GlobalGiving.org: Skills Training for Single Moms in Guatemala City

From Unemployment to Small Business Owner

Deborah Goldberg — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 03:51:29 GMT

The Institute for Overcoming Urban Poverty (ISMU) helps women in Guatemala City develop the skills to become independent earners in their homes. They are able to give support to the women they work with through support groups, skills training workshops, and micro-loans.

Donating to this cause helps continue the amazing work they are doing and makes stories like this one possible:

“A woman that used to work in the maquiladora became unemployed, but continued to participate in the women’s training program and as a result, established her own sewing workshop.

The maquiladora where she worked gave her a sewing machine (usually these are old sewing machines that are maquilas provides as part of their payment to workers) and she was able to start her own business in sewing bedding and mosquito nets. She went on to distribute and sell her products to stores and big pavilions.

After tropical storm Agatha hit Guatemala City, ISMU went to buy mosquito nets at the market, not knowing that the main supplier was their own program participant.

That same woman came in the afternoon to ISMU office and said that the store had requested an urgent order of mosquito nets and that she needed a small loan to buy materials.

What a surprise for ISMU to see who was going to fulfill their order! Of course ISMU lent her the money so she could fulfill her order.”

Your support is so very appreciated - thank you for your investment in sustainable, community centered development in Guatemala.

Empowerment Increases Women and Youth Capacity to Make Positive Change

Gillian Wilson — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 20:53:43 GMT

ISMU designs and develops projects to empower women and youth that will help spur economic growth in marginalized areas of Guatamala City. They also identify people with skills in trades that enable them to improve their living conditions and their willingness to share and improve their skills.

ISMU recently trained a group of 17 women to gain skills as handicrafts community teachers. A requirement of their program was to replicate their knowledge and skills in their respective communities to build economic empowerment and community organizing for women. Community leaders have been trained and can now track the progress of actions within the communities.

To help further cultural and economic development, ISMU is also working to build their education program that addresses socio-economic issues by supporting children to continue their education and providing parents workshops on human rights and family-related issues. The education program has thus far demonstrated tangible results:

· In addition to the recent scholarships provided to 183 students, 55 more scholarships were given to students in Guatemala City and Tejutla, including school supplies, uniforms and shoes.

· Parents and caregivers are attending meetings that explain the scholastic progress of their children and offer a forum to discuss and learn about healthy adolescent development.

· Monthly meetings are now being held for youth, which encompass training and a space to raise concerning issues affecting their communities and finding solutions to address them.

Empowerment, through programs such as these, is an ongoing process, but will enable families and communities to be involved in shaping and influencing positive change.

By supporting the efforts of ISMU, you play a role in empowering and enabling individuals, families and communities to lead informed, productive, and healthy lives!

A Year-End Exhibition for Handicrafts and Repurposing Materials

Gillian Wilson — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 18:04:51 GMT

The women that work with ISMU learn many different types of handicrafts, techniques, and marketing strategies for selling what they make. The local markets are an important venue for displaying and selling handicrafts, and events like the annual Health Fair connect the entrepreneurial skills and personal development skills these women learn together with their crafts.

This year there was an exhibition of the crafts that the women made, including products utilizing materials that can be repurposed. Newspaper and plastic can be turned into baskets, centerpieces, lamps, photo frame, and bags. This helps reduce waste and is an important way to be eco-friendly. This is just one of the ways in which ISMU integrates environmental sustainability into this project to train women in Guatemala City and help them generate independent income to take care of their families.

Thank you for your generous contributions- they go a long way and make a great impact for this grassroots project!

Workshops Teach Women Entrepreneurial Skills!

Gillian Wilson — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 01:07:32 GMT

Donating to this campaign helps single women in Guatemala City provide for their families! Your generous support has been an important part of ISMU’s ability to provide workshops for women artisans, training over 70 women in handicrafts that generate income.

Workshops are not just about handicrafts. Women also learn about their rights and resources, practice leadership skills, and strengthen community ties.

The products they make, like soap and cloth and jewelry, are sold cooperatively at places like The Store of Solidarity Market at the Casa Cervantes Cultural Center and the local market. Skills in marketing and leadership enhance the impact of these entrepreneurs.

