Economic Development

"The financial circumstances of poor people are qualitatively, not just quantitatively, distinct," says Roodman. Picture: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/34227370@N03/4972707245/">Melanie Dornier (Flickr)</a>

share

4 Finance Essentials for Poverty Alleviation

We can’t simply scale down traditional financial services to meet the needs of the poor. Poor households aren’t microversions of the rich—they’re fundamentally different.

Educated youth in Tunisia want employment that utilizes their skills and passion. Photo: Joy Portella/Mercy Corps.

share

Tunisia does not want handouts, loans or traditional aid. Can they get the investment they need?

"Can Tunisia become the Silicon Valley of the Arab World?" Columnist David Rohde explores this question in The Atlantic:

Our love affair with morning coffee -- an unexpected weapon in the war on drugs. Photo: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/angela7/2228825069/"> Angela7dreams (Flickr)</a>

share

Bolivia's new drug crop of choice: caffeine

As the war on drugs continues to appear futile, the drug that supplants coca’s stranglehold over Bolivian farmers might turn out to be ... coffee.

When people make money, health always seems to be one of their top priorities. Does that make it a good measure of prosperity itself? Photo: Photo: Jean-Pierre Dushime/Mercy Corps

share

What if the best way to measure wealth is ... health?

Health isn't just an optional side benefit of prosperity, one expert argues. It might be the ideal way to measure whether wealth creation is working.

share

Who needs the grid? Three ways Africans are making DIY electricity cheaper

Vietnam hopes to prove that sustainable farming practices aren't just good for the environment, they're also good for business. Photo: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/babomike/3691993429/in/photostream/">Mike Rowe (Flickr)</a>

share

Multinationals lead push for sustainable coffee in Vietnam

Sure, sustainable farming is good for the environment. But as more and more companies are realizing, it can be good for business as well.

Case in point: Vietnam, where multinational corporations have begun a drive to improve the sustainability of the country's coffee sector.

Eating well isn't only good for you, it's good for the economy, too. Photo: Edgar Putul/Mercy Corps Guatemala

share

The world's cheapest path to wealth: Well-fed kids

In a time of global economic crisis, the world is exploring every possible hindrance to economic growth: debt, unemployment, inflation... malnutrition?

share

To find tomorrow's jobs, the Middle East looks beyond oil

More than 15 million young people will need jobs in the Middle East and North Africa over the coming 10 years.

Why Nations Fail asks, "Why are some nations rich and others poor, divided by wealth and poverty, health and sickness, food and famine?" Image: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/26107309@N05/2550699761/">Crystal Davis</a> World Resources Inst. (Flickr

share

"Why Nations Fail" : An antipoverty polemic for people who believe in change

Poverty isn’t random or predetermined—it’s man-made.

That’s Daron Acemoglu and James Robinson’s answer to a simple, ancient question: why are some countries rich while others are poor? Why do some people live in poverty while others prosper?

This infographic shows how China and the U.S. compare with regards to current renewable energy capacity. Image: <a href="http://1bog.org/blog/infographic-why-china-is-kicking-our-ass-in-clean-tech">One Block Off The Grid</a>

share

Solyndwha? Worldwide, cleantech industry is thriving

While recent criticisms around the failure of clean energy companies such as Solyndra abound, a new report from Clean Edge shows that globally, the industry is growing rapidly.

Shop owners who attended the Barefoot Power trainings were better able to market the products to interested customers. Photo: Kim Beevers/Mercy Corps.

share

Lighting a pathway for solar in rural Uganda

This article is the second in a three-part series exploring the role Mercy Corps played in bringing solar power to rural Uganda.

Thanks to the One Acre Fund, microfinance is finally reaching Africa's small farmers. Photo: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/lukas/4291386306/">Lukas Bergstrom (Flickr)</a>

share

Why the future of rural microfinance looks a lot like the One Acre Fund

Two weeks after our coverage, the One Acre Fund was also featured in a 10-minute segment on the PBS Newshour.

share

Can mobile phones end extreme poverty? Jeffrey Sachs thinks so.

The HipPump, a portable, low-cost farming tool, will help women in Tanzania plant money making crops year round. Photo courtesy of <a href="http://www.kickstart.org/products/moneymaker-hip-pump/">Kickstart</a>

share

Drill, baby, drill: Rockefeller's cash will finance one-woman water operations

Kickstart, a non-profit that empowers female farmers in Tanzania, recently scored a win with Secretary of State Hilary Clinton and The Rockefeller Foundation.