Promoting Long-term Economic Development

INCREASING ACCESS TO NON-TRADITIONAL JOBS FOR WOMEN

📍LOÍZA, MAYAGUEZ, COMERÍO, BAYAMÓN & ADJUNTAS

Albanistería en la Brega is a nonprofit organization that develops DIY and cabinetmaking skills in women and girls to: a) empower them, b) break cultural norms, and c) reduce the gap in access to non-traditional jobs for women. Currently, they provide five workshops where participants learn how to install door locks, fix cabinet hinges, and do basic electrical and plumbing work, among other skills. ConPRmetidos’ grant will support the development of self-sufficiency and non-traditional employment and empowerment skills for women and girls from vulnerable (violence survivors) and underserved populations (low-income communities). Albanistería will provide workshops to participants of the following organizations: Taller Salud in Loíza, Siempre Vivas in Mayaguez, Casa Juana in Comerío, Hogar Fátima in Bayamón, and Centro Paz para Tí in Adjuntas.

TRAINING FARMERS ABOUT SUSTAINABILITY & ENTREPRENEURSHIP

📍ISLAND-WIDE

Since 2018, Monte Azul Foundation has been providing education and tools to youth and farmers in Puerto Rico so that they can become leaders in the sustainable agriculture movement on the island. Monte Azul aims to develop rural communities capable and empowered of producing their own food and help farmers become agents of change for a sustainable Puerto Rico. Their farm workforce training program, called the Academy of Sustainable Agriculture and Innovation, is a holistic approach to incubating sustainable farmers. ConPRmetidos’ grant will cover three cohorts of their Agricultural Entrepreneurship 101 course that will train a total of 75 farmers. Each cohort will last eight weeks and consist of eight pre-recorded online modules that cover the basic components of starting and maintaining an agricultural operation. The in-person phase will incorporate teaching about crop diversification through demonstrations of commercial hydroponic system operations. Four (4) additional farmers will be helped by purchasing mitigation equipment through their Farmer Mentorship Program.

HELPING WOMEN BECOME FINANCIALLY INDEPENDENT

📍HATILLO, PUERTO RICO

Mumas Renaciendo Corp. (Mumas) is a non-profit and social enterprise promoting gender equality and economic empowerment for disadvantaged women. Participants from the “Mumas Emprenden’’ program receive self-esteem workshops and sewing classes. After completing the program, they leverage their skills to start a business, work in clothing manufacturing, or join the organization’s social enterprise project: a sustainable undergarment brand called MUMAS. ConPRmetidos provided funding and technical assistance to support the social enterprise as it fosters economic independence for the participants and the organization. To generate income, MUMAS manufactures undergarments made with hypoallergenic bamboo fabric, which is 100% biodegradable and helps our people and planet.

DEVELOPing LEADERSHIP AND VOCATIONAL SKILLS for women

📍HATILLO, PUERTO RICO

Mumas Renaciendo’s mission is to help women in their personal and career development so they can become financially independent. They are encouraged to explore their talents through mixed courses in arts, advanced sewing, and basic business development. After graduating, they can use their new skills to search for employment or start their own ventures. This project is promoting gender equality and economic empowerment in low- income communities.

SUPPORTING LOCAL SMALL BUSINESSES DURING THE COVID-19 EMERGENCY

📍ISLAND-WIDE IMPACT

To help small businesses in Puerto Rico rethink their model and continue serving customers, ConPRmetidos funded two programs developed by the Centro Para Emprendedores. The first program, Start Online, focused on helping entrepreneurs develop the technical skills needed to manage e-commerce and provide remote services successfully. The second, EmPRendiendo en Puerto Rico, supported emerging businesses in education, health, and STEM. Participating companies also received individual assistance from the Center’s staff.

REWARDING SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY IN BUSINESS INCUBATION

📍ISLAND-WIDE IMPACT

It is essential for the development of the local economy that Puerto Rican start-ups and businesses have the necessary resources and opportunities to grow and become sustainable and successful. Understanding the importance of mentorship and the need for seed capital, ConPRmetidos has partnered with Grupo Guayacán to support their EnterPRize 2020 Program. This is a business-building competition focused on supporting existing start-up companies with early sales tractions. Participants get the opportunity to pitch their ventures to a panel of mentors, instructors, and sponsors that provide feedback and guidance. ConPRmetidos, along with other sponsors, partially funded the 2020 Social Impact Special Track with a $10,000 grant. The award was given to Evocare, a digital platform that connects the elderly community with caregivers.

