When the French colonizers settled in the Hispaniola Island, they called Haiti “La Perle des Antilles.” Once you spend enough time in the country, you will find that there is a good reason for calling it as such. For anyone who visits Haiti for the first time, they will be shocked by their first impressions while driving from the airport to the hotel: the narrow and overcrowded streets, the piles of garbage laying at every other corner, the “Blokis” (Haitian creole for "traffic jam") every 500 meters and the countless motorcycles just trying to move forward by invading the other side of the... Continue Reading >>
Born in Quito, Ecuador, Alonso was always curious to see the world and experience new challenges. After completing his B.A. at Paris 1 Sorbonne-Pantheon, Alonso joined his family’s business back in Ecuador as CFO for two years. He then went on to pursue his Master’s degree at IE Business School in Madrid and did an exchange program to Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business in Beijing. Afterwards, he rejoined his family business to work as a Business Development Manager and later as Deputy General Manager for three years. While working back in Ecuador he promoted several activities within his family’s company to help orphaned and disabled children’s care centers and actively participated in the “De la Calle a la Cumbre” program where children from the streets were given the opportunity to challenge themselves to climb the summit of the highest mountains of Ecuador. Continuing his commitment to help others, he decided to become a Kiva Fellow. Alonso strongly believes that microfinance is a proven system that will help end poverty by creating sustainable social development.
Fellows Blog Posts by Alonso Espinoza
Sep 20, 2016
Haiti
When the French colonizers settled in the Hispaniola Island, they called Haiti “La Perle des Antilles.” Once you spend enough time in the country, you will find that there is a good reason for calling it as such. For anyone who visits Haiti for the first time, they will be shocked by their first impressions while driving from the airport to the hotel: the narrow and overcrowded streets, the piles of garbage laying at every other corner, the “Blokis” (Haitian creole for "traffic jam") every 500 meters and the countless motorcycles just trying to move forward by invading the other side of the... Continue Reading >>
When the French colonizers settled in the Hispaniola Island, they called Haiti “La Perle des Antilles.” Once you spend enough time in the country, you will find that there is a good reason for calling it as such. For anyone who visits Haiti for the first time, they will be shocked by their first impressions while driving from the airport to the hotel: the narrow and overcrowded streets, the piles of garbage laying at every other corner, the “Blokis” (Haitian creole for "traffic jam") every 500 meters and the countless motorcycles just trying to move forward by invading the other side of the... Continue Reading >>
Jul 18, 2016
Haiti
Outside of Haiti, little is known about these amazing and courageous women who oftentimes put their lives at risk every day to provide a better future for their families. A “Madan Sara” is a businesswoman who will travel to rural regions in the country to buy local goods and bring them to the city markets to sell. Normally, we find two types of Madans Sara: those who are wholesalers and those who work in the retail business by reselling large stocks in smaller portions.
It is a profession that is normally passed on from mothers to daughters, and in many occasions...
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