Wave Initiative

The WAVE Initiative

Women achieving value and empowerment

Our focus and dedication is to build strong communities in less developed areas, and by advancing opportunities for global women who remain underrepresented in the workforce, we seek to promote a lasting and sustainable shift that will support women as leaders, entrepreneurs, and visionaries. In cooperation with communities and local organizations around the world, the Foundation created the WAVE Initiative (Women Achieving Value and Empowerment) to empower women to become active leaders in society as a crucial strategy for community and economic development for marginalized global populations.

WAVE seeks to advance the position of women and enhance their role as valuable contributing members of society, as well as to advocate for the importance of partnering with women‐owned businesses in the United States. To many, this may be an intelligent business opportunity, and while this is true, there is a need to unite in solidarity for humanitarian reasons as well. Women have to fight harder than men to be taken seriously as entrepreneurs, they have to struggle to achieve financial backing, and they have to take each step forward with unwavering confidence, lest they be deemed unworthy of entrepreneurial success. Women around the world need champions, people who are willing to understand the culture of women and the barriers imposed by a male-dominated society, and who will guide their entrepreneurial spirit while also maintaining their cultural values.

Recent studies, for example, show that many Afghan women have a similar story, and the barriers they are forced to overcome are even more pronounced. Overcoming poverty is a constant struggle, as many women are deprived of the many essentials of life, including water, electricity, income, health, stability, peace, and home. Women are delegated to performing unskilled trade work, repetitious manual labor, and are prevented from developing the skills needed to follow their life goals and develop entrepreneurial skills.

The statistics are staggering and provide an unfortunate snapshot of the gender equality divide that still exists in underserved areas around the world.

Women should never be forced to do menial or trivial jobs with little pay that stifle their creativity, limit their imagination, and inhibit their potential, while being viewed only as an accessory to support the dreams of men who have a stronghold on entrepreneurial power. Women play a major role in contributing to the success and quality of life in society, and deserve to be given the chance to achieve financial independence and freedom to pursue their life-altering goals.

WAVE assists in career development to boost the entrepreneurial spirit of talented women while also maintaining their cultural values, arming them with the tools and drive needed to reach for their dreams. Micro loans are designed to impact the livelihood of families by offering career guidance in the form of social, educational, career support, mentoring, and training. The program accepts those with a great willingness to work hard in attaining new skills to further their career development, as they blaze the trail for future generations of successful women.

Join the WAVE Partnership Initiative Advisory Council, sponsor our upcoming Cultural Explorations, or simply become involved in our ongoing efforts, by contacting our executive director at 818-727-0413 or email executivedirector@alofoundation.org.