Street Business School: How Empowering African Women Helps Support Conservation

We’re excited to present this story of vision, hope and transformation! Meet Devin Hibbard, CEO of Street Business School, a nonprofit bringing entrepreneurial education to help women in East Africa launch small businesses in pursuit of economic independence. When women can feed their families, there is less pressure within communities to find income and food via sources such as wildlife poaching or the bushmeat trade. The enterprise grew out of an initiative called Bead for Life, founded in 2004 as fair-trade paper bead jewelry organization to provide women living in extreme poverty the means to sustainably change their lives. Expanding its reach, in 2013 Street Business School was launched, with a goal of creating 1 million women entrepreneurs by 2027. Just four years later, SBS won the Hero Award for Best Nonprofit from PeaceJam, an organization consisting 14 Noble Peace Prize laureates. By 2018, SBS had expanded into 10 African countries and continues to grow its reach. Join Devin to hear about this inspiring project and learn more about Nat Hab’s connection with SBS and the conservation angle.


Originally presented August 14, 2020