On Thursday, Oct. 9, Saint Anselm’s SIFE chapter (Students in Free Enterprise) and the NHIOP present a symposium on “Dalit Women and the Empowerment of Micro-lending” at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics. Anja Kollmoss will speak about working to improve the lives of Dalit women by empowering them economically. The presentations are at 2:30 and 4 p.m. and are open to the campus community.
Kollmoss has worked with the Nari Jagran Manch/Dalit Women Power for the last 7 years. Nari Jagran Manch/Dalit Women Power (DWP) is an organization for women, by women. Dalit Women Power is committed to educating and empowering poor rural women around Bodh Gaya (Bihar, India) in their quest for greater self-reliance, economic sustainability, freedom of expression, and women's rights. Kollmoss is a staff scientist in the Climate and Energy Program at the Stockholm Environment Institute in Boston.
The lecture is part of SIFE’s micro-lending project, an idea that involves granting small loans to entrepreneurs in small and developing nations. Last year, SIFE and international business management students raised $3,000 in loans to 120 recipients in 30 countries. This year, the SIFE chapter has created a micro-lending Saint Anselm team including faculty, staff, and students in the project. The loans are used for a range of small enterprises, for example, opening shops in the villages or buying livestock, usually pigs or goats.
The SIFE chapter at Saint Anselm College was started in 2007 by Assistant Professor Thomas Fitzpatrick, of economics and business. The club won the Rookie of the Year award at both the national and regional competitions in 2007, won the 2008 northeast regional championships, and was named a finalist in the National Campbell Soup Stamp Out Hunger Competition.
The chapter has completed more than 11 projects including teaching free market principles and giving strategic computer simulation training to students at both the elementary and high school level. Additionally, the chapter sponsored a warm coat drive and a food drive.