There are over 6 billion people in the world living in poverty. That number is not only problematic, but it’s also an indicator that current development models are, in large part, not working. Why are they not working? Sustainability, scalability, and affordability. A successful model requires a balance of these factors and, in our current state, an alternative approach for social and economic issues.

So what does this alternative approach involve? In our work in Africa, it involves believing that people in poverty are the experts of their own lives - that they know best how to help themselves and their communities. It involves re-envisioning our role as helpers by, instead, coming alongside those experiencing poverty so that we can better understand their hopes and dreams, and then doing our part to coordinate resources to assist them in achieving THEIR goals. It involves a belief that true and lasting change only comes from the people themselves, when they identify their own goals and lead their own change.

With the Peer-Driven Change approach, we were able to operate as capacity builders for the problem-solvers and potential change-makers who are already living in the communities.

This approach was developed by Mauricio Miller. You can learn more through his book, The Alternative.

In 2021, UW/A started this approach, launching three Peer-Driven Change initiatives simultaneously in East Africa, and partnered with more than 300 community members in the process. In each of the initiatives, we engaged families as consultants, where they were provided a monthly wage for their participation and a one-time lump sum payment to use under one line of direction, “to improve their lives”.

During the first year, through monthly surveys, families commit to documenting their goals and detailing how they accomplished them. The survey entries and comparison data help peers keep track of what they have done each month and identify where they can do more. They also allow us, as liaisons, to learn how families work together to help each other to create better lives for themselves, their children, and their communities.

After the first year, we provided support to families by setting up access to a funding opportunity. All the families are engaged in some form of income-generating activity, so we published profiles for their family businesses and projects on a funding site called the Mutuality Platform, hosted by ImpactX. Through collaborative efforts, this platform was developed to crowdsource financial support… 100% of which goes directly to the projects/businesses.

The Mutuality Platform currently houses organizations that are hosting Peer-Driven Change initiatives in Africa and other parts of the world.