Women Thrive Worldwide (formerly Women's Edge Coalition)
WISH LIST: $100: mobilizes thousands of members to gain Congressional support for the GROWTH Act; $500: defrays travel costs for a woman leader advising policy makers; $1000: helps fund a major policy initiative
Two billion people live in poverty worldwide, a "bottom billion" in extreme poverty - the vast majority of them women. Women Thrive Worldwide brings together international, national, and local nonprofits to focus attention on women in developing countries and advocate for change in critical US international assistance and trade policies. This means pressing lawmakers to direct aid to poverty alleviation programs that benefit women, because research shows that womem invest in their families, bringing the highest return on investments to reduce poverty. Two of Women Thrive's main initiatives are passage of the GROWTH Act (millions of dollars in resources for women’s economic opportunity programs) and the International Violence Against Women Act. In 2007 Women Thrive helped 1 million women in Lesotho gain legal equality with men. In 2008 it helped catalyze over $1.4 billion in new programs for women and girls. Honored with a 2008 four-star rating from Charity Navigator, Women Thrive helps women and children realize their full potential - and that’s a powerful thing.

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Ritu Sharma President |
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