Why are we doing this?

Micro Credit and Sustainable Development (Green on Steroids) represent the world’s best chance for survival. Here’s why:

• Over 3 billion people, or 50% of the world’s population live below the poverty line. (http://www.globalissues.org/article/26/poverty-facts-and-stats)

• Classic methods of providing aid and assistance have a checkered success rate. Money often doesn’t get to those in need because of corruption, high overhead, or is squandered by the recipient. (One author states that only 6 cents of every $30 given to Kenya by the U.N. actually makes it to a Kenyan.)

• Micro Credit is a highly successful alternative pioneered in Bangladesh by Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank in 1976. (http://www.grameen-info.org/). This mechanism has lifted tens of millions of people out of poverty. You can find a concise history of Micro Loans written by a Harvard freshman at http://blogcritics.org/archives/2005/05/01/235451.php.

• Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank were jointly awarded the Noble Peace Prize in 2006 for their work.

• Micro Credit is small loans made to entrepreneurs to help them start businesses. These entrepreneurs are typically very poor, and unable to find financing from traditional sources. Over 70% are women.

• Loan decisions are made by local village committees. There is no traditional collateral. Instead, “security” for the loan is provided by the entrepreneurs’ need to succeed, and peer pressure from others in the community.

Sustainable Development (Green on Steroids)

• Think of Sustainable Development as Green on Steroids. It begins with environment issues, but also incorporates poverty, hunger and inequality.

• The U.N. defines sustainable development as "Meets the needs of the present without compromising the future".

• It includes environmental sustainability, economic sustainability and sociopolitical sustainability (Wikipedia). The graph below shows how these pillars overlap and interact with each other.

**As shown, the relationship between society and the environment must be bearable, that between the environment and the economy must be viable, and that between the economy and society must be equitable in order to attain sustainability.

For more information, please download the University of Michigan document "Micro Credit and Sustainable Development" by clicking here.