the blue sweater by jacqueline novogratz

(It later won a Nobel Peace Prize.) Novogratz wasn’t always greeted with open arms. Her employers didn’t share her belief that loans to the poor might actually be better risks than the bad commercial debts they were writing down, so she moved to a Bangladeshi bank that was pioneering the field of microfinancing. After graduating from college, the author went to work for Chase Manhattan, flying around the world to analyze the bank’s portfolios in troubled economies. Traveling in Africa in her 20s, she saw a boy wearing a cherished blue wool sweater she had donated to Goodwill 11 years earlier this example of life’s interconnectedness energized her efforts to help those less fortunate. She’s aspired to change the world since she was young, writes Novogratz, who assembles engaging and insightful stories about her journey toward effective philanthropy. The Acumen Fund’s successes include the development of clean water and irrigation systems in India and a bedding-net manufacturer in Africa.

In 2001, the author founded a nonprofit venture-capital firm aimed at reinvesting charitable funding via focused entrepreneurial endeavors.

How a lifelong philanthropist aided some of the world’s poverty-stricken populations with a shrewd economic plan.

The blue sweater by jacqueline novogratz