JPMorgan Chase & Co. will host Elizabeth Berthe March 30 to discuss the Grameen Foundation’s Village Phone Program

JPMorgan Chase & Co. will host Elizabeth Berthe March 30 to discuss the Grameen Foundation’s Village Phone ProgramMarch 24, 2009Kelly Homan Rodoskikahoman@syr.edu

The JPMorgan Chase & Co. 2009 Spring Speaker Series at Syracuse University continues on Monday, March 30, with Elizabeth Berthe of the Grameen Foundation.

In an eye-opening discussion, “Pro-Poor Technology for Development: The Case of the Village Phone Program of the Grameen Foundation,” Berthe will dispute the assumption that modern technology eludes and marginalizes the poor. She will also share some innovative uses of technology to fight poverty. The discussion will be held from noon-1 p.m. in Room 341 of Eggers Hall and is open to the public.

Berthe manages the Village Phone Program for the Grameen Foundation Technology Center. This program, which operates in several African and Southeast Asian countries, is part of a cluster of initiatives that enhance the efficiency of microfinance institutions, generate new microbusiness opportunities and provide telecommunication access for the underprivileged.

The Grameen Foundation’s mission is to enable the poor, especially the poorest, to create a world without poverty. Working with and through local, frontline organizations and global allies, it helps them access small loans, financial services and technology solutions. Since 1997, the foundation’s microfinance and technology initiatives have reached more than 45 million people in 28 countries.

The activities of the foundation are inspired by the success in microfinance development work of the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh and its founder, Muhammad Yunus. In 2006, Yunus won the Nobel Peace Prize. He is also a founding member of the Grameen Foundation board.

About the CollaborationIn June 2007, JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Syracuse University established a unique corporate-university collaboration and joint venture. The purpose of the collaboration is to develop education and work experience innovations in the area of financial services information technology, leveraging each other’s knowledge and expertise in the building of a best in class curriculum for entry-level technologists and to collaborate on projects of joint interest that provide value to both organizations and to society. For more information about JPMorgan Chase or the Syracuse-JPMorgan Chase Collaboration, visit http://globaltech.syr.edu.

About JPMorgan Chase & Co.JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) is a leading global financial services firm with assets of $2.2 trillion, operations in more than 60 countries and more than 180,000 employees. JPMorgan Chase is a leader in investment banking, financial services for consumers, small business and commercial banking, financial transaction processing, asset management and private equity. The firm serves millions of consumers in the United States and many of the world’s most prominent corporate, institutional and government clients under its JPMorgan Chase and WaMu brands.