"Now in its fourth year, World Challenge 08 is a global competition aimed at finding projects or small businesses from around the world that have shown enterprise and innovation at a grass roots level. World Challenge 08 is brought to you by BBC World News and Newsweek, in association with Shell, and is about championing and rewarding projects and business which really make a difference. The winner will receive a grant of USD $20,000 to put back into their project/business, and two runners up will each receive USD $10,000."
I would like to ask you to spend some time at their home page where you will find links to short videos and stories about each finalist. Each one is a very worthy project and will do wonderful things with their winnings.
Our personal vote went to the Agriculture School in Paraguay because this is a project of Fundación Paraguaya who are partners in microfinance with Kiva. Fundación Paraguaya says they are...
"a self-sustaining social enterprise which promotes entrepreneurship in urban and rural areas through three inter-related strategies:
1) A Microfinance Program aimed at smaller microentrepreneurs and emerging microentrepreneurs, who are generally neglected by other microfinance institutions
2) An economic education program for children and youth (Junior Achievement)
3) A self-sufficient agricultural high school, which teaches organic agriculture and entrepreneurial skills to low-income youth from rural areas, transforming them from “poor campesinos” into “rural entrepreneurs”."
The three programs are separate in budgetary and financial terms, but are closely integrated at the operational level so that each program enriches, and is enriched by, the other two.
Take some time, but please vote and let the BBC and Newsweek and Shell know that many people are watching and we approve of this kind of news.
later man, jan
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