their first trips with GP. Seeing the trip through their eyes brought a wonderful perspective that only enriched my own experience. Second, since I have been involved with GP since 2003, I have been able to observe the maturation of both the microfinance industry and GP’s adapting strategy and role within the industry.

GP was initially founded in 1994 to support microfinance work in Central America. Since then, GP has evolved to fund exceptional microfinance institutions (MFIs) and cooperatives that provide microloans and essential services to thousands of people in need in Latin America. To do this, GP uses investor funding and donations to support the most innovative and effective MFIs and cooperatives. This ensures that the work that GP does is sustainable. Our family has invested in two of the funds and to date they have been successful and have operated as planned.

More specifically, GP’s strategy has also broadened to include working with partners that not only provide microcredit to their clients, but also provide social support through education and training in four key areas: health care, technical help to farmers, business education and green technology. In Bolivia, during our visits to several village banks, the loan officer guided the group through thinking about and planning for old age. We witnessed borrowers learning about women’s empowerment and (mental) health education.

I continue to be impressed not only with GP’s staff and mission, but also the evolving development of their strategy. They are well positioned to be a leader in the industry but they have also created a sustainable model in which they can continue to serve increasing numbers of people in need in developing countries.

Reflections from David Marquez, GP Donor, Investor and PartnerTrip Traveler

Meet Philomena, a Farmer from BoliviaAs our plane landed in Seattle, I reflected on our time in Bolivia and all the places we went and people we met. One woman kept coming to mind, Philomena. A strong woman, measuring all of 4’ 10”. She is a dairy farmer and a single mother of four who lives in the Altiplano of Bolivia, about 2 hours drive from La Paz. The soil is rich and the landscape is flat which is good for farming. But the high elevation means the temperatures get down into the 30s most every night. It also means you need to be careful when selecting your breed of dairy cows. It turns out the cows which produce the most milk are not native to the region and can get sick and even die from altitude sickness.

Philomena is a client of one of Global Partnerships’ partners, Sembrar Sartawi, a microfinance institution (MFI). She receives business loans to buy cattle and improve her barn and the home she shares with her four young children. In addition to affordable access to credit, the MFI has also made it easy for her to repay her loans by implementing an auto payment arrangement with the dairy that buys her cows’ milk. With the auto payments, Philomena’s loan payment

is deducted from her monthly paycheck. This arrangement saves her both time and money as she is now able to skip the four-hour bus ride to visit the MFI twice a month and can dedicate herself fully to her farm and her family.

While showing us her farm—including six cows, chickens, rabbits, and Guinea pigs—she explained in her “free time” that she helps her sister who bought a dump truck and earns money hauling everything from potatoes to concrete to market. She’d like to get a dump truck, too, maybe with her next loan.

She was a truly impressive woman with an amazing spirit though her life has been difficult and she has aged well beyond her 36 years. When we asked what her biggest challenge was or what problems she has she simply said, “I have no problems. I have a good life.” Imagine that. I’ll try to keep Philomena in mind the next time I complain about, well, just about anything.

Reflections from Beth Castleberry, Chief Development Officer and PartnerTrip Traveler

raise funds to allow the organization to expand and develop new models.

Convinced that if others could also hear the stories we heard in El Salvador and learn about the impact of microloans firsthand they, too, would want to become supporters, we also invited a loan-recipient to travel to Seattle to tell her story. If we were worried that this request might be overwhelming for her, that concern disappeared when Marta Eugenia Perez de Sánchez (pictured at right) stood in front of over 600 attendees and told her powerful story of resilience.

Marta shared how she used her first loan to buy equipment and materials for her seamstress business. She went on to tell us about her subsequent loans to establish a second business fitting and selling eyeglasses and talked of her desire to expand both businesses and hire employees. Marta’s aspiration to give her children a better life and

improve her community resonated with the crowd of friends and colleagues from our Seattle business community.

Marta’s story generated a powerful force for change in Seattle that day as our local community responded with their generosity. The first Business of Hope Luncheon raised over $300,000 and generated excitement about Global Partnerships’ model of support for the most disadvantaged populations.

At the heart of Global Partnerships’ work is a deep commitment to understanding microfinance from the perspective of the recipients, and always working to make sure that our work is responsive to their needs. This commitment has helped the organization to work with our partners to focus on the most critical needs of the poorest populations and to enable many more people like Marta to change their lives and communities.

As I reflect on the last 10 years, I have witnessed the growth of Global Partnerships from an organization

that launched itself as a microfinance organization to one that supports organizations providing funding and essential services to people in need in Latin America, and now, Haiti. I’m excited to see the commitment from the community over the last 10 years and I look forward to GP’s continued growth.

Reflections from Tessa Keating, Chairperson of the first Business of Hope (BOH) Luncheon Committee

continued from front coverFirst Business of Hope Luncheon

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BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Dean C. AllenPeter BladinBill ClappPaula ClappSteve DavisKurt DelBeneWalter EuyangCurtis B. FraserMike T. GalgonEnrique Godreau IIIBert Green, M.D.Gregg JohnsonTessa KeatingMatthew McBradyEddie PoplawskiJane StonecipherMaggie Walker

PRESIDENT & CEO

Rick Beckett

Photo credits: Chris MegargeeSarah Henry

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Tuesday, October 16, 2012 12:00 pm – 1:15 pm

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