All Stories
COLLABORATIVE EFFORTS IN RWANDA
Rwanda is now slowly easing up on shelter-in-place restrictions and the country is fortunate enough to have no deaths. During quarantine, many of our past students found creative ways to continue serving their community. Kevine Kagirimpunda and Ysolde Shimwe, both class of 2014 alum and owners of UZURI K&Y, made sure that their brand stayed fresh in the…
An Intern’s Story
Hello to all! Some of you may recognize me, Sonja Sparks, from last year’s Leadership Development program and most of you have almost definitely corresponded with me in some way over the past year. When IEEW’s Director of Operations, Karel Ford, contacted in me January of 2019 about the possibility of an internship, I was completely thrilled. You see, a…
IEEW Board: Global Connectors in the USA
As they say, it takes a village. At IEEW, our village begins with our invaluable leadership team, the Board of Directors. These women help make empowering women entrepreneurs a lot more accessible. Their dedication to the mission of educating women business owners and their individual testimonies about their experiences with PEACE THROUGH BUSINESS® alumnae inspire…
Zahra is Erasing a Stigma in Afghanistan
Zahra Qasemi has a personal story that is sadly not too uncommon, but she has used her past to fuel her passion for progress as an empowered business owner. Zahra was raised in Iran as a refugee, which made it extremely difficult for her to continue her education. She was married at the age of…
Books & Brains and Little Smiles
Branding is a key step to any new business. Sometimes a brand becomes part of our everyday vocabulary, such as googled, or Kleenex, and even bubble wrap. And some names become synonymous with an action; hoola-hoop, trampoline, and jet ski. So it is exciting to see some of the clever branding being used by students…
Staying Rooted and Giving Back, Faheema Commits to her Home Country
What makes impact sustainable? Donor dollars should set the ball in motion for organic change within a community, not act as a source of reliance. One woman impacting many – that is the philosophy of creating peace through business. And that is why the PEACE THROUGH BUSINESS® program is so important. One graduate from the…
The Eclectic World of PEACE THROUGH BUSINESS(r) Mentorship
Who is a PEACE THROUGH BUSINESS(r) mentor and what do they do? As a new employee at the Institute for Economic Empowerment of Women in March 2013, that very question was heavy on my mind. Founder & CEO Terry Neese gave me a list of student names and businesses, wondering if I might find pairing…
Chantal Nyirandama: Reaching for the Stars
Recently, 2016 PEACE THROUGH BUSINESS® grad Chantal Nyirandama earned 2-star status for her evolving business, Nice Garden Training Center, from the Rwanda Development Board. Chantal’s long-term goal is to become the best choice in Gicumbi for temporary lodging. She is well on her way! As the wife of a priest and mother of four, Chantal…
PEACE THROUGH BUSINESS® Graduates are Propelling the Rwandan Fashion Industry
Fashion is many things and performs various functions beyond allowing people to express themselves. It is art, it is history, it is empowerment. Fashion is business, economic development, and it is even technology. It’s a chance to share culture with the world and spread color and hope, and in Rwanda, that is certainly the case.…