The Miracles of Barefoot Capitalism

by Jim Klobuchar and Susan Cornell Wilkes


The Miracles of Barefoot Capitalism
"POOR PEOPLE can be trusted. Give them access to a little money to start.They might amaze you.This book helps people see the dignity that comes from small loans."

--Muhammad Yunus, managing director, Grameen Bank.
This is the story of a stunning liberation movement in the world today. This movement is microcredit. It has no enemies, causes no injury, and is lifting millions of people into the sunlight of new lives.

Miracles of Barefoot Capitalism is the dramatic story of microcredit and the empowerment of hundreds of millions of people around the world, the vast majority of them women. It is the story of the poor who have pulled themselves out of poverty and built small enterprises with the help of tiny loans. The story of microcredit and the millions of lives it has uplifted, has the power to enlist the good will of those people seeking ways to make a difference in their world.

While the book’s heroes are the energetic poor, just as absorbing are stories of those like Scott Hillstrom, a Minneapolis lawyer who nearly died in a highway accident. In gratitude for survival, he made a vow that resulted in the creation of 27 tiny bush pharmacies in Africa that have saved the lives of many children. Here you will also meet members of the Oswald family of Minnesota, who experienced something unforgettable when they looked into the faces of Bolivian people to whom they had given, but knew nothing of their lives.

Contents

Contents
Preface
Foreword
Chapter 1 The Greening of Barefoot Capitalism
Chapter 2 When Women Decide to be Unstoppable
Chapter 3 The Forgotten Wisdom of Harry Truman
Chapter 4 A Professor on a White Horse
Chapter 5 A Village Rescues the Orphans of AIDS
Chapter 6 She Flew Down the Mountain in Her Bowler Hat
Chapter 7 When Rich People Receive a Priceless Gift
Photographs
Chapter 8 No Mirage: A Pharmacy Shop in the African Bush
Chapter 9 A Big League Banker Prowls the Fish Markets
Chapter 10 The Loan Manager Who Survived Idi Amin
Chapter 11 “I Feel Your Pain and Share Your Dream.”
Chapter 12 A Muslim Woman Builds a Factory on Christian Trust
Chapter 13 An Answer to Thieving Bureaucrats
Chapter 14 Small Entrepreneurs Flourish Beneath Himalayan Giants
Chapter 15 20,000 Women—20,000 Mobile Phone Booths
Appendix: A Microcredit Contact List
The Authors

244 pages, paper
ISBN 1-886513-46-5
$16.00
Publisher: Kirk House Publishers, PO Box 390759 • Mpls., MN 55439 • www.kirkhouse.com
Phone: 1-888-696-1828 • Fax: 952-825-2613 • E-mail: stephanie@kirkhouse.com
Hari Srinivas - hsrinivas@gdrc.org
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