Fellows Blog

Stories from the field

Stories tagged with All

Jan 1, 2018 NI Nicaragua

During my fellowship in Nicaragua I have come across some incredible borrowers, and their stories have touched me profoundly. I already knew this was going to happen, and it was one of the reasons why I wanted to become a Kiva fellow. What I did not know, however, was that these borrowers – and especially the women borrowers I met – would teach me some invaluable life lessons that I will take back to Europe with me.

A field of onions in Jinotega, Nicaragua

Here I want to share...

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Apr 4, 2017 MG Madagascar
Of Youth, Entrepreneurship and Resilience in Madagascar
 
 
Tsilaviniaina in front of his gargote

'After a few weeks, I knew I would never see my stock ever again. I resigned myself to ask for help. So, I went to see my father’s family to ask for a small lump sum to help me to go back into business. They don't have much either, but in front of my despair, everyone put something in the kitty and... Continue Reading >>
Apr 4, 2017 GO Global Update
Of Youth, Entrepreneurship and Resilience in Madagascar.
 
 

This is a story of one of Kiva’s borrowers, a slice of life in Antananarivo, or Tana as locals call it. Above all, this is a story, or rather a lesson, for all of us, of resilience and determination.

This is the journey of Tsilaviniaina, a 21-year-old young man who I met during a field trip with CEFOR, Kiva’s field partner in Tana. Tsilaviniaina's story is the story of many of his age, of too many of them in fact. Hope, grief,... Continue Reading >>
Aug 8, 2016 KG Kyrgyzstan
In December 2007, two things happened almost simultaneously:

1.) I enrolled in a Finance and Applied Mathematics dual-degree program at the University of Auckland and;

2.) Financial markets all over the world crashed overnight

This naturally meant that my entire tertiary education revolved around the recession. I spent many nights using the benefit of hindsight to build financial models that could’ve predicted the timing of America’s housing bubble burst. For one of my favourite courses, we had to perform investment analysis and research before picking a... Continue Reading >>
Jul 7, 2016 MX Mexico
Sistema Biobolsa's Credit Coordinator, Irene, with Don Antonio, a proud owner of a biodigester (featured in the background). Click here to lend to farmers like Don Antonio.

On a Tuesday night one month ago I arrived in Mexico City, welcomed by a massive down pour (summer is the rainy season here). By that Thursday afternoon, I was attempting to define key metrics for a credit program in Spanish with one of Kiva’s field partners, a social enterprise called Sistema Biobolsa. My head reeled with new vocabulary words... Continue Reading >>
Nov 11, 2015 US United States

In a city like San Francisco where there is a restaurant for every 376 people, it’s almost impossible to have a bad meal. From the flurry of new arrivals on the restaurant scene to the dizzying array of Michelin starred eateries like French Laundry, it’s easy to forget about our local entrepreneurs who are financially excluded from accessing the resources they need to launch and grow their food businesses.

Enter La Cocina, a groundbreaking business incubator designed to reduce the obstacles that prevent low-income food entrepreneurs from creating successful and sustainable...

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Aug 8, 2014 US United States


Working with a borrower like Athene inspires me because she represents true ambition and commitment; both traits that are essential in becoming successful as an entrepreneur. 

Athene is the owner of Sweet Pea Prop Shop, an online store that sells newborn clothing to professional photographers as props. She created her business in an effort to re-integrate into a slowly recovering economy and to convert her dreams of entrepreneurship and creative self-expression into a reality. Her challenge to date has been keeping up with demand, which is why she needs a... Continue Reading >>
Aug 8, 2013 CR Costa Rica, GO Global Update

Journaling. Is it a lost art or a relic of times past that has rightfully disappeared in a world of easy electronic fixes for expression? Journals are deeply private things, they represent ourselves poured out in ink. Our moods can be seen in every penstroke, our thoughts in every malformed word. We don't edit ourselves in journals. Looking back, our writing seems disjointed and without the structure or social awareness that is expected from a polished status update. Journals are the only places,...

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Jun 6, 2013 KE Kenya, MN Mongolia, PY Paraguay

There are many qualities of life that are universal, and one of those is the love of a father. Many Kiva borrowers take their loans not to earn money that directly benefits them, but that will directly benefit their children. They are infinitely proud of their little ones and take the greatest pleasure in seeing them suceed. Profits (and some loans) often are spent on more nutritious food or to pay school fees for their children. Providing the stepping stones for success built on a foundation of love is one of their greatest accomplisments.... Continue Reading >>
Nov 11, 2012 SV El Salvador

After the first days in EL Salvador it looked like if I had never left Spain. Every single newspaper I read, there were FC Barcelona or Real Madrid at the front page. I did not know at all the fever salvadoran people had about football and especially about Spanish soccer. Wherever you look to, you can see Barça´s or Real Madrid´s colours and emblems: in every mean of transport, t-shirts, houses, boats…

     

Wherever I say I am from Spain, people ask me, before I can say a word, which team I support. I always answer the same. Ni Barça ni Madrid, Athletic de Bilbao! And some...

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