The sun sinks into its afternoon easy chairand streams softly through the windows,reminding everyone of the world beyondthis sterile room—and that yet another day of intense training is nearly done. ButACCION’s volunteer Ambassadors powerthrough their post-lunch energy free-fall,diving into a lively discussion on the cultural issues they’ll soon face.

“As a Scandinavian Protestant headed to a Catholic country, I worry about how I’llbe received,” voices a young woman withclear blue eyes and hair the color of wheat.

“I’m a vegetarian,” adds another. “Whatshould I do if someone offers me meat?”

The Ambassadors engage in several roundsof discussion to prepare them for the vividand complex cultural experiences awaitingthem in Mexico, India and Paraguay.

“Do what you think is right in the moment,”offers the ACCION staff trainer—leaving (Continued on page 2)

ventures

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

� Nueva Era 3

� From the Field: Michael Schlein 4

� Spotlight on Our Supporters: Barbara Lucas and Richard Nesson 5

� In the Streets and Markets 6–7

� Thanks to Our Friends 8–11

NEWSLETTER OF ACCION INTERNATIONAL FALL/WINTER 2010–11

Adventures in MicrofinanceACCION Deploys Its First Group of Volunteer Ambassadors to the Field

the week’s final instructions as open as thepossibilities that await them. She adds,“And then reflect.”

This past summer, ACCION launched its Ambassador Program, sending youngvolunteers to the field to witness the impact of microfinance first-hand and report back on it.

“So far, I’d only experienced the world ofmicrofinance through books,” explainsCarlo Capra, a 23-year-old student fromMilan, Italy. “I wanted to see it in the field,where it can really change people’s lives.”

In all, more than 70 people answered thecall for applications. Hailing from England,Colombia, Finland, Italy, Austria and theUnited States, those selected collectivelyspeak 11 languages and represent abroad diversity of cultural, educationaland professional experiences.

www.accion.org

Ambassador Kelly Damm (bottom right) visits with the“La Esperanza” Women’s Committee in Areguá,Paraguay. Working together,members of the committeehave taken out a group loanfrom ACCION partner Fun-dación Paraguaya in order tobuild their microenterprises.

Ambassadors Farah Mohammadzadeh,Nadia Costanzo and Carlo Capra rumblealong a red dirt road in a bright blue-and-yellow diesel bus. It’s the second week oftheir deployment and they’re escaping thebusy, and by now familiar, city streets ofAsunción. They’re headed to the country,where, as Carlo later reports, “It’s a com-pletely different world… a place where youcan still feel the traditional lifestyle and experience the real life of this country.”

They jump out in Luque and make theirway to the neighborhood of Itapuami.There, they join a microfinance solidaritygroup—women who have assembled in a yard that’s animated by soccer-playingchildren, dogs, cows, chickens and pigs.The group calls itself Kuña Guapa—‘workingwomen’ in the local Guarani language—and they’re here for their renovación, orrenewal meeting, which occurs every four months.

process is at the heart of responsible micro-lending and must be completed thoroughlyand carefully.

This year’s class of Ambassadors werehosted by three of ACCION’s partners—Fundación Paraguaya in Asunción,Paraguay; Banco Compartamos in MexicoCity; and Swadhaar FinServe in Mumbai—as well as by ACCION’s own Dialogue on Business financial literacy program in Bangalore, India. There, they learnedthe basics of what’s required to makesustainable microfinance run… and keepon running.

“It’s particularly fulfilling to meet ruraland urban [borrower] groups, as well as individual clients, to see how muchthe different clients’ needs vary andhow Fundación Paraguaya is developingways to target each type of client,”says Ambassador Nadia Costanzo, anAmerican and a recent graduate of theU.K.’s University of Bristol.

Despite that diversity, however, this initial group all shared a common goal—to move beyond theory and talk directly to microentrepreneurs about their experiences.

Rajesh, a Swadhaar loan officer, deftly navigates the market’s narrow passages,an umbrella and black backpack full ofnotebooks and pens slung casually over his shoulder. His companion this afternoonis Catalina Sicard, a senior associate forACCION in Bogotá, Colombia and an ACCION Ambassador ‘serving’ this sum-mer in Mumbai.

Rajesh and Catalina spend an hour withPankaj, a shoe vendor, posing question afterquestion to him about how he manages his business. Rajesh is conducting the firststep in the loan application process—deter-mining the person's “willingness to pay.”Catalina observes that this painstaking

The ACCION Ambassadors at their training in Boston in June: (back row from left) Kelly Damm, Nick Roose (program coordinator), Catalina Sicard, Mariel Cabral, Carlo Capra, (middle row from left) Shaheen Verjee, Nadia Costanzo, (front row from left) Farah Mohammadzadeh, Kaisa Koivisto.