BUILDING CAPACITY & SUPPORTING PUERTO RICO’S COFFEE FARMERS

📍ADJUNTAS, PUERTO RICO

Since 2018, ConPRmetidos has partnered with Productores de Café de Puerto Rico (PROCAFE) to help the island’s coffee farms recover. The organization works towards the long-term sustainable recovery of the local coffee industry and advocates for a better quality of life and education for farmers across Puerto Rico. ConPRmetidos has helped PROCAFE with projects that focused on distributing high-quality coffee trees and plantain seedlings, inputs, and technical knowledge transfer. PROCAFE will participate as the principal sub-recipient of the National Cooperative Business Association (NCBA)/Cooperative League USA (CLUSA) for a project under the USDA-NRCS "Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities" program. Starting next year, in a period of four years, the project is aimed at impacting 2,000 small/medium farmers and 10,000 acres of planted land, adopting climate-smart agriculture and forestry practices for the production of coffee and other commodities. Our current grant to PROCAFE will strengthen their infrastructure and further develop their organizational and institutional capacity. With this work, we can ensure their readiness to manage the $2MM budget allocated to PROCAFE and successfully implement the project.

CONTINUING OUR EFFORTS FOR WOMEN EMPOWERMENT

📍HATILLO, PUERTO RICO

Mumas Renaciendo (Mumas) is a non-profit organization focused on the empowerment and transformation of women and their families so that they are part of and actively contribute to Puerto Rico’s economy. Mumas works hand-in-hand with women of limited economic resources to help them achieve personal and economic empowerment, while minimizing their dependency on others. ConPRmetidos and Mumas have partnered once again on the professional development of women so they can become economically independent. This will be achieved through their “Mumas Emprenden” program, which provides participants with tools to achieve emotional stability while encouraging them to explore their talents through blended arts, sewing, and basic business development courses.

IMPROVING THE ISLAND’S COFFEE FARMING PRODUCTIVITY

📍ISLAND-WIDE IMPACT

In 2018, ConPRmetidos partnered with Productores de Café de Puerto Rico (PROCAFÉ) to help the island’s coffee farms recover through the Proyecto de la Montaña. Phase one of the project was successfully completed with the distribution of 750K coffee tree seedlings, fertilizer, and cash subsidies to 500 small coffee farming families. We also provided an updated manual on best practices to help farmers maximize their soil space and increase their yields. Phase two focused on diversifying 98 farmers’ produce by promoting the cultivation of plantains.

PROVIDING FINANCIAL LITERACY TO PUERTO RICAN FAMILIES

📍ISLAND-WIDE

Limited access to financial education has contributed to the fact that Puerto Rico is facing enormous obstacles to developing a healthy economy. The COVID-19 Pandemic is the most recent entry on the list of constraints affecting the island financially. With this in mind, ConPRmetidos partnered with Claridad Financiera and provided a $25,000 grant to finance scholarships for an 8-week virtual course on concepts such as budgeting, saving, and credit. The course equipped participants with a plan to pay off their debts and make informed financial decisions for their families.

RETHINKING FOOD PRODUCTION AND FARMING PRACTICES

📍utuado, Ciales & TOA BAJA, Puerto rico

In the municipality of Utuado, access to the Barrio Mameyes community was cut off after their main bridge collapsed during Hurricane Maria. Without a sustainable food source and essential health services, the community was left vulnerable. This motivated community organization COSSAO to create innovative solutions for economic development and food security. Our first grant helped fund a social enterprise that created a hurricane-resistant hydroponic food farm growing lettuce and microgreens in upcycled shipping containers located at the Antonio Tulla Torres elementary school. Through their initiative, "Cajita Saludable", they deployed 400 boxes of fresh produce to more than 900 people who lacked essential nutrition during the COVID-19 pandemic, mostly children and elders in Utuado, Ciales, and Toa Baja. ConPRmetidos has invested a total of $90,000 in support of their initiatives.

Contributing to workforce development

📍SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO

57% of children in Puerto Rico have parents who face job insecurity, 28% higher than the average within the United States. One of the primary roadblocks is a lack of core skills that can be applied to specific professions that are in high-demand within the current economy.

ConPRmetidos gave a $134,666 grant to the Boys and Girls Club of Puerto Rico (BGCPR) for the launch of a Hospitality Training Center in the Ernesto Ramos Antonini Facility that provided parents with workforce development tools and guaranteed entry-level jobs after completing their training.

CREATING ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES FOR LOCAL FISHERMEN

📍Naguabo & Guayama, Puerto rico

The fishing villages in the southeastern part of Puerto Rico have high-quality products but their fishermen lack access to broader markets. Conservación ConCiencia believes that by betting on local fishermen and local wild-caught fish, restaurants can help support entire coastal communities and help reduce our island’s dependency on imported food. With a grant of $74,800 this project aimed to build entrepreneurial capacity among the fishers community in order to streamline their operations, establish fair pricing, and reach new customers.