AEO Exchange

On AEO's May Policy Call, Jon Bailey, Director, Rural Research and Analysis Program of the Center for Rural Affairs in Nebraska discussed their efforts to include funding for a new rural microenterprise development program in the Rural Development portion of the Farm Bill. He described the contents of the legislation, its current status and how listeners can follow up with their Senators and Representatives to push for passage of this important piece of legislation. The call includes some questions from listeners.

To learn more about AEO's policy priorities, go to http://www.microenterpriseworks.org/index.asp?bid=59

To learn more about the Center for Rural Affairs, go to http://www.cfra.org/

To listen to this podcast, click here.

AEO's Kevin Kelly sat down with Larry Laverentz, General Dynamics Information Technology Contractor for the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR), and Kasra Movahedi, ORR grantee and Community and Economic Development Manager at the International Rescue Committee (IRC) in San Diego, CA. Mr. Laverentz discusses ORR's Refugee Rural Initiative, which aims to open up opportunities for refugees, often from agrarian backgrounds, to achieve self-sufficiency through agriculture. Mr. Movahedi shares about IRC's work with ORR as a grantee and about IRC's holistic approach to working with microenterprise and refugees by tying together projects such as urban farm initiatives, nutrition and cooking classes and farm to school programs, where school food will be purchased from local farms.

To learn more about AEO's policy priorities, go to http://www.microenterpriseworks.org/index.asp?bid=59

To learn more about ORR, go to http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/orr/
To learn more about the International Rescue Committee, go to http://www.theirc.org/

To listen to this podcast, click here.

Steve Johnson, Director of CDBG Entitlement Communities Division, HUD, discusses what exactly the Community Development Block Grant is, and how it can benefit microenterprise programs. He also discusses how much of CDBG funds go to microenterprise development programs and what those dollars are most often used for within the programs.

To learn more about AEO's policy priorities, go to http://www.microenterpriseworks.org/index.asp?bid=59

To learn more about the CDBG program, go to http://www.hud.gov/offices/cpd/communitydevelopment/programs/index.cfm

To listen to this podcast, click here.

At the 2007 AEO Conference, CDFI Fund Director Kimberly Reed sat down with Kevin Kelly, AEO's Managing Director for Policy and Advocacy, to discuss her initiatives as the CDFI Fund's newest director, along with how the CDFI Fund can work with AEO members.

To learn more about AEO's policy priorities, go to http://www.microenterpriseworks.org/index.asp?bid=59

To learn more about the CDFI Fund, go to http://cdfifund.gov/

To listen to this podcast, click here.

Incoming AEO Board Chair, Dan Betancourt, talks with Greg Walker-Wilson, outgoing Chair, about his tenure on the Board. Walker-Wilson notes, among other things, some of the challenges for both the membership and the Board with the 2006 leadership transition. He then turns the tables, asking Betancourt about his take on the challenges and opportunities ahead for the Board and AEO.

To learn more about Betancourt's new position and the five new directors elected to AEO's Board, go to http://www.microenterpriseworks.org/index.asp?bid=2222

To listen to this podcast, click here.

Lina Page, Executive Vice President of Strategic Communications for Opportunity Finance Network (OFN), and Marcia Stein, Managing Director of Communications for AEO, discuss some of the nuts and bolts of rebranding. Ms. Page also provides an overview of the work that has been done to recreate OFN's brand as an organization, along with the overall brand for the opportunity finance industry.

To learn more about Opportunity Finance Network, go to http://www.opportunityfinance.net/

To listen to this podcast, click here.

This conversation with Dan Betancourt and Greg Walker-Wilson, the CEOs of Community First Fund and Mountain BizWorks, respectively, covers the rebranding they have both been working on within their microenteprise development organizations. Topics covered include possibilities for widening scope while maintaining mission, hiring communications staff, and other rebranding logistics. The conversation begins with Dan discussing some of the initial steps Community First Fund took.

To learn more about Community First Fund, visit http://www.commfirstfund.org/
To learn more about Mountain BizWorks, visit http://mtnmicro.org/

To listen to this podcast, click here.