The Blue Sweater

“The Blue Sweater” by Jacqueline Novogratz is an inspiring book based on a true story of the author. The book begins with Novogratz describing how she had a favourite blue sweater that she wore every day until the day she outgrew it and decided to give it away. Years later, she lands a job as a banker at Chase on Wall Street and the job offers her a great future. Still working at Chase, Novogratz explores other micro-enterprise organizations as her dream was to change the world. She comes across a non-profit micro-finance organization for women that is run by a woman investment banker and is offered a job to go to Africa and help local organizations start up. And so she quits her job at Chase that had offered a promising future, and flies to Africa. She was to go to Rwanda to help a start up a micro-finance bank to make small loans to poor women. Coincidentally, she sees a small boy in Rwanda wearing the blue sweater that she had given away. It was at that point, that she realized how much the world was interconnected.

As I read this book, I notice the usage of the different terms and organizations I have learned from our weekly meetings. For example, the Grameen Bank and various micro-finance terms. As you read this book, you learn more about how micro-finance really works. The African culture is also greatly explored. Novogratz describes how the African women were really hesitant at first to accept help from a foreigner and the difficulties she encounters to gain acceptance.

What really inspires me is that Novogratz is now the founder and CEO of the Acumen Fund now, and through this non-profit venture capital firm, she invests in entrepreneurs bringing health care, water, energy and housing to South Asia and East Africa. I admire that she followed a childhood dream of changing the world and by taking chances, even declining an opportunity to work with a growing company, she has found a powerful way to help people in need.

I found an interesting talk on TED with Novogratz speaking and thought I would share:
http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/jacqueline_novogratz_invests_in_ending_poverty.html