Global Envision | The Confluence of Global Markets and Poverty Alleviation

Microfinance has worked in the developing world, but will it work here? Photo: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/petroleumjelliffe/210477896/">PetroleumJelliffe (flickr)</a>

share

Coming to America: Bangladeshi-Style Banking

A few weeks ago microfinance pioneer Professor Muhammad Yunus was in Queens, New York. No, he wasn’t soliciting funding or international support for his Bangladesh-based microlending institution.

share

Changing the Score

At first glance, the Homeless World Cup sounds like a joke. But in fact it's an inspiring event that uses the world's most popular sport to fight a worldwide problem.

share

From Gold Medals to Fair-Trade Cotton

Social entrepreneur Steven Redgrave gained renown by winning gold medals in rowing in five consecutive Olympics from 1984 to 2000.

share

WSJ: 'China Earthquake Exposes a Widening Wealth Gap'

Yesterday's Wall Street Journal offered a novel slant on the China earthquake, proclaiming in a Page One story that "the disaster is throwing a harsh spotlight on the widening gap between rich and poor."

Photo: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/snowsoulmate/233611626/">snowsoulmate (flickr)</a>

share

Reviving Farming in Mexico

A small farmer in Oaxaca, Mexico is spreading knowledge of ancient farming techniques to discourage citizens from abandoning their land.

share

The Giant Pool of Money

Confused about the housing crisis, the falling dollar, the credit crunch or the securities problem "that nearly brought down the global financial system?"

Photo: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/tatianacardeal/1481378/">Tatiana Cardeal (flickr)</a>

share

Poverty Amid Progress in Peru

Peru has one of the fastest growing economies in Latin America. Over the past six years, the country’s GDP has grown more than 6 percent annually.

share

Street violence and frozen chicken

With so much media attention on Cyclone Nargis and the endgame of the Democratic Primary, one story getting inadequate attention is the latest t

The snowmelt from mountainous Tajikistan has the potential to make the country an energy exporter. Photo: Jason Sangster for Mercy Corps

share

It Takes a Village

What do you do if you're a country that can't afford a big public infrastructure project? If you're Tajikistan, you ask your own citizens to chip in.

An Indonesian mother and her baby outside a North Jakarta health clinic. Photo: Bunga Sirait/Mercy Corps

share

The Economics of Breastfeeding

You may have heard the news that American mothers are breastfeeding their kids at rates higher than ever before, according to data released last week by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.

Market in Port au Prince, Haiti. Photo: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/cguille/2196594927/">Miguel Ángel (flickr)</a>

share

Skepticism Helps Determine the Real 'Price of Sugar'

I recently accepted an invitation to speak at a showing of the documentary “The Price of Sugar” sponsored by Portland State University.

Photo Credit: <a href="http://flickr.com/photos/3pom/2180527461/">3pom (flickr)</a>

share

Growing Gender Inequality in India

Technological advances have significantly impacted India's recent growth. But one technology may be causing more harm than good.

Mexico City. Photo: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/yetto/856126769/">Yetto (flickr)</a>

share

Mexico's North-South Divide

Are the southern states of Mexico – Chiapas, Guerrero and Oaxaca – getting left out of Mexico's economic growth?

Photo: Geoff Oliver Bugbee for Mercy Corps

share

Fewer Latino Immigrants Sending Remittances

A recent survey by the Inter-American Development Bank found that over the past two years, the number of Latino immigrants sending money home from the U.S. has dropped by more than 20 percent.

Photo: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/shooteverypig/439669716/">rbairdpccam (flickr)</a>

share

Turning (Food) Crisis Into Opportunity?

Agriculture is not Cameroon’s strong suit, but leaders of the West African country think the current food crisis could provide the impetus to boost domestic food production.