� 2 VENTURES Fall/Winter 2010–11

Adventures in Microfinance

“So far, I’d only expe-

rienced the world of

microfinance through

books,” explains Carlo

Capra, a 23-year-old

student from Milan,

Italy. “I wanted to see

it in the field, where

it can really change

people’s lives.”

( Continued from page 1)

www.accion.org 3 �

NUEVA ERA

For several hours, the Ambassadors observethe group at work, noting the democraticnature of their interactions. Together themembers decide how much their next loanshould be, and whether they should bringnew members into the group. Then theyeach share their plans for expanding theirbusinesses—selling baked goods, tailoringand blanket-weaving.

When asked their impressions of the experience, the Ambassadors most often

speak of how they were struck, againand again, by the astounding sense of gratitude and hope shared by themicroentrepreneurs they met.

Summarizing the group’s sentiments,Farah concludes, “I met so many womenand was overwhelmed to hear abouteverything they had to juggle—house-work, children, income-generating work,school, more work… And yet, they alwayshad a sparkle in their eye and a joke for

everyone present. Fortunately, it seems,the amount of income one makes doesn’tdictate overall happiness.”

For more of the Ambassadors’ impressions, includ-ing videos and photos, have a look at their blog,www.accionambassadors.wordpress.com. To readmore about the Ambassador Program and how toapply, please visit www.accion.org/ambassadors.

Supporting One Another, a Community ofWomen in Paraguay Kick Off a New Era

By ACCION Ambassador Farah Mohammadzadeh

Señora Melania Gomez waits patiently for the others.

She is sitting next to her careworn shrine to the Virgin of

Caacupé, patron saint of Paraguay, her brown eyes scan-

ning the half-cobblestone, half-dirt road in this Bañado

Tacumbú neighborhood of Asunción, searching for signs

of her guests’ arrival.

Most Saturdays and Sundays, she is here in the yard

outside her two-room house, preparing and selling

asaditos (barbecued meats with manioc and bread) to

her neighbors. She started the business to supplement

her husband’s income and help support their family

of six. Like any good entrepreneur, Melania knows her

market intimately. “Many women, by the weekend,

they don’t want to cook anymore,” she explains. “So

they come here and buy my food because it’s closer and

cheaper than going to the nearest restaurant.”

Today, however, Melania won’t be making any asaditos.

Instead she is hosting the first meeting of a new group of

12 women who, together, will take out a microloan from

ACCION partner microfinance institution, Fundación

Paraguaya.

Melania plans to use her 500,000 guarani (US$100) to

buy more meat and drinks for her business—enough to

serve an extra 10 to 15 customers per day. Over time,

as the members collectively pay back their loans, the

group will be able to borrow increasingly larger amounts

from Fundación Paraguaya. Melania expresses confidence

in the group’s future, saying, “These women are hard-

working entrepreneurs I personally know and trust.”

All 12 women arrive and assemble for the meeting. They

discuss the loan and repayment terms, talk about paying

money into a caja chica, or savings collective, in case they

need to cover a member’s payment for a week due to

illness or another misfortune, and elect officers. Melania

is elected director of finance for the group, and while

she expresses reluctance to take on additional responsi-

bilities, she is “happy to do it for the group.”

Energized by the meeting and brimming with optimism,

the women make one final decision before adjourning

for the day and returning to their work and families.

When it comes time for them to choose a name for their

group, they settle on Nueva Era—“New Era.”

Read more stories about microfinance by ACCION Ambassadors atwww.accionambassadors.wordpress.com.

Melania and Farah in Asunción in July 2010.

why when she proudly introduced me to her daughterwho, with help from her parents, attends university inBeijing where she is studying to become a nurse.

I also met a couple in Port-au-Prince, Haiti who had losttheir parents and their home in the devastating earth-quake. Still, remarkably, they told me how they, “feltblessed.” Their construction supply business had beenspared and they shared with me their plans to move for-ward out of tragedy, running their business and rebuild-ing their lives with help from microfinance.

While in Patna, in northern India, I met a woman whohad just begun tailoring for a fee and was earning an income for the first time in her life. She told me that shefelt empowered and accomplished. For her, the loansdon’t just help build a business—they build confidenceand the capacity to succeed.

