GMf: What are some of the key underlying ideas reinforced by the Colombia Summit?

WY: This particular context was not emphasized during the conference, but kept coming to mind as I listened to a truly remarkable succession of presenters. The background data are stark and unforgiving – the absolute number of poor is actually growing, since more than nine out of every ten births occur in what we know as the "third world"; to call it the "developing" world is, in most cases, truly euphemistic.  Global aid programs are overwhelmed. In the wake of the global economic crisis perpetrated by the rich, giving has been reduced dramatically. The poor suffer inordinately in such an atmosphere and have no power to affect their fate.  Income (if there is any) is down and prices are up drastically. The gap between the rich and the poor is growing wider, illustrating decisively the human capacity for delusion and short-term self-aggrandizement.

Nevertheless, microentrepreneurship, and the enabling support of microfinance institutions, has emerged from the periphery to the mainstream, not only contributing substantially to country economies but also contributing immeasurably more to human well-being.

GMf: How do you see microenterprise development as a tool in combating global poverty and having a positive impact on the environment?

WY: As outlined elsewhere, microenterprises have the potential to enhance self-esteem, intellectual development, discipline and a spiritual connectedness, as well as economic self-sustainability. For those who may not have the entrepreneurial bent, there is the new potential of employment in successful and hopefully growing enterprises.

This phenomenon of microenterprise as a powerful tool in combating global poverty was given significant impetus by the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank. We were indeed privileged to have Professor Yunus as a plenary speaker at several sessions and especially to have him as the chair of our panel on "How MFIs and Their Clients Can Have a Positive Impact on the Environment." The audience was swelled at least as much to be in his presence as to absorb more on the topic.

Professor Yunus, in his characteristically succinct style, said that our polluted environment is "a mess" created by humans, and in need of human innovation to solve the problem.

Consequently, the relevance of the mission of GreenMicrofinance is undeniable.

GMf: What thoughts do you have now as you reflect on meeting those at the conference who are dedicated to microenterprise development as an answer to ending poverty?

WY: On reflection, I would leverage that diagnosis to include global poverty as well. The greed and thinly disguised motivations of the wealthy have continued to marginalize and exploit the poor. The inescapable conclusion is that the stubbornly elusive solution to poverty lies within the human capacity not only for compassion and empathy, but perhaps more importantly for the justice and empowerment that can come from microenterprise development.

Beyond hope, the tangible implementation of real progress was palpable in this group of dedicated people from all over the world. The conference participants seemed to be bathed in a vision for the future – that poverty could actually be eliminated. Their reported experience on the ground was striking, yet they actually entertained the feasibility of ending the phenomenon, having existed for all of recorded history, called poverty…

The unleashing of the human spirit and tapping of fundamental human potential will leapfrog anything that anyone thought possible. What a gift to be sitting among over a thousand of like-minded individuals, from at least 47 countries, many of whom experienced over long periods of time, in the trenches working directly with the poor, with all the frustrations and realism that test anyone’s idealistic commitment! The Summit was goal oriented, experienced, realistic, and without platitudes – inspiring.