Hello Vittana-ites,
My name is Katie Gruver. Not only am I a long time fan of Vittana, but I’m also very excited to be working with Vittana as its first Vittana Fellow!
Why I’m here
I first fell in love with microfinance about 6 years ago while traveling through the South Pacific. I was on a small and very remote island in the country of Vanuatu (I was there before its Survivor fame). There, I happened to meet a group of women who had formed a cooperative, and pooled their resources to build an enterprise that benefited their entire community (in this case it was a small hostel for travelers).
This was the first time I started to understand what “sustainable” economic development in a community could really look like. It was also the first time I realized the drastic impact that lack of credit or access to financial services had on individuals and communities. Without access to a bank, these women had saved cash for over a year before having enough money to even get started on their project.
When I returned home, I read Muhammad Yunus’ book Banker to the Poor and, like so many before and after me, was hooked. (P.S. Banker to the Poor is required reading in my mind. Go and be inspired by the “Father of Microfinance”!) I spent the next three years working in the field of microfinance and remain a loyal advocate.
Fast-forward a few years, and here I am traveling again — this time to Latin America. Throughout my travels, I’ll meet with Vittana partners and borrowers, and share with you the challenges and successes of our work.
I’m ecstatic to be working with Vittana for the singular reason that they’re taking innovative steps to fill a huge gap.
Microfinance has garnered a huge following (as it well should), especially in the last few years thanks to attention from Omidyar, Gates and the Clinton Global Initiative among others. And yet, there’s still so much more to be done. Student loans are an exciting and innovative way to help young people create the “better life” that every parent dreams for their children.
My Job as a Fellow
As a Vittana Fellow, my job is to be the eyes and ears on the ground not only for the Vittana Team, but also for you. I hope you’ll send me questions you’d like me to ask of our partners and/or borrowers, as well as issues that you’d like me to investigate.
Right now, I’m in Ecuador polishing up my Spanish for a few weeks before heading to Peru to meet with our first partner. In my next few posts, I’ll be talking with some of my new Ecuadorian friends about their educational and financial experiences.
Email me at katieg@vittana.org if you have any questions you’d like me to follow up on!
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