I am both proud and humbled that ACCION can playsuch a role in empowering the poor to succeed. Withyour support, we go to remote and difficult places,where we work to build inclusive financial systems forthe entrepreneurial poor. These places require nerve,commitment and an appetite for risk, but we are tena-cious—as tenacious as the people we serve.

Thank you for helping millions with your support.

Michael SchleinPresident and CEO

Michael Schlein talks with microentrepreneurs in the Tudu Market in Accra, Ghana in March.Stepping OutMichael Schlein Reflects on His First Yearat ACCION

Dear ACCION Supporter,

It’s been a full year since I began as president and CEOof ACCION International. One of my goals in these first12 months has been to spend as much time in the fieldas possible. The trips have been instrumental in helpingme to better understand what microfinance means tothe people we serve. In every culture and every context,I’ve met someone who has begun a difficult but empow-ering journey toward better opportunities, thanks to microfinance.

In every culture and every context,

I’ve met someone who has begun a

difficult but empowering journey

toward better opportunities, thanks

to microfinance.

In Inner Mongolia, China, I visited with a woman whobakes cakes for her husband to sell at the market. Sheprepares the cakes in one tiny, drafty room of their small,two-room home. Despite having so little, she holds aburning hope for the future. It became instantly clear

� 4 VENTURES Fall/Winter 2010–11

VOICES FROM THE FIELD

“Come and see how it works, get excitedabout it, roll up your sleeves and dowhat you can to help,” invites Barbara,as Richard adds, “If you keep your eyesopen, you’ll come away feeling the samepassion that we do.”

Barbara and Richard’s leadership is informed by professional lives that have included many years as securities and banking lawyers. This year, they founded Luness Partners(www.lunesspartners.com), a New Yorkfirm that specializes in legal and advisoryservices to capital markets participants

on legal issues, compliance and risk man-agement. “We’re very familiar with theopportunities that financial businessescreate and the importance of access tocapital in a society,” says Barbara.

As familiar as they are with the clout ofthe mainstream capital markets, theystress that when it comes to microfinance,seeing is believing.

“Come and see how it works, get excited about it, roll

up your sleeves and do what you can to help,” invites

Barbara, as Richard adds, “If you keep your eyes open,

you’ll come away feeling the same passion that we do.”

Barbara Lucas and Richard Nesson visit with microentrepreneur Mario Fernandez and his family in Guasca, Colombia while attending theACCION delegation last August.

www.accion.org 5 �

“It’s very hard to go out in the field and come back without a passion for microfinance.”

So says Barbara Lucas, who, with her hus-band, Richard Nesson, generously givesof her time and resources to spread themessage of ACCION and microfinance.Barbara and Richard so value the lessonsthey learn when hearing directly frommicroentrepreneurs, that in the past threeyears, they have traveled to Nicaragua,Ghana and Colombia with ACCION—and led ACCION’s delegation to Bogotáthis fall.

“When you meet the clients,” explainsBarbara, “you immediately understandthat they are hardworking, proud peoplewho want the same things for their fami-lies and communities that we want forour families and communities. They don’twant handouts, they want an opportunity.That’s what microfinance gives them.”

Back home, they have channeled theirpassion for microfinance into support-ing ACCION and another microfinanceorganization called Women’s Trust(www.womenstrust.org). Their myriadpoints of engagement include financialsupport for many of ACCION’s pio-neering projects, promotion of thoseprojects to members of their personalnetworks, Barbara’s position as secretaryon ACCION’s Board of Directors andRichard’s membership in ACCION’s President’s Council.

As Margie Herrick, vice president of Resource Development for ACCION, says,“They put their time, treasure and talentswhere their hearts are, but they bringalong their brains and they ask the hardquestions, and thus provide wonderfulleadership.”

Spotlight on Our SupportersSeeing Is Believing:Barbara Lucas and Richard Nesson on the Value of Meeting Microentrepreneurs

� 6 VENTURES Fall/Winter 2010–11

IN THE STREETS AND MARKETS

USAACCION USA is giving green for green. Earlier

this year, the leader in U.S. microfinance and

small business lending launched a green loan

and education program in New York and

Massachusetts. By combining microfinance

and green business, ACCION USA's pilot will

help an estimated 70 small businesses qualify

for loans to start or grow businesses that pro-

vide eco-friendly products or services. It also

helps everyday small businesses incorporate

green business and energy-saving practices into

their operations. www.accionusa.org/green

CameroonRounding the Gulf of Guinea, ACCION and

partner Ecobank are building on their successes

in setting up banks for the poor in Nigeria

and Ghana by launching a new microfinance

bank called EB-ACCION Microfinance in

Douala, Cameroon. There, only about one

percent of people have access to microloans,

making it one of the least served microfinance

markets in the world. ACCION and Ecobank,

a leading Pan-African commercial bank, aim

to change that. Within three months of opera-

tion, EB-ACCION Microfinance had already

reached 1,190 people with microloans and

savings accounts.

