Hopeful

It's nearly three months into my Women's Opportunity Ambassadorship already. I have been learning about the way microfinance works, how trust banks work and how donations can be "recycled" once loans have been paid off.

I have discovered the incredible strength of these women in the Philippines, their ability to rise above their circumstances and desire to see a better life for themselves, their children, and their communities.

I consider it a real honour to be involved with this project, on behalf of these families in the Philippines. It's not easy either. I'm learning about fundraising, about using social media for fundraising and awareness and trying to find ways to get the word out.

I appreciate every bit of advice I get, from people like Gavin Heaton who gave me some timely social media marketing advice for the Slideshare project. I am amazed how, in the last three months, people from Scotland, USA, Australia, Sydney, Spain and the UK have contributed to be a voice for these women through their participation in creative projects on this site and even financially. It amazes me even more, because it has happened so easily despite my circumstance of being a busy part time working mum with young children in Australia, far away from many of you.

And now there are only two weeks left for people to create a simple response to the Beyond creative challenge. It's a busy time of year, and perhaps the topic is a little complicated for this intense time of year. Still, I'm hopeful that a few more interesting stories, thoughts, photos and even tweets will appear in the next two weeks :)

Please give these women the gift of five minutes. Set aside some time in your day, grab a hot cuppa and think about what it means to think "beyond". I'm sure you'll come up with some great examples, once you put aside a few minutes. You can read more details to get you thinking in the original post. It's a small thing you can do, to help create hope for people who are desperate to work their way out of poverty.