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"An opportunity to flourish does not start with a handout, it starts with a job.” These words are spoken over the images of a young woman working at a sewing table inside a small workspace in Lima, Peru. The video above, hosted up on the Krochet Kids International website, serves as an introduction into an organization focused on empowering women to rise above poverty.
Krochet Kids International is a nonprofit organization founded by three men from Spokane, Washington with a vision to create sustainable economic development programs that support holistic growth of individuals and communities living in poverty. The charities’ three founders, Kohl Crecelius, Stewart Ramsey and Travis Hartanov started by crocheting ski hats for their friends and family.
“We were encouraged to teach people in developing countries how to crochet as a means of breaking the cycle of poverty,” Crecelius explains on the nonprofit's site. “At first, I thought the world needed something more drastic than crochet, something much more profound. That was until Stewart returned home after a summer spent in Uganda."
A fashion brand with a social mission
After witnessing extreme poverty in developing nations during volunteer trips, the trio decided to teach crocheting to people in impoverished countries. After traveling to Uganda to meet with a group of women to teach them how to crochet, the trio founded Krochet Kids International, which would sell the handcrafted hats to the United States and, in turn, use proceeds to provide fair wages, training and development courses to educate women.
The job hunt can be a daunting task when you’re unsure if a company is a good fit for you. Without any connections, it’s often hard to understand what the working culture is like on the inside.
Startup culture seems to hold a similar truth among young companies: people love where they work. Here’s a look at two Boston-based growing startups and an inside perspective on benefits and the company culture.
CoachUp, Connecting Athletes With Private Coaches
CoachUp connects more than 100,000 athletes with more than 13,000 private coaches for one-on-one and small group training to help those looking to develop skills and reach their goals. The startup trains in more than 30 sports, including baseball, diving, kickboxing, martial arts, triathlon, yoga and many more.
Jordan Fliegel and Arian Radmand founded the company on their belief that private coaching is the secret to success for improvement and helping any person with an athletic goal reach their full potential.
Now, the nation's leading private coaching company, CoachUp's Athlete Advisory Council, which weighs in on business endeavors and program needs and services, includes New England Patriots' Julian Edelman, Boston Bruins President Cam Neely and Philadelphia 76ers' Nerlens Noel.
Last year alone, CoachUp was recognized in Forbes' "30 under 30", Boston Business Journal's Healthiest Employer and Boston Innovation's "50 on Fire."
Various musicians have been teaming up with non-profit organizations in unique, creative ways that both benefit a great cause and introduce how music can be a part of it. Think about it: music is power.
That's a statement most people will agree with, as music has the ability to empower and move people in a very big and inspiring way. Protest songs have long been a part of historical, social movements, but how does that translate to current movements, both big and small? It's always cool when release likes "Hope For Haiti Now" and "Chimes Of Freedom" bring together celebrity artists for a good cause, but, nowadays some non-profits are starting to team up with more indie musicians on creative, music-related campaigns that raise awareness year-round.
And it's brilliant.