Watch the TEDX talk from our founder, Tom Eggert.
Our Story
About WorldWise Microfinance
WorldWise Microfinance, formerly Wisconsin Microfinance, is a grassroots organization based in Madison, Wisconsin. Driven by passionate local business leaders and volunteers from the Madison community, WorldWise Microfinance has grown from a startup capital of $3,000 in 2010 to provide almost $500,000 in circulated loans. In 2014 the organization attained its 501(c)3 status, and continues to expand and provide more loans to the people in the world who need it most.
Primary objective
Our mission is to empower women and their families to break the cycle of poverty through accessible, affordable, locally-based microloans. We envision a more equitable world where women are financially empowered, families are economically stable, and extreme poverty ceases to exist.
History
The organization was founded in 2010 by Tom Eggert, a now-retired professor at the University of Wisconsin. A major earthquake hit Haiti in January, 2010, and the students in Tom’s class wanted to directly help families impacted by the earthquake. Tom had been teaching about the power of microfinance for many years, and here was an opportunity to put those lessons to practice. Working with an economic development group in Haiti, a microfinance program was born with startup capital of $3,000. The program has grown and expanded ever since, becoming a 501 (c)(3) organization in 2014.
TEDX talk by Tom Eggert
Tom Eggert’s TEDX talk [16:12]