HaitiAnother heartfelt “thank you” to all of you

who donated to ACCION’s fund to support

Haitian microentrepreneurs and partner MFI,

SOGESOL, in the aftermath of the earthquake

earlier this year. Your gifts were vital to a

fundraising effort that has enabled SOGESOL

to provide grants to 2,000 of their poorest

clients. SOGESOL also launched a program to

refinance approximately three-quarters of its

clients’ loans affected by the earthquake. With

these funds, 8,000 microentrepreneurs have

been able to rebuild and restock their homes

and businesses. Today, the streets and markets

of Port-au-Prince are vibrant once more, filled

with people who are determined to persevere,

rebuild and succeed.

www.accion.org 7 �

IndiaMumbai-based Swadhaar FinServe is at the

forefront of a quiet revolution in India—urban

microfinance. So far, the MFI, of which ACCION

is the largest minority shareholder, is garner-

ing results that are not just encouraging, but

outstanding: Their client numbers have grown

over 38 percent since the end of 2008, and

the MFI has expanded beyond Mumbai into

Baroda and Pune. Currently, Swadhaar is reach-

ing over 40,000 urban working poor.

China In August, ACCION moved the mission of

microfinance in China forward by co-hosting,

along with sponsor Credit Suisse, a training

for 80 microfinance loan officers. Leveraging

its nearly 40 years of leadership in the micro-

finance field, ACCION trainers translated

knowledge hewn in the streets and markets

of Latin America, Africa and India to this group

of eager practitioners. Armed with the wisdom

and knowledge they need to best serve the

entrepreneurial poor in China, these loan offi-

cers represent a world of opportunity in this

country, where microfinance is just being born.

Good luck! 祝您好运!

For more information about ACCION's workaround the globe, visit www.accion.org.

WorldwideThe Smart Campaign, for which ACCION’s

Center for Financial Inclusion serves as the

secretariat, continues to rally the international

microfinance community around establishing

and maintaining standards for client protec-

tion. Among other initiatives, The Campaign

recently published, “Responsible Pricing: The

State of the Practice.” The paper outlines ways

to determine the responsible pricing of micro-

loans and is a step toward establishing clear

standards for MFIs. www.smartcampaign.org

� 8 VENTURES Fall/Winter 2010–11

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Thanks to Our Friends

Contributions received between January 1, 2010and June 30, 2010

www.accion.org 9 �

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� 10 VENTURES Fall/Winter 2010–11

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Mario Valladares

Jordan VanderLaan

Benjamin Viemeister

Pauline Vu

Donn and Annita Weaver

Lelon and Jean Weaver

Margaret Welin

James White

Leslie Wilbur

Tonia Willekes

Jo Ann Williams

Sheila Williams

Enery Williamson

Virginia Windley

Catherine Youngen

H. Berrien Zettler

T. G. Zimmerman

Recife SocietyAnonymous (2)

Andres Acedo and Belinda Barrington

Ronald and Patricia Anderson

James Bellevue and Elena Lipkowski

Albert Bildner

Mark and Margaret Burgessporter

Lynn Caporale

Carol Cavanaugh

Roger and Shirley Conant

Ruth O. Frank

Emily Garlin

Gilbert W. Glass

Robert and Ellen Gordman

June E. Heilman

Roy Jacobowitz andRoberta Moss

Keith and AdineKretschmer

Wendy and Stanley Marsh, 3

Caroline Ramsay Merriam

Richard and Linda Miller

Thomas Nagle and Leslie Haller

Mila Reyes-Mesia

Abigail Rome

Norman Rose

Robert and Sibylle Scarlett

Josie Sentner

George andBarbara Lou Smyth

Nancy S. Truitt

Gary A. Winter

Institutions $100,000 and aboveCiti Foundation

International Finance Corporation

UPS Foundation

Institutions $250 – $99,000Anonymous

The Brinson Foundation

Christ United MethodistChurch

Concord Advisory Group

The Core Group Holding Ltd.

