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Episode three introduces viewers to the concept of social
entrepreneurism.
Episode three introduces viewers to Muhammad Yunus, known as the
"banker to the poor," and one of the fathers of the concept of
social entrepreneurism. With the simple but powerful realization
that the poor need to be able to borrow money more than the rich
do, Yunus founded Grameen Bank, which has today provided $3.8
billion in loans to 2.4 million families in Bangladesh and inspired
similar credit operations in 100 countries. Leveraging the
traditional craft of women in Rio de Janeiro, Maria Teresa "Tete"
Leal founded a sewing cooperative called Coopa-Roca that produces
high-quality, high-style clothes while maintaining fair labor
practices for the women. Less glamorous as an occupation, but
critically important, garbage collection is often a neglected
service among the poor. In Peru, Albina Ruiz worried about the
health impact of living in the filth of uncollected waste. Creating
a micro-enterprise to do the job that the government was ignoring,
Ruiz now has projects in 20 cities that provide garbage collection
for over three million residents and employ 150 people. Creating
businesses that break the cycle of poverty is the genius of social
entrepreneurs.