Hey everyone... We're on a break waiting for the next speaker to start. Check back here at 3:30pm CST.
Alright... One minute to go.
This gal is a "trained surfer ... and poet." How does one get trained in poetry? Poetry is the language of the soul.
Nancy Beach likes using her hands to communicate.
The fellow narrating this video reminds me of Scott Baio in "Charles in Charge"
(I just ate a Twix bar and my hands are a little sticky. I need to wash my hands and then it's onto the speaker!)
Jessica works for Kiva (pronounced KEY-va, which I just learned two seconds ago.)
On a personal note, microfinancing excites me like no other–especially being in a highly affluent community like mine.
$25 to invest in "teaching people how to fish." Incredible
"My parents taught me that I could do anything. And I believed them."
I love that the Summit brings these firecracker young women every year.
"Jesus taught us that the poor would always be with us and this scared me."
"I learned that the what you do for the least of these, you do for me."
"I learned that I could do something of significance."
If you do the math, this young woman is 27-28 years old.
Microfinance = small loans for the poor.
Microfinance institutions exist to serve the poor. The "unbankable"
"My eyes were being opened to the small infusion of capital to someone in poverty."
"I saw the life-change that came from microfinance ... How can we participate in the next steps of success for these people?"
"What if WE provided funding for these people? Wouldn't that be fun?"
Kiva = lenders in 185 countries.
Lenders = anyone with credit card or PayPal account. (That's you and me, folks.)
Lenders come to the site and pick an entrepreneur to loan to.
Average amount needed is $500-600.
Repayment rate is 98.5%!!!!!!!!!
That is an incredible ROR. Wow–fascinating.
Kiva gives money with intention. It is a loan with a purpose.
People receiving loans now feel like they can be more generous where they live.
"Kiva has done an amazing job at leveraging technology!" Apparently Kiva has an iPhone app where you can give a loan in under one minute!
"We think this is legal, but we're not sure!" Love that sense of adventure.
First year = $500K in loans
Second year = $15 million, yes million
Third year = $15 million/month. PER MONTH!
Kiva is a flat organization. If you don't know what that means, you need to. "Bold, flat, young, pretty nimble."
If there is ownership in an organization, you don't need to worry about who's in charge.
Being flat organizationally does NOT mean that there aren't "people in charge."
Meritocracy = the best ideas that solve the problem win. Pretty much the opposite of a bureaucracy.
Released API for the Kiva iPhone app to the public–app created by the "broader community"
"We co-create the site with the broader community." Work it, girl.
"We believe in this idea of co-creation, not top-down here's how it is, one leader with a single vision."
(I like this interviewer fellow's laugh.)
"What? Connect people. How? Through lending. Why? Poverty alleviation."
"Entrepreneurs are people who are life-giving ... Saying, 'this is where we should go.' I think the church should be the safest place on the planet to bring the biggest 'What if?' ideas." Amen, sister.
"Don't apologize for starting small ... Just start."
How do we lead this next generation? "Informational diversity. I think a dream team could be leaders with more experience working with leaders who have less experience. Both sides need to come without a prejudiced as to what the final solutions might be."
Kiva is self-replicating. Once someone receives a loan and begins to gain traction, they can turn around and lend to those who are in need on the other side of the globe.
And Jessica is off the stage ... She's getting a standing O!