Thank you for your support!

Benefits of Handicraft Workshops & Microfiance

Gillian Wilson — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 22:06:05 GMT

Starting October 12, for a limited time, GlobalGiving will be matching donations for this project! Donate and maximize your impact!

Thanks to your support, ISMU continues to strengthen marginalized urban areas of Guatemala City by educating and empowering women and children. Recent program activities include:

Workshops have taught women new skills, thus the ability to increase their income and provide for their families. These workshops include: creating products out of recycled newspaper and plastic, making eco-friendly home and beauty products, and crocheting.

ISMU’s microfinance program has directly benefited 63 women and 3 men with 140 loans, supporting several communities. By helping them manage their small businesses, community members are able to invest in diverse income-generating businesses such as traditional candy making, flower arrangements, selling of local food, baking, and beauty product distribution, among others.

By donating to ISMU you are ensuring more women and children can benefit from this program.

Thank you for your support.

Strengthening Community Ties in Guatemala City

Gillian Wilson — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 21:42:15 GMT

With your support, ISMU continues to focus its efforts on strengthening marginalized urban areas of Guatemala City by providing community members with job training workshops.

Our most recent update reports on job training workshops that provide skills to participants. These are skills they can do at home to earn an income with. ISMU facilitated workshops on environmentally friendly cleaning products that are made out of natural plants. With the skills gained from this workshop, women will be able to generate an income from the production and sales of these cleaning products.

ISMU’s microfinance program, Communal Loan Funds, is proving to be a great success. The microfinance program is currently working in 16 different communities and is benefiting 70 people. Community members are able to invest in income generating projects of their choice, such as making and selling traditional foods, pig raising, tailoring clothes, and more.

Not only does ISMU empower adults, they also show great support to the urban youth. Providing scholarships to impoverished children is a central part of ISMU’s work toward urban poverty alleviation. ISMU granted scholarships to 183 students that are facing economic and social problems in the completion of their studies. With the support of the scholarships, students are able to continue their education. Several of the local youths who have graduated, are now tutoring other students in their own communities.

By donating to ISMU you are ensuring more women can benefit from this program.

Thank you for your support.

March 2010 Update

Gillian Wilson — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 22:27:36 GMT

On Tuesday, March 16, all donations up to $1,000 per donor, per project will be matched. Donate on Tuesday, March 16, 2010, and maximize your gift. International Women's Day was this week, and to celebrate amazing and strong women and girls, we are pleased to report handicraft training has been successful and on target. From our latest report, ISMU staff trained 70 women in the production of handicrafts made out of recycled materials. The women participating in the training also learned business and leadership skills in order to replicate these workshops in their own communities and train even more women interested in handicraft training. Additionally, 4 teachers facilitated a series of workshops on arts and crafts for families living in extreme poverty. The workshops taught participants how to create marketable eco-friendly products. Products included wallets made out of plastic bags, candleholders made out of juice cans, jewelry accessories made out of natural seeds, and coin purses using recycled plastic. Through ISMU’s connections to fair trade outlets in Guatemala City (including a cultural center and a museum gift shop selling fair trade artisan products), the participants are able to sell their handicrafts at fair prices.

Growing Local Women's Businesses

Gillian Wilson — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 22:40:28 GMT

So far, thanks to your support, this project has been able to carry out 3 training workshops on the administration of small projects, which was attended by over 50 women.

Currently ISMU is training 5 handicraft teachers and 6 monitors (community tutors) and 4 women as both teacher and monitor. ISMU facilitated training workshops in recycled-product handiwork as well as educational awareness workshops on sexual transmitted diseases (STD) prevention and reproductive rights.

The handicrafts production is also going well. ISMU has received several offers from organizations to sell their products, including a center supporting fair trade traditional artisan products and The Ixel Museum in Guatemala City (they have a shop selling high-quality artisan products). The Museum has ordered Christmas-themed baskets made out of recycled paper from the ISMU members. Additionally, a florist shop has requested a high volume of plant containers and vases constructed out of recycled plastics.