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For Indigenous Zapotec Families, Spinning Becomes a Lifeline

Tracy Barnett

June 17, 2020 |

Yes! Magazine |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Mexico, Oaxaca

Mark Brown has brought Ghandian economic principles of economic justice and local autonomy to the Mexican countryside to form a farm-to-garment textile business that employs villagers who once made woolen textiles until the industrial clothing era started producing cheap synthetic clothing and rendered their craft unprofitable. Khadi Oaxaca aims to regenerate the village way of life in a sustainable way and employs several hundred villagers who grow the cotton, spin the thread, design the clothing and bring it to market for tourists - bringing a previously economically depressed village out of poverty.

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Is Germany Doing Enough to Ensure Small Businesses survive the Coronavirus crisis?

Rachel Loxton

June 02, 2020 |

The Local |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Germany

The German government has spent billions to keep small businesses and freelancers afloat during the pandemic. Entrepreneurs who qualified were sent funds, often within 2 business days, specifically for business-operating costs such as commercial rent. Some businesses are hoping for more support in the form of rent freezes depending on how long the lockdown continues while others lost out on funding by waiting too long. The program ran out of money but the government has announced additional aid packages.

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Can social enterprise fix Pakistan's waste problem?

Asad Pabani

May 26, 2020 |

Pioneers Post |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Pakistan, Islamabad

Two organizations in Pakistan are working to tackle the country’s waste problem. Saaf Suthra Sheher in Islamabad set up partnerships with offices and schools to process their dry waste like plastics and glass. TrashIt, a Karachi-based group, collects organic waste from vegetable sellers and restaurants and then processes and sells it as compost. Although the two organizations can only process so much of the waste produced in cities, they argue that until an effective municipal waste collection system is implemented, they can educate individuals and businesses about how to recycle properly.

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Coronavirus crisis in France: The battle to save the livelihoods of the self-employed

Ingri Bergo

May 22, 2020 |

The Local |

Text |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: France

The French government has spent billions to keep small businesses afloat during the coronavirus lockdown in hopes that the stopgap funding will ensure a quick economic recovery once the health crisis abates. The funding has been on a national and regional level, with extra funding for those who have been rejected for bank loans and are suffering the most. Small businesses are also exempt from rent, gas, or electricity payments until the country reopens. The distribution of funding has come with its challenges as some business fall through the bureaucratic cracks.

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Live-streaming helped China's farmers survive the pandemic. It's here to stay.

Karen Hao

May 06, 2020 |

MIT Technology Review |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: China

Online retailers in China launched rural live-streaming initiatives to aid farmers in selling their products directly to consumers. After traditional selling methods were halted due to the novel coronavirus, farmers needed new sales channels to reach customers who now had to shop online. This new model could help the agricultural industry survive the pandemic.

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Mask sewing project among Chicago refugee groups leads to new career goal: ‘This is my job'

Elvia Malagon

May 06, 2020 |

Chicago Tribune |

Text |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Chicago, Illinois

What started out as a way to help provide face masks to those who needed them during the Covid-19 pandemic, turned into a job skill training opportunity for some refugees in Chicago. Although the funds earned from participating in the project don't necessarily provide a living-wage, the participants have been able to learn skills – such as learning how to navigate public transportation – that increase independence.

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Lifelines: Farming Program Helps N.H. Refugees Move Forward From Past Trauma

Peter Biello Alex McOwen

May 06, 2020 |

New Hampshire Public Radio |

Radio |

3-5 Minutes

Response Location: United States, Manchester, New Hampshire

Fresh Start Farms is a program by the New Hampshire Organization for Refugee and Immigrant Success that invites refugees in the state to apply their farming skills here in America to earn an income. Many of the refugees in New Hampshire are from Somalia and witnesses to the Civil War there—and they carry that trauma with them. Having this outlet, where you can do what you know how to do alongside people who have similar experiences as you, is therapeutic. The program is now moving forward with opening up a storefront despite the COVID-19 restrictions.

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Pandemic pivoting: how Malaysia's social enterprises are responding to the Covid-19 crisis

Julie Pybus

May 05, 2020 |

Pioneers Post |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur

As COVID-19 challenges businesses around the world, two Malaysian social enterprise companies have seen success in shifting their offerings. The Biji-biji Initiative, a fashion producer linked with the grassroots Social Textiles movement, quickly pivoted to making face shields and have been able to keep people employed while making the PPE for essential workers. PichaEats, a catering company, quickly shifted to making and delivering food for families and healthcare workers, delivering over 20,000 meals so far.

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The man feeding a remote Alaska town with a Costco card and a ship

Zachary Crockett

May 03, 2020 |

The Hustle |

Text |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Gustavus, Alaska

To better meet the demands created by the coronavirus pandemic, a local grocer in a remote town in Alaska is redefiing and reforming how the local supply chain operates. A series of preemptive moves – such as creating partnerships with suppliers and purchasing their own barge – gave the father-and-son grocer team more control over operations and has allowed the store to offer supplies that have been in high demand nationwide.

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Community Development Lenders Turning to Fintech for a Boost During Crisis

Oscar Perry Abello

April 30, 2020 |

Next City |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States

CNote has provided a source of funding for federally certified Community Development Financial Institutions by pooling cash from foundations, bigger banks, philanthropists, and donor-advised funds to counter the lack of available cash flow experienced by CDFIs, which are lenders but not banks. Federal COVID-19 funding set aside $30 billion specifically for CDFIs that overwhelmingly lend to women- and minority-owned businesses, which face persistent racial and gender biases and are unable to successfully tap into lending and grants such as the Paycheck Protection Program through traditional lenders.

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