“She was always fighting for women.” So said Elsa of her late mother, Lilliam. Elsa’s mom was a fierce advocate for women in their community of Upala, an agricultural zone in the northern region of Costa Rica. Elsa is now following in her mother’s footsteps, leading a local credit union that lends to, and is run by, only women. It is called Efecu. Efecu is one of the local organizations that finds borrowers to connect with Kiva and distributes Kiva loans. Elsa, her mother, and other leaders of Efecu saw supporting women as absolutely critical. “We wanted to empower women, who are often... Continue Reading >>
Michaela is a proud native Clevelander and a newly minted San Franciscan. After graduating from Harvard with a degree in History, she spent the past several years working in the social sector, beginning as a field organizer for President Obama’s reelection campaign. She then spent a year working in state and federal government, focusing largely on domestic anti-poverty policy. For the last two years, she has been working as a nonprofit consultant at The Bridgespan Group, helping organizations and foundations have more social impact. She is very excited to work with Kiva this spring, where she is looking forward to working with inspiring people, trying out her Spanish, learning about microfinance, and sampling some delicious Costa Rican and Nicaraguan cuisine. Michaela is a great lover of novels, vegetarian food, and puns.
Fellows Blog Posts by Michaela Ross
Mar 28, 2016
Costa Rica
“She was always fighting for women.” So said Elsa of her late mother, Lilliam. Elsa’s mom was a fierce advocate for women in their community of Upala, an agricultural zone in the northern region of Costa Rica. Elsa is now following in her mother’s footsteps, leading a local credit union that lends to, and is run by, only women. It is called Efecu. Efecu is one of the local organizations that finds borrowers to connect with Kiva and distributes Kiva loans. Elsa, her mother, and other leaders of Efecu saw supporting women as absolutely critical. “We wanted to empower women, who are often... Continue Reading >>
“She was always fighting for women.” So said Elsa of her late mother, Lilliam. Elsa’s mom was a fierce advocate for women in their community of Upala, an agricultural zone in the northern region of Costa Rica. Elsa is now following in her mother’s footsteps, leading a local credit union that lends to, and is run by, only women. It is called Efecu. Efecu is one of the local organizations that finds borrowers to connect with Kiva and distributes Kiva loans. Elsa, her mother, and other leaders of Efecu saw supporting women as absolutely critical. “We wanted to empower women, who are often... Continue Reading >>
Feb 29, 2016
Panama
This week I had the privilege of visiting many Kiva borrowers in the Chiriquí province of Panama. It is a rich area made up of beautiful coast, steep mountains, plentiful farmland, and abundant rainbows. In Panama, Kiva loans are disbursed through a local partner organization (named EDESA) to local credit unions, which in turn give loans to their members. In Spanish, these credit unions are called “empresas de crédito," or "ECs" for short.... Continue Reading >>
This week I had the privilege of visiting many Kiva borrowers in the Chiriquí province of Panama. It is a rich area made up of beautiful coast, steep mountains, plentiful farmland, and abundant rainbows. In Panama, Kiva loans are disbursed through a local partner organization (named EDESA) to local credit unions, which in turn give loans to their members. In Spanish, these credit unions are called “empresas de crédito," or "ECs" for short.... Continue Reading >>