Whole Planet Foundation was created to support communities worldwide where Whole Foods Market sources products. Flowers for Whole Foods Market stores across the US, Canada, and the UK, along with many other products, are sourced in large quantities from Colombia — so while it’s perhaps a bit of a happy …
Water and Sanitation Finance from KOMIDA in Indonesia
According to The World Bank, approximately 20% of the world’s population does not have a toilet in their home. Cost can be one challenge for a household. According to CGAP, “In Indonesia, for example, connection to piped water systems averages $150, while a flush toilet can cost around $250. For comparison, …
Introducing Bidhaa Sasa, WPF’s Newest Partner in Kenya
We’re excited to introduce Bidhaa Sasa, Whole Planet Foundation’s newest partner in Kenya. Bidhaa Sasa sells, delivers, and finances beneficial products to low income populations in rural areas. Our team likes their client-centric approach to affordable credit, responsive customer service, and attention to internal systems. Bidhaa Sasa means “Products now!” …
Social Entrepreneurship in Action: Part II of the Teysha Story
Teysha is so thrilled to launch our first collection of handcrafted products made exclusively for Whole Planet Foundation. 10% of sales of this collection will be donated to Whole Planet Foundation to fund even more microloans around the globe. I could not be prouder to bring this idea full-circle from …
KOMIDA’s Social Performance Management Journey
KOMIDA: Investing in a Future without Poverty in Indonesia As part of Whole Planet Foundation’s annual due diligence visits to our microfinance partners around the globe, we observe the presence or absence of “responsible finance indicators” which shed light on how our partners are serving the world’s poorest people. Many …
The Spark of Entrepreneurship + Whole Planet Foundation: Part I
This two part guest blog series comes to us from Sophie Eckrich, a former Whole Planet Foundation intern and founder of Teysha. Ten years ago, I embarked for a life-changing journey as an intern for Whole Planet Foundation with their microfinance partner, Grameen Bank, in Panajachel, Guatemala. I was 19 …
Financial Diaries: Lessons from Small Enterprise Foundation in South Africa
One of the core assumptions of microfinance is that the ability to reach a large number of borrowers helps bring efficiencies, sustainability, and impact. Many microfinance organizations often talk about their success in terms of scale and big picture numbers: how many borrowers do they reach? How big has the …
Access to Finance in Senegal
Noel (far right) borrows about $800 to stock her market stand in Senegal’s central Kaolack market- her current loan being her sixth one with the MFI CAURIE (Facebook) in Senegal. When asked where she had gotten her stock, (you can see her shelves are packed with items for sale) she …
Funding the Graduation Model in Haiti and Uganda
Whole Planet Foundation is committed to investing in entrepreneurs and entrepreneurial solutions to alleviating poverty, now and for future generations. Since the beginning, we’ve remained focused on supporting microfinance organizations that target the most marginalized, excluded, or poorest entrepreneurs. But in some cases, households trapped in extreme poverty aren’t able …
Giving Women Opportunity is Divine
This guest blog comes to us from our supporters at Divine Chocolate. For the past few years, Divine Chocolate has partnered with Whole Planet Foundation to support its microfinance programs and women’s empowerment initiatives. We are pleased to continue the tradition this year with our Divine Chocolate Advent Calendar giveback program. …