GlobalWAMenuAbout UsWho We AreOur HistoryBoard of DirectorsStaffVolunteers and InternsJobsContact UsFAQsSitemapOur MembersMembers and PartnersInteractive Member Map and IssuesPhilanthropy Guide & Member DirectoryWomen of the WorldMedia CenterNewsletterBlogMembers  NewsGlobalWA NewsBrochure (PDF)2019 Editorial CalendarVideoIssuesEvents2019 ConferenceUpcoming Global Washington EventsPast Global Washington EventsPast Annual ConferencesCommunity CalendarJob BoardJoinMembership BenefitsBecome a MemberRenew Your MembershipGive to Global WashingtonSubscribe to Our Mailing ListView Our Interactive Member MapMembers & PartnersMeet our membersWhere Members WorkView our member mapUpcoming EventsAttend an eventMember Video Of The WeekVideo from Mission Africa.From Our BlogMicrocredit Can Be a Life-Changer – But It Isn’t for EveryoneBy Heather Targosz, Marketing & Communications Manager, UpayaEmployees sort waste at a Saahas Waste Management facility outside Bangalore, India. Photo courtesy of Upaya Social Ventures.One person in every 10 is living in extreme poverty today, earning less than $1.90 per day. This figure has dropped significantly from 35% in 1990, but the issue remains a top priority of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Eradicating poverty (SDG 1) means finding more innovative, cost effective and scalable ways of reaching the last 10%.Arguably, one of the more effective solutions to alleviating poverty in the past several decades has been microcredit, in which very small loans are extended to impoverished individuals. Microcredit has proven extremely effective in helping individuals, oftentimes women, become entrepreneurs. Given a microloan, a woman might be able to open a fruit stall at the market or sell handcrafted jewelry out of her home. When used properly, the potential of microcredit is remarkable and life-changing for those in poverty. But not everyone is a fit for microcredit. Read MoreRecent Blog PostsNos Vamos: A New Photography Exhibit Explores Migration, Showcasing Work from Independent Media in Central AmericaIn Uganda: Treating Twin Threats of HIV and CancerIntersectionality for Inclusivity: Recognizing the Human Rights of Every HumanEvent Recap: Disability Inclusive Development Initiative WorkshopEVENT RECAP: Roundtable with Michelle Nunn, CARE USA President and CEOSubscribe to our blogRead our blogOrganization ProfileAshesi University Foundation: Ashesi University is Shaping Africa’s Future LeadersBy Joanne LuStudents walk across the Ashesi University campus. Photo provided by Ashesi University Foundation.“Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Begin it now.”These words from German philosopher Johann Wolfgang von Goethe are engraved on the glass doors of the entrance to Ashesi University in Accra, Ghana. When the university’s founder, Patrick Awuah, quit Microsoft to pursue his vision of educating Africa’s future ethical and entrepreneurial leaders, Goet