Friedlander Family Fund

The Glickenhaus Foundation

Hardcastle Trading USA

Honeybee Foundation

The Huber Family Foundation

The LaGarde Charitable Trust

The David and Katherine Moore Family Foundation

Mouat Charitable Trust

David & Carol MyersFoundation

Netherlands Develop-ment Finance Company (FMO)

On the House Foundation

Jack Ringer Family Foundation

Share Our Strength

The Shelley Family Fund

Sisters of the Divine Savior

Stifler Family Foundation

The Tundra Glacier Fund

Weiss Fagen Fund

Donor AdvisedFunds, MatchingGift Organizations &Workplace GivingProgramsAmerican International

Group Inc.

America’s Charities

Ameriprise Financial

Austin Community Foundation for the Capital Area

Bank of America

Boeing Charitable Trust

Calvert Social Invest-ment Foundation

Chevron Corporation

Cisco Systems, Inc.

The Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro

Community Foundation of New Jersey

The Community Foundation, NationalCapital Region

Dallas Jewish Community Foundation

Dell Direct Giving Program

Deutsche Bank AmericasFoundation

Eaton Vance Management

ExxonMobil Foundation

Fidelity Charitable Gift Fund

FM Global Foundation

Follett Corporation

GE Foundation

Global Impact

Google Inc.

Grantham, Mayo, Van Otterloo & Co. LLC

Hewlett-Packard

Important Gifts, Inc.

ING Foundation

International Business Machines

The Jewish CommunityFoundation of NorthernCalifornia’s Greater East Bay

The Jewish CommunityFoundation Los Angeles

Thanks to Our Friends (cont.)

Microentrepreneur Tawa Adeogun stands with her son outside the narrow, one-room stallwhere she sells rice and vegetable oil in Lagos, Nigeria.

www.accion.org 11 �

JustGive.org

Kaiser Permanente

Liberty Mutual

Macquarie Group

McAfee, Inc.

The Merck CompanyFoundation

Microsoft Corporation

MissionFish

Minneapolis Jewish Federation

Morgan Stanley

Network For Good

The New York Community Trust

Orange County Community Foundation

PepsiCo Foundation

The Pfizer Foundation, Inc.

The Pittsburgh Foundation

QUALCOMM Inc.

The Regence EmployeeGiving Campaign

Rochester Area Community Foundation

Russell Investments

The Schwab Fund forCharitable Giving

Silicon Valley CommunityFoundation

The Standard EmployeeCommunity Campaign

Tompkins Charitable Gift Fund

United Way of New York City

United Way of Rhode Island

Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program

Verizon Foundation

World Bank CommunityConnections Fund

In-Kind DonorsAdvanced Merchant

Payments, Ltd.

Foley Hoag LLP

Goodwin Procter LLP

The Horn Book, Inc.

Diana Taylor

BUILD A LEGACY OF HOPE

Strengthen ACCION’s Future through Planned GivingYou can leave a legacy of hope and make a lasting impact on the

fight against poverty. By naming ACCION in your will or trust, you

join a special group of friends known as the Recife Society. Named

after the town in Brazil where ACCION made the very first microloan

in 1973, the Recife Society continues the tradition of helping people

work their way out of poverty now and in the future.

We invite you to learn more about how to join this inner circle

of dedicated ACCION supporters by contacting Heidi Eagles,

ACCION’s Planned Giving Officer, at (617) 624-7080 ext. 1365 or

heagles@accion.org.

“I named ACCION in my will because my hope for

the future is that people will be able to decide their

economic futures for themselves and not have

it dictated to them. Microfinance enables that. I

want to make sure that the work continues—the

work that I have done for economic justice in my

lifetime and the work that ACCION is doing.”

Caroline Ramsay Merriam, ACCION Recife Society Member

ACCION International56 Roland Street, Suite 300Boston, Massachusetts 02129 USA

Address Service RequestedReturn Postage Guaranteed NON-PROFIT ORG

U.S. POSTAGE PAID

BOSTON, MA

PERMIT NO. 56294

ACCION’s Online MicroMarketWhere you can purchase compelling, meaningful virtual gifts foryour loved ones while supporting hardworking microentrepreneursaround the world.

Regardless of your budget, you’ll find virtual gifts that compliment the interests ofeveryone on your list, spreading good will and opportunity near and far!

Arriving just in time for the holidays. Visit www.accion.org to learn more.

COMING SOON...

PHOTO CREDITS

Front cover: Fabiola Cantero

Page 3: Sandra Elizabeth Gomez

Page 4: Christal Jeanne for ACCION International

Page 5: Rohanna Mertens for ACCION International

Page 6: USA – Raquel Sierra Pinto;Cameroon – John Rae for ACCION International

Page 7: All – John Rae for ACCION International

Pages 8 and 11: John Rae for ACCION International

Back cover: Rohanna Mertens for ACCION International

FSClogo tocome